Her Mates Fates

Chapter Five

Abel POV

Goddess, she is sexy. Her breasts are larger than a handful and they bounce from the force of me pulling off her shirt. Freya, of course, is not wearing a bra. I want to take her hard n*****s in my mouth and make her moan. I want to make her c*m like that.

Bringing my lips to her neck, I tease her soft skin with my tongue. Her whimpers make my d**k hard. My wolf growls, he wants to see hers.

When I come up from my tease and look into her eyes, everything around me shifts in a whirlwind.

I’m standing in front of Freya’s mother on the day of my eighteenth birthday. She is shanking her head at me in a knowing-motherly way. My mother died during childbirth when I was only a boy. Our Luna was the closest woman I had to a mother.

“Abel, I know she is your mate, but she is not your fate. You cannot mate her, nor can you mark her. Freya is meant to unite the packs and will need to be unmated and unmarked when she receives her powers from the goddess… I need you to promise me that you will not act upon your urges to be with my daughter… the fate of our pack depends on it.”

I nod my head and bow to my Luna. “Yes, Luna, I promise.” I hear a much younger voice agree.

The Luna's request meant nothing to me then. Freya was only 14 at the time and I did not plan on her knowing I was her mate for four more years. She would have received her powers at 16… it all makes sense now. Freya never received her powers when she was supposed to. Her mother knew that she wouldn’t. Her mother knew that we would find each other again before Freya went through the ritual.

The childhood packhouse fades around me and Freya’s moan pulls me back to reality. We have somehow switched positions, and I am hovering over her. Her naked body was beneath me and at my mercy.

Her back is arched, and her breathing is erratic as I toy with her n****e using my tongue. My wolf keeps fighting me for control and I know I need to stop him. I want her so badly and so does he, but I can’t have her yet. I need to figure out what her mother's vision and warning were about first.

I shove my wolf deep into the back of my mind and take complete control.

I slowly work my way up Freya’s body giving her gentle kisses on her skin. When I look into her eyes, I am greeted with deep pools of lust. It takes all of the strength I have inside me to pull away from her and cover her with the blanket I brought her earlier.

“Wh-wh-what are you doing?” she stammers as she tries to scoop her since up off the ground where my wolf made her melt.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have kissed you. We’re both drunk.” I say hoping to use it as an excuse.

I’m not drunk, and she’s clearly not drunk, but I have to say something. I don’t want to hurt her; goddess knows I want to mate her. I want to sink my k9s into her and mark her as my mate… but I cannot mess with fate. Not to mention I still need to break up with Layla – but I have not even started to research how I can do that.

I realize my shirt is off and grab it from the back of the lounge chair. Pulling it over my head, I walk to her bedroom door and leave before I lose all control.

What am I going to do?

_____________________

Today has already been a hurricane of disappointment. First, my Beta and Brother informs me about a breach at the border that

involved some forceful witches this morning causing us to lose one of our warriors. Then just a few minutes ago my Gama called notifying me that his informant's information lead him nowhere and that he was thinking of pushing his flight back to gather more intel. I need Gavin here; I can’t keep relying on my little brother to fill his void.

Grey just found his mate a week ago and he has been so busy filling in for Gavin that they haven’t even marked each other.

I feel bad. Gavin has been gone for two weeks now. I sent him out on a lead that had guaranteed us some promising information about the coven that has been targeting us, but now he calls me and tells me he has nothing.

Besides all of that, I cannot get the need to mate Freya out of my groin. Our mate bond is pushing for me to mark her, pushing for me to give in to my mate's delicious scent. I haven’t seen her since I walked out on her last night. Leaving her naked on her balcony wanting me. I cannot tell her about her mother’s vision – the Luna forbid me. I am unsure how I am going to explain to her my erupt change of heart last minute. This is a mess.

There’s a light thump on my door that steals my attention away from my work. “It’s open.” I bark, really not in the mood for any more shenanigans today. Whoever walks in that door better have good news.

“Good afternoon, Alpha.” Zora greets me as she walks in and takes a seat in one of the chairs in front of my desk.

“It’s always a pleasure to see you, ma’am. I assume there is a reason you are here.” I get straight to the point.

Zora was my mother’s best friend when she was younger and the only elder to make it out alive when our pack was ambushed. She has a unique gift that only a few know about, me being one. She can take someone’s life with just the touch of her hand. This is a rare gift because it is the gift of the demons. If this information were to get out, she would be used as a weapon against us. Her gift is the only reason she, and her twin children survived the attack six years ago.

“Jacob and Mona turned 16 last week. There is a crescent moon coming up in six days. I would like your permission to take them to Roche River to begin their ritual.” She states.

Awe, the Promise of the Moon Goddess Ritual. Her children are the youngest full-blooded crescent moons in the pack. It is important for us to stick to traditions when going through our rituals since they are our future.

“You would need to have a few warriors accompany you. I don’t have to tell you that someone was killed this morning because I am sure rumors have already started. It is not safe right now, and we cannot leave this pack.” I declare, knowing I am starting a fight.

She squares her shoulders and frowns. “Abel, that will not do. The power of our gift is based upon the journey itself and the support of our pack. I will not take that tradition from my children, and I will not let you do so either. We all have to make the journey together.” She counters.

I honestly wouldn’t have expected anything less from Zora. She is a strong mother and she always reminds me of a tradition trying to help guide my decisions.

“Zora, your children have endured their pack being slaughtered in front of them including their father. Then they had to watch as we slay the leaders of this pack in a revenge frenzy. Don’t you think those traumatizing experiences are enough?”

“No. The support and the power of the pack will make their gift more powerful.” her answer came quickly. Her eyes burn into mine igniting a twinge of pain in my brain. It’s just a warning from her, but I know that it is also a threat.

Why do people have to try my patience? How do I protect the pack here if I do not have any Crescent moons here to keep them safe? Don’t the old women know am just trying to keep everyone safe?

The longer I stay silent the stronger the pain in my brain burns.

“Alright, if you could give me until this afternoon to come up with a plan of action. I need to map out the best path and strategize who I need to stick on guard in our absence. I will call for you later.”

Almost instantly, the pain subsides.

“Yes, Alpha.” She gets up and walks out bowing in my direction as a show of gratitude.

When she leaves, I snap and throw my stapler at the door. This journey is not in my favor. I have to go for the ritual to work. For the waters to bind you to the Crescent pack the Alpha has to be there. Your powers are then determined by your journey and the strength of your pack. In the middle of this conflict with the witches, I fear that if I leave my pack for an extended amount of time that it will make them vulnerable. I will need to come up with a solid plan to keep everyone safe.

_____________________

“Amber, I need you to find Freya and bring her to my office in half an hour.” I link the omega who is assigned to my mate.

“Yes, Alpha.” She obeys.

I file the paperwork on my desk and bring out an old map of the Roche River. “Damon, I need you and Tori to come to my office. Also, if you could bring Grey and Layla. You got half an hour”. I link Damon.

“Mhmm.” He agrees with a huff but does not say a word. He had way too much to drink last night I’m sure he is feeling it today.

I move to the conference table laying out the map neatly in the middle of the table. I pace the floor waiting on the others. Blaze escorts Layla into the conference area. It does not surprise me that she is the first to arrive. Or course, she would be the first one here, it is her job. – or was her job? I need to have a conversation with her.

Layla and I are a great team. She found her mate in her last year of high school, but he died in the war that killed the majority of our pack. I had thought that my mate died as well when I had woken up outside the cave and Freya was gone. We grew our relationship by helping each other deal with the grief of losing our mates.

A few months into our friendship, we started to comfort each other on a physical basis. We never made our relationship official throughout all these years. Last year we came up with a plan for her to be my packs Luna and she has been in training ever since. She is now a great leader of my pack, and she is an exceptional partner to me.

I love Layla.

However, I am not in love with her as I am with Freya.

I greet Layla with a hug. We linger like this for a moment in the familiar warmth of each other.

“I need you to know that I found my mate,” I whisper into her hair.

She backs up from me dropping her arms, her big brown eyes are wide in surprise.

“Oh, my goddess… what does that mean for us?” She asks and makes her way to one of the seats around the table.

“Is that why I am here? Are you breaking up with me?” She asks. She wears a worried expression on her face that she tries to hide with a smile.

Her nervousness is thick around her though and it hurts my heart. She is a good person. If I had known that I would find Freya again, I would have never gotten into a relationship with Layla. She does not deserve a second broken heart.

“I need you to assist me with something. I will brief you once everyone is present. If we could talk later about my mate's situation, I’d appreciate that.” I say in the most balanced way that I can. I need Layla’s head in the game and not focused on her broken heart.

She nods and casually waits for the others. Her long red-painted nails tap on the solid wood to an upbeat rhythm.

My brother walks in and greets Layla with a kiss on the cheek like he always does. He sits across from her and silently waits. Next joins Damon and Tori. They walk hand in hand. Tori has on a tight dress showing off her pup bump and it makes me even more nervous. So much could happen to her pup while on this journey.

Freya walks in soon after wearing black leather pants and a black crop top that has slashes in between her breasts showing off traces of her sternum. Her belly button is peeking between her pants and her crop top. Her heels make her legs look lean and long.

My heart skips a beat when my nose picks up her scent. I want to lick her from her toes to her navel and then some. She is breathtakingly sexy. She smiles at Damon and takes a seat next to him never making eye contact with me.

“Okay, Alpha, why are were here.” Layla jumps the gun.

I take a seat pointing to the map. “Roche River.”

I explain the situation about Zora and express my disapproval of her persistence in sticking to tradition and involving the entire pack. “This is why you all are here. Which path should we all take?” I ask and look around the room.

“We?” Layla asks.

“Well almost all of us. I will need all members of our pack who are not Crescent Moons to stay behind.” I answer.

The room is buzzing with anticipation when Freya pipes up. “Why do you want me to go?”

“Because princess, you will be performing the ritual too. I know that you were robbed of the ability to go on your own journey to the waters. I want you to receive your gift.” I say to her with a soft smile.

I am hoping that once she goes through the ritual I can finally claim her as my mate. Every moment of the day thoughts of her are running through my mind. I want to touch her, kiss her, mate her. I want to see my fang marks scared onto her flesh. I want to watch her belly grow over and over as we create the new generation of Alphas.

“You’re a Crescent Moon?” Layla asks coking her head to the side.

Grey snickers, “She’s THE Crescent Moon. She is the oldest daughter of our late Alpha. This is Freya O’Clair.” He brags.

Layla lifts her eyebrows “And you’re the Freya who was… - is mated to Abel?” Layla asks Freya thieving a blush from her cheeks.

Freya nods and shifts in her chair, clearly uncomfortable by the encounter.

“Well, you are certainly not dead.” Layla mumbles to herself and gives me a “Go to hell” look.

“OMG, I just realized something! Do you know what this could mean for our pack?” Tori states. Tori moves to the edge of her seat and looks around the room in excitement.

“We all know that the first daughter of the Crescent Moon Alpha will be the most powerful in our pack. But, ledged states that if she is mated to a Crescent Alpha, both of them will be blessed with gifts beyond measure. This happened one other time in history. Alpha Gyles was a Magic absorber and ended up absorbing his mate’s gift which resulted in her demise. He wanted to be the ultimate power hog. However, years later the pack finally killed the bastard, and their Beta took over.” She tells the room.

“Wait so the Alpha was mated to his daughter?” Grey asks.

“No, her father died, and the Beta took over as Alpha of Crescent Moon. He went through the Alpha ritual and then she ended up mated to him a few years later. He apparently didn’t want anything to do with her and just absorbed her power which killed her.” Tori explained.

“Abel is not the Alpha of Crescent Moon nor is he a blood Alpha… He was the Future Beta of Crescent Moon… He is the Alpha of Bluemoon. Our bond would not change our powers.” Freya points out. Everyone’s chatter fades into silence.

“Therefore, his and my mate's bond is irrelevant.” She spits.

She is clearly upset with me and hurt over last night. I felt how much she wanted me in our kiss. I felt the love that she has for me and the passion and yet I walked away. I had to. I know she does not understand yet but she will.

How do I reassure her that I DO want her? How do I reassure her that now is not our time without her hating me and feeling rejected?

“Alright, Damon and Layla, I need you to stay a bit longer to go over the route we must take. The rest of you are dismissed.” I say harshly. I’m not necessarily upset, however, the pain I feel from Freya is not comforting.

Everyone but Layla and Damon leave.

I dial Gavin and he picks up on the first ring. It takes a few long hours to map out our trail. We also go over weapons and strategy.

“Gavin, I need you back tonight we leave in the morning,” I order my Gamma over the phone.

“Grabbing a flight in one hour sir. I purchased a return ticket while we were going over route options.” He confirmed.

_____________________

I hang up the phone with Gavin. “I’ll inform Zora. Get a good night’s rest, we leave in the morning. Send her in.” I tell Damon as I stand up to show them out.

We have gone over our route and our placement strategy. Before I close my door, I bark out a few more tasks that I need them each to do and kiss Layla on the hand offering her an apologetic grin.

“Just give me until this afternoon. Then we can talk.” I beg. She nods and walks off to start on her assignments.

I grab the map and stroll back into my office to find a sealant to brush over it. I don’t want the marks to smudge if it were to get wet. The skies are cloudy this afternoon and I can smell the rain coming. Zora picked the perfect time to take this trip.

“You summoned me, Alpha.” Zora interrupts my thoughts.

“Zora, always a pleasure. We leave in the morning before dawn. You will be accompanied by the entire Crescent moon pack. Freya will be going through her ceremony as well. We have already mapped out our journey and Layla and Freya have been tasked with packing the supplies.” I tell her as I brush the sealant on the map. She nods her head and thanks me.

As I walk her out, she turns to me. “You’re a good kid Abel.” She states and smiles the warmest of smiles. “Your mom would be proud of the man you have become,” Zora adds.

“Thanks,” I mutter, feeling pain twist in my heart.

My mother died while giving birth to my baby sister when I was ten. My baby sister died hours later before she even had a name. My father along with the pack raised my brothers and me after she passed. He raised us like any father would, to be tough. Other kids had their mothers there to counter the roughness of being boys. To show little men how to be compassionate, emotional, and gentle. My brothers and I didn’t get that. I had to learn everything through my experiences. To hear what my mother would think of me now along with knowing my mate is not dead, stirs an emotion in me I have not felt in so many years… hope.