Epilogue
Luca
“Come on in,” I say, opening the door and inviting Emily and Jackson inside for the first of our monthly dinners before the full moon pack run.
Normally, I would grumble about Sofia’s suggestion of socializing instead of having her all to myself.
But this is important. It isn’t just any run; it’s Sofia’s first time leading as Alpha.
“Do I smell chocolate and peanut butter?” Sofia calls from the kitchen, where she’s making a salad to go with the steaks I’m about to grill. Her voice is bright, commanding without trying. Even in our kitchen, she radiates Alpha.
Emily doesn’t hesitate to say hello to me: she heads straight for Sofia and pulls her into a side hug while Sofia lays her head on Emily. My wolf rumbles, and a low growl makes its way up my throat.
“Watch it, that’s my mate you’re growling at,” Jackson grunts before punching me in the arm. “Don’t be an idiot. You know it’s purely platonic with them.”
“I know. I just don’t get why they have to keep hugging all the time,” I say, scowling into the plate of brownies Emily left with me.
Jackson lets out a laugh before rolling his eyes at me. “It’s because your mate is lovable. Deal with it. And anyway, I thought you stopped being such a grumpy prick when you finally got your mark on Fia?”
I did. I really did. These days, life is better than I ever imagined—better than I deserve.
Sofia stepping up as Alpha went seamlessly.
One of the younger warriors, Aaron, made one shitty comment and was promptly put in his place by the warriors who saw her in all her glory, taking down an Alpha single-handedly with a silver bullet in her gut.
Not that she needed them to. Sofia invited him to challenge her, and that shut him the hell up.
After that, everyone fell in line. And she’s been amazing.
She asks the elders for their advice instead of doing whatever she feels like.
Then she talks with me and Emily. It’s the closest thing to a democracy I’ve ever heard of in a wolf pack. And its early days, but it works.
Because it’s her. My Alpha. My mate.
The doorbell rings, and I tell Jackson to grab a couple of beers while I turn to answer it. Finding the last person I expected, “Ryan?”
Before I can process it, Sofia barrels past me with a squeal, throwing herself at her brother. “You came! I know I asked, but I didn’t think you actually would.” Her voice trembles with excitement. It’s only been a couple of weeks since he left, but she’s been missing him a lot.
“And miss my little sister’s first full moon pack run as Alpha?
Never,” Ryan says, giving her a squeeze.
My heart clenches when a wave of Sofia’s feelings crashes into me through the bond: relief, gratitude, pure joy.
Fates, I love that she can never hide her feelings from me anymore.
We are an open book to each other. Our bond ensures that.
I still can’t believe I tricked her into giving me a chance.
“Okay,” Sofia says, clapping her hands together. “Can you get the steaks on, Luca? I don’t want to be late for leading my first run!”
“Yes, Alpha,” I say with a smirk. She’s so fucking sexy when she gives orders. I head outside with Jackson, who shoves a beer into my hand, Ryan trailing behind us.
“So how close are you to convincing that mate of yours to go on a date?” Jackson asks. We already know Ryan struck out on his first couple of attempts with his therapist.
Ryan takes a swig of his beer, unbothered. “She’s still very against dating a patient.”
“And yet you’re grinning like a wolf with a fresh kill,” I point out, narrowing my eyes. It doesn’t make sense, but Ryan seems back to himself. His skin no longer has the sickly pallor he developed while in the cells. Instead, he’s practically glowing. His eyes twinkle. His smile is back.
His lips twitch. “It’s complicated.”
“Fates,” I mutter. “You’re sleeping with her, aren’t you?”
“Watch it, that’s my mate you’re talking about,” he snarls at me.
I raise my hands defensively. He might not be my alpha anymore, but he still is an alpha who could kick my ass. “Just threw me for a loop—she won’t date you, but she will—”
“She doesn’t exactly know it’s me,” he cuts in.
Jackson and I gape at him. How can she not know? It doesn’t make any sense. The sizzle of the steaks on the grill is the only sound as Jackson and I are left in complete confusion. Ryan doesn’t explain, and for the night that’s in it, I let it go. Because tonight isn’t about him. It’s about Sofia.
Dinner passes with the hum of voices and Sofia at the center of it all.
She doesn’t even realize how the room orbits her now, but I do.
Ryan listens as she talks through the changes she’s made—new patrol rotations, a mentorship system for younger warriors, her refusal to let the council push us around.
Pride softens his face, the same way it settles in my chest.
“Are we doing this?” Sofia asks, a wide grin on her face.
“You know I’ll always be behind you, Princess.”
Sofia and Emily slip into the bedroom and bathroom, respectively, to get undressed and shift while Ryan, Jackson, and I shift in the living area and wait for them outside.
It’s only a couple of minutes when she pushes open the door with her nose.
Sofia’s wolf—rich brown, sleek and strong—steps into the moonlight, followed by Emily’s small white form.
The sight of my mate steals my breath, even though I’ve seen her a thousand times.
Tonight is different. Tonight, she radiates power as well as her usual beauty.
She leads us through the trees toward the lake, and wolves fall in behind. Ten, twenty, fifty, a hundred—until the forest floor shudders under the rhythm of paws. Elliot isn’t here. He has been showing up a lot more, but he’s not ready for pack runs yet. I’m not sure he ever will be.
Sofia turns, her golden eyes taking in the hundred-plus wolves of different colors and sizes. We wait in silence. No one moves. It feels like even the trees are holding their breath. Anticipation tingles in my blood, my wolf bracing for the moment.
Sofia’s wolf finally throws her head back and lets out a howl that pierces the night. The sound slices through the dark: pure power and pride. It vibrates in my bones, rattles my ribs.
The answering chorus of howls rises like thunder. A wave of loyalty, showing their support for the new Alpha of Lunar Eclipse. My fur bristles with awe.
And then she turns and takes off, setting the pace like she always has.
The pack follows as she leads us on a lap of the lake.
I keep behind her, always watching her back.
Wolves peel off in pairs, driven by the moon’s magic to mate, to fight, to release.
But I don’t stray. My place is here—her shadow, her shield.
At the lake’s edge, she glances back, eyes gleaming.
I nudge her flank, and she lets out a sharp yip before veering off into the forest, away from the pack.
Game on. We race forward, faster now that it’s just us.
Leaping over fallen ditches and ducking under low-hanging branches, she leads me deep into the forest. Until it’s just us, hearts pounding, lungs burning, the scent of pine and earth wrapped around us.
Interrupted only by the scent of my forever.
And finally, she turns towards me in the center of a small clearing.
We circle each other, almost like we are about to fight, and my body is taut with anticipation.
Then her body shifts, fur receding, limbs lengthening, until she stands bare and magnificent, hair tumbling wild around her shoulders.
She’s a goddess bathed in the silver light of the moon.
I push my humanity forward, and my bones crack as my fur recedes. I’m on my knees as I return to my human form, gazing up at my beautiful mate. Fates, she is glorious. Sofia strides towards me. Her steps are purposeful.
“Why’d you stop?” I rasp. “I was just about to catch you.”
“You already did,” she whispers before dropping to her knees, cupping my face, and kissing me.
Slow, languid, decadent. Her tongue strokes mine as my hands roam her body, pulling her close, needing her everywhere.
I lower her to the ground as we continue to kiss.
Sofia hooks her leg over my hip. She guides my cock to her entrance, and I push inside her, lying side by side, facing each other.
We both moan as I push in fully and she clenches around me. She’s so tight, I could come already. We have fucked in every part of the pack lands in a hundred different ways—rough, punishing, frantic. But this is different.
It’s reverent. It’s making love to the female I will spend the rest of my life trying to please. It’s everything I never knew how much I needed.
Sofia rolls me onto my back, moving with me so that she straddles me.
Her hips rock, and I press my thumb against her clit, making small circles.
I have to grit my teeth to hold back, but as soon as she tenses and her muscles contract around me, I follow along with her.
She drops forward towards me, and I flip her onto her back.
I push my cum back inside her body and tear another orgasm from my perfect mate with my fingers.
“How did I get so lucky that you were the one for me?” I ask.
“No idea, Beta. But I’m glad you did.”
Sofia’s eyes shine golden in the moonlight, and I know I’ll never stop loving her. Even if there wasn’t a mate bond, even if we weren’t made for one another, I would choose her in every lifetime.