My fingers gently tapped at my raw lips, feeling the heat radiating off of them, and the new swollen size.

The pile of clothes were thrown on the floor, discarded the same way any apprehension that I had was tossed out the window, I had kicked and flung down tops and bottoms until I could comfortably lay flat on my back. I watched the ceiling as if it was interesting, to be truthful, though, it's nowhere near boring, and reminisced about what had just happened to me.

The fabrics tightly surrounding my form almost submerged me as Morpheus pressed his body against mine, his head tilted to the side as he leaned in further, and then finally he captured my lips in what felt like a moment that was created from pure imagination.

Morpheus took the opportunity to grab both sides of my waist with his strong hands, gripping and squeezing my hips in the process as he easily lifted me farther up the bed. My legs automatically shoved off everything that was under me, thin straps had even wrapped themselves around my ankles, and the heels of my feet were getting caught on the pant legs of jeans.

Morpheus took a hand off of me, and taking a guilty peek, I noticed that he was throwing clothes off as fast as he could with one hand, while the other held tight onto me. As if I was going to disappear if he let go.

Oh, sugar! Oh, sugar! Oh, sugar!

Naturally, my hands had no other job than to wander. Up his shirt. On his face. Everywhere. The warmth of his lips was inviting, and the longer it lasted, the more I was starting to feel like it was a dream.

But, the way his fingers curled around mine told me otherwise.

I did everything but jump when I felt a sharp sting nip at my lower lip, and I pulled away, gasping for air. How does he expect me to breathe? Can he breathe? That, however, gave him the perfect amount of time to run his lips down my neck. My emotions went wild, smashing against my heart, my brain, and even my precious lungs.

The mate bond had took me and shook me.

Before I knew it, I was obsessed. With the sparks. With the emotions. With the heat. With the feelings. With the bond.

With having a mate.

"Oh, hello, Miss Luna!"

My smile dropped, and the temperature soared, which was strange considering I was still wearing that measly, basically covering nothing, a little too short for comfort robe. I took hold of the collar and plucked at it several times. Is it hot in here?

"Annora?" I sat up, aiming towards the delicate sound of her sound, and I caught her eyes in my gaze.

"Yes, Miss Luna?" Annora asked, only just entering the room. She gently shut the door behind her, and with no struggle at all, she still was able to hold the tray on the palm of her hand. There was no tipping of the teapot, and the tall stand of treats had not once moved, everything was still.

I watched her, impressed, and tilted forward over my legs to get a better look as I questioned with a lick of my lips, "What do you have there?"

"Well, I made up a nice pot of herbal tea. And, for a little snack, with the help of the kitchen workers, I whipped up some cucumber sandwiches, prosciutto sandwiches, and spinach puffs! I figured that we could organize the room and chat while the Alpha is gone off for an important meeting, how does that sound, Miss Luna?"

"You never cease to amaze me, Annora." My mouth watered as she stepped closer, and the scent of fresh baked pastries pervaded the air.

"You are too kind, Miss Luna," she gushed while smiling brightly, even her eyes crinkled. "I've been practicing a long time to serve you. I am beyond lucky to be the Luna's personal maid, especially after all these centuries. To be at the head of caring for the Luna, it is unbelievable. I can not express to you enough how much this means to me! And, the glares of envy I have been getting, oh, everyone is so jealous!"

Annora began to set up the treats on the table at the side, the one where I originally ate breakfast on, and I stayed silent on the bed.

Am I really that important?

The idea of someone using bragging rights because they can be near me was insane to think about. And, I swung my legs over the side as a new idea popped into my head. "Well," I started to speak my thought aloud, "I should be dressed by now, huh?"

"Oh, no worries, Miss Luna!" Annora assured me, tsking at my own scold as if it was an absurd thing for me to even admit. "I can have an outfit picked out and on you faster than you could say 'Goddess'!"

"Has anyone ever told you how useful you are? You're like a second Viviana, just less sarcastic and bossy." Annora simply laughed at my comparison.

"Is Viviana a close friend of yours?" She asked, and turned to a pile of clothes on the floor, and in it she pulled out a blush red jumper dress. Coincidently, a gift from Viviana.

"She's been my best friend since-" a sigh of amusement slipped past my lips, "-since forever, really."

"Oh, that's so nice!" She dug into another mountain and picked out a black long-sleeve t-shirt, Annora hummed to herself approvingly as she placed them together on the bed. "That name does ring a bell, though. Any connection to Max Farren?

"That's her mate!" I replied happily, knowing that it would make my settle to the pack house easier if Annora and Viviana knew each other. Could she know Johnny, as well?

"I thought so! She's lovely to be around, and always insists on helping us out." Annora continued to speed around the room, grabbing bits of clothing and tossing it on the bed, aligning the outfit perfectly. At one point, she stopped to look at me and complimented Viviana again, "Just last week, Viviana was volunteering in the infirmary, and she was needed, too. A pair of pups, first shift and they nearly cracked their skulls together! Thank the Goddess that they only needed a few stitches."

"Viviana has always liked being at the pack house. She would go on for hours about how nice everyone is, and that everything is handmade." I nodded my head in agreement, "So far, I would have to say she's right."

Annora gave my arm a light squeeze, "I'm so glad that you're enjoying your stay here, Miss Luna! Anyway-" she led me in front of the finished look, "-what do you think?"

"You're going to be great friends with Viviana by the end of the week," I told her, and snatched up the clothes before she could even say another word. My bare feet moved towards the bathroom door, and I closed it shut behind me.

Off went the robe, and then I was tugging on pieces of the outfit quickly, not caring to check how it was fitting until the very end. I slipped my dark socks on, pulled my shirt over my head easily, and made sure the straps of the dress were going to stay on my shoulders. The usual. I straightened up in front of the full length mirror.

The black shirt was like second skin over my top half and the dress hugged me in all the right places, my knees were covered and the socks rested under my ankles.

I ambled back into the room, doing a full on confident twirl with my skirt. "You know what, Annora, you got good taste. I don't know why you're always wearing that plain outfit when I see you, do you have to wear that, or?" At the view of the clean path under me, I finally looked up from staring at my own feet, having stood there and admired my outfit that whole time, and what I saw next made me take a step back. The floor was as clear as day, and the remnants of Morpheus trying to move me in forcibly was gone. My jaw stayed planted to the floor. And, I gasped loudly, "Annora! You did all this in that little time?"

Annora waved my reaction of shock away, "Oh, please, Miss Luna, this was the easiest part of training." She turned to give me another grin, knowing that she did some serious magic. "You are absolutely beautiful! Now, come, we have to organize and place everything in your closet."

She guided us through a door, and I observed her movements closely as she pointed to random areas of the room. It was completely empty, an unused room with shelves and rods with hangers. Throughout the entire time, I followed her every command and merely nodded when she asked questions like 'Shall we group them into colours?' and 'How about we put your fancy dresses on this rod?'.

It felt so good to not worry.

I was so used to being the responsible one, at home and with friends, that it was so freeing to let another take control. I mean, like Annora said, she trained for this. Annora is a literal professional. She did practically everything, and instead I was the help. Now, I know how Johnny feels.

Once we were finished, and we were both sat down on the matching chairs next to the table, a question had formed. I bit into the last treat, a tiny cucumber sandwich, and the refreshing taste exploded in my mouth. Those kitchen workers really know what they're doing, because if it was up to me I would be eating a slice of toast with a chocolate bar for a side dish. I closed my eyes as I chewed softly, melting in my seat.

Annora sipped at her cup of tea, giggling as she openly stated the obvious, "You must be really enjoying the snacks, Miss Luna."

"You know it," I said proudly. The question itched at me once again. "Annora, could I ask you something?"

"Of course! Go right ahead, Miss Luna!"

I moved up in my seat, eyeing her attentively as I asked hesitantly, "Do you have a mate?"

"Oh, yes!" Annora said right away, her excitement rolling off of her in waves. I noticed how she lit up the same way Johnny would at the mention of finding his mate. This is how they all act, already in some type of love. "I just have not had the chance to meet him yet."

"Do you want to?" As soon as I spoke the words, I realized how stupid I sounded.

"More than anything." She answered, and bit her lip slowly, almost as if she was about to tread on a sensitive subject, and in a way she did. But, it was needed. "Miss Luna, if I may, I would like to offer you a different view on mates."

My lips turned up into a small, hopefully reassuring smile at the sound of her nervous voice. Poor girl, she's terrified of insulting me. "I would love to hear it, Annora."

She let out a long sigh of relief. "Well, to start off, Miss Luna, there are no mistakes with mates. None. When she pairs you, she pairs you for a lifetime of happily being with your other half. As soon as a werewolf shows their wolf side, then a connection to someone else is automatically formed, and to make it official she will tie a knot between your souls that can not be cut. You can resist it all you want, but there is no changing the facts, mates are forever."

"But, rejection?"

She scoffed sourly, "Oh, pish posh! Rejection is nothing. It's only temporary, just enough to get away, but the bond will always be there. Every time they walk into a room, you will sense it. Every time you touch, you will feel it. The bond will keep you up at night. Humans always talk about how rejection is possible and that there's a chance that it wasn't supposed to happen in the first place. And, yes, it was common once, but now it's nearly forbidden. It was only created to keep the humans safe, and so that we could continue to live in secret."

Her speech made my skin crawl.

"Werewolves do not prosper without their mates, Miss Luna. That point in time was not good for us," she admitted quietly. "Rejection isn't natural. Death is the only natural way to avoid it. And, if you never meet your mate, then you won't ever feel the mate bond. I wouldn't wish that fate onto anyone."

My phone, the one we found cracked and hidden beneath piles of my belongings, started ringing. The repetitive beeps were soft compared to the sadness that enveloped the air.

"You can answer that, Miss Luna. It might be important," Annora sniffled, her nose twitching red, and her eyes were shiny. Don't worry, I wanted to say, you'll find him soon.

The name on my screen flashed.

Viviana.

💕