Aria's POV 

"I accept", I said with a daunting smile.

"What!!!"their screams reach my ears.

"Funny how you think, you stand a chance at me", Jessica taunts, "A little attack took you out for days."

A deep guttural growl from my mate for the disrespect makes the look on her face fade instantly.

"That should be my problem, right?", I answer, a sneer appearing on my face, "Take your plastic self out of this room before I do it for you, doll."

Kael and Aldin release gasps in pure shock, my usual timid self completely gone.

Martha sports a huge smile on her face, "This is interesting", she exclaims, "I always knew you had it in you."

Jessica quickly regains herself, "Do not think for a second that your little shenanigans mean anything", she answers quickly, "I will crush you, you better watch your back." She walks briskly out of the room.

"You definitely have your hands full with this one", Aldin finally spoke up, finally recovering from his shock.

"I look forward to it", Alpha Kael answers with  a warm smile, his blue eyes then peer in my direction, "I am not happy with this, Kitten."

My brows rise in question, surprised at the endearment, "I see no problem with my decision, Alpha", I reply, my face turns cold, "You should be happy that you finally have a chance to be with your "beloved" Jessica." I throw him a challenging look, folding my arms.

His beautiful eyes meet mine.......wait did I just say "beautiful"? This mate bond is really something, but I will not let him in so easily.

I get lost again in those orbs, a loud cough breaks me out of the trance I'm in.

"I just remembered, we have eeemmmm some shelves to clean" Martha stutters.

"No we don't............." She pulls a reluctant Aldin out of the room.

A deathly silence fills the room, it is almost suffocating. 

He kneels right by my bed, "First, I'm your mate you will not call me Alpha", I gulp at his tone, "And I have the right to be scared, you're my mate for heaven's sake, Jessica is one of the best female warriors we have and worse with Beta blood flowing in her veins."

"I can even find a way around it and prevent the contest as a whole", he continues with so much conviction. 

"Wait a minute so you're implying that I am weak?", I growl, "Not even the benefit of doubt, you feel she will definitely win, right?"

"You know that's not what I mean, I care about you, she just has years of experience and training on you", he tries to reason.

The keyword "tries", funny how my mate feels like Jessica is better than I am, that's all I can hear.

"We'll show him", Willow states deep in my mind, "In fact we need this trial, mate, needs to understand that we are not some fragile wallflower that needs his saving, the moon goddess made us his mate and Luna for a reason, we'll work our way to the top."

"Thank you, Willow", I answered, "We're in this together."

I pull myself from my thoughts, "Alpha", I mutter a little too sweetly, "I'd like to join the pack's training sessions, as you mentioned I have a lot of catching up to do", I said gritting my teeth in annoyance. 

He gives me a thoughtful gaze for a few seconds, "Sure thing, it would even help you socialize with your pack members before I announce you as Luna."

My eyes roll to the back of my head at his assertion, but I'm too tired to argue. I hum softly in agreement. 

This will definitely be fun, I'm tired of being in the shadows and hiding myself, I think this is my second chance at life to make better decisions and find myself. 

"I'll let you rest a bit, your eyes are drooping already", he says, "Good night, Kitten". He pressed a firm kiss on my forehead before I could move away.

I shoot him a menacing glare which he just winks and chuckles in return to.

My eyes close almost immediately. I hear faint footsteps leave my room, and the door closes shut.

***

"I'm happy my bestie is finally discharged", Martha giggles, trotting beside me.

My lips stretched to a full blown smile, "Same here, shorty", I replied with a wink.

"How dare you, Ria", she says, exasperated, pointing her fingers in my face, "You're just a few inches taller, idiot."

"You sure about that?", she gives me a hard jab.

"I am planning to run away, if you continue at this rate", she continues, "You're worse than I ever was, and they call me a menace."

We burst out in a fit of giggles. Martha has a way of making me feel completely at ease, as we are heading towards Kael's office. He has been trying to dissuade me from competing with Jessica for my position, but I'm aware that it's our tradition and it must be done.

Our feet pad softly against the wooden floor. My palms feel sweaty, I feel so nervous to ask my mate to join in training with other werewolves in the pack.

We arrive at his office door in comfortable silence. Martha threw me a wink and said, "Have fun, kiddo." She leans against the wall, folding her arms.

Just as I was about to knock on the door, his deep voice reached my ears, "Come in, Kitten."

My hands twist the door knob, pushing the door open. My feet slowly step into the office. My eyes reach his blue orbs, he leans back on his chair sporting a teasing smirk.

"I was almost sure you wouldn't come", he says, "You've been running away from me, after being discharged."

I give him a glare, "No, I've just been busy."

"Busy? I've missed you so much, especially your sassy mouth", he finishes with a grin.

"Is that all you called me here for?" I say with an attitude.

A sigh escapes his lips, "I want to spend some time with you, this was the only way I could combine you to meet me."

"I told you I've not been running away, I've just had a lot on my plate these days", I answer. 

"Aria, you said you would give me a chance but you haven't even spared any time for us to get to know each other, please give me a chance I won't ruin it again, please", he utters with so much conviction. 

Butterflies fill my belly, I have missed my mate. Even my wolf, Willow howls at the back of my mind, eager to be close to him.

"Fine, I'll put in effort to make this work", I reply, "Just don't push me away again because of your fears, okay?"

"I can't even push you away now that I have had you so close to me, it's taking every ounce of my strength to push back the urge of holding you in my arms." He says, looking at me intently. 

My cheeks turn beet red at his confession.

"You know that's what has been on your mind though you put on a tough front", Willow says with a smug smile in my mind.

"Shut it, stupid", I retorted, "No one asked you."

She chuckles sweetly, drifting deep into mind. 

Kael stood up from his chair, his solid footsteps approaching me swiftly with ease. I try shifting my gaze away from him but his fingers grip my chin mildly, making me face him.

"I do not want to ruin the moment but I'm scared of you getting hurt during the tournament, would you at least consider pulling out for the meantime."

My defensive walls came up, "I won't do that....."

"Wait, let me finish", he interrupts me firmly, "I will let you compete against her but on one condition." 

"Okay, what's the catch?"

"I would like you to begin training at the pack grounds, so that it'll be a fair fight at least", he says staring into my eyes, "You are the strongest woman I know, please don't think for one second that......."

A thrill of excitement shoots through my veins, without thinking I throw my arms around his neck in a tight hug.

"Thank you, thank you so much", I interrupted him before he could finish. "Thank you for believing in me and even considering this, I accept."

He gets out of the shock at my actions and wraps his arms around me tightly. 

"It's so hard for me to keep my world at bay and make this arrangement but at least, this is a compromise", he says with a smile. "The smile on your face though makes this decision totally worth it."

I try to pry my hands off him, but he pulls me closer to him, holding me against himself.

"Maria mentioned that Aldin is in charge of training with the Enforcer, so who would be my trainer since I'm starting completely new", I ask.

He chuckles softly, "You think I'd let anyone else train you mmmmmm?"

My brows knot in confusion, "I don't understand?"

He rolls his eyes, "You're mine in every way and mine to train, now do you get it?"

I blush deeply "S...sure", I stutter and get shy.

A smile lit his usually cold demeanour, his scars making him look so handsome. 

"I have one last request to make of you", he says, getting nervous all of a sudden. 

"Shoot", I say with a reassuring smile.

"Will you go on a date with me?"

Aria's POV 

"Yes, I'd love to", I say, breaking the silence. 

I'd love to give this a chance, that's the least I can do. I won't let my fears rear their head back again and ruin my second chance at love.

He let out a sigh in relief, "I thought you would decline my offer, this means a whole lot to me. I'd love to know everything about you", he says, "Your dress is in your room, be ready by eight, Kitten."

"Okay, I look forward to it, Alpha", I muttered with inflamed cheeks.

His eyes darken at my words, "Do well to behave, Kitten." His lips stretch out in a smile, "I love it when you call me, Alpha."

"Jeez I'm leaving now", I answer, "You're making me feel all shy."

I wiggle out of his loving arms, rushing out of his office. His loud laughter can be heard down the hallway. 

Unfortunately for me I have a horrible sense of direction. The hallway feels like it is closing in on me, I wish I hadn't rushed out of Kael's office. My pack is yet to be officially joined with the Cantara Pack. 

"Are you lost, scum", a harsh feminine voice pulled me from my thoughts. 

I raise my head in question towards the familiar voice. Jessica is standing right in front of me, with folded arms leaning against the wall. A hateful gaze directed at me.

"Are you following me?" I ask in question, guarding the expression on my face.

"You're not worth my time", she answers with spite.

I roll my eyes at her antics, "Okay, what is it you want this time?" I say, "You're wasting my precious time."

"You feel so smug thinking you have won", Jessica says in my face. "Watch your back cause, Kael is mine."

"It's Alpha Kael to you, remember?" I gloat.

Her eyes switched to an orange hue, her wolf surfacing fighting from dominance. She takes a step inching close to me, "You'd wish you never said that, Runt", she growls out. 

Her eyes were glazed over for a short-time, it seems as if she is speaking to someone through the mindlink, "Enjoy your date", she finishes with a smirk.

How did she know that we are having a date? Someone is bipolar it seems. Well, her problem, I'd love to see the dress Kael picked out for me. I can't wait to impress my mate, blushing at the thought.

I follow Jessica's sweet perfume, and find myself in the familiar parts of the hallway leading to my room. I opened the door to my room but something wasn't right, someone had entered my room.

I took a deep whiff of the scent but it didn't seem familiar. I know Martha was here but her scent was really faint, I'll figure it all out later.

My eyes scan the room in suspicion to find anything amiss, and there it was lying on my bed. Tears pricked at my eyes, in hurt and disbelief. 

"Ari, are you alright?" Martha's voice resounds behind me.

I spare her a quick glance, pushing myself forward. I kneel beside my bed picking up the beautiful dress and heels delivered to my room now in shreds.

A sharp gasp fills the room. "That two-faced mutt", Martha says with her eyes darkening in fury. We both know who did this without any spoken words. She spins abruptly, heading towards the door.

"It's fine, right now I just need to find a dress for my date, I'll deal with this later." I answer, wrapping my hands firmly around her arms to prevent her from doing anything rash.

"I have the perfect dress and fitting shoes for you", she says, giving me a reassuring smile. 

"Really? But you're a size smaller than I am, right?" I say utterly discouraged. It was already almost time for my date and I had nothing fitting for it.

"Well, my Dad got me a gift for my last birthday but it never really fit since it's a size bigger than I am."

A subtle sigh of relief escapes my lips, my demeanour brightens almost immediately.

"Well what are you standing there for, let's go!" I move swiftly past her, heading towards her room. 

Our feet thud loudly as we hasten to catch up with time. We slip into Martha's room, completely disorganised and in disarray. 

"Oops, I'm so sorry it's just so stressful to tidy things out with my numerous clothes", She says, batting her lashes at me innocently. 

"That's what you said the last fifty times, idiot", I say bursting into a fit of giggles. She joined me in as we relished in the moment.

She walks into her closet and steps out with a beautiful red dress and stilettos. She throws them towards me, points towards the bathroom. "Go wash off, so I can work my magic."

***

I stare at my luscious curves in the mirror. The shade of my dress compliments my tan skin. 

A sharp whistle distracts me, "You look ethereal, too beautiful to put into words." Martha compliments.

Red hue quickly fills my cheeks, "Are you sure he'd love this?" I shyly take out hair from my face.

"Of course he will, just you wait", she says. "I love you bestie, don't forget chin up and eyes high and proud."

I hug her tightly. "Most importantly have fun", she finishes as she pushes me out of the door. 

The scent of my mate quickly fills my nostrils, I peer beneath my lashes and see him staring with so much intensity. This makes my knees weak, no one has ever made me feel so cherished. He's staring at me as if I mean the world to him, his eyes though guarded say it all.

"You look rather dashing", I mention with so much confidence though my palms were so sweaty.

He clears his throat, "Thank you, Kitten, you look extremely beautiful, I can't put it into words."

"Thank you, Alpha", I tease him lightly, taking his outstretched arm.

"Keep pushing it, Kitten", he says with so much conviction, "Hopefully, you don't regret your actions, because my resolve is slowly breaking to pieces especially after seeing you in that dress."

"It'll be a short drive to our destination", Kael mentions making small talk.

We slowly steer towards the front door, I caught a whiff of Alpha Omari,  or better still the dead beat that rejected me, thinking I was unworthy. I am so grateful that he did reject me, now I have a second chance with a stronger mate that is beautiful inside out. I school my emotions incase of any altercation.

"Good evening, Alpha Kael", Omari mentions with a scowl on his face.

My mate raises his brows in question, "Good evening, Alpha Omari", he answers. 

"You seem to be on your way out", Omari asks Kael, though his eyes are fixated on me. I return his gesture with a condescending look. 

A possessive growl pushes past my mate's lips as he pushes me completely behind him. He then wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me alongside him until we get to a black sleek car.

His arm pulls the car door open, and I take a seat. He then walks swiftly towards his side, opens the door, steps in and we drive off.

I get comfortable in his leather seats. I've never been in a car before, moreso an expensive one like this. He then places his large palm on my thigh drawing random patterns. 

"Are you okay?" I ask due to the silence that fills the car.

He then gives me a long gaze, "Is there something going on that I should know?" His voice is calm but his eyes say a completely different story. He was pissed, that was obvious 

"There's nothing going on between us, if that's what you're asking", I say defensively, pushing his arms away.

He releases a sigh, "I'm sorry if I pissed you off, I just detest the way he was staring at you like he wanted every ounce of you." 

I still didn't look at him, staring out the window as if it was so interesting. 

"I'm sorry for ruining our date night, can we start over, mmmm?" He mutters.

"Just promised me your head wouldn't start having wild thoughts when someone behaves like that, I can't control them but I want nothing to do with them, okay?" I answer.

I may have overreacted as well, I'm yet to tell him about my rejection. I will in time, trust needs to be built though.

"I'm sorry for blowing things out of proportion", I finish with a smile.

He veers into a dark parking lot, he then kisses my fingers making me blush hard. We get out of the car and head towards the fine dining.

"I wanted something simple, decent but elegant so you'd be comfortable", he mutters as our feet hit the tarred road. "Let's see if you'd like it."

He pushes the twin doors open and we walk into the nice diner, taking our seats. It is so tranquil and homely with menus spread across the tables.

A waiter walks up to us, bows in respect and takes our orders. We did small talk here and there.

"I am considering merging the packs together officially, Omari proposed the idea since your pack was destroyed and it seems you will be here a long while if not forever, what do you think?"

My eyes widen in surprise, is my mate already asking me for my opinion on matters. I'm not even Luna yet officially. 

"I think it's a beautiful idea, it will give the pack more stability and they would be able to enjoy privileges aligned with being a part of the Cantara pack", I answer with a smile pulling on my lips.

"I wouldn't lie, I only considered this for selfish reasons", he says with a smirk.

"What's that?" 

"I'll have you by my side forever, no questions asked", he replies as if he won a lottery. 

"Speaking of forever, can I join pack training tomorrow?"

Aria's POV 

"Yes, you can join in tomorrow, Kitten", Kael says with a reassuring smile to my surprise. 

A loud squeal escapes my lips, this will be so exciting. It's my first step to cementing my claim of being his Luna. I need this really bad, the fact that no one knows about my abilities gives me an upper hand.

The waiter walks in with our order, and places it on our table.

"You won't regret this, I promise", I mutter in excitement as I dig into the food savouring the explosive bursts of spices in my mouth.

"I'd do anything to make you happy", he replies with a glint in his eyes.

We finish our dinner making small talk and head to the car. I lay my head on the window and pass out from exhaustion.

"....tten, Kitten", a faint voice echoes in my ears, someone shakes me awake. 

"Mmmmmm?" I say, rubbing my eyes to clear any sign of sleep.

"We are home, can I carry you to your room?" He asks.

"Yes please, my feet hurt from the heels", I answer with a groggy voice.

"I was only trying to be civil but you're in no shape to walk", he states picking me up gently with ease, walking towards the pack house. 

This baby treatment is making me feel like numerous butterflies are flying all over my belly. I didn't think he'd actually do it, I'm definitely not used to being treated well.

"Is she okay?" I hear Martha's sweet voice asking my mate about me.

"Shhh" He shushes her, "She's fine but sleepy."

He pushes a door open and lays me gently on the bed, kissing me softly on the forehead. I quickly fell deep asleep again. 

***

I pry my eyes open as the rays of sunlight hit me. I feel almost suffocated...

Ooops!!! I didn't change my dress yesterday, I had slept off. A soft smile appeared on my lips, he didn't undress me and that means so much I'd like to take everything slow.

"Get up, lazy bum we'll be late for training" Martha hollered right outside my door.

"Give me a minute", I answer with a loud voice.

I fling my duvet aside racing towards the bathroom in a hurry. In about ten minutes I was set for training. With my tank top, biker shorts and hair pulled in a ponytail. 

"Are you done yet?" Martha asks just in time as I pull the door open. 

"Remind me to refuse going anywhere with you, jeez", I say with a glint in my eyes.

"Whatever", she says, pulling my arm so I can catch up with her.

We walk past the hallways heading towards the back door so we can reach the training grounds faster since we're running late. We bump into someone.

"Watch where you're headed, runt", Omari's baritone voice echoes in my ears.

The years of harsh words and abuse flood my thoughts. I take in a sharp breath and freeze waiting for the hit to come but it never did.

"You'd do well to treat pack members with respect", Martha says in a firm voice standing between us.

He grits his teeth in irritation and gives her a long stare.

"And if I don't hmmmmm?" He replies, "What are you going to do about it? Filthy Omega."

"Well maybe there's nothing I can do about it", Martha utters firmly, "But there is a lot that Alpha Kael can do, I'm pretty sure you wouldn't want to get on his bad side."

She pulls me by the arm towards the back door. Omari snickers "It's a shame that you're so easy".

We ignore him and head to the canopy of trees between the pack house and the training grounds. She then pulls me into a bear hug as I break down completely. 

"It's okay, I'm here", Martha coos in my ears, "I didn't know your pack treated Omegas this bad."

"It's a...always been like that, I t...thought I was over it but..", Fat tears flow freely down my cheeks and my shoulders shakes uncontrollably. No other words come out. I am careful not to mention the matter of my rejection. 

"It is okay, we'll talk when you feel better, okay?"

Martha is silent for a short while and her eyes glaze over for some moments then she stares at me with a smile.

Her back suddenly goes stiff, my mate's deep, soothing voice fills my ears.

"What's wrong, Kitten, I felt a strain on the bond" Kael mentions sounding worried.

"I'll be at the training grounds, Ari, love you", Martha says with a soothing voice, letting go of my arms and heading towards the training grounds.

"Tell me what made you cry, Aria, I will fix it", Kael says soothingly. 

"Old memories, Kael, I've had my own fair share of pain", I mutter, not saying the whole truth.

"Do you mind telling me exactly what made you remember", Kael pulls me by the waist close to him, wiping the tears from my eyes.

"I think I'm just overwhelmed, so many things are happening at the same time, especially anytime I see the members of my pack that used to treat me like an outcast", I mutter staring at the grassy forest floor so he wouldn't catch up with my white lie.

A guttural sound escapes his lips, I stare at his dark eyes in shock. It seems like his wolf is finally out.

"Hmmmmmm, I'll fix everything soon, mate", he says with an unusually deep authoritative voice, cuddling me close.

"How will you do that, I'm fine, promise", I say a little too fast, giving his thick arms a firm grip.

I hope Martha didn't tell him exactly what happened earlier. In a moment I get lost in his eyes as his fingers graze my lips repeatedly then he pulls back abruptly.

"The things you do to me, mate, but I know you're far from ready and this isn't the right time", He says.

"I have an important announcement to make, it's a surprise though", he finishes with a smile.

He sits on the ground and pulls me between his thighs against his body. We stay in comfortable silence listening to the morning birds chirping noisily high up in the trees.

"It's about time for breakfast I'm guessing, would you like to join me?" I ask with a faint smile after a while.

"Sure, you know I'd never say no to you, Kitten."

We head back to the pack house, hand in hand. Loud noise and boisterous laughter filled the air, they must be done with training.

As we step into the house, the noise ceases completely. Most of his pack members stare at us with curiosity but my pack stare with disgust.

Well sucks to be them, they all made my life a living hell in Blood Moon, so I will bask in their displeasure. I'm pretty certain they think I'm unworthy to be next to him even as a mistress. I laugh out loud in my head as we walk to the head of the table.

"Have a sit, Kitten", Kael whispers in my ears.

I blush at his actions and shyly take a seat. My ears peer around in search of Martha.

"I'd like to make an announcement", Kael's deep loud voice vibrates across the large kitchen, distracting me from my search. 

"The members of the Blood Moon pack will now be officially joining the Cantara Pack later tonight."