Alpha's Mate

Chapter 36

Jade's Pov

   I was struggling to catch my breath from running around after the children. We didn't even get their names because they ran off when we asked.
    "Got you!" I said and captured the girl in my arms.
   I looked around for Skylar and she was carrying the boy at her hip. She walked over to us and sighed.
    "You guys can't be running away like that. Do you know how dangerous that is?" She asked and they pouted.
   "She's right. Your mom worries about running after you so much. Why don't you guys give her a break?" I explained and they nodded.
    "What are your names?" Skylar asked again, hoping that they wouldn't run this time.
   "I'm Ruben." The boy raised his hand.
    "And I am Lily," The girl said and adjusted her glasses.
   "Okay, Ruben and Lily, how about we go get some popsicles? However, you have to promise not to run away anymore." I said and they bounced excitedly.
    "We promise," They said together. We walked over to the kitchen and asked for some popsicles. I handed them to the kids and grabbed a plate of food. We sat at a half-empty table with them between us.
   "You changed your hair?" Lily questioned and I nodded. I put some food in my mouth and cherished the delicious taste.
    "How old are you?" I asked her.
   "I'm this many" She held up five fingers and had the biggest smile on her face.
    "And your brother?"
   "He is also this many."
    Twins? No wonder they look so much alike. I thought that was just because they were siblings. She reminded me of when I was her age. When things were still promising and I wasn't in Alpha Roy's pack. I can't imagine these kids living in such cruel conditions. I still couldn't believe I am alive after all of that.
   "Are you okay?" Her voice brought me out of my thoughts.
I hadn't even noticed the tears streaming down my face. I looked down at Lily and quickly wiped them away.
    "Yes, you just remind me of someone I used to know."
"Is she okay?"
   "She is now." I smiled and she nodded. I looked up at Skylar. She had a concerned look on her face. 
   "How did you get your purple eyes?" Lily asked me.
    "My mom had them as well."
   "Was your mom pretty like you?"
    "She was the most beautiful woman in the world." I smiled.
   "Where is she now?"
    "She's uh-"
   Okay so how do I tell this little girl my parents are dead? Before I can respond, the doors opened and everyone turned to watch. It was Ayden and the boys. Everyone bowed as they walked and I can see that they felt awkward that people do that. All their faces change when they noticed. They walked over to us and Lily and Ruben jumped off their chairs.
    "Gamma Caden!" They exclaimed and climbed on his leg. I knew they loved doing that and I knew he didn't mind because he laughed along with them.
   "What's going on here?" Lance asked
    "Nothing much. Just having lunch with the kiddos" Skylar laughed. I looked at Ayden who wouldn't stop staring at me with the biggest smile on his face.
    "Seems like Christina is already leaking rumors about an ugly unstable Luna named jade ." I linked him and the smile wore off.
   "I heard it as well. I'm already taking care of it" He said and I nodded.
    "Let's go grab lunch" Lance clapped.
   "Kids, come over here please. Gamma Caden is going to grab food then come back," Skylar said.
   They got off his legs and ran back to their seats. The boys were surprised to see the kid's response to Skylar. 
    "Wow, I have never seen them obey so promptly before. It's like when Jade makes Ayden obey" Caden said and I glared at him.
   "I'm leaving," Lance said and Ayden followed. Caden winked at me and quickly caught up with them.
    "I swear it's as if Caden made it his life goal to bother Ayden about everything" Skylar laughed and I agreed.
   Once they had their food they joined us for the rest of lunch.
   "Thank you so much for taking care of them while I had a chance to eat," Rachel said as she came up to the table.
    "It was no problem. Whenever you need someone you know you can always count on us" Skylar smiled and I nodded.
She turned to look at the boys and bowed.
   "So Alpha, I heard we might have a new Luna soon?" She asked and he nodded. I bit my lip and felt my heart do a flip in my chest.
    "Don't believe any of the rumors you heard. Actually, let me let you in on a little secret." He said. His eyes went foggy and she gasped. She slowly turned to look at me.
    "Luna" She whispered in admiration, bowed, and I waved her off.
   "No, no please don't. You don't have to do that" I laughed awkwardly. She nodded and then her eyes went wide.
    "I just left my kids with the Luna. I hope you don't think I am a lazy mom." She said worriedly.
   "Of course not. We see how hard you work with them. Plus, they promised they wouldn't be running away any more right kids?" I said and they nodded. She smiled and her eyes got watery.
    "Thank you so much, Luna."
Yeah, I am definitely not going to get used to that. It's really weird.
   The kids jumped off their chairs and went on either side of their mom to hold her hand. She gave them each a kiss on their forehead and walked away with them. I quickly wiped another tear that was about to escape my eye and turned to look at the boys. 
    "Did you guys go out for your celebratory run?" Skylar asked and they nodded.
   "When are we going for a run? You could use the practice you know," Caden asked me and I shrugged.
    "Practice for what?" Ayden questioned and I shook my head.
   "Nothing important," Caden knew that if Ayden found out about our wager he would forbid it. Not only that, he might even hurt him.
    "So this ceremony thing. Does it take long to plan?" I asked him trying to change the subject.
   "Actually no, everything is basically planned it's very traditional. You would just need an outfit and that's it" He shrugged. "It's going to happen on the next full moon. Which is in about two weeks."
    "Which means we will have to go shopping!" Skylar clapped and I laughed.
   "Cool! girls' day out!" Caden squealed and we all looked at him.
    "What? Skylar was excited and I wanted to be excited as well. Plus I could use more shirts." He shrugged and we laughed.
   "Before we continue with everything I wanted to talk about our situation," I said to Ayden.
    "Don't worry. I will explain everything later" He smiled and I shook my head.
   "Not that situation. I mean the girls."
    "I have some news about that, but let's go upstairs," He said and we nodded.
   We cleaned up our table and walked out of the dining room. We went all the way up to his personal office and sat down once we were inside.
    "What is it?" I asked not wasting another second.
   "We can go ahead and proceed with the Alpha conference. Which will occur here tomorrow." He said and I grabbed Skylar's hand.
    "What are the chances of us winning?" Skylar asked.
   "It's a pretty high chance." I felt a second of relief until he sighed "There is a risk" He said in a more serious tone.
"We will win to get them out but we might not be able to get them here like I said." He rubbed his face with his hand out of frustration. 
    "Won't it matter now that I am Luna?" I asked.
   "It could help, but you are new to the role. I don't know how much in favor that will get for us. My main concern was to get them out then we will work to get them here. I hope they don't separate them." He said and we nodded.
    "All Alphas are coming. Including Alpha Roy" Lance explained. Skylar gripped my hand tighter.
   "If you girls don't want to be near him you can stay on this floor. No one is allowed up here. No one will stay overnight" He said and we nodded.
    "Another thing, only if you feel comfortable, I would like you to testify against him as well. That means being in the room with him." He said and looked at me. I looked at Skylar who was staring off into space.
   "What happens if we don't?" I asked him.
    "Nothing happens. It would help, but I am positive we have enough evidence." He said and I nodded. It was really happening. We were finally going to rescue the girls. Fifteen girls that have been there while we are here, living life worry-free. They must be going through hell right now.
   "I'll do it" Skylar spoke up. She turned her gaze toward Ayden. "I want to testify against that bastard. I don't want him near any of those girls anymore."
    "I'll do it as well. As long as we are not left with him alone" I said and he nodded firmly.
   "Of course, I would not leave you alone with him." He reassured. I rubbed my thumb on the back of Skylar's hand and sighed.
    "We'll leave you girls to rest for tonight so you can prepare yourselves for tomorrow." He looked at me and fidgeted with his fingers. I knew he wanted to say something and I was hoping he wouldn't. "Before you go, I want to clear things up with you," He said and I shook my head.
    "I can't leave Skylar alone right now," I argued.
   "Please" He begged. I knew he was genuinely hurt. I hadn't done anything wrong and neither did he. He just wanted to talk about when Caden mentioned Christina but I wasn't in the mood.
    "You can stay," Skylar spoke up and I looked at her. "You should clear things up with him before the meeting." She said and I shook my head again standing up this time.
    "No, I don't want to leave you,"
   I was hoping she wouldn't fight me against this. I don't want to talk to him.
    "Jade, stop being scared. Talk to him," she linked me and I sighed. She knew the real reason I kept begging her to stay. 
   "Fine. But I have to get back to Skylar before she sleeps" He nodded and I stood up.
    "We'll give you guys your space" Lance cleared his throat. They all stood up and walked out of the room.
   "Don't have too much fun! We can hear you!" Caden called out and I gasped.
    There was a loud thump followed by Caden groaning in pain. The door shut and I sat back down on the chair. Ayden walked over to me and raised my face to look him in the eyes.
    "Can everyone really hear us?" I asked and he nodded. I felt my cheeks heat up and I tried to look away. He made my gaze meet his. The look in his eyes made me feel bad about the whole situation.
   "Are you mad at me?" He asked.
    "No, why would you think I am mad at you?" I asked. He picked me up and sat us down on the couch. I was now on his lap and I wrapped my arms around his neck.
   "You are mad at me. I can feel it" He frowned. I kissed his head and played with his hair.
   "Why did you never tell me about Christina?"
    "I was trying to win your affection over. Do you think if I told you about my past relations you would've liked that?" I shook my head and laid it on his chest. I loved listening to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat. Although, this time it was a bit faster than usual. 
    "Was it serious?"
   "Of course not. It was just twice." I looked up at him.
    "I thought you were going out with her!" I exclaimed.
   "No, I never had the interest to go look for you. You think I would be dating someone else?" He laughed lightly.
   "Did you have sex with her?"
    "It was a drunken mistake." He admitted. There was a pain in my stomach that was a mix of anger and sadness.
   "When was the other time?" 
    "I used her for satisfaction," He said and I furrowed my eyebrows. "She sucked my dick. I was frustrated and I needed to cool off. She was there. It feels wrong telling you all of this" He said and I shook my head.
    "Thank you for telling me the truth. I appreaciate it" I smiled and he kissed me. "Doesn't mean I'm still not upset"
   I pulled away from the kiss and he frowned. 
   "I thought you said you weren't upset?"
   "I'm not. I didn't want to talk to you,"
    "There is another way to make you happy without you having to talk," He smirked. 
    Before I can ask what it was, he pinned me on the couch. I squealed because of the sudden movements and he kissed my neck.
    "Ayden I-"
   "Shh," He put a finger over my mouth. "You said you didn't want to speak,"