Fated Mates

Chapter 3-Training Day

Back home, I replayed the conversation with Gage more times than I could count. I sat in the living room with my mother while she was watching one of her favorite shows, and although my eyes were on the TV. My mind was elsewhere. I had asked Gage if he would be able to just give up finding his true mate, and now I found myself contemplating: Would I be able to give up finding my true mate?
I glanced over at my mother, whose eyes and attention were fixed on the tv. I always admired her relationship with my father. They truly were made for each other and loved each other in every possible way you can imagine. They are in sync. Deep down a part of me knows...I've always looked forward to meeting my mate. I would wonder what he would be like. What we could be together...and now another part of me is saying a union with Gage isn't so far from happiness either. He is everything a suitable mate should be... kind, strong, protective, loving. If I don't find my mate after my first shift, when would I? How long would I be willing to wait? What if I never find my mate? I've heard this could happen to. Would I regret not choosing Gage?
Gage shifted at 15 and hasn't found his mate yet. He will be Alpha soon as he is now 18, and his father is preparing him for his transition. He will need a Luna soon after if he doesn't find his mate he must choose one. My thoughts were cut short when I heard the front door open. My dad walked in and came into the living room where my mother and I sat. My mom immediately got up and wrapped her arms around him while kissing him before leaning her forehead against his, and they stood there for a second, taking each other in.
My dad looked my way. "Hey baby girl,"
"Everything okay?" I asked
"Gamma Xavier is holding a meeting at the training camp tomorrow. I want you to join the others and train." He avoided my question.
I nodded. "Of course." My mom chimed in, "Should we be concerned? I thought it was just a few rogues."
"It was....but we may have reason to believe the attack was under the order of Damien."
My mouth parted in disbelief. "Damien? As in King of Rogues?..." My dad nodded at my question.
"What could Damien possibly want with the Blue Moon Pack? We are a speck among the werewolf packs. What do we have that he could want?" My mind was in disbelief.
"I dont know babygirl thats what we are gonna find out, and it's not for sure. This stays between us. I dont want to cause panic when it's not needed. I know you train every week, but I want you out there every day Gamma Xavier and Gage are training." He gave me a stern look "Understand?" I nodded "Yes I understand." I replied. "Good," a small amount of relief left his face as he and my mother retreated to their room. I made my way to my room soon after and began getting ready for bed. I pulled my hair into a high bun as I sat there in my bed and glanced over toward my vanity, and looked at my reflection in the mirror. My black hair was a big wavy lump of a mess on top of my head, and my hazel eyes that stared back looked tired. This is who Gage chooses as his Luna? I thought to myself. A smile appeared on my face at the thought of Gage. I laid back and stared up at my ceiling, contemplating life choices until I drifted off to sleep.

In the morning, I woke up at dawn to get ready for training. I wore a lavender sports bra and black leggings and purple sneakers. I pulled my hair back into a tight french braid and headed out toward the training camp. There was a stillness in the forest, and early morning dew surrounded the earth. A light fog lay against the ground, creating an isolated ambiance as I walked through the forest path. I love early morning walks. The quietness of it and out here made it all the more enjoyable. Our wolf pack isn't as populated as others, but we hold our own, and our territory spans 200 km. A forest of our own. The training camp came into view after a few minutes of walking, and I could see Gamma Xavier and Gage already setting up. Conan and David were sparring, not to my surprise, and Theo was near the bench stretching.
"Morning Wolves!" I yelled, catching the attention of everyone. Conan and David gave a quick wave in between sparring, and Theo nodded her head, "Sup Rainy Days,"
I stuck my tongue out at her playfully before plopping down on the bench next to her and began stretching. Gamma Xavier nodded my way and said "Raine." in acknowledgment, and Gage came over. "Hey, Gorgeous." He playfully gave me a light jab to my left arm, and I scrunched my face at him. "Careful now or I'm going to be beating you up like Conan does to David" I said and David jerked round mouth open in offense "Hey now I take it easy on him because he's old" he winked at me.
Conan rolled his eyes before wrapping his arm around him, putting him in a head lock.
Gage looked at me and said "Goddess I hope so," and smirked. I raised my brow at him and rolled my eyes at his smirk.
"They're late." Gamma Xavier muttered uninterested in our conversations. "You said 7 Delta. It's 6:45" Gage said, looking at his watch.
"Exactly, if you aren't early then you're late." Gamma Xavier stated matter of factly while plopping down cones.
I looked at Theo, who was silently mocking him, mouthing "if you arent early, you're late" to me. I pressed my lips in a bite down together to prevent a laugh from escaping my mouth. The next few minutes, warriors and the new recruits showed up and took position around the camp, and once everyone was accounted for, Gamma Xavier pressed his bottom lip together and let out a loud whistle gaining attention. "I have been Gamma for Blue Moon Pack for 15 years. It has been my family my entire life. We may not have the numbers of the Black Water Pack or the luxuries of the Crimson pack. Hell, we may not have an armory that compares to the Shadow pack, but we remain strong. Our skilled warriors here make up for what we dont have in numbers. We pride ourselves in the fact that we are able to thrive and keep this land safe for our pack. Yesterday, that safety was put into question." he paused. "And that's not going to happen again. Starting today, training time has been doubled with the exception of the full moon tomorrow. Afterward, it's daily training until further notice for the new recruits. For you trained, we need every wolf out here helping with training. We will alternate every other day. Let's get started." Gamma Xavier arranged sparring pairs and assigned drills, and we got to work. To say it was a tiring morning is an understatement. Most of the warriors and recruits had filed off to the showers. Gage came up behind me as I was dabbing the sweat off of my face with a towel. "Think you can take me?" He said, bouncing back and forth on his heels, grinning. "Pffft like a slice of cake ALPHA" I teased, emphasizing the alpha. He didn't miss a beat as he lunged forward to grab me, and I ducked round, coming up, landing a jab to his side. He laughed before taunting "oooh that tickled gorgeous." he lifted me up over his head to drop me, but I held onto his shoulders and swung my legs around, gaining momentum before landing in front of him. We each took turns dodging and jabbing before ultimately he did a quick sweep from under me and I fell onto the ground he quickly slid his arm under my head before it collided with the ground as he hovered over me.
"You tried your best," he grinned.
"I wasn't even trying." I teased. We laughed before the realization filled the space between us that he was still hovering over me, and our smiles faded as we stared at each other. He placed his other arm on the other side of my head and lowered himself closer, so his face was just above mine as his eyes shifted between my eyes before landing on my lips. I felt my heart thudding in my chest. All sense left my body. I tried to speak, but the only thing that came out of my mouth was the tiniest whisper of his name, "Gage..." He leaned in and kissed me slowly at first as if waiting for me to push him away. I didn't. I wrapped my arms around his neck invitingly and kissed him back, running my tongue along his perfect lips. He began kissing me more deeply, caressing my face with his hand as my hands began roaming his arms, gripping his large biceps. It wasn't fireworks, but Goddess, it was good. It was pure lust. Thigh clenching, hand gripping, hotter than hell, years and years of hidden foreplay LUST.
And as quickly as it began, it ended. A loud whistle echoed through the air, breaking the kiss, and we realized Gamma Xavier had just finished dismissing the last of the trainees. Gage jumped onto his feet before holding a hand out and lifting me to a stand. We stood there hesitant for a second, unsure what to say. Just as Gage parted his lips to speak, his eyes glazed over. Someone was mind linking him, most likely the Alpha.
"I gotta go, duty calls" he said, looking at me biting his lip.
I nodded, looking down at my shoes, kicking the earth softly. He lifted my chin to face him and leaned in, kissing my cheek before turning away and running toward the East. Toward the direction of the pack house.