Mated to the Alpha and His Beta

Lanie

Isaac and Alaina were still in bed, but at Xander’s request, Gabriela had gotten Stella up. My precious daughter ran into my arms, and | scooped her up the second | got through the door. | pressed my face to her hair and breathed her in, holding her tightly.

“Stella, Mama has some people for you to meet, okay? So | want you to say hello.”

Slowly, | turned and set Stella on her own two small feet. Other children might have clung to their mothers at the sight of strangers invading their home, or cried at being woken up in the middle of the night, but Stella only waved as Greyson and Charlotte came into the room.

“Hello, friends,” she chirped. “I’ve been waiting for you. I’m so glad you're here!”

Xander and | shared a startled look. Charlotte’s eyes visibly welled with tears she dabbed at with two fingertips. She smiled and knelt to hold out her hands for Stella to take.

At the last second, | wanted to grab my baby back. Charlotte was still a stranger, after all. But a silver warmth flooded me. The Moon Goddess reassured me this was the right path, so | kept my place at Xander’s side and watched as our daughter allowed Charlotte to look her over.

She touched the dark curls and cupped Stella’s precious round cheeks. She peered deeply into her eyes. Something seemed to satisfy her..and take her aback.

“Stella, is that your grandma there?” Charlotte tipped her chin toward Gabriela.

“Yes. She’s my daddy's momm

Stella put a hand over her mouth to hold back a giggle. “Isn’t that a little

bit funny? He’s so big, and she’s so small!”

“It's very funny,” Charlotte agreed and met Gabriela’s gaze as she got to her feet. “Maybe yo would be able to take you into the kitchen and get a snack or something? | know it’s late, but so me you've been a very, very good little girl.”

“She always is,” Gabriela agreed with a look at Xander, and then one at me.

He gave her a solemn nod. | could see she wasn’t quite sure what was going on, so | sent out a sm pulse of Luna energy. The instant | did, an answering wave came from Charlotte, mingling with a rise of s from Gabriela, herself.

She looked startled and put a hand on her heart. “Oh

“Once a Luna, forever a Luna,” Charlotte told her

Our three mingled forces faded quickly, but it was easy to see that they'd soothed at least some of Gabriela’s anxiety. Her eyes shone, actually. I'd, of course assumed that surrendering her role as Luna had left her with a bit of melancholy, but this was the first time I'd ever considered how personally devastating the loss. of that might've been. | was more grateful than ever that my mother-in-law had graciously given over to me, been a help to me, and had never once made me feel lacking

We all waited until Gabriela had taken Stella out of the room before we spoke. Then Xander offered. Greyson a glass of Scotch while | moved some of the kids’ toys out of the way so Stella could have a seat. It. all felt oddly sociable, but there was an undercurrent of tension rising from Mason and Zane. They only had a part of the story, after all.

“Two Alphas, bonded to the same mate. Luna powers coming through each of you.” Zane shook his head, speaking for the first time since our guests had arrived. “Can you tell me what the hell is going on?”

“There’s so much to tell, but we really don’t have time for it. We'll have to explain it as we go,” Charlotte said firmly. “For now, it’s very clear to me that what | suspected is absolutely true. Stella has a connection to the Moon Goddess unlike anything I've ever seen. Lanie, it's more even than yours or mine. Stella is...”Content rights by NôvelDr//ama.Org.

“Celestial?” | said when she didn’t continue.

Charlotte nodded. “You've heard of it?”

“No, but it's something Stella told

means?”

e. She had a dream about the Goddess. Can you tell me what it

Greyson stepped forward. “Begging your pardon, but Charlie’s right. We really don’t have time for a full lecture on the entirety of the situation.”

“Stella must not be around any wolf shifter who are not her immediate family. Her mother. Her fathers, her siblings, her grandma. Who else knows about what’s been happening with her?”

“Nobody,” | said. “I haven’t even spoken to my mom or sister on the phone since all of this started. | didn’t

want them to worry...or be in danger. Everyone around here knows Stella from when she was an infant, but not

since...well. Not lately.”

“Perfect.” Charlotte stood. “We need to make preparations for all of you to leave Stillwood immediately. Tonight. Within the hour, if possible.”

My heart pounded. “Tonight? But...where do you expect us to go?”

Greyson took Charlotte’s hand. She faced me and my mates with a determined look, as she gave us the

answer.

“To the vampire enclave in Alaska.”

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