Kades point of view
The invitation arrived on Tuesday morning. Someone had slipped it under my apartment door when I was out on patrol. I almost stepped on it when I got in. It was a cream-colored envelope made of expensive paper, the kind that felt substantial in your hands. On the back was the crescent moon pack crest, pressed in shiny silver, elegant and intimidating.
My hands trembled as I opened it.
Selene Whitmore, Alpha of crescent moon pack, requests the pleasure of your company for dinner on Friday, December 13th, at 7:00 PM sharp. Whitmore Estate Formal attire.
Below that, writing in strong flowing handwriting—probably Selene's own—were the words—I look forward to finally meeting the young man who has captured my daughter's heart.
I read it three times, and each time, my wolf's reaction grew more intense. First, a low whine. Then pacing. By the third reading, he was practically clawing at my insides, agitated in a way I'd never experienced.
What the hell is wrong with you? I asked him silently. It's just Luna's mother. Just a formal dinner.
But he refused to calm down.
He moved under my skin, restless and alert, like he was searching for something. His ears were up, his attention sharp, and his emotions wild. It made no sense. Why would meeting my girlfriend's mother trigger this kind of reaction?
I set the invitation on my kitchen counter and stared at it like it might bite me.
"Fuck," I muttered.
My phone buzzed. Luna: Did you get it? The invitation? Mom sent them out this morning. I told her it wasn't necessary but she insist anyways. She likes being...professional.
Got it, I typed back. 7pm Friday. I'll be there.
I'm so nervous! But I'm excited. She's going to love you, I know it. Then another message: Can we meet for coffee later? I want to prepare you for dinner etiquette. Mom can be... particular.
Sure. Noon work?
Perfect! See you then. She texted adding a love emoji.
I pocketed my phone and tried to ignore the way my wolf whined at Luna's messages—not with interest, but with something that felt almost like guilt. Or maybe dread.
****
Luna was already at the coffee shop when I arrived, two cups on the table and a notebook open in front of her. She looked up with a bright smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.
"You're here! I ordered your usual." She pushed a black coffee toward me. "So, I thought we should go over a few things about Friday. Just so you know what to expect."
I sat down, wrapping my hands around the cup to keep them busy. "Luna, I've had dinner with people before. I think I can handle meeting your mom."
"This isn't just dinner." Her voice dropped, serious and nervous. "This is my mother. Alpha Selene Whitmore. Do you understand what that means?"
Honestly? I was starting to get an idea, and I didn't like it.
"Tell me," I said.
Luna flipped open her notebook—actual notes, bullet-pointed and highlighted just for a single dinner. "Okay, so first: punctuality. Mom is obsessive about time. If dinner is at seven, you arrive at 6:55. Not earlier, not later. Exactly five minutes before."
"Got it."
"Second: address her as Alpha Whitmore until she tells you otherwise. Even though we're dating, you're not part of our pack yet, so you must use formal titles."
I nodded, taking a sip of coffee that somehow tasted bitter in my mouth now.
"Third: she'll probably ask about your family, your position in Silver Lake, your future plans. Be honest but confident. She respects strong and clear answers." Luna's fingers tightened around her own cup. "And whatever you do, don't mention my father unless she brings him up first. His death is still... it's a sensitive subject."
"Luna." I reached across the table, covering her hand with mine. "I'm not going to screw this up."
But she didn't look reassured. If anything, she looked more anxious. "I know you won't. It's just...she's been gone for six months, dealing with pack politics and rogue threats and Council meetings. She's only been back for a few days, and she's already in full Alpha mode. She wants to make sure I'm making the right choice."
"Choice?" The word felt heavy.
"For my mate," Luna whispered. Her eyes begged me to understand. "Kade, this dinner is everything. If my Mom approves of you—if she sees what I see, how good you are, how perfect we are together—then everything will fall into place. But if she has doubts…"
She didn't finish the sentence, but she didn't need to. If Selene Whitmore disapproved of me, Luna would have to choose between her mother and pack, or me. And we both knew which way that choice would go.
"She'll approve," I said, because that's what Luna needed to hear. Even though my wolf was snarling and pacing with every instinct screaming at me that this dinner was a terrible idea.
Luna tried to smile, but it looked weak, ready to break. "Thank you for taking this seriously. I know formal pack dinners aren't really your thing."
She had no idea. I'd never even met Luna's mother in two years of dating. Selene was always traveling—managing alliances with neighboring packs, dealing with rogue threats along the borders, attending Werewolf Council meetings in the capital. Luna spoke about her with this mixture of pride and intimidation, like she was describing a force of nature rather than a parent.
Every time Selene was supposed to return home, something happened. A crisis. An attack. A political emergency. Once, Luna had planned a whole dinner to introduce us, but Selene extended her trip for another month.
It got to a point I started thinking she was avoiding to meet her daughters boyfriend on purpose.
"What's she like?" I asked. "Your mom. You talk about her all the time, but I don't really know her."
Luna thought for a moment, her expression turning distant.
"She's… extraordinary. Strong. Beautiful. Commanding. When she walks into a room, everyone stops. Not just out of fear—but because she has this presence. My father was a great Alpha, but people say Mom is even stronger. She has done things no male Alpha has ever done. She grew our territory. She made peace with packs that hated us for generations. The werewolf Council listens when she speaks."
Her voice held pride, but also sadness as she spoke. I squeezed her hand.
"And she hasn't dated anyone since your father died?" I asked out of curiosity.
"Dated? God, no." Luna actually laughed. "The idea of Mom with someone else is... I can't even imagine it. She loved Dad completely. When he died—" Her heart broke. "When those rogues killed him, something in her died too. She's all Alpha now. All duty and pack and responsibility. There's no room for anything else."
My wolf perked up at this information, interested in a way that made my skin crawl. Stop it, I told him firmly. Whatever you're thinking, stop.
But he didn't stop. He kept pacing, kept whining, kept fixating on Friday night with an intensity that felt wrong.
****
And to be hold the rest of the week finally passed in a blur of stress and preparation. Luna texted constantly with updates and reminders:
Wear the dark suit, not the gray one.
My mom's Beta, Marcus, will be there. He's like an uncle to me. Be respectful, but not too submissive—he likes confidence.
And no wolfsbane Cologne. Mom hates artificial scents.
Remember: firm handshake, direct eye contact, but don't challenge her stare.
It felt less like preparing for dinner, and more like preparing for a military inspection.
I bought a new dark charcoal gray suit, just for this occasion. Got a fresh haircut. And even more of so I practiced handshakes in the mirror until I felt like an idiot. Jack walked in on me once and laughed so hard he nearly choked.
"You look like you're preparing for a firing squad," he said.
"Feels like it," I muttered.
"It's just dinner with your girlfriend's mom. How bad can it be?"
But he didn't understand. Nobody understood. Because how could I explain that my wolf had been going insane all week? That I kept dreaming of that Saturday night , of the scent that made my blood sing? That every instinct I had was screaming at me to cancel, to run, to do anything except walk into that dinner on Friday night?
I couldn't explain it because I didn't understand it myself.
On Thursday, I ran into Beta Marcus during a border patrol coordination meeting between Silver Lake and Crescent Moon. He was a broad-shouldered man in his forties, with salt-and-pepper hair and sharp green eyes that missed nothing. Luna had mentioned him often—he'd been her father's best friend and had helped Selene hold the pack together after Alpha James death.
"I'll be at dinner tomorrow night." He said, His expression was calm, but the message underneath his words were not. "The Alpha is looking forward to meeting you. She takes Luna's happiness very seriously."
"I understand," I said.
"Do you?" He said, narrowing his eyes slightly before continuing. "Selene Whitmore is not a woman to be trifled with. She's the strongest Alpha in this region—maybe in the entire territory. She's led Crescent Moon through hell and made us stronger for it. Her daughter is her world. If you hurt Luna..."
"I won't," I said firmly, even though my wolf was snarling at the implied threat.
Marcus studied me for a long moment, then nodded. "Good. Because the pack feels whole again now that she's home. Selene has this effect—she commands respect and devotion without trying. People would die for her." He paused. "Her daughter included."
The message was clear: don't make Luna choose between me and her mother. Because I'd lose.
After he left, I sat in my truck for twenty minutes, gripping the steering wheel, trying to breathe through the anxiety building in my chest.
This dinner would change everything.
I felt it deep in my bones—the same way a wolf feels a storm coming. Deep down i was kind of scared that this dinner might shatter the careful life I had built.
I should cancel. I should call Luna right now and tell her I was sick, make some excuse, buy myself time to figure out what the hell was wrong with my wolf and why the thought of meeting Selene Whitmore made him react like prey catching a predator's scent.
But I couldn't do that to Luna. I couldn't disappoint her. at list not like this. I couldn't be the one to confirm her worst fear—that I didn't want this as much as she did.
So I drove home, and I didn't cancel.
***
Friday arrived too quickly and too slowly at the same time.
All day, I felt like I was moving through fog. I did patrol and training, but my mind wasn't really there. Jack noticed, of course—he always did—but for once he didn't tease or ask questions. He just patted my shoulder and said, "Good luck tonight."
I went home at five to shower and get dressed. I put on the new suit, with a clean white shirt beneath it. And I also wore the tie Luna gifted me, "she said it brought out my eyes." When I looked in the mirror, I barely knew the man staring back. I looked too formal, too stiff, like I was dressing up to play a role I'd never auditioned for.
My wolf paced the entire time. Restless. Agitated. That same wild excitement from when I'd first read the invitation, but stronger now. Building toward something.
What do you know that I don't? I asked him.
But he didn't answer. Just kept moving, kept searching, kept fixating on tonight with an intensity that made my hands shake.
The Whitmore Estate was a thirty-minute drive from Silver Lake territory, deep into Crescent Moon lands. The sun was setting as I turned onto their private road—a long, winding driveway lined with ancient oak trees.
The mansion rose from the forest like something out of a fairy tale—stone and timber, three stories tall, with towers at each corner and massive windows that glowed with warm light. It was old, probably centuries old, built by Luna's ancestors when this territory was first claimed by them. It looks so beautiful and at the same time also intimidating.
Just like the Alpha who lived here.
I parked in the circular driveway at exactly 6:55, checking my phone to confirm the time. My hands were sweating. My heart hammered against my ribs. My wolf was practically howling inside me.
Get it together, I told myself firmly. It's just dinner. Just to meet Luna's mother. so there's no need to be nervous.
The front door opened before I could knock, and there was Luna, radiant in a blue dress that brought out her eyes. She'd done something different with her hair—she pinned it up, and it looked elegant and formal. She looked even more beautiful.
"You came," she said softly, like she had been scared I wouldn't. "You look great. Are you ready?"
No. Not even close. Every part of me wanted to turn around and run.
She took my hand as she led me inside—her palm was sweaty too. Inside the entry hall was massive, with a grand staircase and portraits of Luna's ancestors lining the walls. Pictures of Alphas and their mates, going back generations. All of their pictures are staring at us with serious eyes.
"She's in the formal dining room," Luna whispered as we walked down a hallway lined with more portraits. "Beta Marcus is already here. Mom wanted to greet you personally rather than having staff do it. That's a good sign—it means she's taking this seriously."
We approached a set of double doors that had a carving design of wolves running through a forest on it. Luna held the handle and looked at me.
"Just be yourself," she said, squeezing my hand. "She'll like you. I promise."
She opened the doors.
And that's when it hit me.
That scent. Jasmine and moonlight—the same scent from the ceremony, the scent that had turned my world inside out and made my wolf go absolutely feral with recognition.
It filled the dining room, filled my lungs, filled every cell of my body.
No.
No.
It couldn't be. It couldn't possibly be—
But my wolf was howling now, not with agitation or anxiety but with absolute, undeniable certainty.
MATE. MATE. MATE.