“Gwendolyn!” Mom exclaims, clapping her hands in joy before making a beeline for my mate. Gwen is stunned, a usual reaction for anyone who meets my mother for the first time. She is a small, peculiar woman, almost looking otherworldly at times. Her gentle laugh rings through the air when she hugs Gwen. “Welcome to Silverlake,” she says. “We are so happy to have you here.”
“Thank you so much,” Gwen says, still stunned. Her anxiety is almost gone; I can’t feel any of it through our bond. “Thank you for accepting me here.”
“We are very happy to have you, Marina and Faye, here,” Mom says gently.
Mentioning Marina and Faye does something to Gwen. Her eyes turn watery. I put a hand on her back, pulling her towards me. Fortunately, Mom uses the moment to turn around and wave at my dad. “Elden, come here and say how happy you are for Gwendolyn to be here!”
Dad follows her wish like he always does. When I see my parents still so deeply in love after all these years, it gives me hope to accomplish the same future with my mate. He steps closer now and reaches out his hand towards Gwen. He is a tall, broad-shouldered man, typical alpha material, even more so because he is a lycan alpha. He looks intimidating, but when he reaches out his hand to greet Gwen, he smiles. “When I sent Dario and Felix on this vacation, I didn’t think they would come home with such a wonderful surprise.”
Gwen shakes his hand, spell-bound. I can’t blame her, as she doesn’t have the best track record with alphas.
Aurelia and Arden come forward next, both introducing themselves to Gwen. Arden’s quiet, calm way of carrying himself instantly speaks to Gwen. I know he doesn’t think he has it in him, but he actually will be very good at handling Luna tasks. Aurelia herself is a tall woman, beautiful and a bit intimidating. She has worked her ass off to be worthy of becoming alpha of this pack, and it shows. When she pulls Gwen into a hug, she grins. “Finally, more girl power here! Mom and I needed some back-up.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Dad asks, amused.
“It’s just good to have someone else in our corner, right, Mom?”
Mom grins and winks at Gwen.
twenty-four
A New Reality
*GWENDOLYN*
There are so many impressions raining down on me, I barely have time to digest them all. Felix’s family is nothing like I’d imagined, although he told me beforehand that they were exactly that way. It’s just different to see it for myself.
His mom is a tiny person; she looks like she sprang out of a fantasy book and is now sprinkling her fairy dust all over the place. Seeing her next to Alpha Elden, this tall, strong man, is a sight to behold. Elden himself is intimidating; he has this aura about him that demands respect. My former alpha holds no candle against him. I would be scared to death of Elden if he wasn’t so gentle with his mate and so kind to his children.
Dario and Felix aren’t scared of him at all. Now, a lot of the things Felix told me make more sense. Dario, for example, truly does not have the usual alpha build and aura, but it doesn’t seem to be an issue for Elden at all. In fact, he laughs and jokes with both him and Felix.
Aurelia links our arms. “Don’t worry,” she whispers towards me. “Everyone has the same reaction when they meet my parents for the first time.”
I don’t tell her, but she is pretty intimidating herself. Felix told me she is going to take over the pack, and I’ve been so curious to see what a female heir to the alpha rank would look like. Seeing her now, it makes sense to me that she was chosen to take over. She has an air of power and strength around her, and confidence in her eyes and in her whole posture. I can see a drive to lead in her.
My eyes fall on Charlie, who is still standing next to the car. Right behind her, there is Faye, peaking out of the door curiously. Right! It’s time for her to meet her new pack. I take a deep breath. I am sure Felix would introduce Faye and Marina for me, but I feel like I need to do it myself.
“May I-“ I clear my throat when I realize my voice comes out shaky. Goddess, my nerves, but there is not much I can do about it right now. “May I introduce my friends to you?” I ask Felix’s family. “They are like my family.”
“Of course,” Elden reassures me. “We are happy to meet them.”
I wave at Faye, and it seems like she was just waiting for me to call her. Charlie helps her out of the car, and she dashes towards me. “I am Faye!” she exclaims.
Bless her heart, she isn’t scared at all, just hopeful. It’s that hopefulness that almost breaks my heart. She obviously wants this so badly. Please let her thrive from now on.
Elden and Aurelia let Luna Flora take the first step. My former luna never really did much, but looking at Flora now and how she handles everything, it suddenly strikes me how important it is to have a luna.
“Oh, sweetheart,” Luna Flora beams. “We are so happy to have you here!”
Faye’s eyes light up. “Are you a fairy?” she whispers. “You are so beautiful.”
Flora giggles. I can’t remember the last time I heard an adult woman giggle like that, but weirdly, Flora can pull it off. Her eyes suddenly glint in mischief. “I am many things,” she whispers back.
“Faye is a beautiful name,” Arden says, stepping closer now. “It means fairy, too.”
“Yes,” Faye exclaims. “Gwen says, Mom chose it because I am her little angel.” She eyes Arden curiously. “What is that in your ear?”
Goddess, little kids! I groan inwardly, hoping Arden doesn’t take it as an insult.
