Dylan
After talking with Bill, we agreed to combine Cherry's shop in Seattle with the one that he had launched under Cherry's name back when she first went to the Lune Pack. Profits from these shops would be used to fund a charity.
To celebrate the deal between Starsmoon and Lune, we hosted a party annoucing this regional charity cause.
Before heading out to the celebration, I fixed my necktie carefully in front of the mirror.
This was a great opportunity to cheer my pack members up after Starsmoon had gone through so many challenges over the past few months.
I must make sure that I looked presentable. I needed to convey the message to everyone that I was ready to rebuild our life on this land, and that Starsmoon would grow stronger than ever before.
My musings got interrupted when a knock on the door sounded.
“You ready, Dylan? Alpha Bill has arrived.” Bert pushed the door open and said.
I lined up my necktie in the middle of my upper body before turning around to him.
“Cherry would love this party if she was here. I bet she'd be able to pull tons of Alphas and businessmen to donate to this charity tonight,” I said, unable to hide my yearning for my mate.
"Cherry would be proud of you when she's back to Starsmoon after making a complete recovery. She'd surely make this charity and our pack thrive.”
Bert patted on my shoulder and gave me a brotherly hug. Then we went to the party together.
After shaking hands with prominent names in town and exchanging greetings and well wishes, I finally found Bill. His eyes were fixated on a wreath.
"Anything special about these flowers, bro?" I went over and followed Bill's gaze.
"It's from the Alpha King." Bill turned to me and handed me a glass of wine.
"Oh, he didn't have to—" I was surprised that this event should get Alpha King's attention, but got interrupted as Bill continued.
“And he made a hefty donation.” Bill said meaningfully while sipping on his wine.
"You think he's up to something now that Lune and Starsmoon join hands in this charity cause?"
"I'm not sure. Maybe I'm just over-thinking—" Bill suddenly stopped as he looked behind my shoulders.
“What's with that look? Did you just find your mate in this crowd?” I asked him jokingly.
Instead of talking me back, Bill was simply blinking his eyes.
As I turned my head to check what it was that he was eyeing ferociously, my heart skipped a beat before it thumped faster.
There by the entrance of the hall stood an elegant woman, and she was none other than my mate!
“Cherry?” I murmured to myself, couldn't believe what my eyes saw.
“I'm back, Dylan.” Cherry whispered through mind link, smiling at me brightly.
I handed the glass back to Bill before darting towards the entrance.
Cherry giggled as I swept her off her feet, burying my face in her neck.
“You're here! You're finally here! This isn't just a dream, right?” My voice shook in excitement.
As I held my mate tight into my hug, my eyes happened to throw a glance at the night sky, only to find a bright fullmoon showering its silvery light on this land.
My shoulders went slack immediately because I got the idea that Cherry would be gone again tomorrow.
“You‘ll wake up finding me by your side tomorrow, baby,” Cherry murmured into my ear, as if seeing through my concerns.
“Y-You mean you got healed fully? You won't leave me behind again?” I just couldn't believe my ears. It had never occurred to me that my mate would finally be back with me forever on this special day.
"Remember last fullmoon night when I didn't make it to visit you? Well, it's Nuu-Chah who took me into retreat in an enclosed valley. The place just does wonders for me. I felt like taking a new lease of life after spending couples of days there."
Cupping my cheeks, Cherry nodded and beaming an intriguing smile at me.
Driven by the yearning for our mate, my wolf took over and urged me to claim her lips.
Cherry responded to my passionate kisses positively. As our kisses got deeper and I grew more needy of her, she placed a palm on my chest and tapped me lightly, reminding me that we were in a public setting.
"I missed you." I mumbled after finally letting go of her lips.
"I missed you, too." My mate looked into my eyes dearly. "And what this party is about by the way?"
“Well, Bill and I combined your shops in Starsmoon and Lune pack. We decided to make it a charity brand that will support the poor and the weak in this region. And we both think you'll like this idea. Do you?" I asked my mate expectantly.
"Oh my! This is such a huge surprise!" Cherry exclaimed after sweeping around the party. "I never thought my dream as a designer would be this meaningful!"
"And I renovated your store in Seattle." I intertwined my fingers with hers as we were about to meet the guests.
But my wolf was aching for our mate. Before I even knew it, I was dragging Cherry to the parking lot.
“Aren't we going to meet the guests?” Realizing that we were moving in the wrong direction, my mate asked.
“They can wait. But my wolf and I can't do it any longer. We need you, mate.” I smirked as I lightly pushed her to the back seat of my car.