#4 Moonlight on the Water
Chapter 35

Knox

I had no idea that I was going to mark Navy this morning, Alistair seemed to take over and make the decision for us. I was glad that he did, though. I knew my own insecurities were preventing me from giving her what she wanted. Alistair was just blind instincts and I followed his lead. After Navy marked me, which I didn’t even know was possible, we went back to our room to pass out. We were both exhausted.

A few hours later, I left my mate sleeping in our bed so I could get some work done. I didn’t want to leave her, but there was pack business that I couldn’t put off any longer. Clay met me in my office while Dover went to stand guard outside our bedroom.

“What’s the word, Clay?” I asked my Beta.

“I’ve talked to every single Amy and Timothy in the pack, even ones that weren’t mated to each other, and nothing.” Clay sighed in frustration,

“Dude, do you have any idea how many Amys and Timothys there are?”

“No.” I replied simply.

“A lot, there are a lot.” He grumbled.

“One of them has to be lying.”

“Unless they changed their names? They created a whole fake background for Mom, why wouldn’t they do the same for themselves? Maybe they changed their names so Mom couldn’t replace them again.” Clay suggested.

“I guess.” I mumbled, feeling defeated.

“Let me check the pack registry. Everyone who came from Canada with grandfather signed their names to a pack registry. Then, when they finally settled and fixed up the packhouse, they did another census. They picked up a few strays, they just figured they were left overs or something. No one thought anything of it.” Clay explained.

“Good idea, Clay.” I nodded in appreciation. Clay was more of the intellect in the family. Even though he was an asshole, he was still pretty smart. He knew more about the pack’s history and laws than I did.

“I’ll head to the archives. Think your mate will mind me poaching on her turf?” He laughed, knowing all about Navy’s obsession with the archive room.

“Not if you’re looking into this for her.” I said.

“I’ll let you know what I replace.” He replied before leaving my office. A little while later, one of the guard wolves mindlinked me,

“Alpha, there’s someone here trying to get in. He claims he has a meeting with the Luna. His name is Cameron.”

“Let him in, he’s a guest of the Luna’s. Send him to my office.” I sighed, not at all ready for this meeting.

Before I let Cameron anywhere near my mate, I needed to have a word with him. Navy had no idea I wanted to speak with him privately and I was pretty sure she wouldn’t agree to it, which is why I was having him sent here quietly. There was a knock on my door and Cameron entered, escorted by two wolves. I waved the guards away and told Cameron to sit.

“I wanted to talk with you before your meeting with my mate.” I grumbled.

“Our mate.” Cameron corrected me and Alistair growled in my head.

“She’s my mate, Cameron. We made it official this morning.” I showed him my mark.

“You forced her to mark you!” Cameron hollered at me.

“Sit down.” I growled at Cameron’s threatening demeanor. He immediately sat. Even he was affected by my Alpha tone. Interesting.

“I don’t force Navy to do anything. She’s in charge around here. She asked me to mark her, she decided.” I knew I didn’t owe this fool any sort of explanation, but I selfishly wanted to brag.

“You both act like you’re the only two involved in this.” Cameron slumped in his seat.

“That’s why I wanted to talk with you. I know we’re not the only ones affected. I know how much you mean to Navy. I don’t want to ruin your friendship with her, but I can’t have you trying to steal my mate.” I was trying to be a compassionate mate for my Luna by putting her feelings above my insanely jealous ones.

“How can I steal something that’s mine already?” This guy was really testing my patience.

“She doesn’t belong to anyone.” I said.

“I don’t know, it seems like you think she belongs to you.” Cameron said in a snarky tone.

“Yes, okay, I’m possessive of my mate. I do think she’s mine, but I don’t own her. She makes her own choices, I just keep her safe and support her.” I sighed.

“You stole her before I even had a chance to do anything.” Cameron glared at me.

“This isn’t getting us anywhere,” I said,

“I didn’t bring you here to fight. I wanted to come up with a compromise.”

“A compromise for what?” Cameron finally seemed ready to listen.

“A compromise to make sure that Navy doesn’t lose her friend.”

“You want me to roll over and just give up? Agree to only being her friend.” Cameron said.

“I mean, sure, that would be ideal, but I figured you weren’t open to that.” I paused and Cameron shook his head,

“Right, so, some ground rules. Navy and I are mates, there’s no arguing that now. We’ve marked each other and she will be my Luna. She’s moved in with me and she’ll be living here, she’s not moving back home. None of that is negotiable.” I said firmly.

“Even for her?” Cameron snapped. I sighed again,

“Those are her terms. Are you going to be done with this attitude anytime soon?” Cameron rolled his eyes but said nothing.

“I obviously cannot keep you out of Navy’s life unless it’s what she wants. So, I won’t try. I won’t threaten you and I’ll try to be civil. As long as Navy is chaperoned by one of her guards, she can go with you whenever she wants. She’s agreed to stay on the pack grounds for now, at least until I’m a little more comfortable with your presence. You’re welcomed here whenever she wants you here for as long as she wants.” I waited for Cameron to respond.

“Those are Navy’s terms?” He asked for clarification.

“Yes. I’ve discussed them with her.”

“Okay, fine. What about my terms?” Cameron asked.

“What are they?”

“I’m not going to give up on convincing Navy to accept me, as well. I want to be assured that you won’t try to rip my head off if and when I flirt with her.” Cameron stated. I gripped the edge of my desk, attempting to keep my cool.

“As long as Navy has given consent, I won’t kill you. If you harm her or do something against her will, you’ll die.” I replied coolly.

“Fair enough.” Cameron agreed.

“You said you wanted her to be your mate, too. I’m curious about how you think that works.” I asked.

“Sirens usually have more than one mate.” Cameron said.

“I know, Navy’s told me that before.”

“There’s no reason Navy can’t have both of us as her mates.” He shrugged and I felt my face go white.

“You’re serious?”

“Sure. It’s normal for us. Is it not for werewolves?” Cameron asked.

“No, not really. Multiples, like twins and triplets, typically share a mate but otherwise, it’s pretty rare.” I said.

“Hm. Well, that could make things interesting.” Cameron said with a thoughtful expression.

“She’s not moving back home, even part time.” I replied sternly.

“I’d move here.” Cameron shrugged.

Before I could say anything more, I sensed my mate. Her sweet aroma filled the room and I watched as Cameron picked up on her presence as well. Navy pushed open the office door and inspected the scene. She narrowed her eyes at the pair of us.

“What’s going on in here?” She asked suspiciously.

“We’re just having a little chat.” I said innocently. She snorted, clearly not believing me.

“Hi, Cam.” She waved to Cameron as she walked past him and towards me. I smiled smugly as she placed a quick kiss on my lips.

“Hi, Knox.” She mumbled against my mouth.

“Hi, baby.” I purred back.

“Are you ready for our date, Navy?” Cameron interrupted us.

“What were you two talking about?” She ignored his question.

“I was just setting some clear boundaries.” I said.

“What boundaries?”

“The ones we talked about, love.” I wrapped my arm around her waist and gave her a squeeze.

“And I was setting my own terms.” Cameron added.

“What terms?” Navy turned her questions on him.

“Knox won’t rip my head off for flirting with you.”

“As long as you give him consent.” I quickly added. Navy looks between us,

“You two are in here planning away, but what about me and my terms?” She glared at the pair of us.

“Of course, baby, whatever you want. You’re the one in charge here.” I assured her.

“I assume you explained to Cam that we’ve marked each other?” She raised her eyebrow at me and I nodded,

“He’s aware.”

“Then, Cam, you know that I’m not going anywhere. I can’t. Knox is my mate and I live here now. You cannot try to argue or change that.” She said sternly.

“Okay.” Cameron nodded in agreement,

“But, as I was just explaining to Knox here, you are perfectly capable of having two mates.”

“That’s not normal for werewolves.” Navy replied nervously. I pulled her close to me again,

“This is all about you, my love.” She looked at me with huge eyes,

“You’d agree to that?”

“I’d rather not think about it right now. Let’s just take this one day at a time.” I sighed.

“Navy, are you okay with going on proper dates with me?” Cameron asked, pulling her attention away from me.

“Proper dates?” She asked.

“Ones where I try to woo you.” He clarified and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.

“He’s asking for your permission to flirt.” I grumbled to my mate. Her face changed to realization,

“Oh, yeah, I guess.” She mumbled, clearly uncomfortable.

“Listen here, Cameron. You will explicitly ask her before you do anything.” I glared at the siren.

“I don’t need a lesson on consent.” He scoffed. Navy kissed me again before wiggling out of my grip,

“Dover is waiting for me outside. I’ll be back soon.” She said, kissing me again. She wanted a quick peck, but I grabbed her butt and pulled her against me, deepening the kiss. Cameron cleared his throat behind her and I released Navy with an aggravated sigh.

“Love you, baby.” I said.

“Love you back.” She smiled before turning away from me.