Once Rejected, Twice Desired (Book 1 of Blue Moon Series)
Once Rejected, Twice Desired Chapter 21

Xander POV

I was so good to be home. I felt at ease knowing that I could control the security around the pack grounds and protect Alaia.

After our afternoon shower, Alaia was quickly kidnapped by Kimmy and my mom and taken off to Goddess only knows where. I took the opportunity to head to my office and catch up on some pack work.

When I arrived, I was pleasantly surprised to see that Matthew had taken care of everything in the absence of Kade and I.

I sent him and Kade a quick mindlink asking them to come to my office for an overview of the last few days.

The two arrived about 5 minutes later.

Kade knocked twice before walking in, a huge grin on his face.

"What's the point of knocking if you're just going to walk in anyway?" I ask.

"I do have some manners Alpha, geez."

I ignored his comment and looked over to Matthew.

"You've done an amazing job keeping the pack running while Kade and I were gone. I'm grateful for all your hard work."

"Thank you for that Alpha, but you brought our Luna home. It is I who is grateful to you."

"Hey! I did s**t too!" Kade states, with a comical look of frustration on his face.

"Sometimes I swear Pretty Boy here is out for my job."

"Don't worry Kade, no one's a better pain in the a*s than you are." I reply.

"Anyway, Kimmy and my mom have taken Alaia off somewhere and I figured now would be a good time to go over the revamped security measures.

"Matt, you've been briefed on the situation with Alexi. I don't think he's be dumb enough to step foot into my territory and try to take my mate, but we're better safe than sorry." "Yes, Alpha. I've ordered that we triple our presence along the perimeter, thus giving us visibility to the entire border at all times.

Patrols have been advised to not allow anyone to cross without permission from one of the three of us.

I've also consulted with the elders in regards to the possible dark magic at Alexi's disposal. They are checking the ancient scrolls to see what can be done in that regard." "Well done Matthew. I looks like you've covered all our bases. I'll follow up with the elders as well as the border patrols just to reiterate the importance of all of this." We spoke for another 30 minutes before we went down to begin the bonfire.

The three of us walked through the woods towards the small clearing that that had become the pack's unofficial bonfire spot.

When we arrived we saw that there were already dozens of pack members gathered collecting wood and other supplies.

They truly seemed excited to finally meet Alaia, and I was overjoyed.

As I helped pile more wood onto the fire I felt a small hand brush down my back and immediately smiled.

I turned around expecting to see the face and my beautiful mate but instead I came face to face with Francesca, a one time mistake who had made it her mission to become my Luna. "Francesca, keep your hands off me. And what are you doing here?

"Aww baby, why wouldn't I be here? The whole pack is talking about how you will be officially introducing me as your Luna. Of course I'm here! I'm actually surprised you put this together for us, I wasn't at all prepared." She hooked her arm through mine and sent a fake smile to a few pack members giving us confused looks.

I felt Alastair begin to growl with agitation before I removed her arm.

"Francesca, you're not my Luna, you never were. I'm here to introduce my mate Alaia to the pack, she is our Luna. You and I were a mistake, it happened one time and will never happen again."

She again stepped up to me, pressing her breasts to my chest and reached up to touch my face.

I caught her hand before she could touch make contact and took a step away from her.

Francesca didn't give up and again moved forward, this time wrapping her hands around my waist.

"I've seen this 'mate' of yours, she's just a child, Xander. Can she even handle you in the bedroom? We both know what a beast you can be. I can take it, and much much more. Just give us another chance, I can be naked and ready in your bed in 15 minutes. Please, Daddy?"

She made her point by standing on her tiptoes and whispering the last few words directly into my ear.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Alaia step into the clearing, her eyes locked directly on Francesca and I.

Hurt and betrayal and what I thought may have been anger flashed across her beautiful face before she turned and walked away.

F**K!!

Alaia POV

***Flashback, Before the Start of the Bonfire ***

I'm sitting in the dining hall of the watching Kimmy and Katherine bicker back and forth about the most recent string of expletives that came out of her mouth.

"Kimmy, as a lady and the daughter of an Alpha, you have to present yourself in a certain light. Calling someone a 'shit-eating asshat' is completely inappropriate."

I quietly giggle at the memory. Some guy accidentally bumped me while we were walking in the mall causing the smallest drop of my Caramel Frappuccino to spill on my hand.

He immediately apologized and offered to help me clean myself up, but not before Kimmy ripped into him as if he had set me on fire or something.

"No one disrespects my sister and Luna like that, mom!"

Katherine, clearly seeing that the conversation was going nowhere, raised her hands in surrender and stepped away.

"I'm going to replace your father, maybe he'll have better luck." She warned before disappearing around the corner.

Kimmy then turns to me and asks, "Alaia, you're like me. It's impossible to live up the 'perfect' standard of being an Alpha's daughter, right?"

I do understand where she's coming from. Until my mom stepped in and insisted I train with the rest of the pack, I thought my life would just be one of hosting parties and shopping.

But I also understand the importance of putting your best face forward. It's hard to make someone respect you when you don't carry yourself respectfully.

"Kimmy, I love that you're a kick-a*s type of girl. It keeps people from thinking they can walk all over you. But you also have to remember that a persons' impression of you can last forever. You just have to think a bit before you rip someone a new one. Maybe they made an honest mistake and could use a pass."

"Uggh Alaia!! Why do you have to already have amazing Luna qualities?" She says with a mock scowl on her face.

"Did someone call me?" I hear an annoyingly high pitched voice say.

Kimmy balls her hands into tight fists and my curiosity is instantly peeked.

As if here to satisfy this curiosity, in walks a wanna be Barbie Doll reject carrying the scent of too much cheap perfume with her.

She stood about 5'6 and had bottle blond hair, mud brown eyes, a terrible spray tan, and eyebrows that looked like a toddler drew them on.

Her lips were painted bright red to match the too short skirt and tube top she was wearing.

If she had had any curves to speak of, they would have all been hanging out but she had a figure more closely resembling a Jenga block than an hourglass.

"I heard you call for your Luna, Kimmy. It's about time you start showing me some respect."

Kimmy scoffs and says "f**k off Fran, you're nobody's Luna but everyone's mistake."

Fran seems hurt by the statement but quickly recovers when she says, "Oh really? If that's the case, then why is Xander having a bonfire to officially introduce me to the pack? I knew he couldn't stay away for too long."

I feel a sense of rage begin to bubble within me causing Amethyst and I to let out a low growl.

It's as if she's just now seeing me because Fran finally lifts her eyes to meet mine before saying, "And who is your little friend, Kimmy. You know that once I'm Luna, I won't allow to you keep bringing home your strays." Amethyst fights to take control.

"That b***h! Kill her, she's trying to take our mate. Kill her!"

I remember the advice I had just gave Kimmy a few minutes earlier and take a few deep breaths.

"Fran is it?" I ask her.

"Actually, it's Francesca but you-"

"So, Fran. I'm Alaia. And trust me when I tell you that I'm far from a stray, I am Xander's chosen mate and the future Luna of this pack. If you'd been listening better when you heard about tonight's bonfire, you would have immediately known that it couldn't have been you the pack was speaking of. It's clear that you have a 'reputation' so why would Xander need to introduce you to someone who is already painfully well aware of your existence?

I don't know what you think you had with Xander, but please understand when I say that he is MINE. You will stay away from him if you know what's good for you."

Amethyst was clawing to tear this chick apart and I knew she could see it.

I saw fear flash in her eyes for a moment, my words had hit home. But she wouldn't give up that easily.

"Oh, you sad pathetic little girl. It's not what I had with him, it's what I have. He'll always come back to me. No one knows how to please him like I do. You're just a child, did you really think you could handle a man like Xander?"

She throws her head back and laughs and I feel a small sting at her words. I'm am inexperienced in his world, but that won't stop me from claiming what's mine.

"This 'child' is a grown woman and your Luna, you will respect me or you will face the consequences. Do you understand me?"

Without even knowing it, I had used my Luna tone which caused Francesca to shrink back a bit. She scowled at me one more time before she spun around and stormed off, mumbling under her breath.

"Nice job handling the b***h!" Kimmy said approvingly.

"Thanks, but what the hell is her problem?"

"Besides being a b***h? Well, her and Xander hooked up once and she became obsessed with him. You can get the details from him if you want but she's been following him like a lost puppy for the past three years. Once he decided that he was going to replace his mate, Fran stopped existing in Xander's world. She just can't seems to accept it I guess." Kimmy shrugged the thought off, but I was having a tougher time.

Hearing that my mate had slept with someone before me had hurt, but knowing that he stopped when he began his search for me made things a little better.

I needed to see Xander and get all of our skeletons out in the open so we could have a solid foundation of trust.

Ugh! This was like the Alexi and Victoria situation all over again. Some ridiculous power hungry woman hanging all over a man who doesn't want her. It was sad really, and more than a little frustrating. But this time I won't be bullied and I won't back down. It was time for me to go replace my man.

I check the clock and see that I have time to quickly change before heading down to the bonfire.

I run up to my room and into my closet where I quickly grab a pair of blue skinny jeans and a gray long sleeved T-shirt.

I really wanted to dress up a bit since I'm meeting the pack, but figured that a ball gown at a bonfire wouldn't be the best idea.

After getting dressed, I pulled my hair up into my signature messy bun atop my head (long ponytail around a fire? Also a terrible idea), and pulled on a simple pair of hiking boots.

"This will have to do." I said while looking myself over in the mirror.

When I joined Kimmy downstairs I saw that she was similarly dressed which put my mind at ease.

"Incorporating the pack colors into your outfit? Nice choice Alaia. You really are meant to be our Luna huh?"

I look down and that's when I realize.

"Blue and grey. I didn't even realize I was doing it honestly. The clothes just seemed to fit the occasion."

"Xander would be so proud." Kimmy adds, wiping away a fake tear.

She then takes my hand and we head out the door and begin walking to the clearing she was telling me about.

As we walk, she fills me in on her time in school so far and how she can't wait to finally graduate.

"I'll be a Junior this year, so at least I'll be an upperclassman. But why does it have to be so boring? And why does my Homeroom teacher always smell like stale cheese??"

I laugh aloud at that.

"I can't answer that for you Kim, but you're at the end so just buckle down a little longer. You'll be happy that you put in the effort when it's all over."

She smiles before pointing up ahead.

"The fire will be up through those trees. You'll probably replace Xander close to the center, helping with the logs. I'm going to go replace some snacks and I'll catch up with you."

I nod then walk in the direction Kimmy told me. As soon as I enter the clearing I see him.

Xander is standing by the enormous fire and that skank has her arms wrapped around his waist.

She looks over and smirks at me before she gets up on her tiptoes and whispers something in his ear.

"Kill her! How dare she touch our mate. Kill the b***h now, or I will!" Amethyst fumes.

It feels like the air is sucked from my lungs and I can't seem to move.

Xander then looks over and when I lock eyes with him I immediately turn and walk away.

They will not see me break, and they do not deserve my tears.

Unknown POV

I'm almost there, I just know it. I've never been a fan of moving in the shadows but it will just be a little bit longer until I will finally claim what is mine. Watching Alaia walk away from the bonfire I was struck with inspiration. I know what I have to do now, I'll just need a little help.

Surely, the Blue Moon pack hold no real loyalties to her yet, she will be like a lamb to the slaughter. And there I'll be, a savior ready to pick up the pieces. "Hold on my love, I'm coming for you..."