I nervously drum my fingers on the arm of the couch. Cayton is due home any minute now, and I still have no idea what he wants to tell me. I've run through about thirty different scenarios since we've gotten home, and no amount of TV is distracting me.

I tried playing some games on my phone, but that didn't work either. I also found that I had ten missed calls from my mother, and seven texts. I text her back, making up a lie that I lost my phone charger for the past two weeks. After interrogation started, I decided it would be easier to worry over what Cayton was telling me.

My mind kept reminding me of all the possibilities. Most of them consist of him telling me that it's over, that he's through with me. Another one is that he's going to tell me some old flame is back in the picture.

That one is quite a possibility, actually. Who knows how many past girls there are? And I don't even want to think about the whole tree house thing. Just the thought of some other girl who was up their before me replacing me makes me both angry and sad at the same time.

I couldn't really convince my pessimistic mind to think of anything positive, so I'm left with a sick feeling in my stomach and a small ache in my heart at the thought of him breaking up with me. Can you break up with a soul mate?

"Macy, would you calm down? I told you, it's nothing to be worried about," Tami assures me.

"Sorry, I can't help it. My brain won't shut up." I admit. "And I swear, if he tells me that there's some werewolf girl, I'm going to get a round of silver bullets." My anger decides to come out at this point.

"Damn Macy, that's cruel. I can promise you, that if he was cheating on you, the news would spread like wildfire. Everyone already knows he's taken," she shrugs.

"Everyone? How?"

"Like I said, news spreads like wildfire."

That thought did give me a little peace of mind, but not much.

Damn it, I wish he would just get here already and put me out of my misery!

Luna... The word pops up into my mind. What if he's having second thoughts about me being Luna? He should know better than anyone that I'm not exactly suited for the role. And I guess the popcorn, sticky notes, starving, among countless other things I've done here don't exactly help my case.

After a few more minutes of nervous drumming, the front door opens and Cayton steps through.

"Hey Princess," I say, kissing the top of Macy's head. She looks up and smiles nervously, which causes me to frown. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she says, her tone implying that something is wrong. Her fingers are playing with the hem of her shirt, something I've noticed she does when she's nervous. I don't know if she notices she does it or not, but it's a dead giveaway.

"Something's wrong. What is it? Did something happen while you were out?" I ask, sitting down on the couch next to her and pulling her onto my lap. She rests her head on my chest, not saying anything else.

"She thinks you're cheating on her because I told her you had something to tell her," Tami says casually.

"Tami! You don't just tell people that I think they're cheating on me!" Macy says, lifting her head up to glare at Tami.

"Wait, you think I'm cheating on you?" I ask in disbelief. Just the idea of doing anything remotely close to that hurts. And it doesn't make my wolf too happy either.

"No! I mean, not really cheating... Not that I think you're seeing someone else, I just... Ugh! Tell me what you were going to say!" she sighs dejectedly.

"Do you really think I would cheat on you?"

"No, but my brain is all pessimistic and was like 'oh, maybe one of those tree house girls would make a better Luna' and 'he's dumping you'." she says.

Maybe I should have just lied and told her I never brought any other girl up there. Hey, I was a teenage boy at the time, what do you expect? I didn't think it would matter today. But if she's really that worried over it...

"Just tell her about the damn party already," Tami groans.

"There's a party?" Macy asks.

"That's what I needed to tell you," I say. Her mouth forms an 'o' shape, before she smiles sheepishly, relief washing over her.

"That was my next guess."

"I bet it was," Tami mutters sarcastically. Macy shoots a glare towards Tami's direction.

"Anyways, what's this about a party," she asks, turning her attention from Tami and looking up at me with her beautiful brown eyes, resting her chin on my shoulder.

"My mother is planning a party for you to meet everyone." I say, and then add as an afterthought, "It's in about a week and a half."

"What do you mean by everyone?" she asks slowly.

"As in everyone in the pack." She jumps up abruptly, almost losing her balance as she scrambles up from my lap.

"How many people are in the pack?!"

"Over two hundred." I resist the urge to cover my ears, because I have a feeling that she's about to scream her reply. And the girl has an extremely high-pitched scream.

"OVER TWO HUNDRED?!" She's giving me this look that tells me that she's nervous and worried. I almost want to laugh at how her mouth is hanging open in shock, but I know she wouldn't like that too much.

Over two hundred people. Wolves. Over two hundred wolves I have to meet. No matter how many times I say it to myself, it still shocks me. How am I supposed to meet all these people? Believe it or not, I don't do well with big crowds. I tend to get really nervous, to the point where I feel physically sick.

"W-why do they want to meet me?" I ask meekly, even though I can already guess the answer.

"Because you're going to be their Luna-"

"Is there any way that I can not be the Luna?"

"What do you mean?" Cayton asks, and I swear he looks hurt.

"You're his mate, it automatically makes you the Luna," Tami explains, still casually laying on the couch and watching the TV.

"So I have no choice?"

"Not unless you reject him," Tami says. Cayton gives her this killer look, and even though she isn't looking his way I can tell she feels it. She mutters a sorry.

So, inevitably, I'm going to have to be Luna. I guess rejecting Cayton would be like saying 'I don't want you', and even though I'm extremely unfit and unprepared to take such a position as Luna, I'm not giving up Cayton for it.

"I'm going to have to tough this out aren't I?" I ask.

"It's not as bad as you think. And I believe you're the only one who thinks you can't do this," Cayton says, standing up and placing his hands on my waist and pulling me close to him.

"But I'm not a leader. The closest thing to leading I've done is a line in fourth grade!"

"I promise you that everything will be fine," he says, before giving me a gentle kiss on my lips. I can feel the butterflies starting to flit around in my stomach. Most of me trusts Cayton whole-heartedly, but there is that sliver of doubt that I can do this.

I don't want to over think it though, and I decide I need a distraction for a moment. And what better distraction is their than your sexy werewolf mate? When he pulls away, I bring my hand to the back of his neck and stand on my tippy toes to meet him halfway.

It's like someone flipped on a switch, because almost instantly I feel warmth rushing through me from the place where his hands are on my hips. I gasp when I feel a surge of electricity run through me as well, which gives Cayton the perfect opportunity to slip his tongue into my mouth.

It creates the perfect distraction because in no time, I've forgotten everything I've been worrying about for the past hour. Hell, I almost forget my own name. And I certainly forget the fact that Tami is only a few feet away from where we are having our make out session.

"I think I'll be leaving. I don't want to lose my lunch," she says, a hint of amusement in her voice. Still keeping my lips glued to Cayton's, I absently wave at her with my free hand. I hear her soft giggle before the sound of the door closing signals her leaving.

I pull away for a moment to catch my breath, with a goofy grin on my lips. I don't notice until then how my heart is beating erratically, and there is no doubt that Cayton can hear it.

"You really don't understand what you're doing to me," he says in a husky voice. I don't respond, because I feel it too.

Unfortunately, if I want to act on that, I can't, because my phone decides to start ringing. I groan and get out of Cayton's hold to grab it off the side table. When I see that it's my mother calling, I take a deep breath, knowing that this too is inevitable.

"Hi mom! Long time no see!" I say cheerfully.

"Macy Elizabeth, do we need to discuss this again? What is the point of me paying for a phone that you won't use?" She dives straight into her rant.

"Sorry mom," I grumble. I look at Cayton, who is watching me with his eyebrow raised. My mom starts her rant again, so I put my hand over the mouthpiece and pull it away from my ear. "I'm just going to take this call on the back porch. Take a cold shower while I'm talking," I tease, smirking at him.

I put the phone back up to my ear and head towards the back door. I make myself comfy in one of the many chairs, knowing that my mother will be on this rant for a bit. My mother is one of the more strict parents, and one of the more controlling ones.

"And why haven't you called from your father's phone if you lost your charger?" my mother finally asks.

"I don't have to check in 24/7 mom. I'm at dad's, doing nothing. It's the same thing every day," I lie. But I know she would personally drive down here to kill me if I told her what's really going on.

"Well then do you care to explain why your father told me you have been staying at a friend's?" I silently curse my dad for not telling me he talked to mom when I went over there today.

"Because I have been?" It comes out more like a question.

"Who is this friend? How old is she? Are her parents around? Are there boys?" She fires question after question.

"Her name is Tami," I say as that's the first thing that pops in my mind. "She's twenty, she doesn't live with her parents, and the only boy that is around is her boyfriend."

"And does he ever have any friends around? Because Macy, I swear if you get pregnant-"

"Mom!" I cut her off. One thing you should know about my mother is that she is a very overprotective parent. She made sure that I lived a sheltered life, which might very well explain my lack of maturity sometimes."I'm not going to get knocked up! If he hangs out with friends, he does it at their house. Now would you please stop worrying? Besides, I'm nineteen now, I can handle myself."

"You're nineteen. You're still a teenager and you still have to follow my rules until you move out, which isn't going to be for another four years," she reminds me.

Shi shit shit! I can't believe I've completely forgotten about college! Who could blame me though? There was a lot to be distracted with.

"Yea, about that..."

"We already discussed this. You're staying with me during your holidays, therefore you won't be moving out until college is over."

"I meant that I'm not so sure about the whole college thing..."

At that moment, I thank the heavens that phones can't detonate at the other's command.

"Excuse me young lady?! If you think that I'm going to let you get stuck in some dead-end job just because you're too lazy to go to college and make something of yourself-" I groan aloud, putting my face in my hand.

"I just think it would be better for me if I went to school down here... I mean, it's cheaper and I could stay with dad during the holidays." I knew it was a bad idea to say that the second it came out of my mouth. My mother starts yelling at me, so I put my phone on the patio floor while she does so.

I focus on the woods that surround the house, my memory drifting back to just a few days ago. When I had run into that naked guy and Joshua. I know he's the Alpha of another pack and has some grudge against Cayton's pack, but no one has explained to me anything else.

What I want to know is what he's looking for, and why he has such a grudge anyways. Surely it can be resolved without attacking people. What if he gets far enough, and tries attacking someone I know. What if he tries attacking Cayton?

My hand instantly grips the heart pendant on my necklace that Cayton got me from my birthday. I haven't taken it off since then, and I don't think I will. But my thoughts worry me. What if, when we least expect it, Joshua makes his move?

Unless I had a round of silver bullets, I would be utterly helpless in the situation, which is a thought that I don't like.

"Macy Elizabeth, are you listening to me?" I hear my mother's voice. I quickly grab the phone off the wooden deck and put it back up to my ear.

"Yea mom, I've been listening," I lie.

"Good. Tell me what I said."

"You said that it's a stupid idea and you won't have it, and that the education up by our house is much better than the education down here," I say robotically. I hadn't heard a word of what she said, but I know my mother and I've heard this all before.

"Exactly. So rethink what you said before." Arguing with my other is like trying to convince Tami to not buy something on sale; pointless. So I just mutter an ok. "Goodbye. I expect you to call me tomorrow. Love you."

"Love you too mom." I press the end button, and then lean my forehead against my phone. Maybe I should have thought to call her earlier, but to be honest it wasn't a priority.

"How'd it go?" Cayton asks from behind me. It startles me and I end up dropping my phone.

"Don't sneak up on me like that," I scold. He smirks and walks over to my seat and bends down to hand me my phone. I see him frown when he looks at the screen, which in turn causes me to frown. "What? Did the screen crack or something?"

"No," he says lowly. "Who's this?"

"Who's who?" He turns the phone to show me the picture I have set as my background.

Whoops.

I give him a sheepish smile, hoping to lessen the glare he's giving to the picture. It's a picture of me and my friends Emily, Lewis and Henry. I'm guessing that he doesn't like the fact that Lewis has his arm slung around my shoulder and he's burying his face in my hair.

"I'll change that," I say, taking my phone from his strong grip and shoving it in the pocket of my shorts. He raises an eyebrow, before crossing his arms over his chest and leaning against the outdoor table.

"Who is that guy?"

"It's my friend Lewis. And before you ask, no, he isn't my boyfriend and never has been." I don't add that he was almost my boyfriend before I left for the summer. I might have had a crush on him, but any feelings for him were wiped away when I met Cayton. But we all know Cayton has some jealousy problems.

"He looked awfully cozy with you," he says, his tone starting to get cold.

"Cayton, it's just a picture. Just be happy I don't have it as a shirtless picture of some celebrity."

"Just change the picture," he demands. My defiant side wants so badly to take over when he orders me around, and I just decide to let it.

"What if I want to keep it the same?" His eyes narrow just a fraction of an inch, and I mimic him.

"How would you feel if I had a picture of another girl all over me as my background?"

"Probably the same way I feel about you and your countless tree house flings," I try to say casually, but my insecurity and anger slips into my voice. And he has no right to get mad over a picture of me and a few friends when he used to sleep around!

He loses the defensive stance and his eyes soften immediately.

"Does that really upset you this much?" he asks.

"Sometimes..." I admit, looking down at my hands.

I try not to think about it, but dammit, the idea of another girl touching my mate makes me angry. Not to mention the fact that these girls are all probably bombshells. I mean, just look at Tami. She's far better looking than I am. Even that Bethany girl from the restaurant is. How do I compare to who knows how many werewolf girls?

Cayton kneels next to my chair and grabs my hand in his. He uses his other hand to gently brush my cheek, before lifting my chin to make me meet his eyes. His blue eyes instantly hold me hostage.

"Don't be upset Princess. I'm sorry that it makes you feel this way, but I can't take it back. I was a young, stupid teenager who didn't think his actions through," he says whole-heartedly. "And if it helps, I haven't been with another girl since I took the position as Alpha."

"Really?" I ask.

"I realized I needed to start taking things seriously, and I promised myself that the next and only girl I would be with from then would be my mate."

"So you haven't been with a girl for three years?"

"Yes."

"No wonder you're so easily excitable," I tease.

"Only with you," he whispers, before giving me a soft, lingering kiss. I smile against his lips, and grab my phone out of my pocket, carefully taking a picture of this moment. The sound goes off and Cayton pulls away.

"Did you just take a picture?" he asks bemused. I smile and nod.

"Just changing my background." I change it then turn it so he can see that Lewis is no longer there. "Cute, right?" He smiles, a boyish grin that makes him look so cute that I feel like a crazy fan meeting a celebrity idol.

"Perfect."

We end up sitting side by side on the back porch after that, taking in the beautiful summer scene and enjoying each others company. Birds are chirping in chorus, the sun is shining brilliantly, making everything seem alive and peaceful. With a perfect breeze blowing through, and the perfect man by my side, I think it couldn't get any better.

But it does get better. Seemingly out of no where, I feel Cayton intertwine our fingers together and kiss my hand, before he tells me the one phrase that I have subconsciously been waiting to hear.

"I love you."