Forever in the Past and Forever in the Future

I hear a familiar giggle that warms my soul. I turn to find the most gorgeous woman in the world

standing in front of me. She's wearing leggings and a linen sleeveless tunic style top. She's gained

weight since the last time I saw her, filling out her curves. Her skin has a sun- kissed glow that makes a

few freckles pop on her nose and cheeks. My heart skips a beat at the sight of my mate.

She bounces on her toes and runs to me. "Bronx!" she squeals as she jumps into my outstretched

arms. Sparks fly between us as our bodies collide.

"Kas! Oh, Goddess, it's so good to see you. You look amazing," I say as I pepper her face with kisses

and plant one on her mouth.

"Luna Iokaste, dinner is in two hours. Why don't you show Alpha Bronx around in the meantime?" Lady

Camille suggests as she seems to appear out of nowhere.

"Yes, ma'am," Kas says but doesn't take her eyes off of me. ae ok

"Bronx, I have learned so much already. Lex and I are so close now. It's practically like we're the same

spirit," Kas speaks excitedly as we walk around the coven house grounds. I notice Marco following at a

distance, giving us plenty of space. Good. I am glad to see he is committed to his job.

"Oh, did Lady Camille tell you about James and Sister Delilah?" she says with sparkling eyes.

"Yeah, Baby, she said she and I have decisions to make before you guys leave. We can worry about

that later," I reassure her.

We stop at a bench next to the path we're walking on. I sit down and pull her into my lap. We sit there

holding each other, talking about how things have been. She seems to have done a lot in two weeks.

The more she tells me the more I don't know how she possibly had the time to do it all. As she sits on

my lap, our conversation melts into nothing more than slow, soft kisses until a woman comes up to us

and clears her throat.

“My apologies for the interruption, Alpha Bronx, Luna Iokaste, but dinner will be served in ten minutes,"

she says with a blush.

“Thank you, Sister Renee," Kas says gratefully. She stands up and takes my hand. We go inside to a

large dining room with three long tables that take up the length of the room. There are benches instead

of chairs. Approximately a hundred women are talking and laughing with each other in their seats. |

They all stop when they see Kas and me. They stand in unison and bow, showing their respect to me. I

bow in return feeling self conscious as I realize I am the only person who is not female in the room.

They all go back to sitting but quietly, as Lady Camille stands at the center of the room ona small

platform. 2

"Sisters, as you know, Luna Iokaste's mate has arrived for a visit. Please make him feel welcome over

the next two days. In other news, tonight is the full moon. Alpha Bronx, your Luna wanted to surprise

you with the news, so please, Luna Iokaste, go ahead."

Kas stands up from her seat with an ear to ear smile and turns to face me, "Bronx, tonight I get to shift

for the first time. Will you please shift with me?"

I stare at Kas in excited disbelief until I realize she is waiting for me to answer her, "Y-yes. Oh my

Goddess, Kas, of course I will shift with you! I would be honored.” 2

"Wonderful! Sisters, we will all meet at eleven in the courtyard tonight in support of Luna Iokaste," Lady

Camille announces.

Cheers erupt around the room. I look at Kas who's smiling broadly at me with happy tears in her eyes.

Saint is practically doing backflips in my head. 2 Lady Camille sits down across from us and explains

the details of the ceremony to honor both of our gods and goddesses before the shift.

The next several hours are a bit of a whirlwind. Kas says many of the sisters of the coven have never

seen a werewolf shift before. So this is exciting for them for many reasons. 2 While they're prepping

Kas for the ceremony, I go to find James.

I find his and Marco's rooms are on either side of Kas's. It makes me feel a little better that they are

protecting her from both sides. "Alpha, I'm so glad you're here. Permission to speak about a personal

matter, Sir," he requests after letting me into his room.

“Of course, James. You know you always have my ear," I reassure him.

He leads me to a small table and asks me to sit while he gets us glasses of water. He sits down and

starts to tell me about his mate; I can see he's head over heels in love. I know the feeling. I tell him to

enjoy his time with her and that we will figure out what to do before it's time for him to leave this place.

He seems relieved, then shows me pictures of the beautiful young woman. She's tall and thin with light

brown hair and blue eyes that sparkle. °

"James, I don't know much about what happens when witches fall in love, but I do know werewolves

can get distracted easily," I look at him seriously, hoping I don't have to spell out my concerns.

"Don't worry, Alpha, the Luna is always my number one priority. Delilah and I meet up when it's Marco's

watch and she knows not to disturb me when I'm on duty."

"Good," I pause for a moment. I attempt to soften my tone. I try imagining I'm talking to Milo or Reggie,

"So, do you love her?"

He looks at me with a bit of surprise at my relaxed tone. I'm his Alpha. I never talk about personal

relationships. When he realizes it isn't a trick question, his shoulders relax and he puts his hand on his

heart.

"Alpha, she's amazing. She smells like apples and honey and her eyes change color depending on her

mood. She is so caring and sweet. I just want to be close to her all the time. wt

I laugh at the big burly warrior in front of me pining over his mate. I've seen him take down a werebear

in a battle once. I can't imagine him being the complete opposite with his mate. People probably think

the same about me, I imagine.

"T completely understand, James. Trust me, I completely understand," I clap his shoulder and leave his

room.

I find Marco in the hallway standing guard outside Kas's room.

"Marco, at ease," I say as I walk into the hallway.

"Hello, Alpha. Good to see you."

"Thank you. How are you, Marco? We miss seeing you at the packhouse. Training isn't the same

without you," I smile. He looks at me the same as James. Confused at my relaxed conversation.

"Things here are...tranquil...always. It can be unnerving because everything is so perfect. Like too

perfect, ya know. But we've adjusted. James found his mate, they've been together for almost the

whole two months now. I'm happy for him."

"Two months? Marco, you've only been here two weeks."

His face looks concerned, "Alpha, no one told you? Time is different here. A week for you in the real

world is a month for us." _ |

I feel the blood drain from my face.

"So you're saying when I leave here Sunday, it's only going to be a few hours passed when I get in my

car?"

"T guess. It's kinda hard to think about, like, it doesn't click in my brain exactly."

Saint growls in my mind. It seems torturous to keep a werewolf away from their pack for eight weeks let

alone eight months. No one had told me about the change in time when we agreed to this

arrangement. I try not to let anger swirl in my mind.

"A-are you alright? I mean, alone...here." "Oddly, yeah. I just remind myself it's for the Luna and it's

temporary. I will appreciate being home so much more once I get there." "And the Luna, how has she

been holding up?" "They keep her busy. It's like basic training, but more mental workouts instead of

physical ones. Her day starts at six a.m. and usually goes until nine p.m. Honestly, it is kinda nice to

see her changing. She seems more confident and walks taller. She still finds time to make us cookies

too. Last week she made lemon bars. I think maybe cookies is one of her magic abilities."

I laugh a little at thinking about Kas in the kitchen baking.

"Alpha, don't get me wrong. She misses you. You can see it in her face when she has down time but

the coven is doing its best to keep her distracted and keep her spirits up. I think they really care about

her."

"Thanks, Marco. I appreciate your sacrifice to take on this assignment."

He nods as Lady Camille comes around the corner.

"Ah, Alpha Bronx. I would like to speak to you about tonight. Please join me in my office." She holds out

her hand. We have to portal to her office? Seems a bit excessive, but okay.

I blink and we are in a circular room with no door. There is a simple wooden desk at the center with

bookshelves covering most of the walls.

"Please, sit,"' she motions to a guest chair at the desk.

"Before we talk about tonight's ceremony, I wanted to let you know that I just found out about time

being different here in your realm than it is in the rest of the world. I'm not too happy that wasn't

disclosed before Kas and I agreed to this arrangement, Lady Camille.” “Alpha Bronx, I assure you, the

ambient magic of our realm is helping tamper the negative effects your mate and guards would usually

feel from being away from your pack for so long. If we do find any of them starts experiencing distress,

we will contact you right away," she reassures me.

I consider her words for a moment and decide to drop the matter. Drop it, but not forget it. “What can I

do for you in regards to this evening, Lady Camille?"

"Alpha Bronx, as you know, tonight is a full moon. After you and Luna Iokaste shift back to your human

forms, we need you two to mate tonight. Under no circumstances are you to mark each other, but she

is a goddess born of love. She needs to experience physical love with you for us to be able to progress

with her training."