“No!” Our Luna spread her arms. “I asked Red to go dating my friend. It’s my order. If something happens to me, it’s my choice.”
“Helena, why did you keep defending him?”
Luna walked to our Alpha and then pleaded with him, “Because I don’t want your relationship to ruin because of me. I’m an adult, Ethan. Though I’m your mate, I should still be able to take care of myself.” She kissed the Alpha’s lips. “Besides, you saved me last night. Nothing happened.”
Our Alpha took a deep breath. Then he scooped Luna and kissed her passionately. “You are my little kryptonite. I can’t say ‘no’ when you ask me.” Then he said with a cold tone with me, “Thank you to your Luna since she spares your life.”
“Thank you so much, Luna.” I bent my head lower.
“So, do you think she is worth it to be our Luna?”
“Yes, Alpha, no doubt about that.”
“Good! I don’t want to hear nonsense again. Let’s eat!”
Both Alpha and Luna were back at the table. I still knelt on the floor.
“Red, are you deaf? Eat!”
“Yes, Alpha!” Then I stood and smiled at Luna. “I apologize again, Luna. I have been rude to you. It’ll be a great honor if you want to get me meals.”
Our Luna nodded and smiled too. Then she took each meal and placed it on my dish. “Here you go. Enjoy it!”
“Thank you, Luna.”
Luna took her plate, got a little each, and started eating. After that, we didn’t say anything else. Until we finished breakfast, Alpha was still cold toward me. He practically ignored me.
But Luna tried to comfort and calm him. She touched him and talked trivial things with him. Then Luna asked, “Ethan, are you going back to Crescent Island today?”
“Yes, my darling. Why?”
Luna shook her head. “I will miss you. Take care.”
“Yes, after breakfast, I will leave.” Then Alpha said, “Can I still trust you, Red?”
“Yes, Alpha, with my life.”
“Then please guard your Luna well. I don’t want to hear that something bad happened to her again.”
“For sure, Alpha.”
Our Alpha nodded. His mood seemed better now. “Good!” His tone was not as cold as before, more like his usual one.
***
~ Helena ~
I whispered to Ethan, “I need to talk before you leave tomorrow.”
“Sure.”
“You go to your room first. I want to speak with Red for a minute.” I smiled. “I won’t be long.”
Ethan nodded, then he left the dining room.
After Ethan was gone, Red immediately knelt in front of me. “Luna, thank you for being so gracious to me. Forgive me for my close-mindedness. I’m truly ashamed of myself.”
“Red, please, no need to kneel.”
“You are too kind, Luna. I just realized today how stupid and arrogant I was. When I came to you, I thought it was for the best. Yet, I betrayed my Alpha for that.” I bent my head lower. “In my community, loyalty is everything. It is a basic thing, yet I forgot it. I wanted to make him safe since I saw how hurt he was when Lynnette died. I don’t want it to happen again to him.”
I shook my head and offered my hand. “Please, Red, you make me so uncomfortable by kneeling like that.”
Red immediately stood and sat again in his seat. “My apologies, Luna.”
“Let’s forget everything and start from the beginning, okay?”
Again, Red gaped. “I just realized how foolish I was, Luna.”
“Red, please—”
“Let me finish. Our Alpha King told me that he was sure that the Highest One chose you as his mate. So, I was foolish to think that our Alpha was wrong again like the first time.”
I said nothing since I wanted to hear the whole story.
“Now, I just remembered about that. I betrayed my Alpha by telling you to stay away from our Alpha. But worse than that, I forgot that it was the Highest One’s design. I have made the greatest mistake.” Red let out a long sigh. “Once, I heard, ‘A mistake that makes you humble is better than an achievement that makes you arrogant.’ Today, I truly understand the quote. I was truly foolish and arrogant. I’m so sorry, Luna.”
“I have forgiven you already. I understand that it will be better for Ethan to have someone from his world. But we didn’t choose each other. It just happened. When I saw Ethan, I felt something so strong that I felt like Ethan was not a stranger to me. There was a tug in my heart like I had never felt before.” I smiled. “When Ethan told me that I was his mate, I understood that the tug was to identify my soulmate.”
“You know, Luna, I’m so glad now that the Highest One chose you for our Alpha. You are kind, sweet, and patient. You complement our Alpha so well.”
“Thank you. I’ll try my best to be Ethan’s mate, his Luna.”
“You have already been the best mate for our Alpha and Luna for our community.” Red smiled a little. It changed his face into more handsome. “If Alpha gives me another chance, I swear, I’ll protect you with my life, Luna.”
“Oh, Red.” Then I remembered Ethan’s words. “I’ll persuade Ethan about it. Don’t worry.”
“No, Luna. It’s my mistake. If our Alpha wants to punish or demote me, I’m ready since I deserve it.” Red bent his head. “I can’t believe that I can be arrogant, so I fall so deep. Well, I deserve it.”
“You have a good intention. So, I won’t blame you. Don’t worry; I’ll talk to Ethan. He’s a great man. He’ll understand.”