My Destined - EDITING

Leia

Once out of the shower, I dried myself off and wrapped the towel around my body to blow dry my hair. I left my dark brown hair in natural soft curls rather than styling it.

That's when I heard the door open, and I jumped in shock, dropping my mascara. Thank Goddess, I didn't poke my eye out! I looked towards the door, making my eyes widen, and my body heated up as I gripped my towel. Oh, this is awkward... Adriel. We both stood there momentarily, and I could've sworn his bright blue eyes darkened.

As soon as his eyes widened, he shook his head, muttering a 'sorry', and shut the door hard. I finally let out the breath I didn't know I was holding and gripped the counter as my heart raced in my chest. Oh, my Goddess, I can't believe he saw me in a towel! I felt so embarrassed and did not want to leave the bathroom. Why didn't I lock the door?!

Once my heart rate returned to normal, I calmed down and continued my makeup. I just won't bring it up and forget it happened! I laughed nervously to myself. Once everything was done, I took a last once-over look and headed out.

I got back to the room and saw that Adriel wasn't there. Did he leave? Quietly putting the clothes in the hamper, I looked around the room briefly for any signs of him. Nothing. I looked at my phone to see it read 6:30. Not bad on time, Leia! I was never one to take too long getting ready. I grabbed my wallet off the nightstand and left the room. I felt a wave of relief wash over me as I saw Adriel by the door talking with Cleo.

"Leia! You look so pretty! Way too pretty for this guy!"

Cleo was the first to notice me with a huge grin and a wave of her hand. I laughed at her comment and made my way toward the siblings. Cleo gave me a side hug, and I smiled. Adriel cleared his throat, making me make eye contact with his beautiful blue eyes. It made me think of earlier, and my cheeks turned red as I looked away.

"Ready?" Adriel held out his arm, which I gladly took and nodded. I took a second to admire him in his form-fitting grey button-up, dark blue fitted jeans, and all-black vans. The scent of the forest and cologne almost made me melt. "Leia?" I shook out of my stare and laughed awkwardly.

"Now, have fun, you two! Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" Cleo joked loudly as she waved us off. Adriel just rolled his eyes in response as he led me outside to his car, and I couldn't help but giggle.

The car ride was mostly silent, but not in an uncomfortable way. Music played softly through the speakers as my eyes took in the surroundings of this new pack. This is my new home... My wolf was getting excited being near Adriel, and it was hard to suppress her feelings.

"Adriel? Where are we going?" I asked, looking at him as he stared at the road ahead.

"You'll see when we get there. Five more minutes." I huffed in response, curiosity getting the best of me.

He wasn't wrong. After another 5 minutes, we pulled into the parking lot of a warmly lit restaurant. Carmelo's Italian Ristorante. Red lights lighted up the name. He parked the car and quickly walked to my side of the vehicle to open the door for me.

"Thanks." Adriel nodded in response before grasping my hand and walking me toward the restaurant's front doors.

"You look gorgeous," Adriel whispered his compliment lowly and close to my ear, sending shivers down my spine.

"T-thank you." I turned to smile at him, but he had already turned his head and went to open the door for us to walk through.

At the front stood a charming hostess with dark skin, brown eyes, and short black hair. She welcomed us into the restaurant, giving Adriel googly eyes and leaning slightly too close. I squeezed his hand, my wolf not liking this strange girl being flirty with our mate. Adriel ignored her actions and gave his name so we could be seated; the restaurant was packed and bustling with chatter. Adriel told me in the car ride that this was the main town by his packhouse, and most of the people here were werewolves or knew about us.

I turned my attention away from the hostess to look around the restaurant. It was warmly lit with round shaded lights hanging from a warm, tan ceiling. Thick dark wood columns lined the ceiling, creating a squared shape on the plain wall. The walls were the same warm tan color as the ceiling. The square or rectangular tables were covered in white tablecloths with red velvet chairs. It looked rather fancy but still gave off a comfortable vibe.

"Right this way." The flirty hostess winked at Adriel as she guided us to a two-person table by one of the windows. Adriel kindly pulled out a chair for me, scooting me in, before he sat himself across from me. "Your server will be right with you, hun. I'm Nancy if you need anything!" Again, she didn't even look at me as she spoke, sending Adriel a wink.

"You're pretty popular, huh?" Adriel gave me a weird look and just rolled his eyes with a shake of his head.

"Hope you like Italian. Sorry I wasn't there all day."

"I do like Italian. It's alright, but is it always going to be like that? You always gone?" I was curious if I would just be left alone all the time. He shook his head, which kind of made me feel relieved.

"It might be for the first week or so since we have new pack members and pack members who left. I have to make sure everything is in order. I'll give you a bodyguard starting tomorrow, and you will be introduced to the pack as my mate and Luna tomorrow night." My hazel eyes widened in shock. Wha? Already?! I was not ready for this at all.

"Bodyguard?? T-tomorrow? Already? Are you sure? When? What do I wear?" Questions flooded out of my mouth as I felt the nerves hit me. Adriel laughed deeply, which surprised me even more. He has a nice laugh...

"Yes, my other Delta will be your bodyguard. As Luna of the Shadowed Raven pack, you are critical, and if I'm not around, you need to be watched and protected. Yes, tomorrow. The pack is very anxious to meet you, and I think it'll go well. It'll be in the evening, and as long as you dress formally, you will be fine."

I've never heard him say so many words. I tried to calm myself down but couldn't shake the nerves thoroughly. I don't know how I feel about a bodyguard; I'm not useless... "And there are no buts about a bodyguard. I say you need one, so you will have one." How did he...? I huffed in response, knowing I wouldn't win this one.

"Fine. But I know how to fight, okay? And you'll be with me when I meet the pack, right?" Adriel nodded, his bright blue-grey eyes catching the warm light of the chandelier perfectly. He rustled his styled black hair, making it a little messier.

"Let's choose our orders, shall we?"

We sat silently as we looked through our menus. Our waiter, Rob, had come and gone as he introduced himself and brought us our drinks. Adriel got a glass of wine, and I got a cup of Sprite. I tried making some small talk with Adriel, but he didn't talk very much as usual. When Rob came back around, we finally ordered our meals. Mozzarella sticks as an appetizer, I got good ol' spaghetti and meatballs, and Adriel ordered chicken francaise with linguine.

After getting our meals, Adriel slowly started talking more as we ate, which made me relax. He mostly talked about his pack and his sister; I could tell they were both very close. I told him about my own family and how Lance found Corina.

"Adriel? Um...Are you glad to have found your mate?" I wanted to say me but felt awkward, so I just said, 'your mate.'' Adriel's bright blue eyes widened before they softened a bit. He surprised me by reaching out and placing his hand on mine. Warm...

"Yes. I've been waiting for three years to find you, well obviously more than that but three years of being in the ceremonies. It didn't help that I'm the Alpha, and the whole pack has also been anxious." I felt my face heat up and nodded quietly. "I told you, Leia. He's going to be a perfect mate!" Tala whispered in my head gleefully.

"What will I be doing as Luna?"

"Well, you may attend most meetings with me and give your opinions if you feel necessary. You're like the mother of the pack, in a way. So you'll have to be strong and dependable for the pack. Give guidance when needed. You can do whatever you wish as far as helping the pack. It may seem like a lot. But you have me and now Selene, who can help you."

"R-right. It sounds scary...." I looked down at my half-eaten pasta, feeling slightly insecure.

"Don't worry; you'll do fine. I was nervous too before I became Alpha." I found that hard to believe as I looked up into Adriel's mesmerizing eyes with shock. "I've done some reckless things, believe it or not."

"You? You've been so serious that it's hard to believe." We both genuinely laughed, and it felt so good; I wish we could stop time at this moment.

The rest of the night went well; he opened up more and even laughed a few more times. I slowly started to feel that maybe this wouldn't be so bad. Maybe, we can be mates like my parents and brother. Adriel paid for our meals, which I happily thanked him for before returning to the car. I didn't even pay attention to the time or several messages from the girls and Lance on my phone. Always the gentleman, Adriel opened the car door for me and closed it once I was situated. As we drove, it was a comfortable silence with light music, and I couldn't help but smile the whole way.

"Leia? Um...I'm sorry about earlier. In the bathroom?" My head turned to Adriel, who was focused on the road, and I could've sworn his cheeks were pink.

"Oh! Um...It's okay! I should've locked it, and let's just forget about it." I laughed nervously and turned to stare out my window in embarrassment. I was hoping he forgot about that...

We've been home for a few minutes since our dinner date, and I'm getting things ready to get back into pajamas. But as I walked out the bathroom door, my earlier outfit in hand, I saw Adriel standing in front of the bed in black sweats and no shirt. My eyes widened, and my cheeks flushed as I took in his sculpted torso and v-line. Oh, my Goddess... Realizing I was staring, I quickly turned around and shut my eyes.

"Oh, sorry." I heard Adriel's raspy voice say lowly.

After hearing some shuffling, I slowly turned around and felt somewhat relieved (but disappointed) that Adriel had put on a plain white shirt. I cautiously went to the side of the bed I slept in last night after dumping my clothes and placed my phone and wallet on the nightstand.

"Hey, Adriel... Um, this girl, Noemi, was looking for you earlier." Adriel turned to look at me with a confused face. "What's your relationship with her?" I don't know where this sudden bravery came from, but I could feel my wolf's feelings pooling over.

"Noemi? She's a member of my pack and a childhood friend." His face remained calm as he looked toward me.

"She seems to think it's more than that, though...." I spoke quietly, slight sadness lacing my voice. "He's ours!" Tala growled within me.

"It isn't. Noemi and Althea are like sisters to Cleo and me."

"Are you sure? She even threatened me...So I am not sure she's a good person, Adriel." He was inches from me within seconds, and I could feel his warm breath on my face. My eyes widened slightly as he held my arm to face him directly.

"She would never do something like that to anyone. Don't talk about her like that." I could tell he was angry and couldn't help the anger boiling in me. Why is he so defensive about her if it's nothing?

"Well, she did to me!" I crossed my arms as I glared at him.

"Enough. I don't want to talk about this any longer. I'm going to sleep in my study. Noemi is a good friend, and I don't want some outsider accusing her of things!" He let go of my arm roughly before storming out of the room.

He called me an outsider... I guess I am...but that surprisingly hurt a lot. I can't believe I'm getting this riled over someone I just met. I wasn't myself, and I didn't like it. I felt tears fall down my cheeks in frustration as I walked toward my side of the bed and grabbed my phone. I instantly called Lance.

"Leia? It's 10 pm; what's wrong?" Hearing Lance's voice made my tears fall harder.

"L-lance. I want to go home. Please take me home...." I sniffled.

"Leia? What are you talking about? You know you have to stay with your mate. Are you crying? What happened?" I tried to hide my crying, but from hearing the worry in his voice, I couldn't help it.

"I don't belong here, Lance... I already got into a fight with Adriel. And I'm not myself. And he has a Chosen!"

"What?! He can't have a Chosen! If it's not approved, the Elders will be furious with him for breaking that rule! Besides, he took you home!"

"I know, I know. It's this girl. She told me I was just for show." I could tell he was angry now.

"Leia. Li, don't worry. I don't know this Adriel very well, and I will kick his ass when I see him. But I don't think he would come to the ceremony and bring you home if he had a Chosen. Just give it a little more time. I don't want you to reject your mate after only one day, okay?"

"But what if he rejects me?" My worries finally became words.

"He won't. Just get some sleep, okay, Leia? Everything will be okay in the morning. I love you, lil sis." I hoped he was right and nodded even though he couldn't see it.

"Okay. I love you too. Thanks." I hung up with a sigh, having calmed down slightly. I must've been exhausted because I fell asleep soon after getting comfortable in bed.