Mates of best friends

The day had quickly winded down for the pair, and they were now lying on the bed—Aubrianne draped across Zayne's chest, which was quickly becoming her favorite spot.

They were both relaxed in contentment as they reminisced on the night, both giddy with the knowledge that they had shared a perfect night.

That was her Luna ceremony, then his surprising proposal and the fact that she said yes, and they were now engaged.

They talked of the Luna Ceremony and the fact that it went off without a hitch, Zayne's surprise proposal, and Aubrianne admitting she had no idea. It totally caught her off guard.

She babbled, "but when I realized what you were about to do, I already knew my answer because there was no doubt in my mind."

She held his gaze now, "I want to be your wife, and I want you to be my husband…I want it all."

Zayne lifted her chin and kissed her lips softly, tenderly. "And you have made me the happiest man alive, Aubrianne Ivanov Thornton."

His gaze was intense, and Aubrianne swallowed nothing but air. When she saw him like that, she sometimes wondered if she was ready for all that love.

But she also knew there was no place she'd rather be than here with him.

Aubrianne went on to gush about the family she gained at the Luna Ceremony and that it felt like home for her, and she could do this; she wanted to assure him.

She can be his Luna, even though her birthright was an Alpha.

Meanwhile, Zayne did not need assurances. He knew she was a natural. She could do this. "I know, baby." He kissed her forehead.

"Oh, and babe? I loved your speech, especially how you spoke about your dream experience without giving anything away." Aubrianne gushed to her Mate.

At Zayne's raised eyebrows, she went on to explain it was clever the way he covered that whole thing up by saying something about the girl of his dreams.

Aubrianne thought it was brilliant, and she realized Zayne was being extra cautious with everything he knew about a white wolf. So, even in his speech to her, he wanted to talk about her appearing to him, well, her wolf, but he said it in such a way that it was not a blatant giveaway to have people start adding and multiplying.

Then, coming up with the answer that only a white wolf appeared to their Mate and Kaboom, it was all over.

Zayne had reassured Aubrianne that her safety was his top priority, and Aubrianne felt comforted to know this about her Mate. As far as she was concerned, this was where she was meant to be, and with HIM, nobody else.

This was nice; they felt so at ease in each other's company as they continued to share their take on the previous night.

One thing that was easy off the bat was conversation. Well, that and the fact that they could not keep their hands off each other.

But their conversations went smoothly, even for Zayne. His best friend Mekhi usually had to jump through hoops to get Zayne to open up, but here he was, open and sharing his lungs out.

They even talked about their marks, and Aubrianne saw his and hers for the first time when they showered. They even spoke about exploring their strengths, and Zayne mentioned his earlier observation of his faster movements.

They were both curious about the extent of their ability and vowed to explore them together.

The lovely pair continued to bask in each other's company, which turned into some light teasing and pillow fighting. At that moment, when Aubrianne got a left swing from Zayne, she thought of Jada for the first time today and flew off the bed in hot pursuit of her phone.

Finding it under a pile of clothing, she saw several missed calls from Jada and breathed a sigh of relief that Jada finally turned on her phone.

She frantically dialed Jada's phone….

It had been days since they got on to Jada, and she missed Aubrianne's Luna ceremony on Tuesday night and being there for Aubrianne during her awakening.

Aubrianne was eager to get onto Jada but was very disappointed when the phone kept ringing.

Nevertheless, they decided to shower, change, and head to the community house to check on everyone.

After all, she had guests who came just for her Luna Ceremony.

When everyone woke on Wednesday, while Aubrianne and Zayne were missing in action…

Daniela and Rafael hooked up again. They spent the night together, and just like the last time, there was not much talking.

However, Daniela had not snuck out this time, leaving Rafael to wake up to an empty bed. But it was not for the lack of trying. She needed help remembering where she was staying.

She did try but quietly returned and slipped back into bed.

Rafael had smiled when he felt her get back into bed. He'd already sensed her absence because he was not that drunk last night.

Nevertheless, they had fallen back to sleep.

Rafael got breakfast for them when he woke up again. He'd learned about the canceled breakfast feast.

He'd left his room at the community house, went to the kitchen downstairs, grabbed two plates, and filled them to mountain-size with toast, eggs, bacon, and pancake. Then, he threw in some leftover hot dogs.

They enjoyed breakfast together, and Daniela asked him to show her to her room to shower and change after he invited her to show her around and take her to one of their many lakes.

She decided to spend the day with Rafael instead of running away, as she'd enjoyed his company. While they ate and chatted, she learned that he was intelligent.

Daniela thought he could become a doctor and told him to pursue it when he showed interest.

Then they started talking about her studies, and she realized he knew many of the basics already, which drove home her belief about his potential. And she was curious to pick his brain.

Suddenly, she was so turned on again by his brain she honestly could not wait to spend the day together, only if Timothy had some brains like that.

Meanwhile, Leandra was seen sneaking out of the room Daniel was in. She did her walk of shame and disappeared for the day.

Thornton was kept busy with Zachary showing him around, and Alpha Thornton welcomed the opportunity for a closer look while Tobias mingled with some of the teens at the community house, playing games and watching movies.

Tobias quickly emerged from his shyness and under his brothers' coaxing and invigilating.

And Mekhi drank himself into a stupor and was missing for half the day. He finally rose, brushed his teeth, and showered. He looked and felt terrible.

During his torturous rest or lack thereof, Mekhi thought of the wondrous Luna ceremony. He recalled witnessing his Alpha's pure joy and happiness, his appearance only of fulfillment and contentment.

Mekhi wanted it all. He woke with the need to find his Mate wherever she was. He was ready to find out where she was staying, barge into that hotel room, hoist her over his shoulders like a caveman, and storm out.

He changed and went downstairs with the purpose of having a word with Aubrianne or Shawn when the most delectable scent assaulted his nostrils, and he froze in his steps...

Early Wednesday, Jada called and did not get Aubrianne. She checked the rest of her missed calls, and the abundance was from Aubrianne, but there was also one from Daniela, the most recent.

Jada instinctively tapped on Daniela to call her back, but Daniela only knew that Aubrianne had used her phone, so Jada called Shawn.

And it was there that Jada learned everything.

"Zayne's beta is going out of his mind crazy here over your scent, Jada. Since he smelt you on Aubrianne when she first arrived." Shawn got straight to the point with the facts.

"His wolf claims you are his Mate," Shawn continued, imagining Aubrianne telling her this.

She would totally be unable to contain her excitement because she and her best friend were mates of best friends.

They were truly meant to be. The Goddess had actually ensured their paths crossed at one point in time. Even how he met his Mate.

The only thing about that is time itself. Sometimes, the wait is too long before some meet their mates.

Some never even met theirs in their entire lifetime.

"Jada?"

More silence.

Meanwhile, on the other line, a flurry of things was happening. Jada's eyes widened, her mouth agape...

Both she and Mr. Grey had finally come up for air, and they were lounging out by the pool at this lovely, peaceful place he'd rented out for them for the week.

Jada lay in her cute two-piece of barely-there swimwear, one leg up, bent at the knee, while the other lay flat on the lounging chair was where she made the calls...