CHAPTER 25

LUCAS

Watching my mate interact with Tommy made me swell with pride. I could see his caring nature radiating from him and Tommy's idolising gaze as he looked up at my mate was adorable.

I felt all warm inside as my love for him grew even further. I'm sure it would continue to grow and I wasn't sure all that love could fit inside me. It baffled me that I could feel so much for this one man who meant more to me than words could say.

"You handled that beautifully," I murmured in his ear as I hugged him from behind. I kissed my mark on his neck and took his hand, leading him to the food.

Before we could get our food though, my mother approached.

"Darling, it's so good to see you. Congratulations!" she said, giving me a hug and a kiss. "And Noah, welcome to the family dear," she said, pulling him in for a giant hug too.

He looked at me with a bewildered expression and I couldn't contain my laugh. My poor mate, she's going to smother him for a while.

"Noah, I'd like to introduce you to my mother, Sandra."

"Oh," Noah relaxed a little when he realised who she was. "It's nice to meet you Sandra," he said politely.

"And it's a relief to finally meet you! Our pack will be even stronger with our second alpha and now my son won't be such a sad sack anymore," she said with enthusiasm.

"Thanks, Ma," I muttered.

Noah chuckled. "I like her."

"Yeah, I thought you two would hit it off," I smiled. I couldn't contain my joy, having my mate and my mother instantly connect made me happier than I could say.

We loaded up our plates and my belly rumbled loudly, making Noah laugh. The cooking team had really gone all out tonight and it smelled delicious.

I led Noah over to the head of the middle table. It was where the alpha sat with his mate. Drew, my second in command beta, was to my left and Zane, my lead enforcer, beside him. My mother was on our right, next to Noah

We put our plates down but before Noah sat down, I stopped him.

"Stay standing just a moment, I need to address the pack," I said, holding his hand and giving it a reassuring squeeze. "Grishom pack members, I would like to officially introduce you to my mate and your second alpha, Noah."

There was a sudden applause, whistles and cheering. Noah gasped and blushed at the sudden outpouring of cheers.

"We're all hungry, so I won't keep you from your food long. I just wanted to let you know that Noah is here with us for the weekend so, you'll all get a chance to introduce yourselves over the next couple days but let's not overwhelm him tonight. Let's enjoy this incredible meal that Miriam and her team have put together for us," I sent her a smile and she bowed her head slightly, "and celebrate his addition to our pack."

They all cheered and we sat down, I took a bite of my food and watched as Noah took his first bite too. The pack all suddenly started eating.

"Are they not allowed to eat until you do?" Noah asked before putting another fork of food in his mouth. He moaned.

I chuckled. "Good, isn't it?" He nodded. "Miriam is a fantastic chef, I'll introduce you to her after dinner so you can pass on your compliments. She's gone to extra effort tonight and it will make her so happy to hear that you're enjoying it. And to answer your question, it wasn't just me they were waiting for, they waited for you too. When we have official pack dinners like this, it is a show of respect to wait for the alphas to eat first. The rest of the time they can eat whenever they want."

Noah nodded. "I see."

"Are you doing okay?"

"I'm a little overwhelmed but I'm okay," he smiled.

Drew was sitting to my left and cleared his throat. "Don't worry Alpha Noah, everyone here is happy to meet you and also happy to give you space to adjust," he said with a smile.

"It's going to take a while to adjust to being called Alpha Noah ," he chuckled.

Thankfully he seemed to be taking things in stride and finding humor in the situation.

Mum laughed. "I can understand that. After I mated with Lucas' father, everyone started calling me Luna instead of Sandra. It takes a couple weeks to get used to it, dear," she said, giving Noah a sweet smile.

I could practically see the joy radiating off her and I was so glad. She needed moments like this to keep her life full without my father.

"I thought Luna was the moon goddess?" Noah asked.

"Lucas! Have you not told your new mate all about pack life before bringing him here?! The poor thing, he'll be so confused. As alpha, you know that your duties to your mate go beyond what's in your pants," she scolded.

Noah, Drew and Zane all burst out laughing.

I blushed. I swear my mother could still make me feel five years old when she wanted to.

"It's okay Sandra, he's told me most of it. I think. Though I get the feeling he's not being entirely forthcoming about how much my first shift is going to hurt because he thinks I'll go running for the hills," Noah said.

"Sweetie, teenagers here go through it and yes, it does hurt but if they can do it, you'll have no trouble at all. You're mated to an alpha after all, that makes you one of our strongest. You'll be fine," mum said, patting Noah's shoulder then resumed eating.

"Thank you, Sandra. That's reassuring."