Eliana POVI looked at myself in the floor length mirror and smiled. Valenti and my shopping trip had definitely paid off and the floor length champagne coloured satin dress had been tucked into my shopping basket at the last moment. Honestly, I couldn't have chosen a better dress for the occasion. The cowl neckline and thigh high split in the dress showed off more than I would typically be comfortable in on a usual first date, but this wasn't just any first date. Tucking the painkillers into my clutch bag for just in case, I brushed my hair back with my fingers and checked my makeup - which I am very proud to announce, I did without Cassie's help. As I was about to walk to the door, I turned and picked up the small velvet box I'd tucked in the bedside drawer and put it safely into my clutch bag. “Are you ready yet?” Luca's impatient voice filtered into my mind and I could almost imagine him standing in the hallway tapping his foot and looking at his watch. “I'm coming, hold your u
Eliana POVI looked down at Luca, his emerald eyes shining brightly as he proposed. “Yes, of course!” I responded happily, capturing his face in my hands and kissing him. It was like in a movie, the sun setting over the ocean, throwing orange, red and yellow hues into the air as Luca and I kissed. He opened the little box he'd carried with him and pulled out a beautiful ring, slipping it onto my finger. “It reminded me of your eyes,” he said softly as I looked at the tanzanite surrounded by clusters of diamonds. “It's perfect,” I whispered, kissing his cheek. He passed me a glass of champagne and lifted his own for a toast. “To our long future together.” “Cheers!” Taking a sip, I remembered my own little box I'd put in my clutch bag. Fishing it out, I passed it to him. “A little gift I've been looking for the perfect opportunity to give to you.”He opened the box carefully to reveal the gold cufflinks I'd bought over Christmas, the engraved wolf prominent. “Enzo has a pair li
Eliana POV“Hey Ellie,” I heard my brother's distorted voice through the phone, the long distance call to the middle of nowhere where he was being held made the sound crackle. “Hi Eli! How are you feeling?” I asked, excited to actually be allowed to speak to him. The past month had been a haze of online lectures and preparations for my Luna ceremony - which I'd hoped Eli would be allowed to attend. But judging by the fact that my mother and Carnera (aka my father) had arrived that morning without him, the odds were looking pretty slim. “I'm alright, just having to stick to the program and I'll hopefully be allowed back into society in the next month,” he grumbled. “I'm sorry I couldn't come to your ceremony.” I could hear the regret, even through the phone. “It's okay, we'll celebrate when you are better, and it will be even bigger and more badarse than the original ceremony,” I promised him and I heard his deep chuckle on the other side.“Sounds like a deal. I've got to go now, g
Eliana POV“Do you, Eliana Castello, promise to serve your pack with honour and dignity. Do you promise to put the pack and its people ahead of all personal desires, to serve them above all else?”The ancient old man who had performed Luca and my wedding ceremony spoke slowly and carefully, his voice quivering ever so slightly. I looked out over the crowd of people, both friends and pack members filling the garden below as I stood on a platform along with Luca, the elder and Valenti. My mother sat in the front row of seats reserved for distinguished guests, dabbing her eyes as Carnera draped his arm over shoulder. The man looked so proud with his broad, cheesy grin - as if he had personally raised me for the last twenty-four years instead of hiding out on his island.Cassie and Yvonne sat on the other side of my mother, Vasilios sitting directly behind Cassie, his face like thunder. I hoped she had been treading lightly around him, but I was pretty sure she was continually poking the
Eliana POVDespite the troubling turn of events with Luca's father, and then Nina's father, festivities were high when Luca and I joined the party. I'd remained in my ceremony dress, determined to fulfil my duty as Luna by making sure everyone else was alright first, but I shouldn't have necessarily worried. Comments about what had happened were obviously flying all over the place, but no one seemed to mind that Luca had killed two men within the space of fifteen minutes.“I can't believe that son of a bitch tried to kill the new Luna!” “Good riddens. Hopefully the fucker stays dead this time.”“If I hadn't respected the alpha's ability to take care of the situation, I would certainly have intervened and remediated the situation without blood loss, however the need for action was unapparent.”The general consensus was that Adriano was an idiot who should have just stayed hidden instead of trying to reclaim the alpha position. “Are you alright, Luna?” Marco asked as he came to stand
Luca POVI looked down at Eliana's sleeping face and chuckled slightly to myself. The sun was already high in the sky, but my sleeping beauty made no move to arise from her alcohol induced coma. Usually, I'd have dragged her from the dance floor the moment I could see she was getting a bit too free, but for some reason I couldn't bring myself to ruin her fun. I don't know if it was the attempt on her life, or if it was the pure joy I could see on her face, either way, I didn't interrupt. And I was pretty sure the hangover she was about to wake up with would be punishment enough. Deciding to leave her to her dreams and hunt down Vasilios instead, I dressed quickly and left the room, striding down to the room I knew my mother had put him. I didn't bother knocking, Vasilios was an early riser like me, a habit we'd both learned from waking up at dawn to run drills. I was pretty sure he would be up and dressed, doing some deal or another with someone on the opposite side of the world.
Eliana POVThe month after my Luna ceremony flew by in a flurry of duties, studies and social engagements. I was really grateful to have Valenti by my side, guiding me through the intricacies of the position, and making sure that I didn't mess up. “Hey gorgeous,” Luca murmured against my neck as he came up from behind me, interrupting my study session.“Hey back at you, handsome,” I giggled, closing my laptop and leaving it on his desk as I stood up and wrapped my arms around his neck. “How's the studying going?” I groaned and pressed my face against his chest. “That bad, huh?” “It's just a lot of things to remember and my brain seems to be running at ten thousand miles an hour… in the wrong direction,” I sighed, leaning into his hands as he began to slowly massage my lower back. He kissed my temple as he continued to rub circles on my back, smiling as the sighs of pleasure escaped my lips. “Well, how about you take a break? Bruno is on at me to take him for a run.”Ayla yipped
Eliana POV“Luna, we've landed. You can open your eyes now.”The gravelly voice of one of the men Luca handpicked to go with me to Cambridge sounded as if he smoked a pack of cigarettes a day. “Thank you, Federico,” I whispered, slowly letting go of the armrests of the seat. “I'm starting to believe that the alpha may need to install extra protection for these chairs if he's expecting me to continue flying ask over the place.” The stone faced second man, whose name I never did catch, grunted his response. I'm pretty darn sure he can't talk, since grunting seems to be his only form of communication. “I'll pass on the suggestion to the pilot,” Federico agreed monotonously, passing my bags to stone-face before he held out his hand to lead me from the plane. The pilot, still sulking about my previous comment on his plane, remained out of sight in the cockpit. A car was waiting for me when I arrived, Luca's black bullet proof SUV had become a fixture in my life, so I was rather surpris