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Chapter 40: Follow the Leader
āļāļĢāļąāļāļāļĢāļļāļāļĨāđāļēāļŠāļļāļ:
2023-06-20 11:38:18
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My Mate's Wedding Drama    Chapter 41: Here Comes the Bride
(Cassie POV)Finally, the day of Meganâs wedding has arrived. I am an absolute, complete, nervous wreck.Did Aaron get the package? Did he open it? Was he able to do anything with the information? Did I do enough? Should I have done more?Will anyone die tonight? Will Alpha Fred be successful in taking over Blue Moon pack? What will life be like there if he does? Will anyone survive?Will my mate be OK? I still donât know what the future holds for Jason and I, but I do care about him. I donât want anything to happen to him. How sad would it be for him to pass on before heâs had an opportunity to experience the love of a mate, whether that mate is me or a second chance.What will the future look like for other packs and the werewolf community generally if Alpha Fred is successful? Aaronâs friend, Alpha Ryan, is likely to be targeted next. Will members of his pack be hurt?The more I think through all these questions, the more I wish I had done something more to help. What
āļāļĢāļąāļāļāļĢāļļāļāļĨāđāļēāļŠāļļāļ : 2023-06-20My Mate's Wedding Drama    Chapter 42: Wedding Crasher
(Jason POV)It is a small miracle that I make it through the wedding ceremony without losing my s---t. I think the only thing keeping me calm about my mate situation is that I am distracted by whatever is going on with Aaron and our pack. Meanwhile, the only thing keeping me calm about whatever is going on with Aaron and our pack is that I am distracted by Cassie and trying to find an opportunity to approach her.With the ceremony complete, we follow the crowd of people to the area designated for the reception. As we do so, we engage in small talk with a few other alphas and betas in attendance. Aaron seems completely distracted now, even more so than he was before we arrived. His eyes seem like they are constantly scrolling through the crowd, and a couple of times I sense fleeting waves of worry emanating from him. A few times, I see him and Alpha Ryan exchange brief looks. I know they cannot mindlink because they are part of separate packs, but they seem to be communicating s
āļāļĢāļąāļāļāļĢāļļāļāļĨāđāļēāļŠāļļāļ : 2023-06-20My Mate's Wedding Drama    Chapter 43: The Airing of Dirty Laundry
(Cassie POV)Doing the âgrand entranceâ into the reception hall with Danny glued to my side was torture. I still didnât know whether Aaron had received the package, and even if he did, I didnât know if there was a plan on how to deal with it. I was scared that Jason would believe that I welcomed Dannyâs advances or that I encouraged them. At the same time, this was my little sisterâs wedding and I knew how incredibly dangerous the situation was. Even if Maggie had failed in the mission I sent her on, I had to play along with Danny until I came up with a better plan.Had this been two months ago, I know exactly what I would have done: run away. In fact, had this been two months ago, I may not have even been here right now. Itâs funny how quickly things can change. Instead of planning how to take care of myself, I find myself far more focused on how to protect the packs and people that I love and respect. I credit my mating with Jason for the changes in me. Although Jason and
āļāļĢāļąāļāļāļĢāļļāļāļĨāđāļēāļŠāļļāļ : 2023-06-21My Mate's Wedding Drama    Chapter 44: Illegal Challenge
(Aaron POV) We knew that Danny had plans to make sure Cassie rejected Jason tonight, but no one knew what those plans were. When Candy walked in and kissed Jason, it was pretty easy to figure out what had happened and who was behind it all. It was also pretty easy to fake being mad at Jason for the situation, because the truth was, I still was. Jason never should have bedded that she-wolf. He jumped to conclusions about Cassie without giving Cassie a chance to explain. He of all people should have known better; what he did was almost the same thing that Allison did to me years ago. When I saw the hurt and pain in Cassieâs eyes, I almost said âfâk itâ and bailed on the careful plans we had laid out. Goddess knows, I wanted to. I desperately wanted to comfort Cassie and tell her it was almost over. But I couldnât. Not yet. I had expected Jason to blow up, but even I could not have expected Jason to blow up quite as spectacularly as he did. Challenging both Alpha Fred and fut
āļāļĢāļąāļāļāļĢāļļāļāļĨāđāļēāļŠāļļāļ : 2023-06-21My Mate's Wedding Drama    Chapter 45: Waiting Room
(Cassie POV) When I left Blue Moon pack in tears a few weeks ago, I never imagined that I would come here. Nor did I imagine that, if I came back, I would come back in the way that I did â in the back of an ambulance, holding Jasonâs hand, praying that he would be OK. Jasonâs injuries turned out to be fairly minor, at least in the grand scheme of things. The bullet missed most of his major organs, missing his heart and major arteries by just a few inches. Even though he was going to be fine, the doctors decided to put him in a medically-induced coma for a few days. This would allow his body some additional time to heal. Danny did not fare as well. The two bullets that hit him had been fired by werewolf council soldiers, and their shots were much more accurate. Danny apparently died on the scene. I did not know how serious Dannyâs injuries were when Aaron and I got into the ambulance with Jason, but I canât imagine it would have changed my opinion about where I needed to be.
āļāļĢāļąāļāļāļĢāļļāļāļĨāđāļēāļŠāļļāļ : 2023-06-21My Mate's Wedding Drama    Chapter 46: The Morning After
(Aaron POV)The next morning, I woke up with a stiff neck and Cassieâs head awkwardly slumped on my shoulder. It was both the worst and best sleep that I had had in a while.Cassie woke up a few minutes after me. After a few moments, I saw her look at me with horror in her eyes.âCassie, stop.ââStop what?ââDoing that thing you do.ââWhat thing?ââI see the wheels in your brain churning. You think and overthink and overthink some more until whatever you are thinking about becomes something that you did wrong.ââYou donât know that that is what I am doing. How could you possibly know what is going on in my head? Besides, I just woke up.âI raised an eyebrow at her. âItâs true that I havenât known you for that long, butâĶ tell me that Iâm wrong.âCassie looked at me, completely silent.I smirked. âTold you. So what is it that you are blaming yourself for this time?âCassie looked down at her hands. âLast night, you told me the story about your mate and your mother. I turned it i
āļāļĢāļąāļāļāļĢāļļāļāļĨāđāļēāļŠāļļāļ : 2023-06-21My Mate's Wedding Drama    Chapter 47: In the Name of Love
(Cassie POV) The next couple of days passed fairly quickly, at least all things considered. Jason was moved into a room large enough to accommodate visitors, and the doctor confirmed that he was now out of the danger zone. I began staying with Jason during the day, and âat Josephineâs insistenceâslept at the packhouse at night. There continued to be a constant flow of people wanting to visit Jason, including especially his various family members. Because I had only met Jasonâs parents briefly once, and because I had never met most of his other family members, there were a few awkward moments. For example, two of Jasonâs cousins and one of his sisters mistook me as a nurse. On a different occasion, one of Jasonâs 9-year-old nieces asked me how I could be Jasonâs mate if Jason had never talked about me and I didnât have his mark on my neck. Despite the awkward moments, things generally went smoothly. Aaron and Josephine took turns keeping me company and playing interference with
āļāļĢāļąāļāļāļĢāļļāļāļĨāđāļēāļŠāļļāļ : 2023-06-22My Mate's Wedding Drama    Chapter 48: Waking Up
(Cassie POV)Finally, the doctors announced that Jason was healed and ready to be woken up out of his coma. They said that it would take about two hours for him to wake up. They said it was fine for him to have visitors in the room waiting for him to wake up, but they encouraged us to limit the number of people. Of course, given Jasonâs family and his role in the pack, âlimiting the number of peopleâ meant that there were around 30 people all piled in the room, eager to see and talk to him.Right at the two hour mark, Jason began to stir. Little by little, we saw him start to move his fingers, and then his toes, then his arms and legs. Finally, he groggily opened his eyes and looked around the room at all the people.I had chosen to stay in the back by the door, wanting his parents and sisters to be center stage. As Jason scanned the room, he and I locked eyes. I gave him a half-smile.Turning back to his mother, he asked for a glass of water, in a hoarse voice that indicated t
āļāļĢāļąāļāļāļĢāļļāļāļĨāđāļēāļŠāļļāļ : 2023-06-22
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My Mate's Wedding Drama    Author's Note
And that is a wrap! I hope you all have enjoyed the journey. I will definitely miss these characters. They definitely took on personalities of their own as we went along. I cannot tell you how many times I sat down planning to write one thing, only to find the characters demanding we go a different direction. Thankfully, we will still get glimpses of the key characters in Book 2, which will focus on the Moon Goddess's decision to pair Maggie and Alpha Paul. That book will also pick up where this book left off, in terms of Bobby and the Moonlight Six. I plan to start Book 2 in a few weeks, after I take some time off for a couple of family vacations. Thank you all for reading!!! If you have enjoyed the journey, please leave a gem and/or positive review!
My Mate's Wedding Drama    Epilogue
(2 Â― months later)(Jason POV)The last few months have been an absolute whirlwind, but I can honestly say that I have never been happier.After our big fight the night of Duncan and Moiraâs cake-tasting, Paige and I stayed up for hours talkingâĶ and fightingâĶ and making up again. We realized that we both like to be challenged, and once we both agreed to take rejection completely off the table, we found that we are really good at being one anotherâs âsafe placeâ to have heated or difficult conversations.Instead of Theo flying out to Texas, Paige decided that we should go back to Blue Moon together. She arranged for other wedding planners to handle all of her Texas weddings except for Moira and Duncanâs. She understandably wanted to keep their wedding, but everything left to do could be done remotely until the weekend of the wedding itself. Once we are a bit more settled, she plans to open a part-time wedding planning business just outside Blue Moon territory.... at which she wil
My Mate's Wedding Drama    Chapter 109: My Idiot
(Paige POV) Neither Jason nor I said anything to each other on the way home from the bakery. It was just as well. Thankfully, Moira did not seem angry about Duncan and Jason leavingâĶ and we were able to successfully pick flavors for their wedding cakeâĶ but the whole thing was still embarrassing and unprofessional. The moment we walked into my apartment, Jason headed to the kitchen. He peeked inside the refrigerator and calmly asked me what I wanted to eat for dinner. âReally? That is the first thing that you are going to say to me? Not âIâm sorry for embarrassing you,â or âIâm sorry for having my head up my aâ since you got backâ or âHow did the rest of your tasting go? I hope I didnât cost you a couple of clients.â Hell, at this point, Iâd even take âHey, Baby, Iâm craving tacos, does that sound good to you?ââ âWhy do I feel like you are itching for a fight, Paige?â âMaybe because I am, Jason! I cannot live this way anymore!!!â Jason turned around and glared at me. âLiv
My Mate's Wedding Drama    Chapter 108: Jason & Duncan
(Paige POV)So it turns out that Jason not only upgraded my flight to first-classâĶ he booked himself a ticket as well. Jason explained that he had decided that he was going to go where I went for the rest of my lifeâĶ or until I rejected him for the third and final time. He also told me that his plan was for Theo to stay with Jasonâs parents for the first couple of weeks, and then âif I had not kicked him out yetâ Theo would come and join us.But for everything else, I probably would have found Jasonâs decision to come to Texas with me to be a really sweet gesture.However, over the next week, Jasonâs behavior continued to be bizarre. Worse, his constant presence began to feel suffocating and overwhelming. Even Carly, who loved having her mate nearby, was becoming concerned.Among other weird things, Jason:âcontinued to insist on making me breakfast in bed every. single. day. I could not even grab a piece of toast or a granola bar without Jason freaking out. ârefused to disagree
My Mate's Wedding Drama    Chapter 107: The De-Brief
(Paige POV) As I get on the airplane, my heart feels heavy. I know that I need to get back to Texas, but even after spending the morning talking to Jason and most of the afternoon de-briefing with everyone else, things still just feelâĶ unsettled. I had hoped that talking to Jason would give me some better insight on our relationshipâĶ but more than anything, this morning feltâĶ. awkward. In addition to bizarrely shaving his head and insisting on serving me breakfast in bed, Jason spent almost the entirety of our conversation either apologizing or agreeing with everything that I said. It sort-of felt like I was talking to a wall; the normal, opinionated Jason was not there. As much as the normal, opinionated Jason irritates me at times, I could not help but wonder where he was. I definitely like the normal Jason better than the shell of a wolf that he was this morning. Oh, well. At least if I am going to have a heavy heart on my flight back, I will be comfortable. (Somehow, my
My Mate's Wedding Drama    Chapter 106: Big News
(Cassie POV) I wake up to Josephineâs voice in my head. âCassie, Sweetheart?â I moan. âI am sleeping. What is up, Josephine?â âIt is one oâclock the afternoon.â âOne in the morning?â I respond back groggily. âNo, Sweetheart. Itâs the middle of the afternoon.â âThatâs not possible,â I groan. âWe did not get home until five oâclock.â âFive oâclock yesterday, Baby.â Realization hits me. I must have been more tired than I realized. The last thing I remember was having a hot shower with Aaron, eating more food than I want to admit to eating, having a second round with Aaron in our bed, and then asking Aaron if we could talk after a took a quick nap. Apparently that nap was the longest nap ever. I try to stretch my arms, but one arm hits something hard. I blink open my eyes and see Aaron laying on his side, with one arm supporting his head as he stares at me. He smiles as soon as our eyes meet. âGood morning, Sweetheart,â he says. âGood morning, Aaron,â I smile back at
My Mate's Wedding Drama    Chapter 105: Reunion, Part 2
(Paige POV) When we finally made it back to Blue Moon, my emotions were a muddled mess: âI was relieved to be back. âI was happy to be alive and unharmed. âI felt both sad and betrayed about everything involving my sister. âI was horrified about having watched my sister be murdered in front of me. âI was scared and nervous to see Jason again, after having rejected him for the second time less than a week ago. âI was still upset with Jason for having knocked up my best friend. âI was still in shock that Granny Apple played a role in Sarah getting pregnant. Complicating my mess of emotions even more was the reality that I was hungry, dehydrated, and exhausted. When I saw Aaron race from the packhouse to greet Cassie, my heart felt happy for the two of themâĶ and a little jealous too. I could not help but wonder if Jason and I would ever get to that point, or if my happiness âlike that of Aaron and Cassieâ would be found in the arms of a second chance mate. Carly growled in
My Mate's Wedding Drama    Chapter 104: Reunion, Part 1
(Aaron POV) As soon as I heard that Cassie was at the border, I took off running. I shifted into my wolf in order to run faster, not caring that I was shredding my clothes in the process. I did not bother to mind-link anyone; I knew my father would do so. All I cared about was getting to Cassie. I reached Cassie within just a few minutes. I was vaguely aware that Paige, a baby, and a few of our border guards were standing nearby, but no one else mattered to me in that moment. I quickly shifted back to my human form and wrapped Cassie up in my arms. I am not ashamed to admit that âas I clung to her as though my life depended on itâ I buried my head in her neck and cried. They were happy tears, but tears all the same. For her part, Cassie clung to me just as much if not more than I clung to her. I could feel her tears on my bare shoulder, so I knew she was crying just like I was. After a couple of minutes, I finally âalthough reluctantlyâ pulled away from her just a little bi
My Mate's Wedding Drama    Chapter 103: Natalie's Dress
(24 hours earlier)(Cassie POV)âIâĶ I have so many questions,â I tell Bobby after listening to his story.âI do, too,â Paige whispers. I glance at her and can tell that she is in shock. So much of what she has thought and believed for the past several years has been turned upside down in the matter of a single 10-minute conversation. âIâll answer what I can until Shelly gets here.ââAfter all Shelly and the Moonlight Six did to youâĶ why are you dating Shelly?ââKeep your friends close; your enemies closer,â Bobby responds as though it is nothing.âDonât you feel like you areâĶ cheating on your mate?â Paige asks.If my handcuffs would allow it, I would reach over and slap Paige upside the head. Seriously, that was the first question she asked Bobby? I remind myself that she is in shock and going through a lot, but I also chuckle a little bit as I realize Jason would likely have asked the same question.Instead of answering Paige, Bobby growls angrily. Paige seems to realize her
