Chapter 4 Chapter 4 My Luna

Leo

For the past week, my mind has been utterly consumed by Victoria. Her scent, her voice, those big innocent brown eyes that had gazed up at me in ecstasy-I couldn't stop thinking about her. The memory of her soft curves beneath my hands haunted my waking hours and invaded my dreams. My wolf prowled restlessly inside me, demanding I find her, claim her, mark her as mine.

I growled low in my throat as I stared out the window of my office, watching the city lights flicker below. The skyline belonged to me-every casino, every club, every shadow-filled alley where my pack conducted business. I was the Alpha of the Shadow Moon Pack, feared and respected throughout the werewolf community. Yet here I was, obsessing over a half-breed she-wolf who'd played me for a fool.

"Alpha?" Tiny's voice broke through my thoughts. My Beta stood in the doorway, his massive frame nearly filling it. Despite his name, there was nothing small about him-six-foot-seven of pure muscle and unwavering loyalty.

"What is it?" I asked, not turning from the window.

"Enzo Howlthorne is in your office, Alpha. He's asking about your decision."

The mention of Victoria's pathetic excuse for a stepbrother made my lip curl. Enzo - that disgrace of an Alpha who had the nerve to offer up his own sister as payment for his gambling debts. When he first approached me with the proposal, I'd been mildly intrigued. The Howlthorne territory held strategic value, and taking his sister as my mistress had seemed like a small, convenient price.

But that was before I'd met her. Before I'd tasted her. Before I knew what she truly was.

"Let him wait," I said, finally turning to face Tiny. "And get me everything we have on Victoria Howlthorne's inheritance. Her father must have left her something substantial."

Tiny nodded, his expression carefully neutral. "You think Enzo is after her money?"

"I know he is." I ran a hand through my hair, frustrated. "What kind of Alpha trades his own blood? Even in our world, family bonds are sacred."

"Not everyone follows the old ways anymore, Alpha," Tiny said quietly. "Especially not degenerate gamblers like Enzo."

I moved to my desk, pulling out the file we'd compiled on Victoria Howlthorne. Photos, background checks, financial records-I'd gathered it all after Enzo first proposed the arrangement, but I hadn't looked closely enough. Now I did.

Her father, Alpha Dominic Howlthorne, had been respected among the packs-a rare leader who managed to maintain peace with humans and werewolves alike. He'd fallen in love with a human woman, Elizabeth, causing considerable scandal. But he'd chosen her as his mate nonetheless, defying tradition. When Elizabeth died giving birth to Victoria, Dominic had never fully recovered. He died when Victoria was just twelve, leaving Enzo-his son from a previous marriage-to take over as Alpha.

What caught my eye now was the trust fund. Dominic had set aside a substantial fortune for Victoria-enough that she could live comfortably among humans for the rest of her life once she turned twenty-one.

"That bastard," I muttered. "He's trying to get control of her inheritance before she can claim it."

My anger dissipated as understanding dawned. Victoria's desperate act at the nightclub suddenly made perfect sense. She wasn't playing games; she was fighting for survival in the only way she knew how.

"Alpha?" Tiny was watching me carefully. "You're not still upset about the money, are you? Five grand is nothing to us."

I waved my hand dismissively. "The money is irrelevant. It was never about that."

"Then what was it about?"

I looked at the photograph of Victoria in the file-a candid shot taken without her knowledge. She was smiling at something off-camera, her brown eyes bright with rare happiness. So innocent. So pure, despite everything she'd endured.

"She doesn't belong in Enzo's house, being treated like property," I said finally. "She doesn't belong as anyone's mistress either."

Tiny raised an eyebrow. "What are you saying, Alpha?"

"I'm saying she deserves better than what her brother offered her." I closed the file with a decisive snap. "Tell Enzo to come find me. And get the car ready-I'm heading to Devil's Lair."

As my Beta left to carry out my orders, I found myself staring at Victoria's picture again. The memory of her body beneath mine, her soft moans in my ear, the way she'd looked at me with such honest desire-it all stirred something primal in me. Something possessive.

She wasn't meant to be a temporary plaything. She wasn't just another warm body to satisfy my needs. No, Victoria Howlthorne was meant for something else entirely.

She was meant to be my Luna.

---

The drive to Devil's Lair gave me time to think, to plan our future together. I'd never seriously considered marriage before. As Alpha, I had responsibilities, duties to my pack that superseded personal desires. I had women when I wanted them-willing she-wolves who understood their place in my bed was temporary.

But Victoria... she was different. She was rare in my world-an untouched jewel amidst the grime and darkness. I wanted her to be mine. Completely.

"You're unusually quiet tonight," Carson, my Gamma, remarked from the driver's seat. "Still thinking about that girl from the club?"

I shot him a warning glance. Even my most trusted lieutenants knew better than to pry into my personal affairs.

Carson wisely changed the subject. "We've got the monthly reports ready for review. Profits are up twenty percent across all venues."

"Good." I nodded absently, my mind still on Victoria. "Any news on the Monroe Pack's movements along our northern border?"

"Nothing concerning. Their Alpha sent an envoy requesting a meeting next month."

"Schedule it," I replied automatically, gazing out the window as we pulled up to Devil's Lair.

The club was in full swing, music pulsing through the walls as we entered through the private entrance. Upstairs in my office, I went through the motions of checking the books, discussing security matters with Carson and Tiny, and approving new shipments. But my mind kept drifting to Victoria-to the future I was planning for us.

She would make a beautiful Luna. With proper guidance, she could learn to navigate pack politics. She might be half-human, but that wouldn't matter once she carried my pups. My heir.

The thought of Victoria round with my child sent a surge of possessive satisfaction through me.

"Alpha," Tiny's voice interrupted my thoughts again. "Enzo Howlthorne is here."

I straightened in my chair, my wolf stirring with anticipation. "Bring him up."

Minutes later, Enzo was escorted in, looking considerably more haggard than when I'd seen him last week. His eyes darted nervously around the room, and I could smell the fear rolling off him in waves.

"Alpha Moretti," he said, attempting to sound confident but failing miserably. "Thank you for seeing me."

I gestured for him to sit, keeping my expression neutral. "I understand you have something urgent to discuss."

"Yes." He licked his lips nervously. "It's about my sister. There's been a... complication."

"I'm aware," I said coldly. "She came to my club and attempted to... circumvent our arrangement."

Enzo's eyes widened. "You knew? You were there?"

I leaned forward, letting my power fill the room. Even without shifting, an Alpha could project dominance that made lesser wolves cower. Enzo visibly shrank in his seat.

"Let me make something perfectly clear," I said, my voice deceptively soft. "I decide to take Victoria as my Luna,and you will step out of her life. Permanently."

"L-Luna?" Enzo stuttered, genuine shock on his face. "But she's a half-breed! She hasn't even shifted!"

My hand moved faster than he could track, grabbing him by the throat and lifting him partially out of his chair.

"Choose your next words very carefully," I growled, my eyes shifting to their wolf hazel. "That 'half-breed' you speak of so dismissively will potentially be the mother of my heirs."

I released him, and he fell back, gasping. "I... I didn't mean any disrespect," he wheezed. "I just didn't expect... Luna is such an honored position."

"And you thought I'd be satisfied with using your sister as a convenient body to warm my bed?" I asked, disgust evident in my voice. "You offered her to me to clear your debt, telling me I could do whatever I wanted with her, even signing a waiver absolving me if she happened to die in my care."

Enzo had the decency to look ashamed. "I was desperate. The debt-"

"The debt is still there," I cut him off. "You tried to use your sister's virginity as currency. I've decided not to accept those terms."

Fear flashed in his eyes. "But we had a deal-"

"The deal has changed," I said sharply. "Now, tell me about her inheritance."

His face paled. "What inheritance?"

"Don't play dumb with me, Enzo. I know Dominic Howlthorne set up a trust fund for Victoria. Money that becomes hers when she turns twenty-one."

Enzo shifted uncomfortably. "It's... complicated. There are conditions."

"Explain."

"If she marries before claiming it, control of the assets transfers to her husband." He swallowed hard. "That's why I approached you. I thought if she became your... lover, I could convince her to sign over her rights. We could split it."

My disgust for this man grew with every word he spoke. "And if she doesn't marry?"

"Then it's all hers. Father made sure the trust was ironclad. I can't touch it." His voice was bitter. "He always favored her, even though she's not even a real wolf."

I resisted the urge to snap his neck right then. "Tell me about Victoria," I said instead. "What does she want from life?"

Enzo looked confused by the question. "Want? Who cares what she wants?"

"I do," I said quietly. "Tell me."

He snorted derisively. "She has these pathetic human dreams. A little white-picket fence house, a gentle husband, children running in the yard. Ridiculous fantasy for a girl with wolf blood, even diluted as hers is."

But I didn't find it ridiculous at all. I found it endearing-her simple, innocent desires. I could give her all that and more.

"Listen to me very carefully, Enzo," I said, rising from my chair to tower over him. "I'm going to marry your sister. She will be my Luna, the mother of my heirs, and under my protection for the rest of her life. If you ever try to contact her after the wedding without my permission, I will tear your throat out myself. Do you understand?"

He nodded frantically. "Y-yes, Alpha Moretti."

"Good. Now get out of my sight."

As Enzo scrambled to leave, I turned to Tiny. "Have someone watch him. I don't trust him not to try something desperate."

"Consider it done, Alpha," Tiny replied. "What about the girl?"

I looked out the window again, to the city that bowed to my will. Soon, Victoria would be a part of that world-my world. She would warm my bed, bear my children, learn to navigate the dangerous waters of pack politics. And I would own her-completely, irrevocably.

"Prepare the Alpha suite at the main house," I said decisively. "We'll be bringing home my future Luna very soon."