The Afterglow
“There’s something different about you today. It's like you’re shitting rainbows.” Landon cackled and shook his head, not really paying heed to his own words, but the same could not be said for the others who surrounded them.
“Stop bullshitting Landon.” Max waved him off but was stopped by Britney’s voice.
“No, no, Landon’s right, you are unusually energetic.” She narrowed her eyes at her Alpha who simply rolled his eyes and ignored them.
“No way…” Landon’s jaw dropped open and he stared at Max with disbelief and excitement.
“What?” Brit
An outsider No matter how hard she tried, Star could not concentrate fully on the task at hand which didn’t bode well for her since she had a deadline that was fast approaching. “Knock, knock.” Greg’s voice startled her, but a smile quickly blossomed on her face upon seeing him in the doorway. “Hey, come in.” Greg closed the door behind himself and took a seat in his usual chair on the opposite end of Star’s desk. “Alpha Max said you needed some help?” Star nodded solemnly. “Yeah, I’ve contacted all the suppliers on our database and a few new ones, so far no one can match the prices we're looking at, but there’s one company that isn’t on the database that is willing to supply us at a reasonable price if we can guarantee future business. Now I know we do from time to time set up contracts with providers, but I can’t find the contract template we use so that I can map out the agreement before I present it to the board.” Star sighed and Greg shook his head with a disbelieving smi
Anger harbors pain “I believe congratulations are in order.” Landon came to a stop beside her with a smirk. “Hardly.” Star scoffed and watched as Training Co. employees offloaded the equipment from the truck to the pack warehouse. “Why not? You pulled this off, when Brit mentioned it I was sure we would have to postpone the training recruitment.” Star shrugged. “I did what I could.” Landon narrowed his eyes at her when realization dawned on him. “You know that no matter where you go, you will have haters.” Star bristled at his words, she knew that all too well, what got to her was that she couldn’t do anything about it. “I know.” She gritted, struggling to keep her anger at bay. “So what’s on your mind?” Landon cocked an eyebrow, her attitude was new to him. “Nothing, let it go.” She spat, feeling more annoyed by his inquisition. “Star-” He tried, but she cut him off. “You’re not my therapist. Let. It. Go.” she narrowed her eyes and stormed off. Star came to a halt when she
A step in the right direction“Is that what I think it is?” Donna blinked slowly when she laid eyes on the necklace around Star’s neck.“Depends, what do you think it is?” Star smirked.“Is that Luna Lockwood’s necklace?” Star grinned and nodded. All morning she received awe-filled, excited looks as she flaunted the necklace for the pack to see.“When did he give you that?” She reached out to touch it, but her fingers simply hovered as if she were afraid something would happen if she touched it.
Overwhelmed Star blinked slowly as she looked at the thick folder on her lap and once again faced the older women before her. “Is this all for the Luna ceremony?” She asked hesitantly, she was quickly losing hope of having the ceremony done soon. “Oh honey, don’t look so frightened, it’s all the options and things to choose from.” Star sighed heavily and smiled. “We don’t want some elaborate fancy do, just something simple and memorable.” Star supplied and the woman beamed at her. “That can be arranged. Now to start we have to decide on a date and venue.” Mrs. Robin opened the folder to the different options and within a few hours, they had a full to-do list to start executing the planning. “This is so exciting!” Donna squealed when they exited Max’s office. “It’s a little daunting,” Star confessed, the knot in her stomach only got bigger, the more real it became. “You’re going to spend the rest of your life with the man you love, that’s got to be a little more exciting
In sickness and in healthStar’s body jolted from the bed, her legs couldn’t carry her fast enough as she threw herself at the toilet and emptied the content of her stomach, the sun was only just rising, but the restlessness Star felt began in the darkness.“Star, are you okay?” Max rushed up behind her and pulled her red locks into his hand as he tried to steady her figure.“Oh baby, it’s okay. Let it all out.” he soothed, rubbing a hand up and down her back while trying hard to fight off his own gag reflex.“Max!” Star cried and collapsed onto his chest when her body finally found some relief.
Lies and deceitStar fumed all the way home and no matter what Max said, she only grunted in annoyance.“Hey, I heard you were-” Greg was cut off by Star stomping into the house without so much as a look in his direction.“Don’t hold it against her, she’s mad at me and she hasn’t been herself since she got sick.” Star narrowed her eyes but continued her journey away from him.Locking the door behind her, Star curled up into a ball on the bed and let the hurt flow. She felt like a fool for being played by them, all this time she was cautious about the words she used and the stories she told in an effort to protect his secret and he was lying
The perfect dress “Star?” Star heard the faraway voice, “Star?” it took her a moment to register that Mrs. Robin was calling her. “Yes?” She snapped out of it, ignoring the worried look the older women sent her. “Are you sure you are up for this, we can always postpone it?” Star’s eyes widened and she nodded quickly, making her own head spin. “No, we will go ahead, I am fine.” Mrs. Robin looked skeptical but pointed to the three dresses she selected for Star after the specifications she gave her. “I’d like to try them all on and then decide.” With a satisfied nod, she was ushered into the bathroom. “I like the way it fits, but the white is too stark,” Star commented, looking in the floor-length mirror at the first dress. “It looks gorgeous on you, but we’ll put it in the maybe pile,” Donna concluded and ushered her in to try the next one. Star slipped into the dress and pulled up the zipper and without even looking in the mirror she knew she loved it. The soft netting
Surprise Standing in front of the mirror, clad in a matte black tuxedo, Max adjusted the cufflinks on his sleeves which held the initials of his father, how he wished his parents were here to share this day with him and his beautiful Luna.Max’s thoughts were interrupted by the door to the guest room swinging open to reveal a smirking Landon.“Ready, Alpha?” Max rolled his eyes, but couldn’t help the smile on his face.“I was born ready.” Landon chuckled at his arrogance, it wasn’t a display Max made often and Landon had only seen it a handful of times in recent years.