1

Kiara was all smiles, surrounded by her friends as she looked into the mirror. It was her 19th birthday and the hall downstairs has been decorated in a birthday theme fitting for the daughter of an Alpha, but that was not the only reason she was so excited.

“Are you ready to finally find your mate?”

“How excited are you?!" Two of her friends, Tanya and Chloe asked, and she blushed.

Werewolves found their mates when they both turned 19, which is why dating is strictly forbidden in the community and it made everyone overly excited to finally find their mates, and Kiara was not immune to all that. She had been looking forward to finding her mate for as long as she can remember and today was finally the day. She tried to keep from guessing who it was, but she has been playing guessing games in her mind all day.

“Alright, time to make our bets before she goes down to the hall.” Chloe started and brought out the 50-dollar bill in her bag, “my shot is on Alex, he has been making eyes at her since his 19th birthday.”

“My bet is on Christian; they’ve been friends for a very long time. I’m sure the moon goddess would make them a match.”

Kiara rolled her eyes and stood up, showing her red gorgeous ball gown. She took in her face coated in delicate makeup and smiled. “If you guys are done betting on my future, can we go down now and find out who it is?”

“Yes!” they both chimed at once and opened the door for her to lead the way, and Kiara walked away with the both of them trailing behind her.

She expected to be hit with the scent of her mate and be overpowered by an urge to go meet him like she read about, but there was absolutely nothing like that. She didn’t feel anything different, she felt oddly normal and it sent certain signals up her brain; what if she ends up like the werewolves who never found their mates?

Before she could give in to the thought, her parents appeared before her and pressed kisses against her cheeks. “Happy birthday, Princess, you look absolutely gorgeous and breathtaking.” They chorused even though they already wished her at 12 AM, and a bright grin covered her face.

“Thank you, mummy. Thank you, daddy.”

“I hope you will enjoy your party and at the end of the day, we hope to see you latched onto someone’s arm,” her mum, Luna Camilia said, and her dad interjected almost immediately.

“And if you are not latched to someone’s arm at the end of the night, that is absolutely fine as well sweetheart.”

She rolled her eyes jokingly at her dad. She knew he meant well and was just being over protective, but the mere thought of not finding her mate by the end of the night absolutely terrified her.

She knew some people like Jane, who didn’t find her mate at nineteen, and she had witnessed the life get drained out of her and she does not want to be one of those people. Absolutely not. She has to lead her pack, and she must have her Alpha Consort for everything to be perfect.

“Go and have fun, sweetie. Your friends are all waiting for you.” Kiara snapped out of her thoughts to meet her mum’s smile and bobbed her head swiftly. 

The scary thoughts cast birthday blues on her, so she dragged her feet away from them into the crowd that was filled with her friends, acquaintances, schoolmates, and random pack members, who didn’t fail to wish her a happy birthday whenever she waltzed past them, and slowly the the birthday excitement creeped back up.

Every thought of a mate rolled to the back of her mind and she enjoyed every bit of her party. From dancing, to having a few drinks, playing games, singing karaoke horribly, every bit of the activity that went on filled her with joy, but that came to an end when the hall started emptying out and Chloe and Tanya ran up to her, wiggling their brows as they smiled mischievously.

“Soo…” Chloe dragged out

“Found him yet?” Tanya completed, and Kiara’s smile faltered, instantly Chloe and Tanya’s smile vanished. “Are you okay?”

“I haven’t found him,” she tried to keep a brave front and a smile on her face, but the tears pooling in her eyes gave away the pain she was feeling, “I am so scared that I will not find him, I don’t know if….” The rest of her words were drowned out by a strong smell and her eyes widened. 

“Oh my god,” she breathed out and before she could fully process it, her legs started moving on its own accord, and her worried friends followed closely behind to make sure she was not about to do something silly. 

The closer Kiara got to the backdoor, the stronger the scent got, and she found herself holding onto her gown as she started running. The moment she made it out of the door, the pack’s Gamma’s only son, and one of the most handsome men of the pack, Kristen, stood there with a knowing smile on his face, while Kiara panted as she tried to catch her breath.

“Hello mate,” he whispered, and released his hands that had been tucked behind his back all these whiles to reveal the bouquet of flowers he got for her and a smile so huge it felt like her cheeks were about to burst open.

“You knew,” she breathed out and took calculated short steps towards him, “why did you come so late then?”

“I wanted you to enjoy your day properly,”

Her cheeks turned a light shade of pink and she took the bouquet from him. “Thank you, Kristen.”

“Usually, when mates meet each other there is a long moment of embrace, why have…” Kiara didn’t let him finish his sentence and dramatically flung herself in his arms.

Chloe who had watched everything was grinning from ear to ear, but Tanya looked pale as a ghost, her eyes firmly pressed on Kristen who carefully avoided her gaze.