Chase the Moon (On Hold)

Nineteen

I was stupefied to say the least. I had spent all of this time searching for my mate, and now, I had finally found her. She was here. She was real. She was tangible. 

And she had walked away.

With my ass still planted firmly on the sidewalk, and a lilac scented wallet in my hands, I felt the overwhelming need to laugh. I couldn't help it. It just bubbled up my chest and slipped past my lips all on its own.

It wasn't just a slight chuckle, either. It was a full blown hysteric laugh. I received numerous cautious glances, as I probably looked like a crazy loon, but I couldn't care less as I clutched my stomach and rolled onto my side in my fit of laughter. I laughed so hard that tears started to form in my eyes. One even escaped the confines of my eyelids and rolled up to my temple.

I sucked in a deep breath and sat up a little. I focused on controlling my breathing, and it seemed to help.

Once I had calmed down a bit, and blinked away the moisture in my eyes, I took another deep breath and thought about my beautiful mate.

Despite the fact that she had left me there on that sidewalk, and that she was probably blocks away by now, I couldn't shake the feeling of absolute joy. I had psyched myself out so badly on my journey, thinking that because I was never meant to be a wolf, the Moon Goddess hadn't taken the time to give me a mate, that the mere fact that she existed had me overflowing with hope and happiness.

Goddess, she was beautiful.

I allowed her image to take over my mind. Her face, her hair, her eyes, everything about her really, only made me fall deeper in love with her.

Goddess, I'd only spoken to her for mere minutes, but it felt like I'd known her my whole life. I was completely and utterly in love.

I picked myself up off the sidewalk and started walking in a random direction. It didn't matter much where she was going right now. I had her address, so I knew where she would be, and that was all I needed know.

I couldn't keep the stupid grin off my face. There wasn't anything in the world that could dampen my spirits now.

With a skip in my step, I decided I should call Alpha Anderson, and maybe even Teddy, to tell them the good news.

Goddess, this day couldn't get any better.

^^^°^^^

"Hello?" the voice came through the payphone.

"Alpha," I couldn't contain my joy as I addressed him. "I found her! I found my mate!"

"Glad to hear it, Mark," I could hear his smile through the phone. "Will you two be returning here or staying in her pack?"

"Well," my smile faded a little, "actually, she's kind of human. She doesn't know yet and I only met her once."

"Oh," he said with a tone of sympathy. I had already walked all this way, but it was painfully evident that my journey was only halfway over. "Well, what's her name?"

"Amelia Moon," I felt my stupid grin returning as my mate flooded my thoughts. Her name was fitting, in a way. She was mated to a werewolf and her surname was Moon. If that wasn't ironic, then I don't know what is.

"Well congratulations, Mark. Listen, I'd love to chat longer, but I do have some pack business to attend to."

"Right," I felt a little bothersome now. "Sorry, Alpha. I'll let you get back to work."

"It's no trouble," he chuckled. "I look forward to hearing updates on your progress."

"Yes, Alpha," I nodded, though he couldn't see me. "Thank you."

After that, he hung up, and I found myself immediately dialing Teddy's number so I could tell him the news.

It took a few rings for him to pick up, but when he did, he answered with a swift, "Yo."

"Teddy," I breathed happily.

"Oh my Goddess! Mark! How are you? Where are you? Have you found her yet?"

I laughed at his bombardment of questions, but only felt the need to answer the last one.

"She's so beautiful, Teddy," I said with a love struck tone.

"Shit, man," he laughed, "I'm putting you on speaker."

"Who's all there?" I asked and heard excited chatter in the background.

"Just Gwen and Isabella," he answered.

Immediately after that, I was met by a chorus of, "Hey, Mark!" from the both of them.

"So? Tell us everything!" I think that was Isabella.

"Her name is Amelia Moon," I grinned. Squeals in the background could be heard, and that only added to my intense joy. "She's so beautiful. More so than I could've ever imagined."

"So, am I going to be an uncle any time soon?" That was Teddy.

I laughed again, but answered with, "She's human."

"Shit, really?" Teddy sounded disappointed. "Man, you've already been through so much to find her. Now you have to win her over too? That's a load of bull!"

"Don't listen to him, Mark," Gwen said. "I know for a fact that girl is going to fall in love with you."

"I asked her out for coffee. She told me I wasn't her type and walked off," I pursed my lips.

"She'll come around. The Moon Goddess paired you together, after all. She's destined to love you," Isabelle pitched in. "She's probably just playing hard to get."

"Thanks guys," I smiled a little. "How's little Markie doing?"

"Dude, I told you there is absolutely no way I am naming my child after you," Teddy snorted.

"It's your loss," I joked into the phone. "But seriously. How is the pup?"

"Actually, they both just started kicking."

"Both?" my eyes widened.

"Twins," I could hear his smile. "A boy and a girl."

"Oh, come on, Teddy. Marcus and Marcy would be adorable names."

"Definitely not."

"But-"

"No."

"You'll come around eventually," I smirked.

"Actually, I've been thinking about naming them Luca and Lucy," Teddy teased.

"Like hell," I snorted. "When are they due?"

"Four months. So you better get your ass into gear if you want to be here when they're born."

"I'll be there. I promise."

"You better be."

I laughed again as the phone started to beep at me.

"Hey, I'm running out of call time, so I should probably let you go."

"Wait! One more question!"

"What?"

"Where did you find her?" Teddy asked.

I smiled and peered out at the bustling city scape around me. It was the last place I expected to find her, yet here I was, standing in a crowded, man made city, with my beautiful mate so close that I could no longer feel that inexplicable pull in my stomach.

"New York City."