The Replacement Luna (A Luna Chronicles Novel) [Completed]

Chapter Three

A/N - so can people please not call Ruth a 'cry baby' or 'over emotional' especially during this chapter. Yes, she does cry a lot - but she has clinical depression and it's a serious condition!

Chapter Three

Ruth Eden Glass

"Alright, Eden, there are some things you need to know about Memphis and the deep south" Shelley began, pushing her black hair over her shoulder. "One, we are a city that gives birth to legends; Elvis, B.B King, Johnny Cash...the list goes on. Two, we throw the best damn parties in the country. And number three, the most important thing, we do the best damn barbeque in the south".

She bit into her rib and moaned. I smirked at her as I bit into my burger, watching as my newest friend devoured her food like a true southerner. Shelley was in the Pack with me and she was also worked at the college, so we'd both quickly become fast friends. Well, friends were pushing it. She was kind, sweet and kind of goofy – but I struggled with the concept of letting people close to me, but I liked her well enough.

"You're an idiot" I laughed.

"Hey, no one does ribs like Memphis. Texas ain't got shit on these bad boys" she smirked, licking the sticky sauce from her fingers gleefully. I couldn't help but laugh at her again. "So, tell me, you got your eyes on anyone in the Pack?" she asked me.

I frowned in confusion, "my eye on anyone? What do you mean?"

"Oh come on, Eden. You're beautiful, young and single. The men have not been able to talk about anything other than you since you arrived. They're like horny chihuahuas who haven't been snipped yet, trying to hump your legs at every turn".

I laughed warmly at her analogy. "A lovely image you paint there".

"I have a way with words" Shelley grinned, BBQ sauce covering her front teeth. I shook my head at her, taking another bite of my burger, before she spoke again. "Come on, Eden. Surely one person has caught your eye".

"I'm not looking, Shelley. Really, I'm not. My mate fucked me up so much that the idea of growing old alone sounds like pure heaven".

"Girl, I think that is the sadist shit I did ever have the displeasure of hearing" she teased, putting on a stupid accent and waggling her finger at me. It was crazy that this woman was thirty, she was like a twelve-year-old kid constantly hyped up on sugar.

"Yeah, yeah. Well what about you? You've not mentioned a mate to me before" I stated.

"Oh yeah, got one of those. He's great, bit of a lazy bastard, but I love him" she shrugged, and I laughed again. But the conversation made my heart ache – ache for the times I would say that about Drew. 'Oh Drew? Yeah, he's made some stupid mistakes, what man hasn't? But, he loves me really'. That was what I used to say about him. Complete lies. But you make up lies for the person you love, because usually you believe those lies yourself.

But, the difference between Shelley and I was that I could see that Shelley was actually joking; the love for her mate was obvious. Just like most other Werewolves in the world, she was made for her mate and they were happy and in love. That happened to Drew and I as well, near the beginning anyway, after that it was just...poison.

Shelley quickly changed the subject away from mates, no doubt she could see the effect thinking of Drew had on me. It wasn't anything I could hide. No matter how many years had passed, no matter how much I had changed, I still could never hide my true feelings towards Drew. And, perhaps, that would never change.

Shelley and I finished lunch before parting ways. She went back to the office she worked in, as I took a slow walk through the campus. I was wearing a flowing light sundress, but sweat still ran down my spine as I ducked under the shade of a large tree. I took a seat on the bench in the shade and pulled some papers from my bag. I was flicking through the paperwork for the criteria of the team's sectional routine, but it was hard to focus on the writing.