Rise of the Crescent Moon

Chapter 37 August

"Should she really be out here? It's only been two weeks since the attack?" Hayden asked me as we stood off to the side, admiring our Luna.

"You try telling her she can't do something, I'd love to watch." I smirked, crossing my arms across my chest.

I admit, I was a little jealous of Ethan, Hayden, and my two brothers at the moment as they joined my mate on the sparring mat. She was wearing a crop top and workout leggings, her belly button playing peek-a-boo with the hem of her shirt. I wasn't thrilled about her choice of attire for her workouts, but I knew better than to argue. If my wolves couldn't handle themselves around her, we had bigger problems than her exposed midriff.

I growled as Ethan landed a hit on Josie's shoulder, knocking her down. I was two seconds away from tackling my Beta to the ground when Josie did it herself. Lunging up from the mat, she wrapped her legs around Ethan's waist and yanked him down to the ground. She pinned him to the mat until he tapped out.

"She's impressive." Hayden laughed as Josie offered Ethan a hand up,

"Ethan's pissed, he can never beat her." He added. I beamed with pride at my Luna. Ethan was one of our best warriors, but Josie's agility and quick thinking put her skills above his brute strength.

"He can learn a thing or two from her, we all could." I said.

"We can hear you two!" Ethan shouted over at us, whipping his sweat stained forehead with his arm,

"Why don't one of you two spar with her if you're so fantastic?" Hayden raised his hands in surrender,

"Because I'm not an idiot. I know when to quit." Hayden teased, joining Ethan on the other side of the mat. I walked up to my mate,

"And I'm too smart to pick a fight with our Luna." I grinned down at her. She jammed her elbow into my ribs,

"No, you're not." She mocked, rolling her eyes.

"Can I have a minute?" I asked her, leaning down to whisper in her ear. She blushed at my closeness and nodded, grabbing a towel to wipe off her face. I led Josie away from the training grounds and towards the shaded courtyard.

"August, I'm all sweaty." She whined as I leaned my body against hers, pushing her back towards the side of the packhouse.

"I don't care." I said in a low voice, nuzzling my nose against her cheek.

Josie wiggled against my body which only made me groan more. She grabbed my face in her hands and pulled me towards her lips, nibbling my lower lip with her teeth. She moaned against me as my hands found her bareskin. I paused along her scar, running my thumb over the three thin lines that now stained her stomach, chest, shoulder, and neck. I ran my hand up the length of the scar, ending my tour of her body by cupping her cheek in my hand and slowly the passion of our kiss.

"I have some bad news." I said, moving my lips away only enough to talk. Josie's warm breath blew across my face as she struggled to breath,

"Oh." Was all she could manage to say.

"I have to go away for a few days for work." This caught her attention. She pushed my body away and maneuvered away from me and the wall.

"Why?" She asked, a small hitch in her voice let me know that she was on the verge of upset.

"Despite the fact that I would rather spend every waking moment by your side, I do have to work to provide for this financially dependent pack," I chuckled,

"I have a contract with a business in New York, they want my firm to design several large buildings for them." Josie sighed at me but I could tell she understood.