Second Chance Mates

-03- 🌹 Somebody Else's Loss

^ Picture of Ryland Ambrose

"I wish I could say, 'Thank you for all the mistakes'; 'Thank you for all of the pain'. I guess somebody else's loss is another's gain."
~Lewis Capaldi, 'One'

~~~

*Ryland's POV*

"Are you serious?" I gape at my best friend. "They're going to introduce you as Luna? Already?? It's only been a few months!"

Lyn smiles and tucks a lock of her wavy caramel hair behind her ear. "I know, but it's the rightful next step. He's going to become Alpha, and as his marked mate, I will become their Luna."

"Wow," I grin proudly. "I can't believe my best friend is going to be Luna of the Silver Woods Pack."

My words hit Lyn, and she squeals in delight. From across the room, Ronnie scoffs and crosses her tattooed arms.

"Best friend?" Ronnie questions with a raised brow. Her sleek dark brown hair is pulled up into a messy bun, showing off the scowl on her face. "Jeez, thanks, Ry."

I roll my eyes at her. "Don't get all bitchy. You know I love you. And don't glare at me like that because I know you love me too."

"I would love you more if you weren't such a friend whore."

"Clingy bitch."

"Muzzled slut."

"Veronica!" Lyn gasps, her dark hazel eyes wide with shock and disapproval. The insult makes me burst out laughing, and I nearly double over. "That wasn't very nice!"

"Oh, lighten up, Roselyn," Ronnie sarcastically drags out Lyn's full name. "It's just a joke."

"It was a terrible one."

"She's right," I agree while gasping for breath. "It was a terrible joke. Because I'm collared, not muzzled."

Ronnie joins in on the laughter, flopping down on the bed next to me. Lyn tries to keep her expression stern, but the sight of her two best friends laughing eventually makes her crack a smile. She gingerly settles onto the bed, laying down in between us. The three of us lie on our backs, staring up at the plain white ceiling of my bedroom.

The three of us have been best friends for as long as I can remember. We met as young pups in the pack, and the connection was instantaneous, even though we're about as different as they come. Being the same ages, we were always in the same classes growing up. And boy, did we wreak some serious havoc. Our trio became quite well-known among the pack.

Roselyn Garcia.
Kind-hearted, intelligent, and the beauty of the pack. She's the daughter of our beta, so the news of her being mated to the Alpha of another pack was both rejoiced and mourned. It's a great opportunity for our pack to form an alliance with the Silver Woods Pack, and it's an honor to be mated to an Alpha. But that also means she will have to leave our pack and join his. Lyn says she doesn't mind, but I know her better than that. She's going to miss us; not just me and Ronnie, but the entire pack.

Veronica Vega.
Science-obsessed, dangerously hot, and the ultimate queen of sass. A warrior. She's a member of the pack's army, and holy shit, can she kick some serious ass. Not only is she skilled in hand-to-hand combat, but she also engineers chemical weapons for the pack to use. Which we haven't had the need to use yet, thankfully. That fact bums Ronnie out, but she's not some cold-hearted monster that would wish for a disaster to strike in order for her to try out her toys. She's cares about this pack as much as the rest of us do.

And then there's me. Ryland Ambrose.
Comically depressing. Openly gay. Mateless.

Yup, that's right.