Page 50 of The Barren Luna

If tonight went well, I would have a job and perhaps some new friends, too. First things first, shower, clothes, then the kitchens to get some inspiration for the meal. I had been toying with several ideas this last week, but I still hadn’t settled on a definite menu. After breakfast, I’d go to the market David had shown me yesterday to get the groceries I needed. By the time I had gotten showered and dressed, I was a female with a plan.

The palace kitchen was intimidatingly grand, shiny, and well-equipped. As I rummaged through the pantry, someone cleared their throat behind me. I saw two Omegas who I’d seen clearing off the breakfast tables in the big dining hall.

“Hello, ladies. Am I disturbing your work?”

They couldn’t have been older than 19. One of them elbowed the other one, who then shyly said:

“Luna, we've gotten some fresh currants this morning from the pack greenhouse. We heard about your dinner tonight and wanted to ask you if you would like to use them for the dessert.”

I was stunned. That was so incredibly thoughtful and kind.

“Wow, I – thank you so much. Yes, actually, please set them aside for me. What are your names?”

“Caroline and Patty, Luna.”

“Nice to meet you; please call me Regina,” I said, but I knew they would never.

That decided my entire menu: I would make pice bach, Dorothy’s favorite Welsh cake, and keep that theme going for the rest of the dinner as well. Comforting, hearty, winter-friendly homemade food to warm their bellies: shepherd’s pie and cawl, a Welsh soup with lamb, swedes, and oatmeal dumplings. Iwas buzzing with excitement. The kitchen pantry had almost everything I needed, I would just run to the market to find some good leeks – as one of the symbols of Wales, it was imperative that I use the perfect ones tonight.

Was it tacky to say you had outdone yourself? The lamb, leeks, potatoes, swedes, and carrots were simmering in the nice thick broth I had made from the lamb bones, just waiting for the dumplings to join them. The shepherd’s pie was assembled, ready to be put into the oven 20 minutes before it needed to be on the dinner table. Now all that was left to do was measure out the flour, butter, eggs, milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, and currants and keep them in the same spot until the time came to make the dough and fry it in a cast iron pan. I glanced at the clock – perfect. Still enough time to shower and change before the guests arrived.

I decided to wear a thin dark-blue silk dress and I liked what I saw in the mirror. I had steadily been gaining weight back and all of my curves were almost as they had been. I decided against bracelets or rings since I’d be working with dough, but I found a simple flat white gold chain that would go with the dress nicely. David was waiting for me in front of my room.

“You look breathtaking,” he said and I think I actually blushed.

This was so much harder now that I was feeling the pull of the bond.

“Thanks. You look great,” I replied because it was true.

He was wearing black dress pants and an emerald green cashmere sweater. I wanted to touch his shoulders, just to see what they felt like.

“Should we head down?” he offered his arm and I braced myself for the wonderful sensation.

“Yes,” my bare hand touched his, and we both gasped.

“Regina, please tell me you felt that?” he almost moaned.

“I did,” I whispered.

“Fucking dinner,” her ran his hand through his hair, and I laughed.

“Come on, let’s just walk separately,” I suggested and although he pouted slightly, he knew it was the smart thing to do.

Our guests for the night were David’s brother John and his mate Elizabeth, who I’d already met several times over the years, Beta Helen and her mate, Charlie, who was David’s Gamma, doctor Matthews – or Dylan, I guess, and a couple that I was meeting for the first time tonight: Alicia and her mate Alex.

Alicia was tall for a female, blonde, and had a gruesome scar on her neck that lent her a dangerous aura, whereas her mate was stoic-looking, dark-haired, and perpetually leaning towards her in a semi-protective stance. She smelled like fig leaves and his scent reminded me of resin.

It was also nice to finally put smells to the faces I'd met while wolfsbaned – Helen smelled like chamomile and Charlie like rose hip, whereas Dylan's scent was that of juniper. There was something about Dylan's wolf that felt incongruous with the image of him I had, but my wolf couldn't tell what yet.

I already knew and liked most of these wolves so I didn’t feel nervous. I was especially looking forward to potentially reconnecting with Elizabeth; she had been regal, kind, and welcoming each time I met her. I remembered her telling me that she and John were childhood friends who discovered they were mates when they first shifted. That must have been nice, I thought wistfully and immediately looked at David, whose eyes were already on me.

“Is everything okay, Gina?” he whispered in my ear, and I shivered.

“Yes, just got lost in my thoughts a bit.”

“So, Regina, how are you liking our pack so far?” Elizabeth asked between spoonfuls of the soup. “This is really delicious, by the way, you’ll need to give me the recipe later.”

“Honey, I love you,” John quickly interjected, “but we both know you’ll take that recipe and never make it,” he laughed at her and I could see that this was some sort of long-running joke between them because she theatrically threw her hands up and said, “Just let me believe that one day I will! Shush now, I’m talking to my new friend,” she frowned and scrunched her nose up at him and I could just imagine them as little pups having some version of this exact conversation.

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