A Second Chance at Redemption

Natalia's POV 1

My body swayed to the sound of the music, loud cheers drowning out my inner sadness. The large hall I was in was filled to the brim with happy guests and excited faces. The Alpha, Maverick had finally found his mate and the party was being held in honour of their engagement.

To them it was a joyous occasion but to me it felt like my heart was breaking into tiny pieces. I was completely heartbroken and shattered but I couldn't show it, instead I took a large swig of alcohol in my hands, feeling the burn in my throat. Even if for a few hours, I wanted to forget all of my problems and the pain that has etched itself inside my heart.

"You are drinking way too much, Natalia. At this rate I'm afraid you might cause a scene. Why don't you go and get some rest upstairs and call it a day?" My best friend, Veronica whom we fondly called Ronnie, cajoled from beside me. Her eyes were filled with concern as she tried to steady me from falling on my butt.

I shook my head aggressively. The last thing I wanted was to be alone with my thoughts. I wasn't sure I could handle it.

"No not yet. I still want to party more, besides the night is just getting started. Don't worry I won't make a scene on such a special occasion," I whined, chuckling excitedly.

She didn't look convinced but she didn't push it further, probably because she knew her brother, Maverick, was the reason why I was like this.

I have been in love with Maverick ever since I knew what love was. He was my first and only love, the one I had wanted to spend the rest of my life with but unfortunately he'd always seen me as nothing more than his little sister's annoying friend.

I had tried absolutely everything to get him to notice me as a woman but I'd been met with cold indifference but still yet I relented. I had believed he was my fated mate and soon enough he would see me as more than his sister's best friend but unfortunately the day had never come.

"Are you still thinking about Maverick? You can't do that anymore. It won't be fair to any one of you. What if when you find your mate and he finds out you have feelings for someone else, how do you think he would feel?" Ronnie said, her words cutting deep into my heart.

Her eyes were filled with sympathy and pity but I saw fear in them as well. She was afraid that I might do something to cause a scene or even worse stop the wedding. I sighed heavily, looking away. Just like everyone else including Maverick, she didn't understand the feelings I felt for her brother. They all felt my feelings for Maverick was nothing more than a casual crush.

How could I explain to them that it was so much more? Maverick was all I could think about. He was the only man that had ever made my heart race and life without him felt so bleak.

It didn't help that he was drop dead gorgeous as hell. I felt him deep within me and no matter how much I tried I couldn't stop thinking about him.

"It isn't as easy as you say, Ronnie. Trust me I have tried but no matter what those feelings just kept coming back," I whispered, my voice shaky and dejected.

Ronnie held my hands offering comfort as she stroked it lightly. "I know it isn't but it won't be fair to both Maverick and Lilian"

I knew what she was saying was the truth but getting my feelings to adhere to it was a different thing entirely.

"I'll try my best to forget about him. For now let's enjoy the party," I lied to her, trying to avoid the topic altogether.

She beamed excitedly, a look of relief etched on her face. She took a cup of champagne from a passing waiter and chugged it down her throat eagerly.

Ronnie had been the most excited when Maverick had found his mate and even more so when she found out who it was. Lilian had been a senior from Ronnie and my high school days and had been quite close to each other despite the age gap between them so it had been a pleasure for her to find out Lilian was her brother's mate.

From the corner of my eyes I noticed Maverick's familiar jet black hair and chiseled features standing across the room backing me. My heart leapt up in happiness, unconsciously walking to meet him. I stopped midway when I realized he wasn't alone.

He was holding Lilian tightly like she was the most precious thing in his eyes. His head was tilted back and to my surprise he was smiling. Maverick never smiled much but right now he was smiling and it was because of her.

It should have been me with him. I could feel the tears welling up from behind my eyes threatening to burst out open any moment from now. I couldn't stand the sight of them anymore and I knew I had to leave before I did something I would regret.

Natalia had her attention taken up by a boy she was talking to so she didn't notice me slipping away from the dance floor. I headed to the first place that came to my mind. The bar.

It was much quieter here with most of the pack members either on the dance floor or in the large banquet hall.

"One bottle of whiskey," I said to the bartender, taking a seat on one of the large heavy stools at the bar.

"Coming right up." The bartender, a cute blonde with a dimpled smile, took my order, placing the drink in front of me while he winked at me flirtatiously.

I blushed excitedly waiting for the familiar pull of passion I always felt when Maverick so much as looked at me but I felt nothing, except a dry and emotionless feeling.

I sighed once again, burying my head in my hands as the memories of the past week came crashing down on me. It was funny how much my life had changed so much in a week.

I remember the day so vividly like it was yesterday. I was resting at home that morning when Ronnie had called me excitedly barely getting her words out as she told me about Lilian. I'd been shocked and mortified beyond disbelief. Usually we found our mates by the time we turned twenty but Maverick had been different. We had a five year age gap and despite being the Alpha he had not been able to find his mate even after his twenty-fifth birthday.

Ronnie and I were to turn twenty that same year and my heart had been filled with hope that I was Maverick's fated mate and that was why he still hadn't found his mate yet. I was so sure that once I turned twenty he would recognize me as his mate but I was so wrong.

I had listened dejectedly as Ronnie recounted how Lilian and Maverick had met once again and how they had recognized each other immediately as mates.

A part of me wanted to throw caution to the wind and tell Maverick about my feelings regardless but I knew deep within me I wasn't fit to be Luna unlike Lilian was.

She was exactly the type of woman he liked, smart, beautiful and ambitious, a perfect fit as his Luna unlike someone like me who had no power. I was an orphan with no living family and the only reason I was able to survive for so long is because of the charity of the former Alpha, Maverick's father.

It had hurt me immensely but there was nothing I could do about it. I wasn't his mate and I had to accept that fact eventually.

"Bring me another bottle," I called out to the bartender, chugging the last of the whiskey in my cup.

I felt his presence before I even saw him. His tantalizing scent wafted through my nostrils making my knees weak with passion. How was I supposed to forget about him when just his presence did things to me like no one ever did?

He looked genuinely happy. His eyes were lit up in excitement, the corners of his mouth upturned into a smile. It ached even more knowing I wasn't the reason for his happiness.

"I wasn't sure it was you so I had to make sure. You seem upset. Are you okay?" He asked, taking the seat next to me.

I stared at him in surprise. This was the first time Maverick was saying so much as a complete sentence to me much less taking a seat beside me. He had never tried to talk to me first and had certainly never asked me how I was before. He didn't seem drunk though, just very happy and excited.

"I'm good. I just felt stuffy inside the hall," I said to him, watching him intently. "What about you? You look super happy today"

He grinned excitedly at my words, the dimples showing on his face, giving him a boyish charm I didn't know he had. Looking at him so close now, I could see he was definitely slightly tipsy. "I really am. Lilian is everything I have always wanted in a Luna. It took me a while but I'm glad we found each other"

His words took me by surprise for a moment. He genuinely felt happy and he loved Lilian. Ronnie was right. It felt selfish to harbour feelings for him when he's found the person that made him so happy. Something clicked in me right then and I decided to let go of all my feelings for him.

As much as I loved him and would do anything to stay by his side, it was quite clear to me that Lilian was his happiness and the one for him.

"I'm really happy for you, Maverick. You deserve to be happy," I muttered genuinely, feeling a weight of emotions being lifted off my shoulders.

"Thank you, Natalia. I hope you find your mate soon," he says and I smile in response.

The bartender appeared, placing two drinks in front of me. "It's in the house," he says but this time the bartender was different.

The cute blonde bartender was gone and another bartender had replaced him. I frowned but didn't think much of it. They had probably changed shifts or he'd gone for a bathroom break or something.

I pushed one of the drinks towards Maverick, holding the other one in my hand. "Why don't we cheer for your new found happiness and future?" I said to him and we clinked our glasses, downing the alcohol.

It burned my throat and I was slowly beginning to feel light-hearted and dizzy. The alcohol was already starting to kick in by now.

"I think it's time for me to go," I muttered softly as I stood up hastily, almost falling to my knees but Maverick's hands reached out to steady me.

"You can barely stand on your own. I'll take you to your room instead," he offered, placing a firm hand over my waist. I tried to decline his offer since he could barely stand as well but he was already pulling me towards the door and out of the bar.

We walked in silence down the hallway, my eyes hazy and unclear. There was something strange in the air but I couldn't decipher what it was. Maverick pushed open a door and we both went in. The room was dark and stuffy but there was something bubbling underneath my skin. I felt hot and my body burned with desire.

Suddenly Maverick's hands pulled me closer until his head was snuggled on my neck kissing me lightly.

"You don't know how much I have wanted you in my arms ever since the day we'd found each other again. Now I won't let you go," he whispered softly into my ears before kissing me hungrily.

The moment felt unreal, almost too good to be true. Yes it was definitely a dream. There was no way Maverick would kiss me so passionately. I had to be having a dream.

I kissed him back with the same fervor, our tongues dancing in union against our mouth. This was everything I'd always imagined being with Maverick would feel like but for some reason it felt like I'd just committed a grave mistake that would change my life forever.