Chapter 21 Mated
“Do you both enter this bond willingly?” the elder asked.
“Yes,” Kade said.
“Yes,” Sage whispered.
“Then we begin.”
The elder spoke in the old language. Words Sage didn’t understand but felt in her bones. He called on the moon and the earth and the ancient pack bonds that connected them all.
Then he asked them to shift.
Sage and Kade shifted together. Her white wolf with black lightning markings. His massive black wolf. They stood facing each other.
“Circle,” the elder commanded.
They circled each other three times. Pack tradition. Showing the bond to all witnesses.
“Mark.”
This was the part Sage had been nervous about. The permanent marking.
Kade moved first. His teeth found the junction between her neck and shoulder, he bit down gently. The mating mark.
It hurt but not as bad as she feared. More like intense pressure, she felt the bond snap into place. Physical. Real. Undeniable.
Her turn, she found the same spot on his neck. Bit down.
His blood on her tongue. The bond completing from both sides. Wrapping around them like chains made of light.
She felt everything, his emotions, his strength, his love. It flooded into her and she gasped.
This was what a real mate bond felt like.
“Shift,” the elder said.
They shifted back to human form, both breathing hard. The marks on their necks were visible. Red and raw and permanent.
The elder handed them each a silver band. “Exchange the symbol.”
Sage took Kade’s hand and slid the band onto his finger, he did the same for her.
“By the laws of the pack and the bonds of nature, I declare you mated,” the elder said. “Alpha Kade Blackwood and Alpha Female Sage Monroe. Bound until death.”
The pack erupted, howls and cheers. Celebration.
Kade pulled Sage close and kissed her. She felt the bond between them humming alive.
“How do you feel?” he asked against her lips.
“Like I’m going to pass out.”
He laughed. “That’s normal, the bond is overwhelming at first.”
She could feel him in her head now, not thoughts exactly but emotions. His love, his pride, his relief that the ceremony was complete.
“Is it always like this?” she asked.
“It will settle, give it a few hours.” He kissed her again. “But yes. We are connected now, permanently.”
The pack came forward to offer congratulations. Even wolves who had been skeptical bent their necks in respect. She was officially Alpha female now.
Riley hugged her. “You did it.”
“We did it,” she corrected.
Cole clapped Kade on the shoulder. “The pack is whole again, united.”
They were right, Sage could feel it. The pack bonds connecting everyone and now she was part of it. Woven into the network that held them all together.
The celebration continued but Kade pulled her aside after an hour.
“We need to complete the bond,” he said quietly.
She knew what he meant. The physical part of the ceremony, the consummation.
“Now? With everyone here?”
“It is tradition. The pack needs to witness.” He saw her face. “We can use the den. Privacy but close enough that they know we are completing the bond.”
She nodded, her face was burning but this was part of it, part of becoming Alpha female.
They walked to the den. Beth had prepared the space with furs and candles, soft light, warm despite the cave.
The pack stayed outside but Sage could feel them there waiting and witnessing.
“Are you okay with this?” Kade asked.
“Yes, I’m just nervous.”
“Me too.” He pulled her close. “We don’t have to do anything elaborate, just enough to complete the bond.”
They lay down together on the furs. The ceremonial clothes came off easily. Sage felt exposed but also safe, the bond between them was strong, she could feel his love, his desire. His need to complete what they started.
They made love slowly, not like the desperate encounters before. This was sacred, meaningful. The final piece of the bond clicking into place.
When it was done, Sage felt the bond settle completely.
They were truly mated now.
Forever.
They dressed and walked back out. The pack was still there celebrating. No one made it awkward or strange, this was normal for them.
Beth handed Sage water. “Welcome to the pack, Alpha female.”
Sage drank and looked at the wolves around her. Her pack now. Her family.
“Thank you,” she said.
The celebration lasted all day. Food and drink. Stories and laughter. Wolves running in the forest.
Sage stayed close to Kade feeling the bond between them like a second heartbeat.
“How does it feel?” he asked as the sun started to set.
“Right,” she said. “It feels right.”
“Yeah.” He kissed her forehead. “It does.”
They drove home that evening exhausted but happy. The bond was complete, the pack was united. Marcus was gone, Vanessa was gone.
Everything they fought for was finally real.
Sage fell asleep in the car with Kade’s hand in hers and the mate bond humming between them like a song only they could hear.
Tomorrow they start their life together as true mates.
Tomorrow they face whatever came next but tonight they just rested.
Together, finally at peace.