"All right, ladies. Raise the cups! To a successful and hopefully thrashing-free shift! Cheers! "
The glasses clinked as the 6 women toasted the night ahead.
It  was 9:30 in the evening, and soon the gates of one of the city's best  known and most questionable clubs would open.
'The Den'.
When the  boss Jessica, or Jess, as she was called here in the club, opened the bar 5 years ago, nobody had expected that this bar would hit like a  bomb.

The bar would open its gates 5 days a week, but there was  not a single day that did not create meter long queues outside. Mostly  men, of course, since the club boasted to employ the 6 hottest and most  beautiful women in town, and it was true.
But women were also not uncommon in the audience.
Everyone who came here wanted only one thing: drinking, celebrating and more drinking.
Because  that was the task of 4 of the 6 employees here: serving drinks en mass  and spreading a good mood by flirting, drinking with every willing  customer and dancing sparsely dressed on the large bar counter to  rhythmic and loud party music.

Yes, this was Luna's workplace and she loved it more than anything!

Luna  started working here about 3 years ago and she didn't regret a single  second. On the evening of her first working day, she knew that this was  her place!
Jess liked Luna from the first moment and both women got  along straight away, even though there were worlds and years between  them. What connected them was the preference for swears and the urge to  use them.

It took Luna a little longer to warm up with the other  girls, but it was worth the effort. Although every one of them had an  absolute crack in their shell, but Luna would prefer every one of these  women to winning the lottery.

Sure, they all could be real  bitches, but ultimately they held together, no matter what comes. And  after Luna was promoted to deputy managing director after only half a  year, they all accepted without reservation.
Luna had been noticed  from the start because of her assertiveness and mental strength; the  main reasons why Jess made her her substitute when she wasn't there. In  addition, Luna brought 3 other properties that were indispensable in  this establishment: the drinking-resistant battle liver of a Russian,  the stamina of a marathon runner and the sex-appeal and charisma of a  Miss World.

Because she needed these skills more than anything  else in the job she was doing: five nights a week fussing around with  drunk and horny guys, keeping them at distance and making sure that  their greedy hands don't get where they don't belong.
Luna quickly learned to assert herself in this small but rough world of the bar, with both words and fists.
Her  bouncer, Jeffrey, but everyone just called him Bobo, was a big, strong  man, a little too much around the middle, but strong like at least 10  oxen. It happened that Bobo failed to get to help in time, and then the  girls had to help themselves. Luna had taken on this task very  conscientiously and very loudly when she kicked out the ass of a drunk  wannabe banker for the first time. The next morning she had heard that  he was picket up 2 blocks away by the police, with a black eye, broken  nose, and piss-wet pants, while he molested a group of prostitutes.

Since that day, Luna has been indispensable for Jess and the bar. And for Bobo as additional security for the ladies.

"Alright,  ladies. Are you all in your role? If not, you better hurry up! Falling  out of your roll will not be tolerated, not even with blood for alcohol!  " roared Jess throughout the shop, 10 minutes before the doors would  open. Their favorite joke in here, since everyone who comes here ends up  with more alcohol in their system than blood.

Every girl who  started to work here and was considered suitable by Jess was given a  contract, the tip of the whole evening and a role that she had to play  as long as everyone was inside these walls after the first successful  evening.
Luna had looked confused at first when Jess told her that,  while she was inside the bar, she was the black-haired beauty from the  country, whose parents had taken it to the monastery because it could  not be tamed and she was only to be entrusted to God. The little  innocent virgin who one day got tired of dancing to other's music and  fled the monastery at night to try her luck in the big city.

Yes ... that was Luna's role, along with her new name: Lulu.

She  thought it was stupid, to be honest, but the longer she worked here,  the more she was convinced of the need for this measure. It was for the  safety of girl outside the bar, in case the lovelorn and drunken idiot  should come up with stupid ideas.
When she got that term, Luna no  longer had any problems playing her role. It was just a stupid  coincedence that not everything about this crazy story was invented.  Luna carried a big and embarrassing secret with her: She indeed was  still a virgin.

It was really embarrassing to be a virgin at the age of 25, but Luna had her reasons.
You'd  think a young woman who looked like her would take one or two man after  another home with her every night. Let's face it: Luna was sexy and hot  as hellfire, and she knew it.
Long, wavy black hair that shone like  silk, ice-blue eyes that captivated everyone who only looked at her, a  figure like an athlete; slim but strong, wide hips and a round, firm  ass, narrow waist and tits like a porn star, an inviting and delicious  D-cup, firm and soft at the same time, round and well-shaped like ripe  apples.

Yes, Luna was indeed a sex beast. Or at least that was what everyone should believe.

If she wanted to, Luna could have 10 men on each finger, but nothing was further from her.
The truth was as simple as it was cheesy: Luna wanted to give her innocence to the man she loved from the bottom of her heart.
It  was more than atypical for a woman to think that way, especially  nowadays when everyone is so open and easy with sex and apparently  everyone could do it with anyone, anywhere. She was not prudish or  reserved when it comes to sex, she really wasn't, but her principles  were sacred to her and she fervently defended them.
Luna figured out very early that the first time was something special and should therefore be treated as such.
Her  innocence only existed once, there was never a second chance, and there  was never another attempt. The first time is a gift and should be  shared with the person you really love and who you deeply trust.
After  all, you open up your most intimate places to that person, you make  yourself vulnerable, vulnerable like never before, and you shouldn't  just waste that. So Luna valued her innocence very much.
The problem was just gthe lying ...

Everyone  in her small circle of friends thought that she made out with everyone  who came into her crosshairs, including her mother. Oh god, if your own  mother thinks something like that about you, plus: if the mother is also  a terrible gossip girl, it is hard to beat the embarrassment.
She  loved her parents, no question about tjhat, but sometimes Luna felt like  she was adopted because she was so different from them, but which young  person, especially women, dont think this way, right?

That she  had to tell her mother, her friends AND her colleagues that she had an  excessive sex life gnawed at her conscience. Luna may be direct,  dominant and bold, a textbook example of an extrovert, but she also had a  side that no one else knew.

When she was alone, she  could be what she really wanted to be. She could let go, relax, allow  herself to be weak and cry if necessary.
The hard, stressful job, the  annoying parents and the judgmental comments of her friends, all of  this drained strength and exhausted her. More than she was willing to  admit.
She had never shown any weakness, was always the strong,  reliable and courageous Luna that everyone knew. No one suspected the  little, innocent and vulnerable girl behind the mask, and that was a  good.
It was important to some people to have a part of themselves  that remains part of their private lives, and Luna was such a person.

"All  right, ladies. It starts in five, four, three ... " Jess started the  nightly countdown before pulling open the doors to her kingdom to let in  the hordes of thirsty and party-loving guests. Outside, the first  candidates were already queuing, shouting, singing, dancing themselves  ready before going to the real party. A few seconds and the madness can  begin, and Luna couldn't wait!

"Two, one!" Jess unlocked the  double-sided door and immediately, the masses of guests streamed in,  pushing inside like herds of females for summer sales. The first insults  could already be heard, from 'asshole' to 'motherfucker', everything  was there.
Jess had taken time to get away from the crowds that were  still pouring into the bar like there was no tomorrow. The seats  directly in front of the counter were the most popular. Understandable,  considering the live dancing shows of the girls in contradiction to  overpriced alcohol; the moments when it was Luna's turn to jump on the  counter, kick away bottles and glasses in her way to start dancing and  singing, yes, singing.

She was the only one of all the girls who  managed to sing above this crowd of people who screamed and celebrated  loud enough to drown out everyone else. Of course she had a microphone,  but even then it was a herculean task.
Luna loved to sing. She liked  rock and metal the most because she had an extremely powerful voice, but  when she was in the mood she could also smash a love song or two, but  for now, the plan was to give the thirsty and party-loving guests their  first drinks.

"All right, you assholes! Listen to me carefully,  because I will only say it once! " Roared Jess as she jumped on the  counter, armed with a megaphone to make sure EVERYONE heard her.
"EY!  I said "Shut up, you fucking wankers!" She roared again into her  megaphone when nobody seemed to make the effort to listen, but now,  after turning up the volume, various cell phones and loudspeakers  squeaked and boomed, it suddenly became quiet.

"Now that I have  your attention, it's time to set the rules. Listen and follow them,  otherwise your ass ends up outside on the street, is that clear?! Good!  Rule number one: Looking: Yes! Touching: No! As soon as your dirty  fingers land where they don't belong, I'll cut them off by myself! Rule  number two: Cash is king! If you dont have any money, you can leave  right away! And rule number three: HAVE FUN!" Collective cheers broke  out as Jess announced the last rule. It's the same every night, but it's  always fun to watch. Everyone reacted differently to Jess' direct and  straightforward manner, but it was extremely amusing no matter how it  ended.

As soon as Jess had enjoyed the cheers and applause  enough, she gave Lindsey, everyone's sweetheart inside and outside the  bar, a sign, and the bar was immediately filled with loud music.
'Black  Sabbath - Headless Cross' was today's opening song, chosen by Luna  herself and immediately the loud crowd jumped and danced while the first  drinks were being served at the bar.

✺✳ ┅ ⑅ ┅ ⑅ ┅ ⑅ ┅ ⑅ ┅ ⑅ ┅ ✳✺

Erwin  could hardly concentrate properly. His thoughts revolved around his  mate all day long, whom he had neither seen nor heard until now.
He  wiggled his legs impatiently under his desk, forcing himself to focus on  his work. He would have preferred to search the city for her right  away, even if he had to shift into a wolf, so he could search the  streets faster, more effectively. It wasn't very welcome when you ran  through the streets as a wolf, but sometimes it was unavoidable.
But Erwin didn't give a damn shit. He would have done EVERYTHING to find her, kicked in every door, searched in every territory.

He  would not allow anything or anyone to stand in his way ... And yet, he  was sitting here on his ass in his fine nappa leather armchair while  Robert and Mike and some other members of his pack roamed the inner ring  of the city, looking for Erwin's mate.
Hours had passed (or was it minutes?) without a sign or interim report from Robert.
His wolf was furious with impatience and unbridled desire to finally have her.
He  didn't know what she looked like, but if she looked half as good as she  smelled, she was as beautiful as the moon goddess herself.

Erwin  put down his pen and sighed heavily as he rested his head in both  hands, elbows on his huge mahogany desk. He massaged his temples to  soothe the pounding headache that had been gripping him ever since he  realized he had a fated mate.
Every minute that he was not with her made the pain worse, and for that reason alone he had to find her quickly.

He let his thoughts wander, tried to form a picture of her based on the wonderful scent that was etched deep into his memory.
Full,  sweeping curves that kindled his fire of passion, lips that he would  kiss for the rest of her life, a body that he would worship and worship  for the rest of his days.
Great, almighty moon goddess; he had to make her his, he had to make her be forever, or he would die of longing!

He  would claim her, over and over again, all night long. And then again  ... and then again. Erwins wolf howled at the thought of finally uniting  with her, mating with her and fulfilling the unbreakable bond, marking  his territory, marking her as his property, so that every goddamn wolf  in this city knew who she belonged to.

"Find her! We have to find her! Now! "

His wolf growled in his head, a voice so deep, menacing and animalistic that any other, normal wolf would tremble in reverence.

"We  will. As soon as Mike is back with the trail, we'll leave," Erwin  replied telepathically to appease his wolf. It was sometimes hard to  hold him back, especially when its an alpha after it had just bonded  with his mate, but Erwin understood him too well. They were two sides of  the same coin, and what happens to one affects the other. They are one,  inseparable, and who else could understand his wolf better than Erwin?

He  hardly could stand sitting around doing nothing. He wanted to run out,  search for her, for the one who would become his and satisfy his  longing, his hunger.
A loud, shattering roar, born from frustration,  escaped his throat as he grabbed the paperweight from his desk to throw  it against the wall, where it left a deep crack as the object itself  shattered into a thousand shards.

Erwin's secretary came rushing in seconds later, her face contorted with worry over the noise.

"My alpha! Are you okay? I had heard her roar and I was afraid- "

"GET OUT!"

His  voice echoed off the walls as he let his alpha voice run free. With a  cry of horror, the secretary rushed back out of the huge office as the  doors closed behind her.
Erwin's mood got worse every minute the longer he was doomed to wait.

"Fucking  shit, how long should I wait here?!" Erwin jumped up from his armchair  and ran up and down before the the huge glass front like the wild animal  he was.
A moment later his cell phone rang on the desk. He hastily  turned and took hold of the vibrating piece of technology, the name  'Robert' glowing in large, white letters across the entire display.

"Finally! Did you find her?! ",he almost shouted into the phone.

"Good  evening to you too. Calm down, brother. I could hear you roaring from  here. I'll be right there with Mike, and we'll tell you what we found  out. "

"Don't tell me to calm down! Get your ass here!"

Erwin  hung up without waiting for an answer and threw his cell phone on the  armchair in which he had been sitting before he continued to walk in  circles; impatient, angry, frustrated. His nerves were raw. He had to  have her, no matter the cost!

Just five minutes later, the double  door to Erwin's spacious office finally flew open, the warm, white  light and the red, elegant carpet from the foyer made a strong contrast  to the two giant figures who came in side by side, a scowl on their  faces and leaving a scared, whimpering secretary behind.

"And?  Where is she?" Erwin asked as he fixed his eyes on Robert and Mike, a  look so sinister and menacing that even the alpha's brother had to  swallow hard as he stopped in his tracks. A pearl of sweat trickled down  Robert's temple and slowly made its way down his cheek to his chin,  through the short-trimmed, frizzy beard. Robert stood still like a  statue, withstanding his brother's threatening and piercing gaze, not  staggering or retreating, knowing Erwin would only get angrier if he  avoided his gaze.
As an alpha, he was allowed to meet Erwin at the same level, to look him straight in the eye, whereas Mike felt completely lost.

Looking  down in humility, body leaned slightly forward as a sign of submission.  Although Mike and Erwin had known each other since childhood and were  good friends, even if they had done a lot of nonsense and had fought  together many battles, Mike hated nothing more than having to face his  alpha brother, the unofficial king of this city, under such  circumstances, but this was work, and Mike loved his job as Roberts  beta, including many errands and other tasks for the 'King of Paradis  City', like now.

To a mere bystander, Mike would look like a  normal werewolf; tall, muscular, strong, fast, hellishly handsome, but  he had a gift that made him irreplaceable for Robert and Erwin alike:  his incredible sense of smell.

Mike's nose was a precision  instrument, ten times more sensitive than the nose of a normal werewolf,  and their sense of smell was already extremely sharp. It did not  surprise him when Erwin rushed into Robert's office, a yellow cloth  clutched tightly in his fist, and gave the order to find the owner of  this piece. Mike had only wondered why he got this strange command, but  he was smart enough not to ask. Robert did this and when Erwin revealed  that this scarf belonged to his fated mate, Mike was all fired up.

Like  every good wolf in a pack, he wanted his alpha to be fine and happy,  and since Erwin was Roberts brother, it was even more important to Mike.
Only  a happy alpha, a well-balanced and clear thinking alpha, was a good  alpha. If he won't meet his partner soon, his mind would suffer, his  leadership, his strength, his dominance would suffer, and it would have a  serious impact on the whole city. Within a few days, everything would  be out of balance, fights would break out uncontrollably, semi-strong  wannabe-wolves would compete for supremacy, perhaps even challenging  Erwin for his position. Or in short: it would be pure chaos.
Everything depended on the wellbeing of theallpha, or the city would soon turn into an inferno.

"Nothing." Robert replied, still withstanding his brother's intense stare.

"Excuse me?" Erwin was almost certain that he had misheard that, but Robert was not known for joking around in such a situation.

"We  didn't find her, Erwin. We were in every part of the city, looked in  every street with my soldiers and the best hunters, but nothing.  Wherever this scarf came from, it doesn't come from this city." Robert  tried to remain clear and factual, speaking in a clear voice. He knew  what Erwin was like. It was no different for himself when he first  smelled the fragrance of Erika.
He couldn't sleep for days, had a  headache beyond tolerance, his wolf, his instincts went completely  crazy. He was more animal than human that time, which means he had to  stay calm at all costs in order to help Erwin best.

"That is not an excuse! I gave you an easy task and you come back with empty hands! "

"Not  quite, Erwin," Robert interrupted, raising his hand. Erwin locked eyes  with his brother in a mixture of anger, curiosity and expectation. A  dangerous mix, but fortunately Erwin remained calm, waiting for what his  brother had to report.

"It's true that she definitely doesn't  live in the city, but just the moment when we were about to finish our  search, at the far end of Paradis, Mike noticed a faint note of her  smell in the wind. Coming from the east. "

"Good! So the search was not in vain. Good work. I'll take over from here. " Finally a spark of hope for Erwin.

"Wait  Erwin! Even Mike said the smell was very weak! She could live anywhere  on the other side of the states and you wouldn't know it exactly. You  can't just go into the unknown without a plan," Robert reasoned loudly,  trying to get his brother to overthink, but Erwin was already in the  process of telling his secretary over his office phone to cancel or  postpone all meetings and other matters for the coming month.

When  he hung up again, he grabbed his jacket and was about to storm past his  brother and Mike when a strong and firm hand on his chest held him  back.

„Move your hand, Robert. I won't say it again,"  threatened Erwin in a deep, menacing voice. Erwin would never harm his  brother, but if he saw his authority undermined, if anyone questioned  his dominance, his leadership, he would make no prisoners.

"Now  wait, Erwin and listen to me for a moment. I know how you feel and it is  far from me to stop you from looking for your mate, you know that very  well. All I want from you are 5 minutes. " Robert spoke slowly and calm,  careful not to irritate his brother any more and to appeal to his usual  keen mind.
Robert lowered his hand that was holding Erwin back while  looking into his brother's eyes to wait for his answer, and to Robert's  relief, Erwin straightened up, took a deep breath and closed his eyes,  giving in to his brother's request.

"All right. Then speak. What's going through your mind?" Robert sighed in relief.

"Where do you want to start searching anyway? You only have one scarf and a direction. "

"And my nose, don't forget that."

"Yes,  that too, but what I mean is: the search could take weeks, maybe even  months. You cannot leave the city as their leader for so long without  taking precautions. "

In his hurry and following the urge of his  wolf, Erwin had completely forgotten. He pinched the bridge of his nose  and growled in frustration as he slowly realized the scope of his rash  actions.

"All right then. I'll give you that. I'll take a night  shift today to make all the necessary preparations. Tomorrow morning at 8  am I want to see you and Mike right here again. Then I'll explain  everything to you. Until then, I'll arrange everything. Anything else,  brother?"

"No, that was all. Thank you, Erwin." Robert smiled  contentedly at his brother and put his hand on Erwin's shoulder. And  Erwin smiled back, for the first time that day.
Robert was the only one who had the gift of bringing Erwin back to his feet in such a situation, and for that he loved him.

Erwin  returned his brother's loving gesture and put his right hand on his  shoulder before pulling him to his chest for a warm but somewhat crude  man hug where both of them patted each other on the back.

"See you tomorrow, Erwin. Don't forget to sleep. You will need your strength for the task ahead of you. "

"See  you tomorrow, brother, and yes, I will. Do not worry." Robert and Mike  bowed respectfully and then turned to leave the office. Erwin stayed  behind with a lot of work and lots of ideas and plans in mind that  wanted to be put into practice.