Chapter 343

Judy’s POV

I stared at myself in the mirror; shock was evident on my expression. My belly was rounded… I had popped.

It had been almost a month since the banquet. Levi was still in prison, thankfully, and thye were working on appointing a new Lycan to take over Levi’s territory and take his place as chairman, though I knew it wasn’t going to be easy. It was hard to fill the shoes of a Lycan chairman, let alone someone as powerful as Levi.

Until then, Gavin and the other Lycans had been taking turns going to Levi’s territory and taking care of pack needs, so they weren’t completely without help. This week was Gavin’s turn to go to Levi’s territory.

He’s been gone for almost 8 days, and I missed him with every beat of my heart. I wasn’t expecting to actually pop while he was away, though. I was just about 4 months pregnant, and this was the first time I actually looked pregnant.

I went to bed last night and my belly was still its typical flat… but when I woke up this morning, I had this huge, rounded stomach. My wolf refused to shift out of protection for our young one.

This was it… It was real. I was officially a pregnant she-wolf, and my mate was in a different territory.

There was a knock on my door, drawing my attention away from my appearance for a moment. I went to the door and opened it, revealing Nan, who was standing before me nervously. She was nibbling on her lower lip; her hair curled to perfection, and her makeup done beautifully. I knew Irene had gotten to her, and it made me smile at how gorgeous my best friend was.

She was wearing a tank top and short sweat shorts that hugged her curves perfectly.

“Why aren’t you in your dress yet?” I asked her, frowning. “Please tell me you aren’t getting cold feet again…”

“What if this is a mistake, Judy…” she said, walking into my room without being invited. “I mean… I love Chester and I want to marry him and continue with this little family that we have… but what if it ends up biting me in the ass at the end?”

My gaze softened.

“You won’t know unless you try,” I told her. “I know this is scary, Nan. But Chester loves you, and he’s been so good to you since finding out that you are his mate. He adores both you and Emalyn, and he’d do anything for you both. Marrying him should be an easy choice.”

“I know and I want to marry him… but what if it’s too soon? I haven’t known him very long…”

Without a word, I pulled her into my arms to hug her. I couldn’t believe my best friend was getting married today, and my mate wasn’t here with me. I hated that I had to attend her wedding without a date, and when she suggested that I go with Lukas, I nearly laughed. Gavin would kill me if he found out that I took Lukas as a date to Nan’s wedding. He couldn’t stand Lukas… it wasn’t anything specific that Lukas did… he just didn’t like that he was an unmated male.

He thought Lukas had a thing for me despite how many times I told him that we were just friends. I hadn’t seen or spoken to Lukas since graduating from the college; Lukas is attending his last year at the college and then afterwards returning to his uncle Mica’s territory. But he and Nan keep in touch, and she invited him to the wedding.

I would be lying if I said I wasn’t excited to see him again… but I was also nervous for what Gavin would have to say.

“You are getting married in a few hours, Nan,” I told her. “You need to get dressed.”

On cue, Irene walks in, her hands on her hips and her glossy lips pressed in a thin line. She was lareayd fully dressed in the purple maid of honor dress that hung off her shoulder delicately, showing off the purple pendant that dangled on her chest.

Her blonde hair, which she just got light purple highlights for, was pulled out of her face and still flowed in curly waves down her shoulders.

She was beautiful, and it always took my breath away; she looked so much like Gavin that it amazed me, besides her blonde hair and feminine features, which I’m sure she got from her mother. She had his eyes and his smile; it always amazed me.

“Are you serious, right now?” Irene scowled, her eyes narrowed. “How can you run off while I was in the bathroom? It took me hours to do your hair and makeup, Nan…”

“I’m sorry…” Nan said, nibbling on her lower lip. “I just freaked out. I needed to talk to Judy…”

“What you need is to finish getting dressed. We need to get to the Silver Crescent Church,” Irene scolded.

Then her eyes found mine.

“And you…” she said, turning her anger on me. “You also need to dress—” her voice trailed off when her eyes found my belly, and then they grew large. “Holy shit…” she breathed.

My cheeks flushed as I stared down at my belly; despite the good news, I was a little embarrassed. I didn’t fit into the dress that I was going to wear to Nan’s wedding. I was her maid of honor… and I yet, I had nothing to wear.

That was when Nan finally noticed my large belly, and she gasped, covering her mouth.

“Holy fuck, Judy!” She nearly squealed. “You finally popped!! Why didn’t you say anything sooner??”

“I didn’t want to take away from your big day,” I admitted.

“Judy, this day isn’t just for me… It’s for all of us. I want us to celebrate a new beginning not just for Chester and me… but for our packs and new friendships,” Nan said, wrapping an arm around me and another one around Irene, pulling us both close. Tears filled her eyes as she grew sentimental.

“I love the sentiment,” Irene said, patting her back. “But if you ruin your hair and makeup, I’m going to kill you. Keep those tears in, girl…”

“I’m trying,” Nan whimpered, making me burst out laughing.

“Well, try harder,” Irene said, pulling out of her arms. “Seriously… it took me HOURS, Nan.”

I smiled at my friends.

“As much as I love listening to your bickering, I’m still not sure what to do,” I told them, holding up the gorgeous purple maid of honor dress that Sabrina stitched for me. “I don’t fit in this anymore.”

Nan’s eyes grew wide with worry, but Irene, calm and collected, much like her father, pulled out her phone.

“Give me a second,” she said, tapping away on her phone. After a second, she looked up with a grin.

“Sabrina is on her way. She already has another dress made… it needs some tweaking, but she made it for the off chance that you popped before the wedding. So it’s the same dress, but larger.”

I let out a breath of relief.

She really did think of everything.

Irene finally finished getting Nan dressed, and he was breathtaking in her white wedding gown. She looked like a princess, and it took my breath away. Now it's my turn to cry as I stared at my best friend.

“You are gorgeous,” I whimpered, wanting to hug her, but afraid Nan would scold me.

“You are just hormonal,” Nan said, holding back her own tears.

“Maybe, but that doesn’t mean you aren’t stunning, Nan,” I replied.

Not long, Sabrina was joining us in my room with the new dress. It was larger, a little too big… she had to make some adjustments so that it would fit, but once she was done, I felt pretty and not at all fat from pregnancy.

“Now we all look hot,” Irene said with a grin. “Now, seriously. We have to get to that church before we are late… we cannot have the bride being late.”

We chuckled and soon, we were at the church; the wedding ceremony was held at the Silver Crescent church, while the reception was being held at the Carter resort, which was fitting, seeming Nan was one of Patrick Carter’s best employees.

I was honestly surprised to see that Delta Carter was at the wedding, but as I peeked in from behind the scenes to glance at the guests, I saw him seated on Nan’s side, a show of support to her.

Nan didn’t have any family, so my family sat on her side, and there were a few friends as well. Chester was kind of in the same boat with family, but he did have a few, along with his friends and some of the Silver Crescent kitchen staff, whom he had grown close to over the years.

Overall, it was a small wedding, but the church was beautifully decorated thanks to Irene.

I had no idea she loved wedding planning so much; it turns out, it’s a skill and a passion not even she knew she had.

“Hey,” Lukas said, stepping beside me. “I guess I’ll be walking you down the aisle. They asked me to be a groomsmen.”

“Isn’t it the best man that walks the maid of honor down the aisle?” I teased.

He shrugged.

“He doesn’t have a best man, so I guess you’re stuck with me.”

He grinned at me, and I grinned back.

It was good to see him, and I was just about to hug him and tell him that, but a low growl stopped me.

“Think again,” the familiar voice said from behind me, making Lukas’s eyes widen and his face pale.

I didn’t need to turn to see who it was, but I still did because I was surprised that he was there.

“I’m the best man, and the only one allowed to walk my mate down the aisle.”