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I’m still pouting when we round the corner and find a closed off dining room absolutely teeming with food.

“There you are. We just put all your drinks away. You got quite the variety,” Mama B says, wiping her hands on a towel as she and Will enter. He must’ve snuck around the other side while I was walking down memory lane.

I cringe. “Probably too much, but I don’t know what everyone likes.”

“It’s perfect. Welcome to our home.” Mama hugs me tight, that same fresh honey scent wrapping around me as she whispers how gorgeous I look before heading for my alpha. Two steps later, she spots the box in his hand and stops. “What did you do?”

Nate glances at me like he needs the comfort, then pulls two cakes out, displaying them on the sideboard. The pound cake is perfectly golden brown, but it’s the red velvet that makes Mama gasp.

I whip around, terrified that she’s upset, and find the whole family behind her. Connor and Dez look like they’re going to explode with happiness, though there’s some lingering pain there too. Sol’s eyes water until she shoves her face into Sam’s chest. Even Omar looks a little shaken as he wraps a somber Levi up.

What the hell?

Mama rushes Nate, hauling him close. “Oh, baby. I’m so proud of you.”

My alpha hugs her back, eyes on mine the whole time. “It was time. Mom’s recipes deserve to be eaten.”

Oh my god.My eyes prick and I swear, my heart’s about to burst out of my chest. Nate did something he obviously hasn’t done in years for me and for this family he loves so much. They’ve all been hurting and in this one act, Nate has healed them in a way I don’t think he even realizes.

Proud of you, I mouth.

His eyes get watery as Will pats him on the back, radiating pride. “You did good, kid.”

“Thanks, Pop.” Nate walks over, thumbing my bottom lip gently. “Want some now, kitten?”

My stomach growls. “Please.”

He reaches for a knife, only for Mama’s voice to halt his progress. “You better wash your hands before touching that food, Nate Morgan. I know your mama and I raised you better.”

It’s so swift, the briefest mention of Nate’s mother, but my heart races. I turn, expecting him to be sad, but he shoots me the most perfect grin. “This is exactly why I didn’t put it down to take my shoes off. Be right back, kitten.”

The others disperse quietly, leaving me with Mama and her beautiful, watery smile. “The pound cake is my recipe and a tradition for holidays, but the cake…I thought I’d never taste Bethany’s red velvet again. Haven’t had the heart to bake it since they died, and I know Nate felt the same. Yet here he is, pulling out her cookbooks for you.”

My heart feels a thousand sizes too big as I look at the cake that suddenly means so much more than dessert. If I ever wondered if Nate Morgan loves me, I don’t anymore. He may not have said it, but there’s no other way to interpret this.

He wanders back in, and I want to kiss him. To thank him for doing this. Instead, I let myself lean into his side as he cuts me the tiniest slice with Mama’s approval before she disappears into the kitchen.

Before I can grab the fork, he pulls it out of reach, picking up a bite for me. “Open up, Daph.”

I already am for this man who feels like sunshine in my soul.

My mouth closes over the tines and the flavor hits immediately. Rich and decadent and so fucking sweet. The chocolate of the cake mixes well with the tart cream cheese frosting, and I can’t stop the happy noises in my throat as I swallow.

Nate hides his hips against me, groaning into my hair. “I should’ve made it at home first. Those sounds are indecent.”

“You like me that way,” I whisper against his cheek. I nearly spoil it all by pulling him and that fucking cake out of the room. My alpha is hard and needy, and it’s my favorite Nate to have.

“Not in front of my mother,” he complains.

“Well, if Dez had to do it, so do you.” It pops out before I realize and the moment it registers, I nearly choke on my next bite. “Shit, I didn’t mean that.”

“Yes, you did,” Nate laughs. “Fucking love when you tease me.”

“Enough of that. It’s time for dinner.” Mama rubs her hands together, frowns, then immediately grabs mine. They’re slick, almost uncomfortably so. I nearly pull away until the soft scent of shea butter hits my nose. “Got too much lotion.”

Sol peeks over Mama’s shoulder. “Oh, I want some, too!”

“Go get your own.”