Page 197 of A Broody Mate for the Human

“Hey,” I glare. “Stop staring at my mate.”

“It’s your fault for mentioning his penis,” Portia argues.

“Stop it, you two.” Stella chuckles. “Or you’ll miss the shift.”

She is right. I turn my attention from Portia back to the group, noticing how one after another turns to their wolf or lycan form. It’s so interesting to see them all together. The lycans are towering over the werewolves, but some werewolves are also of impressive build. I make out Celine’s white wolf… the only purely white wolf within the whole group.

Fenris walks to the head of the group with Leah, Annie’s wolf, at his side. I notice a similarly big wolf, even slightly bigger than Fenris, and I assume this is his father. Fenris and Leah start running, with the group behind them eager to join them. It’s slow at first, as they all need to wait for their turn, but soon the whole group of wolves is moving, getting faster with every step. It seems like running in a group pushes them further.

Before they can disappear from our view, I see a single black wolf turning and running towards us.Prepare yourself,Nero links me.

My eyes widen. Does that mean… I stand up, and when Nero is in front of me, he lowers himself to the ground. I sit on top of him.

Hold on tight, mate,he says.It’s going to be fast.

Fuck yes, this is better than a roller coaster. I wave shortly at Stella and Portia, who are cheering for me, and grab onto Nero’s fur. Nero sets off again, easily catching up with the group. I’ve never been riding on a wolf before. It’s a whole new feeling. The wind in my face feels cold and sharp, like little spikes, and I duck deeper and bury myself in Nero’s thick fur. His body heat is warming me while the landscape passes us. Nero runs alongside two wolves, who I assume have to be Esme and Hayden.

My heart swells with love and joy. I’ve never believed I’d ever be part of a pack. But I am, and instead of being rejected and shunned by them, they fully accepted me as one of them.

I sit up a bit straighter to see the wolves surrounding us. My eyes move towards Fenris and Leah, leading the run, and then back to my fellow pack members.

For the first time in my life, I truly feel at home.

Chapter sixty-four

Bonus: Christmas Special

*DAVE*

“Whatistheproblem?”I ask in worry, as I hurry after Annie and Jun. We’ve just met for a short meeting concerning my work in the Council. It’s Christmas Eve today, and as Raffy promised, Liam put a Christmas tree up, and we all had a Christmas lunch today.

“Esme linked me. Something about an emergency,” Annie explains.

My worry grows. I hope she is alright. I pick up my pace, running after my two friends until we reach Esme’s house and—

I stop in my tracks.

“What is this?” I ask, my mouth dropping open.

Annie takes my hand and leads me towards Raffy’s and my place. “It was Raphael’s idea,” she whispers to me while my eyes take in what my awesome, brilliant, wonderful, godlike mate put together.

The whole house is illuminated by Christmas-themed lights, decorations plastered all over the garden, windows, and on the roof. It’s cavity inducing cheesy, and I love every bit of it. There is even a reindeer in the garden… not a real one of course… and Sugar is currently barking at it. Sugar’s collar is red and sparkly, and he is wearing a little Christmas hat.

Once inside, I notice that the decorations don’t stop there. Raffy went all out. There is a beautiful Christmas tree in our living room with plenty of presents there. And once I step inside, all my friends appear and cheer, wishing me a Happy Christmas. Ella is there with Dante, Luca, Hayden and Esme, Noah and some pack warriors, even Liam. Celine and Marius made it too.

They are all dressed in Christmas sweaters, and Ella immediately approaches to hand me one. I barely register how she helps me slip it on, as my eyes fill with tears. I make a beeline towards my mate and hug him close.

“I assume you like it?” he asks hopefully.

“Are you nuts?Likedoes not even remotely describe what I feel,” I say, my voice close to breaking.

“You mentioned it was important to you,” Raffy says softly.

He noticed. I can’t believe he noticed how important this is to me. I have the best mate in the universe. The others can say what they want. Mine is the fucking best. Ella starts her Spotify list with Christmas songs, and Hayden begins serving the first dishes he prepared.

“Come.” Raffy pulls back a bit and kisses me softly. “We have a lot of food and Christmas cookies.” He pauses. “Merry Christmas, Dave.”