Page 42

Dean

L ooking in the bathroom mirror, I ran my hand through my damp hair, which had gotten a little long. I straightened my silver tie.

“Hey, Jellybean, can you tie my tie?” Grif came in, holding a cream-colored tie, which matched his bead-covered, filmy, cream vest.

All these years and the man still couldn’t tie his own tie. If I wasn’t around, AJ would pre-knot ties for him–or Grif used clip-ons.

“Come here.” I pulled my husband close, inhaling his rainy scent, which was now tinged with bits of all three of his mates.

His beard was nice and trimmed. A fresh bite mark peaked out from the collar of his white tux shirt.

She’d bonded with him. I felt it last night.

Oh, fuck me, I’d felt it–along with them fucking all night long.

This morning, when Jonas had dragged me to practice, they’d stayed home and fucked until Verity had class.

“Will you be okay with a tie? If you want to go tieless and open a few buttons, no one’s going to say anything. You might be more comfortable that way. This is a nice vest. Is it new?” I unbuttoned his shirt a little to let his neck breathe.

“AJ got it made so I’d match Verity? Is that even a thing? Most everyone’s wearing black and silver.” He eyed my tie.

I fixed the buttons on his vest. It was so pretty with all the tiny little beads. “My dad always matches my mom for these sorts of things.”

“Okay.” He looked at himself in the mirror and loosened another shirt button. “Maybe that? It… it chafes a little.”

It would.

Grif held up his hand, the ring from Verity on the tip of his finger. “Do you have a chain I can use? I want to wear it, but I don’t have anything.”

“Of course I do.” I pulled him into my room, and opened my top dresser drawer, then pulled out the cigar box I kept my jewelry in. Grif had carefully covered it with pictures of all my favorite things and given it to me for my birthday back when we were kids.

Sorting through everything, I found one. Taking the ring off his pinky, I slid it on the chain. Leaning in, I put it on him, kissing his neck. “Does that bother you?”

“No.” His hand covered mine and squeezed it, love coming through the bond. “Thank you.”

I kissed his cheek, his beard soft on my face. “That’s what husbands are for.”

“It’s sweet she gave it to me.” He held the ring in his giant hand.

“It is. Hey, um, can I walk you down the aisle when you two have your fancy wedding? Unless you’re going to have one of your parents do it?” My head ducked a little. If he did, I didn’t want to take it away from him. My dad had walked me down the aisle to Grif.

But if he was going to walk solo or ask AJ, for some silly reason, I wanted to be the one to do it instead.

His face lit up. “I… I love that idea.”

I couldn’t wait to escort him down the aisle to some classical song while Verity waited for him under a flower arch, looking radiant in some stunning gown.

Grif leaned over and kissed me. He tasted of toothpaste. Wrapping my arms around him, I kissed him back.

“You know, she bonded me. It’s your turn.” Grif’s eyes glimmered.

I sucked in a breath. “You think? Sign me up. I’m fine with you being there. I can be the filling in a love sandwich while she bites me.”

Oh, I could see that now. Mmmm.

“I’d love that. Maybe you can be in the swing this time.” He nibbled on my neck.

“That sounds delightful.” I wrapped my arms around Grif again, though this time I hit something hard in his jacket. “Is your pocket happy to see me?”

“It’s her necklace. Is it dumb? According to AJ, I didn’t understand the assignment when he told me to get her one to wear tonight.” He took out a distinctive blue box as anxiousness wafted off him.

Could you actually go wrong with anything from that store, though?

Inside was a large heart-shaped diamond, surrounded by more tiny diamonds, on a gold cable chain–with matching, smaller earrings. They sparkled in the light, winking at me.

“What are you talking about? It’s beautiful. Not to mention the symbolism.” Aww, he wasn’t just giving her his heart, but trusting her with mine and AJ’s. Adorable. AJ didn’t know what he was talking about.

He brightened. “You think so? I thought it was pretty. With all the fuss about the dress, I didn’t want anything that would overwhelm it.”

“Good call. You know what would go perfect with it?” I dug around until I found a small velvet box in my drawer.

I held it out to him. “Do you remember this? We could give it to her now.”

It had belonged to my Great Granny Donovan. Verity seemed like a ring girly.

“Oh. I forgot about this.” He opened it and looked at the gold Claddagh ring with a giant heart emerald in it.

“It might even fit her without being sized,” I added.

“It’s perfect. Great idea.” He gave me a kiss. “Hey, if I say I’m not feeling good and get Verity to take me home, don’t worry. I’m fine. I knew I’d feel her once we bonded. But I didn’t know I could feel her not feeling good.” Grif rubbed his chest.

Ah, it was a ruse to get her home.

“Understood. Did you fuck her too hard and now her leg hurts?” I smirked. Who knew what they got up to without me?

“I think most of her hurts today, and she’s pretending she’s fine. I don’t know if we went too hard or if it’s just one of those days. We might need a nice hot bubble bath all together,” he told me.

“That sounds good to me.” Then I’d make her feel better. I still had a couple of muscle-relaxing bath bombs. Maybe Jonas would rub her legs with his warm oil after.

“Are you two ready?” Jonas lounged in the doorway in an all-black collarless tux that made him look like liquid sex.

Mmmm. If the event was boring, maybe we could find a corner.

“Ready for you .” I attacked him with a big kiss, ramming him into the doorway.

“Come on, Love.” Jonas chuckled and put an arm around me.

I reached for Grif’s hand, and the three of us went out into the living room.

AJ was there in a tux that almost matched Grif’s. His vest and tie were black, though. As usual, sunglasses sat on top of his head.

“Hi.” Verity appeared. Her hair was all the way up, with a few little tendrils escaping. She sparkled as if sprinkled with fairy dust. Her glossy lips made me want to kiss her.

The champagne-colored dress was even more breathtaking than in the bathtub pictures. Especially with the thousands of teeny tiny beads that had been sewn to the filmy overskirt. She looked like a dream.

Grif sucked in a breath. “Kitten. You look radiant. I have a present for you.”

“You do?” Verity took the box with the necklace and earrings. Opening it she looked up and glowed . “Grif, this is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever owned.”

“Here, let me.” Grif put the necklace on her, then the earrings, his lips grazing her neck.

“Sweet baby cheeses, you guys.” Mercy came down the stairs in a flowy red dress with a sparkly bodice that made her look like a grown-ass person instead of a gangly alpha teenager. Well, except for her hair still being in Dutch braids, though the scrunchies were red and sparkly.

Grif grinned at Mercy and then dipped Verity deep, kissing her like they were in a spy movie.

“My turn.” I gave my little alpha a kiss, Her lipstick tasted like roses. “You look amazing, Darling. Grif and I have something for you.”

Verity smiled. Her eye makeup made her look like an ethereal creature. With it she wore this long beaded sheer scarf that looked a bit like wings as it trailed down her back.

Her eyebrows waggled suggestively. “Do you?”

Oh, I had that, too. My cock hardened thinking about whether or not she had panties on under that dress. If she did, it had to be a thong. I loved it when she wore a thong.

Leaning in, my lips brushed her ear. “Later.”

In the bath. In the swing. On the bed. It didn’t matter.

I gave her the box. “This was my Great Granny Donovan’s and we want you to have it.”

“Dean.” She took the ring out of the box, her hand on her heart. “It’s so beautiful. Thank you.”

I turned it so the heart faced inward. “You’re taken, so it goes like this.”

Slipping it on her finger, I kissed her again. Her driftwood scent took on a hint of lust.

I was hers tonight. Even if she didn’t bond with me.

“We belong to you.” Grif kissed her again.

“That is stunning.” AJ came over to admire it. “Princess, you look amazing. I can’t believe Vecci hasn’t asked you to be in one of their shows.”

“I did wear it in a bathtub. However, Dubois asked me to be part of their bridal showcase at the Paris Fashion Festival,” she breathed. “I got the call from my agent while I was at the lab. They saw the pictures Mercy posted of me on the motorcycles and loved the energy.”

“That’s amazing.” AJ kissed her. “Dubois. Wow. Fuck Vecci.”

Even I knew that no one topped the House of Dubois. My mom loved their dresses, and still had the pink Dubois she wore for her graduation from her omega academy.

“The photos were fire. We’re going to Paris this summer? Amazing. I want to sit in the front row of the fashion show with Riley while wearing something ridiculous. Maybe a model will fall in my lap.” Mercy flashed a grin.

Verity on a runway in a wedding dress? I was so there.

“Are we ready? Dibs on riding with Verity in the pink doll mobile.” Mercy linked arms with her sister. “You know there’s a doll with your car, well, the convertible version. It’s remote control. We should buy it and race it around the training facility.”

“You could chase Lucky with it? Or give Lucky rides?” I offered.

“I like the way you think,” Mercy replied.

Jonas checked his phone. “We’re going all together. I traded in the SUV for a larger one, so all six of us fit comfortably.”

“Aww. Thanks, Bub.” Mercy slugged him.

Jonas picked her up and held her upside down. “Escape.”

In a couple of moves, Mercy was back down on the ground in a pouf of dress.

“Told you.” Mercy stuck out her tongue.

Well, that was amusing. Grif snorted and Verity giggled.

Verity grabbed her crutch. We took the elevator down to the parking garage and got in the car. Jonas drove. Mercy sat up front with him. Verity and I sat in the middle, Grif, and AJ in the back. The new SUV was luxurious and spacious enough.

“Quick housekeeping,” Jonas said as we drove. “Verity, did you register your bond with Grif yet?”

“Yes, AJ helped me take care of it,” she replied, leaning into me.

“I got ours registered, too, since Grif’s out now,” AJ added.

“Perfect. Have you told those who might want to know personally? I don’t want to be stabbed with a fork if word gets out at the gala and it hits the sports news.” Jonas chuckled as he navigated the traffic to the fancy hotel it was being held at.

“I have,” Verity assured.

“What parents did you tell?” Mercy asked as she took a selfie. “Any?”

“Dad and Mama. They seem happy?” Verity chewed on her lower lip.

I squeezed her. Anyone that wasn’t happy about it was someone we didn’t need in our lives.

Mercy nodded. “Those two would be.”

“Since you’re registered, we’ll start the process of adding you to the pack. Mercy, I know you’re technically emancipated, but according to our lawyer, it would be better to add you to the pack charter as our dependent. It protects you legally, so if something happens to you, we can have a say and it doesn’t default to a parent you don’t like or something. Are you okay with that?” Jonas asked.

“Makes sense. Especially since our parents’ pack doesn’t exist anymore. Thanks, Bub. You’re so fucking considerate.” Mercy grinned.

“Anytime, Squirt.” His look grew fond.

We drove up to the hotel. Reporters lined the red carpet. I sent reassurance to Grif through our bond. This was Grif’s first public appearance since he collapsed at the game on my birthday. He was all set to go back to practice tomorrow. Also, he didn’t like things like this anyway.

“Great, my parents are coming to the gala.” AJ put his phone in his pocket and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Did you think they wouldn’t? My parents would be here if they didn’t have a conflicting gala my mom was on the planning committee for,” I replied. She’d texted asking for pictures.

“Introduce them to Verity and it’ll be fine. Come on, let’s show some pack solidarity,” Jonas told everyone as the valet scanned his phone.

“Yeppers.” Mercy popped her gum and got out of the car.

Jonas came around to my side to help me out and took my arm. AJ helped Verity out and Grif handed her her crutch.

Grif walked between Verity and AJ. Both of them tried to shield Grif with their bodies. Mercy took up the rear, waving at people and throwing beaded bracelets.

This was my pack. I had my alpha. My husband.

Hopefully tonight, if she felt up to it, I’d have myself a little alpha as well.