Page 26 of Love Bites (Timber Creek #2)
CHAPTER 26
SUMMER
I slipped silently out of my bedroom, tugging on a hoodie over my tee and leggings as Max laid sprawled face down on the bed. The sun was just beginning to rise over the peaks in the distance, the pink hues emphasizing the fog hovering over the pine trees.
We’d returned to Colorado last night, crashing into bed shortly after our arrival. It was the first night we’d solely slept together, nothing more, but yesterday had thrown me for an emotional loop.
We’d started the morning with insanely hot shower sex, then ended the day agreeing to stay together only because the Conclave was watching us.
He didn’t stir as I crept out of my bedroom and padded down the hall. Maybe that little bit of physical distance last night was a good thing, giving us both time to sort out our feelings. But this morning, I didn’t feel any more settled than I had before.
That was a problem I couldn’t solve today, so I tip-toed down the stairs, headed towards a different problem. I needed to talk to my dad first, and alone.
Hopping into my Jeep, I drove the short way from my place on Main Street to the turn-off to Dad’s ranch. His driveway was a good two miles long, with several cattle guards to rattle over. Dew lingered on the lush green grass of spring, wildflowers dotting the fields.
A buffalo meandered closer to the driveway, one of a dozen that lived out here on his ranch. I stopped the car, my headlights shining on its beady eyes and the pink bow dangling between its horns.
“Good morning, Willie.” I rolled down the window, talking to the buffalo the same way my dad did. Despite having multiple buffalo, he’d decided to name them all Willie, both male and female. It made things both simple and confusing at once, the Heath Larkin specialty. “Seen Dad yet this morning?”
Willie huffed, its breath fogging in the crisp air, then continued to wander past. I rolled forward, craning my neck as I looked out over the land. Mountains rose high on my right, the river cutting through his property to my left. It was beautiful here, a respite from the years he’d spent as pack Alpha, and I loved this peace and solitude for him.
But as much as I knew my dad loved camping out with his buffalo, I hated the idea of him sleeping in the field with them. He could take care of himself, yes, but it was more about his mental state. And knowing he’d been spending more time as his wolf? That was never good.
Losing my mom 15 years ago had wrecked all of us, but none more so than my father, her mate. For weeks after she died, he stayed in his wolf form, something our animals did in a protective state. His wolf mourned his mate, but the range of emotions wasn’t the same. Tears gathered in my eyes that I’d driven my dad to that same place.
I parked in front of his little log cabin and got out as the sun just crested over the eastern mountain ridge.
Most of the property was free-range, fenced in only along the property line, but to the right of the little cabin was a smaller pasture for my mother’s horse, Tar Baby. Her black mane shimmered in the early morning sun as she chewed on the dewy grass, casting a wayward glance my direction before flicking her head out to the fields beyond. As I climbed up to sit on her fence and scan the field, two grey ears popped out of a thicket of grass a couple hundred yards out.
Waving at him, I couldn’t hold back my smile as his tongue peeked out between his teeth, lolling off to the side. He scrambled to his feet, and turned his back to me. Quickly, he shifted, changed into a pair of sweats he must have had in the field with him, then hurried over.
I leapt from the fence and he caught me in a giant hug, squeezing tight. Here in his arms, it felt like home.
“Sweetheart.” Dad set me down, pulling back enough to scan my face. His grin spread ear to ear on his tanned, weathered face, his grey hair a mess. Happiness radiated off him, and I leaned into his touch, so glad to have him in my life. “Is everything okay? I thought you were on your honeymoon.”
“All honeymoon-ed out,” I said with a shrug as we started towards his cabin. I threaded my hand through his elbow, hugging his arm to my side. I’d only been gone a week, but I was surprised at how much I’d missed my family. This was the longest I’d ever been away, as pathetic as that was. “You can only spend so many days in Paris, you know? I thought I was going to puke if I saw another baguette.”
He snorted, tapping my hand with his. “Right, that’s what they all say. Paris, Shmaris . What a drag.” Sharp eyes cut at me, his brows drawing together. “Max didn’t do something, did he —”
“ No!” I cut in, harsher than I intended, but my hackles were still up after the meeting in Paris yesterday. For some reason, I still felt protective over Max, whether I should or not. I didn’t want to hear anyone speaking against him, least of all my own family. He was my husband, after all. “No. We just wanted to come back.” Not totally a lie. “Guess I’m more of a small town girl.”
Opening the front door and holding it for me, Dad gave me the Look . The one that said you might fool other people with that but you’re not fooling me . “You can be whatever you want.”
I ducked inside to avoid responding to that, and headed for the kitchen, starting some coffee for us. When it was percolating, I turned around to Dad watching me expectantly, leaning against the kitchen counter beside me.
“You didn’t come back for me, right?” His eyes narrowed. “One of your brothers didn’t mention something?” His voice trailed off, but I’d never narc like that.
I blinked innocently. “Mention what?”
He grumbled something before shaking it off with a huff and refocusing on me. “ Well?”
I grinned hesitantly. “Well?”
“ Details , sweetheart. Tell me everything. I’m not so old fashioned to think he needed to ask my permission, but this was all so sudden. I’m just ready to be happy with you. So, let’s hear it. The wedding, hell, the proposal , the travel” — he gasped, smacking his forehead — “the ring ! Tell me he got you a spectacular ring! No daughter of mine —”
I thrust out my hand, and he gasped again, even more dramatically than the first time, as he grabbed my hand to examine the ring.
Over steaming cups of coffee, we sat on his back porch as I told him everything — except that this was all fake — and he gasped and exclaimed appropriately the whole time. He howled, tears streaming down his face as I recounted our ceremony, and I chuckled, surprised at the warmth in my chest as I relived it.
Sharing it with him both healed something in me and twisted my gut. I hated keeping anything from my family, so it was a weight off my shoulders to finally spill some of these details. But it also made me feel even worse that I wasn’t sharing everything .
When he was all caught up, he sighed contentedly, and it didn’t escape my notice that his eyes were a little misty.
“My baby girl, all grown up and married,” he murmured, reaching over and squeezing my hand. “Oh, sweetie, I hope it’s just the best thing to ever happen to you. A partner for life, for better or worse, to have your back no matter what.”
My gut clenched again, but I managed a smile for him. “So far, so good.”
“So, you’re back. And supposedly all is well with Max —”
“— It is —”
“Which can only mean one thing.” He clapped his hands together, a familiar glint entering his eyes. “Party time.”
I hid my flinch behind a semi-forced smile. I would do anything for my dad, including allowing him to throw me a horrendously extravagant party that I had no doubt would feature every person he’d ever met.
Or so I kept reminding myself. “Um, when did you have in mind —”
“Tonight! Well,” he paused, tapping his chin. “Maybe tomorrow. I have to make sure Hattie can come, and who knows where she is at the moment.”
Hattie, Dad’s only sister, was as much a free spirit as he was, and we hadn’t seen her in ages.
“Okay, cool, it’d be great to see Hattie. And yes, I said we could have a party, but maybe nothing too big —”
Dad was already waving away my concerns. “Nonsense. My first kid to get married? The bigger, the better. That’s what I always say, right, Willie?” He nodded at the nearest buffalo, who grazed just on the other side of the fence not far from the porch, little pink bow tied on its forehead. “Not that you have to worry about a thing, of course” — he patted my hand — “you just relax. Leave it all to your pops here — well, and your brothers. I’ll be putting them to work, all right. In fact —” he whipped out his phone, tapping away furiously which I took as my cue.
He had a party to plan, and I had a husband to warn.
I spent the rest of the day mediating disputes between Dad and my brothers, who all suddenly had a thousand opinions on what a post-wedding reception party should entail, while also trying to keep Max distracted and oblivious to what was going on behind his back.
West
Dad said you okayed an 8 ft macaron Eiffel Tower? Pls confirm
Summer
I cannot
West
I knew it.
Terran
Thank GOD. That’s no better than a cupcake wedding cake.
Leif
That actually doesn’t sound half bad. I like cupcakes.
Cooper
He also said something about a barbeque sauce fountain for the meats? I assume no?
Summer
omg ew
Terran
Okay, THAT one maybe.
What about ranch dressing? Or is that too suggestive?
On second thought, nothing white spewing out of a fountain for my baby sister’s wedding.
Leif has left the chat
West
Look what you’ve done. You proud of yourself, T?
Terran
…a little bit, yeah.
Summer
Let’s just veto towers or fountains of any kind
Cooper
Agreed. On it, sis.
West
He just asked me about getting doves.
Summer
NO ANIMALS
Terran
…
Cooper
…
West
…
Summer
Shut UP you know what I meant!
Sadly, Max was not an idiot. After my fifteenth exasperated sigh and furious typing session, he dropped down on the couch next to me, moving aside my many pillows to make room. His hair was still damp from a shower, and he’d pulled on a black hoodie and shorts, the most relaxed I’d ever seen him. He should have looked like a black hole against my sunset-colored couch, but instead it was like watching a sunrise, when night turned into day, the promise of a new beginning.
Our thighs touched, and I steeled my face to hide any reaction, relief flooding me at the tiniest physical connection. It was pathetic that such a simple thing would affect me, but after our morning apart, I was shocked by how much I’d missed him.
The sweet smell of my lemon verbena soap drifted off his skin, an intoxicating mix when layered with his natural sandalwood and coppery scent. He reached across me and plucked the phone from my hand.
“Okay, what the hell is going on here?” He wiggled my phone in his hand, but I appreciated that he didn’t try to read my screen, despite the ten texts that arrived in just the few seconds he’d been holding it.
I scrunched my nose. “Nothing?”
“Try again.”
With another sigh, I held out my hand, and he passed back my phone. “Okay, don’t be mad, but my dad is insisting on throwing us a wedding reception party.”
Max blinked, his only outward sign of surprise, before covering it with a smirk. “Oh no. Not a party. How dare he. What a monster.”
Swiping my phone open, I scrolled to the top of the party negotiations and passed it back over. “One, he wants this party to happen tomorrow . Two, he’s basically invited the whole town, and then some. And three, he doesn’t do things by halves. He’s going all out. This is basically a town festival.”
Max’s eyes widened the further he read through the chat, morphing from surprise to amusement to horror and back again. Finally, he looked up at me, one brow raised. “Doves?”
“I vetoed the doves,” I answered quickly, then groaned. “But it’s like playing whack-a-mole. I veto one thing, and by the time I turn around, he’s got three more crazy ideas for me to veto. I’m trying my best, but I have to warn you. This is going to be a lot . And that’s me saying that.”
Max handed me my phone, lifting a shoulder. “How bad could it be?”
Indi
Your dad just asked if I had any wedding-y dresses in stock for you to wear to your party.
Also, did I know you were having a party?
Also also, are you still in Paris? What is happening right now? Why don’t I know every single minute detail of your life?
Summer
You know the Heath Rule. JUST SAY NO
Also hi, yes. I’m back! And I missed you! I’ll text you as soon as I have a minute to chat?
Indi
K, sounds good! Missed you too!
Eyes widened pointedly, I showed Max the text exchange, Dad’s insanity knowing no bounds.
Something akin to trepidation flitted across his face, which, ironically, made me relax a fraction. He was finally getting the idea.
“He won’t make us recreate the wedding, right? I can’t survive the fake vampire teeth more than once.”
I threw both hands up. “We can only hope.”