Page 28 of Love Bites (Timber Creek #2)

CHAPTER 28

SUMMER

There was a distinct difference between being extroverted and enjoying being the center of attention: I was the former, not the latter. A wave of discomfort washed over me as I looked out at the hundreds of people gathered at the ranch, but I put on a smile. After all, I knew how to work a room.

I hugged and waved my way through the crowd in my dad’s wake, greeting every person I’d ever met in my entire life, and plenty I was sure I hadn’t. Red hair flashed in my peripheral vision, and I turned towards the corner Indi had flickered into, her turquoise dress flaring around her legs.

“Oh, thank the Goddess,” I whispered as I hugged her into my side, having lost sight of Max somewhere in the crowd. I was willing to bet he was lingering in the shadows somewhere, if my brothers had let go of him for that long.

“You hanging in there?” Indi squeezed me, then pulled back to look over my outfit. “Damn, I knew that dress would fit you perfectly.”

“You never did tell me where you got it.” I laced my arm through hers, waving at someone across the room I vaguely recognized as a wolf from Texas. Probably here with my Aunt Hattie.

When Indi didn’t answer, I looked back at her, just in time to see her offer a mischievous wink. “Secrets are more fun. I’m just glad it worked like I thought it would.” She rose on her tiptoes, scanning the crowd before dropping back down. “Where’s your husband ? She punctuated the word with a dramatic waggle of her eyebrows that had me chuckling.

“Lurking, probably,” I said as I took a glass of champagne off a passing tray Quentin carried. “Thanks Q.”

The young vampire blushed, ducking his head before hurrying off.

Taking a small sip, I turned in place, taking it all in.

Small glass orbs hung from the ceiling, clippings of greenery dangling from each one. String lights looped between the rafters over a makeshift dance floor in the center, with tables in a semi-circle around it. A stage off to one side had a microphone and a full band setup. Outside the open doors were rows of hay bales, streamers on maypoles at the end of each aisle. Tears gathered in my eyes as I looked at everything.

“It really is perfect,” I whispered, and Indi squeezed my hand. “Exactly how I would have done it.”

“It was all Aspen.” She nudged my shoulder towards my sister, standing off to the side of the room with Cooper, the two of them all but glaring at everyone. “Quite the drill sergeant, but together we all got it done."

“We?”

Indi nodded. ”Your family, me, Lance, Cruz, Atlas and Nova and all the Shields, you know. Everybody.”

I wished it was real, that all of them had come together for me for something real, because it filled my heart to the very brim. I knew I was loved — I’d never had to worry there, never had that particular wound — but seeing it like this made my eyes misty. Then the shadow of a thought — of the truth — crossed my mind, of how betrayed these very people who loved me so much would feel when they learned this was all a scam, that I’d lied to them, and I almost wanted to be sick.

“Friends! Family!” my dad said as he leaned into the mic, a broad smile on his face as he held his arms out wide. “Thank you all for gathering here at such short notice to celebrate my beautiful daughter Summer marrying the love of her life, Massimo Russo.”

Dad gestured to me as Max slipped an arm around my waist, meeting my eye with something like solidarity. I smiled, but a ripple of muttering erupted in the room, and I faced our guests to see many of them whispering and frowning, their gazes catching on Max.

One guest — someone I didn’t recognize — whispered to their neighbor, ”Wait, as in Max Russo ? Wasn’t he in prison? Or was it Omega Level?”

I pasted on an even brighter smile and leaned into his side.

“Now, the two lovebirds skipped off to Vegas for their official wedding, but I hope they’ll humor an old man and recreate part of the event for us all here tonight.”

He beamed at us, awaiting our response, not that it was exactly a question, not when he phrased it like that in front of hundreds of people.

The words “Of course” had barely left my lips before he was directing the crowd outside.

“Now, I know it’s a little unconventional, but I trained a Willie to be your ring bearer and he nailed it almost every time last night.” He pointed proudly to a buffalo tethered beside the barn, lazily chewing hay.

I clutched my left hand to my chest, cradling the beautiful rings Max had picked for me protectively. “What do you mean, almost every time?”

“And, of course, River and Waffles will be your flower girls.”

On cue, River and a mini Highland cow appeared. My niece’s little pink dress was covered in tulle that billowed out into a giant skirt, and she held the reins to a matching pink bridle on the mini cow. River held a basket of flower petals and didn’t seem to notice the cow casually snacking on them.

“Waffles, I presume?” I said, patting the pink bow on the cow's head.

River grinned ferociously. She’d been asking for a mini cow — as well as a pet raccoon, a puppy, or a capybara, depending on the day — for months.

My dad turned, grasping both my hands as he faced me head-on. “Now, I know this isn’t a real ceremony, and of course it’s your call, but what do you say to me walking you down the aisle?”

His warm hazel eyes were so full of love, I couldn’t help my smile meeting his own, but I was spared answering him.

“Uh, Dad?” Terran called from outside, and we rushed over to where he stood in front of the hay bale “aisle,” hands on his hips.

The aisle and every row of hay bale seating was now filled with buffalo, munching away on the snack they’d stumbled upon and covering the ground with cow pies. The gathered crowd chuckled and discretely covered their noses.

“Oh, crap,” Dad muttered, glancing at them sheepishly. “You know, it’s possible I forgot to close that pasture gate.”

Just then, a series of crashes sounded from back inside the barn before another buffalo came charging out, a tiny green macaron stuck to one of its horns.

“Tower down, I repeat, tower down!” Leif came running out after the Willie. ”I tried to stop her but she wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

We hurried back into the barn to see the whole macaron Eiffel Tower had collapsed in a shambles. Dad gasped at the sight, whipping his Stetson off and sweeping it over his heart in respect.

“Oh, sweetheart, I’m so sorry!” He clasped my shoulder. “These free-range Willies are being extra spicy today.”

I rolled my lips inward to hide my amusement and tried to sound reassuring. “Dad, honestly, it's fine. We didn't need a giant macaron tower or an elaborate re-ceremony or any of that. Just celebrating and having fun with everyone we love is more than enough.”

He gave a wistful sigh but nodded, accepting defeat. “All right. But I still get a dance, right?”

Leaning up on my tiptoes, I kissed his cheek. “Of course, Dad.”

As he made his way over to the mic to make another announcement, canceling the ‘ceremony’ and starting the party, I spotted Max again and we met in the middle.

“Crisis averted,” I murmured, clasping his hand.

He tilted his head. “In a manner of speaking.”

Beyond him, I caught sight of Terran and Cruz — the latter outfitted in a full formal tuxedo, green bow-tie, tails, and all — who shot me thumbs-ups and winks before quickly schooling their expressions when Dad turned their way.

Aspen stepped up beside them, and they both leaned in immediately like a huddle on the field and she was their coach. A minute later, she and Terran stepped back at ease, Cruz gave her a salute — which she ignored — and he flickered away.

I raised an eyebrow at her when she met my gaze, and she only shrugged.

Mind to mind, she murmured, You’ll see .

Max leaned in and when he spoke, it was low enough even the shifters gathered here wouldn’t catch his words. “Did you know that since arriving here tonight, my life and body have been threatened by every single one of your siblings?”

I grinned. “Even Leif?”

He hummed in confirmation. “Your nephew told me if I harmed so much as one hair on your head, he would personally spit in all of my food at Buffalo Willie's.” He tsk ’ed in disbelief. “You shifters can be every bit as violent as vampires, it seems.”

“Guess we’re a perfect match, then.”

His lips tipped up at that, his blue eyes glittering, and my heart stuttered.

I nodded towards the bar. “Time for more champagne, husband.”

“Summer, you look so beautiful!”

I smiled at about the twentieth person I didn’t recognize who’d come up to greet us and give us their best wishes. The little old witch clasped my hands before reaching up to pinch my cheek.

“Thank you,” I said, not allowing my smile to falter, even though my face ached from holding it in place all day.

“Oh, I’m sure you don’t remember me, sweetie, but you, your sister, and that little witch Eloise you used to play with came to my camp one year!” She patted my cheek, her own rosy with amusement. “You were a little too young, but your grandmother and I grew up together and she said you wouldn’t take no for an answer. Anything Aspen could do, you could do, you insisted. Well, except you opted for interpretive dance instead of fort building. Nearly gave me a heart attack when you fell off the stage at the recital at the end of the week — but it turned out that was just part of your routine about the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. You’d been learning about it in school that year apparently and had taken quite the fixation on the topic.”

I tilted my head, still smiling, though I had absolutely no memory of this camp, even if a Roman Empire obsession did sound familiar. I turned slightly, including Max in the conversation. “Do you know my husband Max?”

“Nice to meet you, ah —?” Max held out a hand.

Instantly, the woman’s face fell, her eyes narrowing on his extended hand. “Tyra,” she introduced herself flatly, offering him only the very tips of her fingers to shake. “That means warrior, young man, and don’t you forget it.”

Turning back to me, her smile returned as she squeezed my hands again. “So very good to see you again, Summer, dear.”

As she moved away, I raised a brow at Max, who only shook his head. His usual smirk didn’t budge, but I studied him a little harder, looking for the tells that something was off.

It hadn’t been the first time tonight he’d gotten the cold shoulder from our guests. I’d known he didn’t have the most stellar reputation to the rest of the supernatural world, but seeing it like this was something else altogether.

And what were any of these people even basing their judgments on? Whispers, rumors of his deeds as ‘Dante,’ all under his father’s direct orders? A prison sentence he’d been excused of, that had only been part of maintaining his cover anyway? None of them actually knew him, knew the truth.

The next time someone gave him the side-eye while warmly greeting me, I was ready to snap.

“What an unusual pairing,” said Linney, a wolf shifter from a northern pack and an old family friend, glancing between us before leaning in and lowering her voice. “I hate to spread rumors, hun, but some people are saying your husband” — she gave him a pointed look — “was the one responsible for the Jasper pack tragedy.” She gave me a sympathetic grimace, like she wasn’t telling me that just to stir the pot and fish for more information. My blood was near to boiling. “Of course, I’d never believe such a thing, but some others, you know?—”

“Look at my ring,” I demanded, sticking out my hand. “Isn’t it beautiful? Max picked it just because he knows how much I love daisies. Then he whisked me away to Paris for our honeymoon because he remembered how much it meant to me and my mom.” I glared at her. “He’s incredibly thoughtful and kind.”

Linney blinked, then gave a tittering chuckle to cut the tension. “Of course, sweetie.” She turned to Max, clearing her throat. “How lovely.”

Max covered his mouth as Linney moved on, hiding his chuckle. I discreetly stamped on his foot.

“If you go to battle every time someone has a disparaging comment about me, I fear you’ll have a very distressing marriage, wife.”

Mentally, my knuckles were already wrapped and ready to go. Did it make sense for me to feel protective over him, especially when he could clearly take care of himself? Maybe not, but logic was for another day. “Somebody has to.”

He hummed at that, and I felt him watching me from the corner of my eye. He didn’t have a chance to respond before Aspen was hustling over to us, the wide legs of her deep green jumpsuit billowing around her.

“Warning,” she huffed, eyes wide. “After the tower fiasco, I sent Cruz to hunt down another cake option.” She threw up her hands. “He went rogue.”

I pressed my lips together to hide my smile. “I’m sure whatever he found is just fine —”

“ Hola, hermanita !” Cruz skidded up to us, two giant cake boxes in his arms, and said to Aspen, “Whew, you accidentally threw that broom right into me when you took off just now! I nearly tripped and sent both these cakes flying.”

“Yes, that would have been a shame,” Aspen deadpanned, but Cruz ignored her, turning to beam at me.

“My lady, I have two fabulous options for you this evening,” Cruz said, breaking the tape sealing the first box. “At first, I thought, how could I possibly choose between these two? But then I thought, how could I possibly leave one of them behind when they’re both spectacular?”

Aspen swiped a hand over her face as Cruz whipped open the cover with flourish.

An extremely detailed dinosaur cake greeted us, complete with volcano and lava river, and at least 12 candy dinosaurs over the two layers. Happy 3rd Birthday Tanner, was scrolled in black icing along one corner. “I can have that off in a jiffy, don’t you even worry.”

Max snorted, and I nodded appreciatively. “Very nice.”

“Right? Okay, that’s option one.” He shoved the box at Aspen so he could open the second one. “Now, brace yourself, but I really think this one is the winner.”

I couldn’t stop the laugh that bubbled out of me as the giant penis taking up the entire second box was revealed. Max choked on his sip of champagne until Cruz slammed a hand in the middle of his back.

“Hmm, very veiny.” I nodded, inspecting it. “The balls look big enough to feed at least half these people.”

“That’s what I said to the cashier!”

Aspen sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose. “This is a disaster. I said to find a wedding cake.”

Cruz tilted his head back and forth. “Nothing says wedding night like a giant cock and balls, especially since we can all tell these two have already consummated their marriage. T could smell you from a mile out.”

“And the dinosaurs?”

He gaped at her, aghast. “Dinosaurs are always relevant. C’mon, what’s your favorite dinosaur?”

She glared at him, like she was debating not answering him, before muttering a very begrudging, “Pterodactyl.”

Cruz grinned. “I knew it. Only a sociopath doesn’t have a favorite dinosaur.” He gave her an expectant look, which she returned with a stare. “Oh, well, since you asked, my favorite dinosaur is a Spike.”

“A Spike? That’s not a type of dinosaur. He’s just a character from the Land Before Time .”

A glint entered his eye. “Oh yeah? What kind is he?”

Aspen put her hands on her hips. “I know what you’re doing.”

“Is it learning about dinosaurs? Because I am all ears.”

Her jaw worked. But she bit out, “Stegosaurus.”

Cruz bit his lip to keep from laughing, black eyes glittering with delight.

“They’re both great, Cruz, thank you for running out to get them,” I said, hopefully quelling the fire Aspen looked ready to lash out back at him. “Cake is cake.”

Pointing a finger at me, he nodded. “Wise.”

The two of them moved off bickering to get the cake set up, Cruz asking her, “What’s Mike’s favorite dinosaur?”

Aspen groaned and snapped, “Matthew. His name is Matthew.”

Max raised a brow at me, a silent question about what was going on with the two of them.

“Safer to stay out of it. C’mon, husband,” I grabbed his hand and tugged him forward. “Let’s go eat our penis cake.”