Filed to story: Mated to the Alpha and His Beta Novel Free >>???
“None taken,” he said smoothly. “I feel the same way about before she came to Stillwood.”
Lanie put a hand on each of our shoulders. “Settle down, boys.”
“Go to the party, and we promise to behave ourselves,” Mason said with a grin.
I had to admit it, yeah, it was true 1 didn’t like being reminded of the time when we’d forgotten each other -but he did have a beginning with our mate that wasn’t as…controversial…as the start of our relationship had been. I could learn some things from him about how to deal with her in a way that didn’t make her bristle.
Of course, I kind of liked it when she was feisty.
“What about the Council?” Lanie asked in a low voice.
Zane forked a bite of pancake and said around it as he chewed, “The odds of them, or anyone, targeting us at a party is pretty low. They’d want to get to us outside of neutral territory. Or, they’d just come right here and do it without witnesses.”
“Whatever they’re planning, they sure don’t want anyone to see them doing it,” Mason added.
Lanie frowned, then nodded. “I would really like to go to the party. Show off my three handsome mates But what about the kids?”
“My mom will watch them,” I offered, knowing she’d be happy to and it would be the only way to get Lanie to agree to go.
“We’ll be vigilant. It’s the best we can do. Gabriela’s a warrior, and our pups will be safe with her.” Lanie a last dug into her stack of pancakes.
She still looked worried. Clearly, something was on her mind. I sent out a gentle probe through our private link to see if she’d confide in me, but she only shook her head and kept eating.
She knew something we didn’t, and I was going to have to find out what it was Mason–
“You all go.
Itll be fine. I’ve watched these pups on my own, and you all deserve to go out and have a good time. What’s a grandma for, if not to spoil them with some cookie baking and some cartoons?” Gabriela hugged Lanie and patted her back before pulling away to rub both her shoulders up and down.
“It’s just that with Stella being so… Lanie cleared her throat and looked to where our daughter was playing with a pair of human dolls. “I know Quinn wants to see her, and I know Stella said she understands, but…”
“You just tell her that Stella wasn’t feeling well, and you left her at home. She’ll understand. I’m sure she’ll be disappointed but won’t think twice,” Gabriela assured her.
said.
“Anyway, taking all three pups with us to a party wouldn’t leave much chance for you to relax,” Xander–
Lanie rolled her eyes. “Like I’m going to relax much anyway. I’m sure there are going to be a lot of people there with a lot of questions.”
“You let me handle the questions, love.” I laughed, thinking about it. “You’re not going to be the only one who’s going to get pestered for answers.”
I jerked my thumb toward Xander. “Or the only one who’s gonna have to explain this dude.”
Xander lifted his lip in a snarl I knew was mostly for show.
Mostly.
“Daddy, Abba, no fighting,” Stella piped up from the floor.
I scooped her up and kissed her cheek. “No pouting.
Biologically, she was my brother’s, but dam n if she didn’t still feel like mine. I knew Xander felt the same way about the twins, too. The babies we’d raised from birth were now all fast approaching being entirely grown, and all three of them belonged to all of us. I still thought there’d always be a special bond between me and Stella, though.
“Abba” Stella said this seriously, pressing her forehead to mine. “Member when you gave Mommy that blanket? Wiff the starts on it?”
“The oh, the stars” I nodded. “Stars, Stella.”
“Stars,” she corrected herself. “When I was just a little baby”
I remembered, but how could she possibly remember that? Come to think of it, I hadn’t even seen that blanket around in a long time.
“Do we even still have that blanket?” I thought to Lanie.
Stella squirmed to get down, and when I let her, she went back to the dolls. “I wanted my dollies to know about it. Because it was something Abba gave me, before we went to live with Daddy and Papa.”
“Do you remember that?” Lanie asked curiously.
Stella frowned, her tongue peeking out between her teeth for a moment as she concentrated. Then she shrugged and looked up at us both. “You and Abba were with me before Daddy and Papa and Grandma. And Izzy and Allie weren’t here. But I’m glad they are now. Cuz I love them.”
“You all had better get going, or you’re going to miss the whole party,” Gabriela put in when all the rest of us were quiet, not sure what to say.
None of us talked much about the things Stella had said on the way. Lanie was really quiet, even though Zane tried to make her laugh.
“You gonna be okay?” I thought to her.
She looked at me in the rearview mirror. “It’s going to be really weird seeing everyone again. Maybe this was a bad idea”
“No worse than me whisking you away without telling anyone where you were going. It’ll be okay. You have all of us with you. I bet everyone will be so interested in Xander and Zane they won’t even pay a attention to little old me and you.”
This earned me a smile.
any As we pulled up to Quinn’s house, I could already hear the sounds of music and laughter coming from the back yard. We went in through the front door. The house was crowded with people holding drinks and plates of food.
“I think Quinn’s probably out back,” Lanie said. “Come on, let’s go find her first.”
“If anything starts to upset her too much, we’re out of here,” Xander said sternly to me and Zane through the link. “Mason, I’m counting on you to run interference with anyone who tries to dive too deep with her.”
“And me, I’ll just be my charming self and provide a distraction,” Zane shot me a grin.
Lanie really was distracted, because she didn’t seem to notice the three of us exchanging a conversation through the link without her. She smiled a greeting and waved a hand at some familiar faces. She went through the back sliding doors onto the deck, and I saw her wave.
“Quinn!” she called excitedly.
“Here we go,” I thought to Xander and Zane. “It’s party time.”
Lanie–
Once again, I was reminded of how much I needed to trust my mates. They knew what was best for me, just what I needed. My heart leaped at the sight of Quinn waving me over to the tiki bar set up in her backyard.
“Goddess, I missed you,” I said as she hugged me so hard she squeezed the breath right out of me.
“Same, girl, same! Are you feeling better?” Quinn’s eyes shadowed as she looked me over.
I saw her curious glance at my belly and laughed a little self-consciously. “I am. And I’m not…you know.”
“With three mates,” she murmured, looking past me, I wouldn’t be surprised if you ou were.”
I turned. Xander and Zane had come down the steps of the deck into the yard, with Mason right behind them. Pride filled me at the sight of them. They were so much bigger, taller, stronger, more handsome…
“Girl,” Quinn breathed at my side. “You, like, glow around those guys. Literally”
My Luna light wouldn’t show up as much in the bright sunshine, but it was obvious to anyone standing close to me. I looked down at my hands, curling my fingers and watching the faint shimmer. I looked at Quinn with a grin.
“Aren’t they all just so..”
“Yummy,” she agreed with an answering smile, that she turned into a fake pout. “I should hate you. Some of us can’t even find one mate, much less three. You’re lucky I could never hate you.”
“It’s certainly not something I ever imagined would happen,” I told her.
“Well, c’mon, let’s get you a drink!” Quinn tucked her arm through mine and led me to the tiki bar. When she saw me looking for my mates, she added, “They’ll be fine. We need some girl time.”
“Lanie! Goddess, it’s so good to see you!” Quinn’s mom, Sable, enfolded me into a hug that I gladly returned. She held onto me and then pushed me away gently to look me up and down. She shook her head. “It’s been so long!”
I moved from foot to foot, a little embarrassed. “It hasn’t been that long.”
“Where’s out little Stella? She looked beyond me expectantly.
Quinn handed me a fruity drink from the bar. “Oh, yes, where is she? I can’t wait to see her!”
“She had a little fever. You know how it is when they’re in their growth period,” I said as nonchalantly as ! could Sable frowned. “Oh, that’s too bad. I’m sure she’ll feel better soon, but I am disappointed she couldn’t be here. You’ll just have to bring her by as soon as she’s okay”
“Who’s with her?” Quinn asked, sipping from her own drink.
Sable smiled. “That must be nice for her. I’ve been waiting for the chance to take care of my own grandpups, but so far…”
Quinn rolled her eyes, but I felt more embarrassment wash over me. Sable had to know that her son had been interested in me.
Was she thinking that Asher and I could’ve been mated by now? Maybe with a pup of our own on the way?
Thinking of Asher, my body stiffened, and my eyes scanned the back yard for any signs of him. I didn’t see him, but I also didn’t want to ask about him. That felt weird. Quinn saw me looking around.
New Book: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
Dayson was the alpha of the largest pack in North America. Powerful figures from other packs sought to offer gorgeous girls as potential mates for Dayson. He steadfastly rejected these advances, he was not a pawn to be manipulated. But eventually there came a mysterious girl he could hardly say No. Who was she?