Filed to story: The Alpha’s Pen Pal Book
I jumped and tried to pull away from him, but his arm around my waist held me in place, and his lips twitched with a silent laugh.
“Oh, Wesley! Hi!” Shirley said. “It’s so good to see you! Here. With Haven,” she teased.
“Hi, Shirley,” he greeted, his eyes never leaving my rapidly heating face.
“Don’t you two look so cute together?!”
“MOM!” I exclaimed without thinking, twisting my head to look at her.
I found her looking at me with wide eyes and a slack jaw, which turned into a sad smile. Silver lined her eyes, and my hand came up to cover my mouth.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered. Wesley let my waist go so I could walk over to her, but his hand slid into mine so we were still touching, still connected. “I wasn’t thinking, it just came out and—“”No need to apologize,” she murmured, waving me off. “You can call us whatever you like.”
I nodded, and Wesley and I followed her inside. Jack sat in the same spot I saw him in last week, with his cane nearby, just as before. Even with all the top-notch physical therapy and treatment he’d gotten when they moved to California, he’d never gained full feeling and control of his right side.
“Hey, Haven!” he called out as we entered. “Wesley,” he added, his eyes dipping down to where Wes’s hand connected with mine and then up to Wesley’s face with a wink.
“Hi,” I said, ignoring his teasing and not calling him Dad or Jack to avoid any further awkwardness.
“Did you just say Haven?”
A very pregnant, very uncomfortable-looking Tiffany walked out of the kitchen, her brown ponytail swinging behind her and a metal water bottle in her hands that she had clearly just refilled.
I squealed—like a preteen girl at a boy band concert—and let go of Wes’s hand and sprinted towards her. Taking care to avoid her massive baby bump, I wrapped my arms around her and gave her a huge hug.
She stayed stiff for half a second before she returned my hug. “What the fuck is going on?!” she exclaimed, squeezing me.
“Tiffany!” Shirley scolded. “Language!”
“What? She’s almost twenty-one now, right? I’m sure Haven does her fair share of cursing.” She pulled back to look at me. “Don’t you, Havie?”
“I-um—“”Oh, I don’t care if Haven hears it. I’m worried about the little ears in your belly!” Shirley exclaimed. “Babies can hear us before they are born. You don’t want to influence her!”
“Mom, if this girl doesn’t come out of me saying ‘fuck,’ then I will be shocked.”
“When are you due?” I asked, changing the subject for her.
“Just a few more weeks!”
“May I?” I asked, gesturing at her belly.
“Of course!! You don’t have to ask, you’re…” She trailed off, paused, and looked at me with a frown, then glanced at Wesley behind me. “Wait… you found her?” she whispered.
“She found me,” he said.
“It was a coincidence,” I said with an eye roll as I placed my hands on Tiff’s belly.
A tiny kick, followed by a hard push outward by a foot, greeted me. I smiled and then removed my hand. “Do you have any names picked out?”
“No, we want to wait until we see her,” she told me.
“I can’t wait to meet her,” I said.
“I’m so happy you’ll get to.” Her lip quivered, and she wiped at the water lining her green eyes. “Oh hell, I’m not crying, I swear! It’s just pregnancy hormones!” she exclaimed. “Why didn’t you two tell me?” Tiff said as I walked to Jack, sitting down next to him to give him a hug. “Does Scott know?”
“We wanted to surprise you, and no, not yet. We’re waiting until he’s back from his trip,” Shirley replied.
“I see coffee went well?” Jack muttered.
I pulled back to see him looking and smiling at a nodding Wesley. “And dinner. And brunch,” Wesley added with pride.
“Wes!” I hissed, but he just continued to stand there straight and tall, his arms crossed over his chest, his smile growing at my indignation.
I narrowed my eyes at him as Jack kept talking. “I always had a feeling there would end up being something more between the two of you. Didn’t I always say that, Shirley?”
“He did,” Tiffany said as she maneuvered herself into an armchair with a loud sigh of relief. “We all did,” she added.
“Oh god, please stop! I can’t believe this,” I sighed as I buried my face in my hands. “I see you for the first time in almost twelve years, and all you want to do is tease me about my… Wesley?”
“My Wesley?” Wes teased, catching my eye again with a raised brow, looking like a preening peacock.
“I wanted to ask you something,” I said to Shirley, desperate for a change in subject and non-red cheeks.
“Of course,” Shirley said. “What did you need?”
“I… have some extra comp tickets for the premiere on Friday,” I said. My gaze met Wesley’s for a moment before shifting back to Shirley. “I would give them to Wes, but he already bought some, so he suggested I give them to you two.”
I looked down at my hands and bit the inside of my cheek to keep from spitting out the truth. I could feel Wesley’s eyes on me and sense his slight concern and confusion, but he said nothing. Thankfully.
“Wait, what premiere?” Tiff asked, looking around at all of us. “What am I missing?”
“Haven is a soloist with the new Redwood Forest Ballet Company,” Shirley squeaked out with excitement.
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?