Ever since Harper had moved in, he hadn’t had to wash a single load of clothes. Even now the hamper was empty and the clean clothes were put away. It was strange seeing the room so clean. He wandered back to the living room, feeling restless.
Pulling out his phone, he called Hunter.
“Hello,” Hunter answered.
“It’s Ramsey.”
Hunter laughed. “Yeah, I know. Caller ID, remember?”
“Right. Listen, Harper is out with Kiera and I don’t know how long she’ll be gone. Did you want to get together and do something?”
“Austin and Ben are going to Laguna. I was thinking about joining them.”
“Mind if I tag along? I’m bored out of my mind right now.”
“Not at all,” Hunter said. “I’ll see you there.”
Ramsey hung up the phone and picked up his keys. But before he made it out the door, the doorbell rang. He was more than a little surprised when he answered the door.
“What are you doing here?”
Deacon smiled. “It’s good to see you, too.”
“Sorry, you just surprised me. Come on in.” He stepped back.
Deacon entered the house and Ramsey closed the door. He eyed the large duffle bag in his friend’s hand.
“I take it you’re staying for a while,” Ramsey said.
“Actually, I’ve moved here. Sort of. My things are being delivered to storage and my other suitcases are in my truck.”
“So where are you staying?”
“That’s the part I haven’t quite worked out yet. I thought you might let me crash here tonight.”
Ramsey grinned. “I have a better idea. Take the garage apartment.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah. Use it for as long as you need to. It will be quiet. I only use the garage for storage so you won’t have to worry about the noise of the cars.”
Deacon shrugged. “It wouldn’t bother me.” He glanced at the keys in Ramsey’s hand. “It seems I’m detaining you though.”
“I was going to meet some guys at Laguna Paradise, a local bar. You should come with me, get to know them a bit.”
“Sure. Just let me put my stuff in the apartment and I’ll be ready to go.”
“Come on. I’ll get the keys for you.”
Deacon followed him to the kitchen, where he pulled two keys out of the drawer. Ramsey handed them over and motioned toward the side door.
“You can go out that way. The apartment doesn’t have a laundry room, but you’re welcome to use the one here. And I don’t have cable set up out there either, but it shouldn’t be hard to do.”
Deacon went to his truck and pulled out the rest of his stuck before locking the vehicle. “Don’t worry about it. I can call the cable company later. I need to buy a new TV first anyway. Jared bought mine when he found out I was leaving.”
“There are times I miss the guys, but I’m not sorry I moved here.”
“Speaking of moving,” Deacon said as he began to climb the stairs to the apartment, “you might get another phone call.”
“From who?”
“Rob. With all of us moving here, he decided it might be the right time for a change. Even with several of us leaving, the Denver pack is still full to bursting. At last count, we had over two hundred wolves.”
“Well, Rob would be welcome. The more the merrier. Actually, as of today, I’m the pack recruiter as well as the enforcer.”
Deacon shook his head. “Are they going to pile anything else on you? You have a new mate, and you’re going to be a father… They’re taking up all of your time.”
“I don’t mind. I kind of enjoy recruiting.”
“As long as it doesn’t bother you… Maybe I can give you a hand. The pack could use some women. You might try calling San Diego and Billings. Both have a large number of women in their packs, almost more women than men. I bet some of them would be happy to move to a new pack, especially one made up mostly of men.”
“Thanks. I just might do that. With even more wolves coming in, we could definitely use some females in the pack. That’s the one thing that’s going to make Ashton Grove a hard sell. We have no eligible females here.”
Deacon grinned. “Sabrina wants to come.”
“She’s not welcome.” Ramsey frowned. “Remind me to speak to the alphas about her. We don’t need another Luna situation.”
Deacon clapped him on the back. “What can I say? You’re irresistible.”
Ramsey laughed. “Yeah, that’s it. I think I just attract crazy women.”
Deacon sat his bags on the floor of the apartment and looked around. “Small but efficient. Thanks for letting me use it. Let me know how much rent I owe you.”
Ramsey waved a hand. “You don’t owe me anything.”
“I insist. You know I can afford it. Besides, I talked to that company in Spruce Hill and I start work in two weeks.”
“Yeah, at a discounted salary I’m sure.” He sighed. “All right. I’ll think of something and let you know. But it still doesn’t feel right charging you.”
“Come on, let’s go meet the guys.”
Chapter Twenty
The week flew by and before Harper knew it, her wedding day had arrived. Most brides probably felt a bit nervous, but she just felt excited and happy. It was just another way to tie her life to Ramsey’s, and she couldn’t think of anything she wanted more.
The women of the pack had banded together to help her prepare for her wedding, except for Chloe, who was watching the children. Marin helped her into her dress and she stared at her reflection. The dress made her look truly beautiful. Next, Kiera helped her with her hair. She’d thought of pulling it up, but it was so long that it would have taken forever to style it. Instead they wove white roses through the curly tresses. And last, Aislinn applied a light layer of make-up, accenting her eyes and lips.
“So, are you ready?” Marin asked.
Harper smiled. “More than ready. I can’t wait to marry Ramsey.”
Aislinn hugged her. “Everything is happening just the way it’s supposed to – according to Eric anyway. You’re just what Ramsey needed, and now, thanks to his recruiting efforts, we’ll have ten new wolves joining us and three women. And I’m sure there will be even more.”
“But that didn’t have anything to do with me.”
“Yes, it did,” Aislinn said.
“Before you, Ramsey was focused on Chloe and was on his way to being kicked out of the pack. So without you, he wouldn’t have stayed, wouldn’t have recruited for us, and we wouldn’t be growing,” Kiera said. “So yes, it has everything to do with you.”
“You should be proud,” Marin said. “We didn’t think anyone would hold Ramsey’s attention again. You’re a special woman.”
Harper shook her head. “I’m just me.”
“Yes, and Ramsey thinks you’re wonderful.” Kiera smiled. “He loves you. That should tell you how special you are.”
“He does, doesn’t he? And I love him,” Harper said with a smile.
“Good. Because it’s time to go say your vows,” Aislinn said.
Harper took a deep breath and walked through the door and down the stairs. Kiera and Gabriel had insisted on using their backyard for the wedding so the spare bedroom in the Victorian had been turned into Harper’s dressing room. As she reached the back door, she stopped and let the women go ahead of her. Finally, she stepped out into the enchanted evening. Twinkling fairy lights decorated the trees and shrubs. Lavender glass lanterns hung from posts around the yard. Lavender, white and pink roses were scattered throughout the yard and petals were strewn on the path from the door to her waiting groom. It was a magical night she wouldn’t soon forget.
As she walked toward Ramsey, her eyes drank him in, taking in every detail. He looked dashing in his tux, like a fairytale prince. Her prince. And he was… her prince, her knight, her love. She could barely remember what her life was like before him, and she didn’t want to. It hadn’t taken
long for him to become her everything.
She stopped beside him and gripped her bouquet to keep from reaching out and touching him. The brush of her fingers against his cheek, the feel of her hand in his… anything, any kind of contact. She needed him as much as she needed her next breath. Sometimes it scared her.
She was so lost in her thoughts she almost missed her cue.
“I do,” she said softly. And she really did. She’d never meant two words more than those.
As Ramsey said “I do,” her breath hitched in her throat. This was it. It was done. As the preacher pronounced them husband and wife, she moved closer to Ramsey. When he reached for her, she melted against him, more than ready for his kiss.
His lips met hers and her breath froze in her lungs. It was like being kissed by him for the first time. His mouth moved over hers gently, coaxing her to kiss him back. Everything fell away except for her and Ramsey, and the incredible feelings she felt every time he kissed her. She leaned into him and gave herself up to the kiss, getting lost in the wonder of it. Until a throat cleared, bringing her back to reality. She stepped back and smiled up at her husband.
Ramsey pulled her close again and wrapped an arm around her waist as the greeted their guests. She felt loved and protected, two things Ramsey excelled at. Nothing could have made her evening more wonderful.
Ramsey lifted Harper into his arms and cuddled her close. The wedding celebration had lasted well into the night, and it was not after one in the morning. Harper had fallen asleep on the way home and he didn’t have the heart to wake her. He entered the house and carried her to the bedroom, laying her gently on the bed. Slipping her shoes of her feet, he gently massaged first one foot and then the other.
Harper began to stir. “Ramsey?”
“You were expecting someone else?”
She gave him a sleepy smile. “You let me fall asleep.”
“You need the rest more than a wedding night.”
She shook her head. “I can rest any time, but I’ll only ever have one wedding night.”
Ramsey helped her stand and began slowly unfastening her dress. He let the dress slide from her body and pool at her feet. He cupped her breasts through her white satin strapless bra and leaned down to kiss her. His lips caressed hers softly as he gathered her close. He loved her so much he ached with it.
Harper pushed his jacket off his shoulders. “You have on too many clothes.”
He grinned and slowly undressed, watching her the entire time. If he hadn’t already been hard, the heat in her eyes would have done it. The hands fisted at her sides told him how much she wanted to touch him, every bit as much as he wanted to touch her.
He reached for her and pulled her into his arms. As he caressed her soft skin, he thought about how lucky he was. Lucky that the amazing woman in front of him was his, by both human and werewolf laws. He could never tell her or show her just how much he loved her. Saying “I love you” just didn’t seem like enough. She meant the world to him – her and their unborn child.
“Make love to me, Ramsey.”
He brushed her hair back from her face, careful not to crush the roses. He finished undressing her and backed her toward the bed.
“I want tonight to be special for you,” he said as he kissed the side of her neck.
“Every night with you is special. Every time we’re together it’s wonderful and amazing.”
With a soft growl, he nipped her. Changing direction, he backed her up against the wall. Maybe it was time for something new.
“Wrap your legs around me,” he said as he lifted her.
She did as he bade and gripped his shoulders. Slowly, he eased his cock inside of her, entering her fully. He bent his head to kiss her sweet lips and caressed her cheek. He plunged into her with long, deep strokes. Holding her hips, he thrust faster and harder, pushing both of them to the edge. As her orgasm crashed through her, Ramsey let go, coming deep inside of her.
Lifting her into his arms, he carried her to the bed and laid her down, stretching out beside her. Harper cuddled up against him and he drew the sheet over their bodies before taking her in his arms. He looked down and saw that her eyes were drifting closed.
“Good night, sweet wife.”
She smiled. “Good night, my husband. I love you.”
“Not half as much as I love you. I was nothing before I met you, Harper. Having you in my life makes me complete. You mean everything to me.”
“You mean the world to me, too.”
“I love you.”
She smiled sleepily and drifted off to sleep.
Ramsey watched her for the longest time, not ready to let go of such an important day. A month ago, if someone had told him he’d be so happy, so content; he would have laughed at them. No matter how long he lived, he could never thank Hunter enough for introducing him to Harper.
Ramsey smiled. He might have saved her from Trent, but she had saved him in every way possible. She was his reason for living – her and her love. And he had the rest of his life to show her just how much she meant to him.
About the Author
Jessica Coulter Smith lives in Tennessee with her husband, two children and a house full of pets. When she isn’t writing, you can find her at the bookstore or Starbucks. Aside from her family, the only thing she loves as much as writing is her horse.
Visit her website at www.jessicacoultersmith.com or write to her today at [email protected].
PLAYLIST
• I Don’t Care – Apocalyptica
• I’m Not Jesus - Apocalyptica
• Counting Bodies Like Sheep to the Rhythm of the War Drums – A Perfect Circle
• Imagine – A Perfect Circle
• I Won’t See You Tonight – Avenged Sevenfold
• Inside the Fire – Disturbed
• It’s Not You – Halestorm
• Better Safe Than Sorry – Halestorm
• Leave Out All the Rest – Linkin Park
• Still Unbroken – LynyrdSkynyrd
• Gotta Be Somebody – Nickelback
• Psycho – Puddle of Mudd
• Like Suicide –Seether
• No One Like You - Scorpions
Moonlight Savior Page 20
