“I just got home last night,” Remy laughed. “I’ll propose in my own time. But yes, getting married is the plan.”
Kaylee slapped Jules’ arm.
“Ow. What was that for?” He rubbed at his arm.
She smiled sweetly. “What was what for?”
Brock cleared his throat. “Well, since Gia already let her tongue wander I guess we’ll make our announcement next.”
“Great,” Jane muttered. “Another one.”
“Is it that obvious?” Gia asked, glancing down at her stomach.
“Not at all,” Brock said, kissing her cheek. “Yes, another one. But we’re only six weeks along so keep it within the clan for another six weeks.”
“We won’t say a word,” Remy said.
“They’re going to have a full house before I even get a wedding,” Kaylee said with a great, heaving sigh.
“It’s been like this for months,” Jules muttered.
“Well, how long are you going to make me wait?” Kaylee said.
“I don’t know!”
“How can you not know?”
Tara glanced from one to the other, feeling a little bewildered. “Uh, is this normal?”
“Yes,” Remy said. “Kaylee’s not at all shy. Jane, what about you? Anything to report?”
“Uh, well, since you’ll probably hear it from your friend at the police department...”
“You got arrested?”
“No.” She took a deep breath. Her next words came out in a rush. “Bryce’s cousin needed to get free of a drug ring so we sort of scared them off.”
“Sort of?”
“Okay, really. We really scared them off.”
“And you shifted, didn’t you?”
“Well ... yeah. Yeah, we were bears.”
“Who’s we?”
“Me and Jules?”
“Thanks,” Jules said. “I do you a favor and this is what I get.”
“You think you’ve got it bad?” Remy said. “I leave town for a week and this is what I come home to?” His straight face lasted less than the count of five and then he started laughing. “I can just imagine the look on their faces. Be careful that they don’t try to come after the two of you.”
“Why do they have to be careful?” Bryce asked as everyone else laughed. “They were bears. No one saw their faces. I’m the one they were talking to.”
“Don’t worry,” Kaylee said. “You’re too cute. They won’t come after you.”
“You’re flirting now,” Jules said.
“Well, I’m not sure you want me,” she replied.
“Okay, I’ve had enough. Excuse me for a minute.”
They all watched Jules lumber out. The silence that followed was heavy and awkward.
When he came back in Kaylee said, “What was that about?”
“Nothing.”
“Nothing?”
“That’s right. Nothing. I just went to visit with James. He understands me.”
“Fine.”
They sat side by side staring at their plates while the awkward silence resumed. Finally Jules leaned over, kissed Kaylee’s cheek, and nuzzled his face against the side of hers. “I love you,” he said.
She shoved him and he laughed.
“How was the weather in Montana?” he asked.
The conversation moved on as they worked on the mountain of food Connie had prepared.
There happened to be a lull in the conversation at just the right moment and they all heard the front door open. “Now who could that be?” Connie asked, getting up.
Brock put a hand out. “We’re not expecting anyone so I’ll get the door.”
“Oh, I’m expecting someone,” Jules said. “I’ll get it.”
He disappeared again, coming back this time with his mother and James.
Brock stood. “Simone, good to see you again.”
“You’ve got legs, and a car, you can see me whenever you like.”
“I have a wife and a baby.”
“Bring them.” Suddenly she was all smiles. “And there’s the little man. Oh, aren’t you just the sweetest thing! Jules, really, when am I going to get one of these to cuddle?”
Remy waved Jules closer. “You were complaining about one so you brought the other one over? Now you’ll have to listen to both of them all night.”
“No, I won’t,” Jules said. “Trust me.” He cleared his throat. “Kaylee, darling, love of my life, will you marry me?” He produced a little velvet covered box from his pocket and presented it to her.
She eyed him warily and then took the box. She cracked it open, peering inside, and then she squealed. “Oh, Jules, it’s amazing!” She pulled the ring out, tossed the box aside and put it on. “Isn’t it wonderful!”
“You know you only get to keep that if you say yes, right?” Jules said.
She sprang from her chair and threw herself into his arms. “YES!!”
“At least he was smart enough to send James out to fetch his mother,” Brock said.
Remy was nodding. “That he was.”
From the other end of the table, Bryce blurted out, “Oh God, was I supposed to bring a ring?”
There was a heartbeat of silence and then a roar of laughter.
“I am so not ready for a wedding,” Jane said.
“Looks like you won’t be last though,” Jules said, dropping a hand on Philippe’s shoulder. “Buddy, you’ve got a bit of catching up to do. I swear you work too much.”
“I’m just fine,” Philippe said.
“Oh, right. I still think you and Patrick would make the cutest couple.”
“Oh, can it,” Jane said. “You’ve been hounding him for over a month. Just because Kaylee’s got you whipped doesn’t mean Philippe has to chase the first girl to come along.”
Jules glanced around. “Guys?” Brock and Remy both shook their heads. Jules threw up his hands. “Okay, two on one, I’m beat. I’ll drop it. Don’t need the two of you cornering me in a dark alley.”
Philippe shot Jane a grateful smile. She nodded in return. They hadn’t spoken much since Jane’s apology when she returned from Quebec. This wasn’t going to fix the broken trust between them, but it was a step in the right direction.
Connie brought out a bottle of champagne, which elicited a complaint from Gia who couldn’t have any. “We’ve lots to celebrate,” she said.
They toasted and Connie fetched an extra plate for Simone. The meeting ran until late that evening and when Remy and Tara finally made it home they tumbled, exhausted, happy and overwhelmed, into bed.
Six months later
“This has been quite the adventure,” Remy said. ”Do you need a hand with the gift?”
Tara came around the corner from the bedroom with her purse over one arm and the gift bag dangling from her hand. “No, I’ve got it. What’s been an adventure?”
“Oh, just the past few years. First Jules shifts without warning in the middle of the airport. Then Brock actually wins that damn election and becomes Mayor. Within weeks we’re under attack by The Human Order, and when that blows over Brock is engaged and Gia’s father is in prison.” He drained his coffee and put the mug in the sink.
“We heard a little about that attack. You handled it well.”
“I handled very little, except the aftermath. I got scooped with the rest of the clan. I’m not publicly out, only a few people at the hospital and police department know who I am. Because of that, and because of Brock’s money, I think people assume he’s in charge.”
“Does that bother you?”
“Not really. I’m like the secret puppet master.”
She laughed. “I don’t see it, sorry.”
He sighed. “Well, Brock did wonderfully, acting on behalf of the clan, and made arrangements with the police and the local werewolf pack. After all that blew over, Brock and Gia got married and then had their little guy. Happily ever after and now they’re expecting number two. I don’t know how she plans to potty train one with a
baby on her hip.”
“She has Connie and Brock. And you can talk while you walk or we’ll be late for the shower.”
“Right. Have you seen my wallet?”
“Bedside table.”
“Thanks.” They got downstairs and out to the car. “Last check. Do we have everything?”
“Yes.” She kissed his cheek. “What did you used to do without me?”
“I bought gift cards and forgot things on a regular basis.”
“Really?”
“No. Well, yes to the gift cards. Usually I’m more organized than this.”
“Huh. Something on your mind?”
“Not really. You’re just distracting.”
“Flatterer. So what else has been happening?”
“Well, just after the little guy was born, an employee at the airport decided to blackmail Jules. When we tried to end that, the video was leaked and Jules was suddenly out – before he had a chance to tell Kaylee about his secret.”
“Ouch. We had one guy in our clan, his girlfriend found out from a mutual friend days before he planned to tell her and she dumped him.”
“Because he was a werebear? Or because his friend knew before she did?”
“I never found out. Looks like Kaylee took it well.”
“She was unsure but then Jules went all furry and scared the crap out of her abusive father who was in the process of threatening her with a knife. And to top it all off, his father showed up in town, claimed he was here to be supportive. He was trying for the Clan Chief position but needed someone in the clan to back him.”
“Jules?”
“That’s what he’d hoped. But Jules sided with me and the clan and then backed his father down, hard. Gabrielle left in disgrace. And Jules had to deal with two fights practically in as many days.”
“Wow. How did Jules take that?”
“Surprisingly well. He and his dad were never close.”
“When he said, ‘the poster group for messed up fathers’ he wasn’t kidding.”
“Then Jane starts acting all weird and missed a mid-month meeting. She said everything was fine. Until her former Chief showed up claiming she was sheltering a werebear from his clan without his permission, or mine.”
“Was she?”
“Yup.”
“I can imagine what my father would do if someone kept that kind of secret from him. What did you do?”
“I demanded she bring me proof so she and this other werebear ran off to Quebec to get said proof that Laurent, her Chief, was blackmailing people and working with The Human Order.”
“Was he?”
Remy nodded. “All so he could arrange marriages within the clan. Turns out Jane’s old friend, Etienne, the one she was sheltering, was working for Laurent. She came home a little shaken by that.”
“Yikes. And then she met Bryce?”
“Oh no, her and Bryce were an item before this all happened, like days before.”
“Wow. Well, they seem okay now.”
“Yeah, Bryce is pretty laid back. They did their ‘meet the bear’ thing the same day I got the email about the conference. And then the conference happened and here we are.”
“And Philippe, what’s his story?”
Remy shrugged. “He’s a bouncer. He’s buddies with one of the local wolves. He keeps to himself. And his life is blissfully free of drama.”
“How long did all this take?”
“Well, it’s mid-October so Brock has been in office for three years of his four year term now.”
“Three years. You had to deal with all that in the last three years?”
“Yup. And as long as Philippe’s life stays blissfully uneventful I think it’s all over. At least until Brock decides to announce he’s running for re-election.”
“Is he going to do that?”
“I’m not sure. I think he misses his corporate life. Either way, it can’t be as bad as what we’ve already been through. And Jules’ wedding in the new year will be all joy and smiles because the asshole fathers on both sides are not being invited. Come on, we’re here.”
Connie met them at the door. “You know where to put your shoes,” she said. “I’m just putting the finishing touches on the cake.”
“I see cars,” Tara said. “But I don’t hear people.”
“Oh, they went downstairs for a moment. Should be back up shortly. You just make yourselves comfortable in the living room. That’s where they’ve piled the gifts.”
“Thanks, Connie,” Remy said.
They rounded the corner into the living room and everyone in the clan shouted, “Surprise!”
Tara jumped and then laughed. “I think you’re surprising the wrong lady. I’m not having a baby.”
Remy touched her elbow. “I may have fibbed a little,” he said. “It’s not a baby shower.”
“Not a ... but I have a present.”
Everyone laughed and Brock took the gift bag from her hand before she dropped it. “We’ll save it for after the baby is born and we have the baby shower,” he said.
“So if this isn’t a baby shower ..?”
“It’s an engagement party,” Remy said. He took both of her hands in his. “Tara Brown, I love you. You drive me crazy but I love you, and I don’t know what I’d do without you. Will you marry me?”
She pulled her hands free and threw them around his neck. “YES! Yes I’ll marry you.”
When she stepped back, he produced a box from his pocket and opened it. The ring inside was simple, a fairly plain gold band with a raised solitary diamond in a claw fixture, but the stone was surprisingly large.
“Remy, it’s beautiful.”
“My mother is starting to suffer from arthritis and can no longer wear her rings without getting them resized. She thought this was a better option.”
“This was your mother’s?”
Remy nodded and took it from the box, sliding it on her finger. “She can’t wait to meet you in person. And my entire family agrees that it’s a great honor to give you this ring and welcome you to the family.”
There were tears in Tara’s eyes. “You’re so romantic,” she said. She threw her arms around him again and kissed him as the clan cheered.
“So is that a yes?” Jules asked as the happy couple separated. “Because you only get the ring if you say yes.”
Kaylee smacked his arm.
“And how come I didn’t get a kiss like that when I proposed?”
“Because you made me wait too long,” Kaylee shot back.
Connie was in the doorway with a cake that said, “Congratulations” in big iced letters. “Brock, go grab the plates and we’ll enjoy the cake here.”
“Yes, ma’am.” As Brock passed Remy he clapped his friend on the shoulder. “I’m happy for you. She’s going to turn your life upside down, but you’ll be the happiest man alive the entire time.”
“She’s already well on the way,” Remy replied.
People shifted and made space until everyone had a seat and when Brock returned with the plates, he and Remy handed out cake. They spent the afternoon talking and teasing and laughing.
* * *
Remy and Tara stopped for dinner on the way home since it was a special occasion. When they finally made it back to the apartment, Tara said, “I can’t stop looking at it. Was this really your mother’s?”
“Yes. We’ll need to video call her tomorrow so the two of you can gush about it.”
“I don’t gush.”
“Not usually, no, but you’re glowing and I can tell you’re just waiting to be excited about this with someone.”
“I wish it could be my mom but I’m not sure how she’ll react.”
“Oh, come here, hun.” He pulled her into a hug. “You call her tonight, it’s not too late, and you tell her. Be happy. She will be happy for you.”
“And if she’s not?”
“Then my mom will be happy for you. Hell, she’ll have enough happy that no one else will matter, trust
me. I know it’s not the same ...”
“No, you’re right. I shouldn’t worry about this until after I know what she’s going to say.”
He kissed her forehead. “Call her. I’ll run you a hot bath.”
“Thanks.”
The sound of the water running drowned out the phone conversation in the other room so he didn’t feel like he was eavesdropping. When she came in her face was subdued but she wasn’t crying or screaming so he figured it couldn’t be too bad. Or she was just too numb and the water works would come later.
“She said congratulations.”
“That’s a start.”
“She said my dad hasn’t shut up about my betrayal and not to expect him to come to the wedding.”
“We had considered that possibility.”
“Of course he’ll be beyond insulted if we don’t invite him so he has the option of insulting you with his refusal.”
“I’m a big boy, I can handle a little insult. Your bath is ready.”
She started undressing as she talked. “She said she’d tell my brother and sister. I don’t know if any of them will come to the wedding. Dad might order them not to go.”
“They’re not werebears. There’s a chance they’ll stand up to him.”
“I doubt it. He’s got all the money and he’ll hold it over their heads. I don’t think either of them want to be cut off financially.”
She climbed into the tub and sank down with a sigh. “Thanks, this is amazing.”
He leaned over and kissed her forehead. “Do you want me to stay?”
“Remy? I don’t want to lose my family.”
“I know, sweetheart. Look, with both of us working all my bills are basically halved, except the cellphone. I have some airline loyalty points saved up. Maybe in a few months we can get you a plane ticket back to Boston, you could go visit, maybe try to talk things out with your mom.”
“Thanks. Is that a phone ringing?”
“Hmm? Yeah. Sounds like mine. Probably my mom checking to see what you answered.”
“Tell her she can’t have the ring back.”
“I will. Be right back.”
Tara tipped her head back and closed her eyes. Today is a happy day. Today you got engaged. No one can take that away from you. And tonight, you are going to celebrate!
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