by J. L. Wilder
“Promise we’ll never be apart,” she breathed.
He couldn’t resist any longer. He thrust forward, and she let out a moan of satisfaction as she rose to meet him.
It felt like coming home. Everything he had been through today, all the fighting, the violence, and the pain—it was all worth it to protect moments like this one. Being with her like this was like nothing else in the world.
“I promise,” he whispered. “We’ll never let anything come between us again.”
He kissed her, his lips synchronizing with the movement of his hips so that everything seemed to be working in harmony. It was similar to the feeling of relying on his bear instincts during the fights he’d had today, but it was also very different. When he was fighting, he felt as if he was dancing on the edge of a knife, always at risk. He had to remain acutely aware of everything going on around him to keep catastrophe at bay.
This wasn’t like that. He could sink into the feelings, lose himself in the rhythm his body was setting for him. He didn’t have to think at all. The only thing that required his attention was the physical sensation thrumming through him, and the way Evelyn’s body was responding.
And fuck, was she responding. Brady thought the excitement of the night must be overwhelming her too. She was always physically responsive during sex, but he had never seen her lose herself in it so completely. Her eyes were closed, her head tipped back in ecstasy. She had wrapped her arms around her body and was stroking her own nipples as he fucked her, arching into her own touch, which was intoxicating to watch.
He let her continue pleasuring herself that way for a few moments longer, then grabbed her wrists and pinned them above her head, keeping his grip loose but firm, so she couldn’t break free.
She let out a gasp and pulled against him, not really struggling, but testing his strength. When she found she was pinned firmly, she stared blissfully up at him.
Her body was drenched in sweat. He wanted to lick it off her.
But this wasn’t going to last that long. He was close, and so was she. He could feel it in the way she was shuddering around him.
He bent and took her nipple into his mouth, suckling gently, flicking with his tongue as he fucked her, and that was what brought her orgasm crashing over her. She rolled her body like a wave, lifting her hips to his, her thighs trembling madly, and with a final thrust and a sound that was somewhere between a growl and a moan, he came inside her.
After several long moments pressed against one another, recovering, she indicated a desire to move out from beneath him, and he rolled off of her. She sat up and grabbed the glass of water from the nightstand. After taking a long drink, she passed it to him, and he did the same.
He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, basking in the calm of the moment. The worst was over. Marty was dealt with. Steve was dealt with. They were safe now, and there was nothing but a happy life together to look forward to.
“I’m afraid your apartment’s pretty trashed,” he said.
“That’s going to be fun to explain to the landlord.” She fell back against the pillows. “I guess I won’t be able to count on getting the security deposit back.”
“You won’t need it,” he said. “I’ve got you covered from now on. By this time tomorrow, you’ll be out of this place and moved in with me.”
“And then,” she said, smiling at him, “I guess you and I will have to talk about moving into the alpha house, right? Because that’s yours now.”
“So it is,” he said quietly, pondering. “So it is.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
EVELYN
They spent the night at Brady’s house—neither of them felt comfortable staying in the ruins of Evelyn’s apartment, where the evidence of the fight was all around them and where it would be only too easy for Marty to find them again.
It was too late at night to think about moving formally, so Evelyn had simply packed a bag with the necessities and left with Brady. It didn’t matter now if they were seen together, and it felt good to walk down the street holding his hand. It felt good to know that they belonged to one another, and to acknowledge it publicly.
But Evelyn awoke the next morning with a hard knowledge lodged in her heart. It wasn’t enough for them to simply jump back into their life together as if nothing had happened. There were steps that had to be taken, steps that couldn’t be overlooked if they were going to create the harmonious life they wanted for themselves and for their child.
“I’m going to my parents’ house today,” she announced as Brady stepped out of the shower.
He didn’t look surprised. “I had a feeling you would,” he said.
“I need to tell them about the baby,” she said.
Brady nodded. “Do you want me to go with you?” he asked. “Would that be helpful?”
The truth was that Evelyn would very much have liked to face this with Brady by her side. But to do so would be an act of cowardice. Her relationship with her parents had been very strained for a very long time, and she wanted to repair it. She knew how hesitant they were to see her in a new relationship after the disaster the last one had been. She needed to speak to them on her own and convince them that she wasn’t simply following the lead of a powerful man, that this was a decision she was making for herself.
“No,” she said. “I’ll handle it on my own.”
He grinned. “I thought you might say that, too,” he said. “Of course, technically, I am your alpha now, so I could order you to bring me along.”
“But you won’t,” she said with a smile.
“No,” he agreed. “You have to make the decisions that you think are right for your life and your family. That’s something Steve never understood.”
“Well, that’s why you’re going to be a better alpha than he was,” Evelyn said with a smile. “What are you going to do today?”
“I’m going over to the alpha house,” Brady said. “Now that I’m in charge, I think the most valuable thing I can do is to sit on the porch and let the others come to me. They can let me know what they think of my leadership, or they can ask questions if they have them. I’m not going to push people around or make them feel like their voices aren’t welcome. Too many people have been afraid for too long in this den, and today is the day I’m going to start giving them their voices back.”
She kissed him. “I can’t wait to see what the den is like under your leadership,” she said. “I’m so glad we decided to stay, Brady. You were absolutely right. This is the environment I want our kid to grow up in.”
He grinned. “Go talk to your parents,” he said. “I’ll see you after. I hope it goes well.”
Evelyn wore a heavy sweater over to her parents’ house. She wanted to break the news of her pregnancy to them gently, gradually. She didn’t know if they would be able to discern that she was pregnant by looking—how familiar could they possibly be with the normal contours of her body after so many years apart, after all? But she wasn’t about to take any chances.
Her nerves were humming as she rang the doorbell and waited. After several excruciating moments, the door opened.
Her father stood there, staring at her.
“So you’ve come back,” he said.
“To visit,” she said. “Not to stay.”
He frowned. “You’re not here looking for a place to live?”
“No,” she said. “I’m living somewhere else. I’m doing really well. But I need to talk to you, and to Mom. There’s something you should know.”
She could see that her father was still hesitant.
“Dad,” she said. “I’m here as a favor to you. Believe me. You’re going to want to hear what I have to say. And I’m not here to ask you for anything.”
He nodded. “Come in,” he said, stepping back and opening the door.
The house felt as if no one was home. The lights were all off, and she couldn’t hear any sounds coming from anywhere else in the place. “Is Mom home?” she asked.
&n
bsp; “She’s in the den.”
“Can we go there? I want to talk to you two together.”
Her father gestured that she should lead the way, and Evelyn did so, feeling a little out of sorts. He could be making this easier.
Her mother was knitting with the TV on mute. When she saw Evelyn, she gasped and jumped to her feet.
“Oh, Mom,” Evelyn said, dismayed. “Your yarn.”
“Never mind my yarn.” Her mother hurried to her side and embraced her. “You’ve come home! I heard you and Brady were no longer together, and we thought we would see you again, but then rumor had it you had moved into an apartment away from the den! How could you do such a thing, Evelyn? You must have known we would want you at home.”
“Too proud to admit that she was wrong to be with that boy in the first place,” her father grumbled.
“He isn’t a boy, Dad,” Evelyn said. “He’s the alpha of the pack. He’s your alpha now. And the story people know isn’t exactly what happened. I’m here to tell you the truth about what’s going on between Brady and me, because you deserve to hear it from me directly.”
“So there is still something going on between the two of you?” her mother asked.
“There is,” Evelyn confirmed. “I moved away from the neighborhood because we didn’t want Steve to get involved in it. But now that Brady has taken his position as alpha back, we don’t have to worry about that anymore. I’ll be moving into the alpha house with Brady.”
“I don’t understand,” her mother said. “Why would Steve have cared about your relationship with Brady?”
She took a deep breath. “I’m pregnant, Mom,” she said. “Brady and I are going to have a baby.”
Her mother clapped a hand over her mouth.
“We couldn’t let Steve find out,” Evelyn said. “He was already threatened enough by Brady, but if our child is a boy, he’ll be the rightful successor to the alpha position, whether Brady ever ousted Steve or not. Brady was afraid that Steve might try to harm me or the baby if he knew the truth.”
“So the two of you are still together,” her mother said. “And you’re planning on raising your child together?”
Evelyn nodded. “That’s the plan,” she said. “I’ve already returned to his home. I’ll be moving my things back later today. And when he’s ready to move into the Alpha house, I’ll be going with him.”
“We’re going to be grandparents,” Evelyn’s mother said, turning to her father, taking his hand. “I never thought this day would come. I never thought you would make a grandmother out of me, Evelyn. Your brothers and sisters, maybe. But I never believed I would hear this news from you.”
“Well, here we are,” Evelyn said, unable to keep a smile off her face as happiness welled up within her. Her mother’s reaction was better than she could have hoped for. “I’m so glad you’re happy, Mom.”
“Of course I’m happy!” Her mother reached out and took her hand. “And I’m so proud of you, Evelyn. Whatever you need, please don’t be afraid to come to me. I know we haven’t always had the easiest relationship, but you’re home now, and part of our den, and I’m just so glad to have you here.”
Evelyn smiled. “Thanks, Mom.”
“Hang on,” her father interrupted. He didn’t sound as happy as Evelyn’s mother was. “Aren’t you forgetting something, Evelyn?”
“What?”
“Your husband,” he said. “Hell, I don’t like the guy, and I’m glad you left him, so don’t misunderstand me. But you’re not concerned at all that he’s going to come looking for you and find you shacked up with someone else? The last thing this den needs is a vindictive wolf coming after our new alpha.”
Evelyn bit her lip. “Marty isn’t going to come looking for me,” she said.
“You seem pretty confident about that. But how can you be sure? I know if my wife disappeared, I would go looking. And if I found her carrying another man’s baby, you’d better believe there would be hell to pay.”
It was disconcerting to hear her father saying the same kinds of things that Marty had said. “You would fight the guy?” she asked.
“Well, I don’t know about fighting,” her father said. “If, hypothetically, my wife had left me and chosen him of her own free will, a fight couldn’t really do anything to change that. But I’d definitely have words for the both of them. And, of course, I’m not a wolf. A wolf is going to be a lot more violent than I would be.”
“Maybe that’s true,” Evelyn said. She supposed she would never know whether it was wolves who were aggressive or whether that was just something about Marty personally. She remembered feeling curious about the bias bears had against wolves when she had run away. She remembered feeling brave and bold for daring to try to find out the truth.
She hadn’t learned anything about wolves.
But she had learned everything about herself.
Her father was still watching her with concern, so she turned her mind back to their conversation. “I’m glad to hear you wouldn’t fight, Dad,” she said. “Because that’s what Marty did when he came to my apartment last night.”
Her mother gasped. “He found you?”
“He wanted to drag me back to Las Vegas with him,” Evelyn said. “I don’t know what would have become of the baby if he had succeeded. Nothing good, I’m sure.”
“What happened?” her mother asked. “You said there was a fight?”
She nodded. “Brady came and saved us, thank God. He ran Marty out of the apartment. We won’t have to worry about him coming back anymore.”
“Well,” her father said quietly, “that is good to hear.”
Evelyn turned to him. “Dad, I need you to see me,” she said. “I need you to stop thinking of me as the twenty-year-old girl who embarrassed you by running away with a wolf. That’s not who I am anymore. That was half my lifetime ago. I’m older now, and I’m smarter, and I’m capable of making good choices for myself and my baby. And I’m in love with Brady O’Neal.”
“I guess you could do worse,” her father admitted.
“I want you and Mom to be a part of our baby’s life,” Evelyn said. “But in order for that to happen, I need to know that you respect my relationship with Brady. Can you do that?”
He nodded. “You’ve proven me wrong,” he admitted. “It was hard for me to accept for a while, but you do know what you’re doing. You’re not the young person you were when you left home. And Brady is definitely a step up from a wolf. So I can get on board with this.”
She went to his side and hugged him. After a moment, he returned the embrace. “Thanks, Dad,” she said.
For the first time in a long time, it felt as if she was really part of the den.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
BRADY
“Did you get the cheese tray?” Evelyn asked anxiously, hurrying up to Brady the moment he came through the door.
Brady laughed and held up the grocery bag. “I got it,” he said. “But I don’t know what you’re getting so worked up about, Evelyn. It’s just dinner at my parents’ house.”
“Maybe to you, it’s just dinner at your parents’ house,” she said. “But you’ve been having dinner with our parents every weekend for the past twenty years.”
“Not every weekend,” he said. “Once a month, maybe.
She waved a hand as if to say that the details didn’t matter. “The point is that I just came back into everybody’s lives. And the last time our families tried to have dinner together, it didn’t exactly end well.”
He raised his eyebrows. “I wouldn’t call it not ending well,” he said. “The way I remember it, it ended with you back at my place naked.”
“Brady!”
“Am I misremembering?”
“Stop teasing me,” she said. “You know that isn’t what I’m talking about. I’m talking about what happened after that. My father confronting me for staying the night with you. Me leaving his house.” She sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. “I just w
ant to leave a good impression this time, that’s all.”
“Okay,” he said, setting down the grocery bag and moving to her side. He held out his arms, and she walked into them and allowed herself to be embraced.
He could actually feel the tension leaving her body as she relaxed against him. It was amazing to Brady how much power he seemed to have over her physical and emotional responses to things. Just by being nearby, he could keep her calm. He could make her feel that she was safe and taken care of.
It was a powerful feeling.
He imagined, sometimes, that Marty had also enjoyed a feeling of power when Evelyn had been in his life. But Marty had never used his power to comfort Evelyn or to make her feel sheltered. He had only ever used it to control her.
Really, in that way, he was a lot like Steve.
There was a time when Brady would have insisted that Marty’s aggression and cruelty were traits born of his wolf side. But if Steve had been the same way, was it really fair to say that?
Maybe there were wolves out there who were gentler. Wolves who were more like him, who used their power over their packs and their mates to provide good things.
He wondered whether he would ever know.
He held Evelyn back at arm’s length and looked at her. It was clear that she had made an effort to look nice tonight, and it was working. Her hair was one of her best features, and tonight it hung loosely around her shoulders, in soft waves that framed her face. She was wearing one of the new dresses he had bought for her the weekend they had moved into the alpha house as part of their celebration.
“Everyone’s going to be happy to see you,” he assured her. “A cheese tray isn’t going to make a difference one way or the other, okay?”
“It’s just that...as a guest, I should bring something. I don’t know if cheese is really enough.”
He rested a hand on her stomach, feeling the modest curve that was just beginning to grow there. “You’re bringing my parents something much more valuable than cheese,” he said. “They never thought they would have a grandchild. They’re going to be over the moon about this.”
