Page 39 of A Nest of Maple & Mist

Gooseflesh rippled over my legs. I leaned into the touch, and his fingers flexed. More for the distraction, I took a bite of the pasta. I groaned. It was delicious. Garlic and butter flowed over my tongue, and I wiggled like I always did whenever food made me happy.

Ty chuckled, and my cheeks flamed.

“Good?”

My eyes found his. The pad of his thumb dusted a few crumbs from my lips, and a nervous noise threatened to escape. A curtain of curls fell over my face, and he brushed them back.

His face was now closer to mine than it had been moments ago.

“Amazing. Did you cook this?”

He hummed. “Someone in this pack had to learn to cook. If we left Shane and Jason in charge, it’d be takeout and microwaved meals.”

I snorted, quickly making a dent in the food.

“One time, Shane tried to make us steak. The pan caught fire and he tossed the entire thing in the sink. We ended up at the burger place down the street. Oh, and Jason. Oh gosh! Smoke billowed out his parents’ kitchen window one day. My dad ran over just to find Jason burnt a grilled cheese.”

“Neither of them ever told me those stories. I think I’ll have to bully our alphas a little now with those nuggets,” Ty added.

Our alphas. I enjoyed that thought far too much.

“Your daddy won’t punish you for that?”

The smile on my face morphed into something sinful as I realized what I’d just said.

“Oh. He definitely will, but that’s half the fun.”

A slew of questions lingered on my tongue. Before I could speak, Ty bent over, picking up a box wrapped in glittering gold paper.

Presents.

My wide smile pushed against my cheeks. I knew I should stifle my excitement. But I couldn’t help it. My omega vibrated with barely restrained glee at the gift from our beta.

I would treasure it.

“I have a courting gift for you.”

The box shimmered under the candlelight, the neat cream-colored ribbon curling around the sides. I tossed him a shy glance, not wanting to appear too eager as my fingers hovered nearby.

No one had given me a proper courting gift before.

“Go ahead.”

That was all the permission I needed. I peeled away the paper and gasped.

Red foiled art glittered beneath my nails. I recognized the stunning box set immediately. It had been one I’d seen all over social media but hadn’t had the money to splurge on.

“It’s a horror romance collection.” Ty’s arm brushed mine, and my head fell to his shoulder. A sharp inhale hissed in the quiet. His mouth fell to the top of my curls. “Book one is a monster romance with a Krampus. And there’s an evil Jack Frost one, and I think there’s another with some type of Norse creature? I’ll be honest, I got a little distracted by all the graphic art for it.”

He blushed, and the red streaks on his cheeks were adorable.

I nodded along, staring at the glossy covers as my fingers trailed the embossed titles. It had only been a couple of days since I told him about how much I loved horror monster fuckery. And somehow, he’d found the perfect gift for me in that time.

My hands fell to my lap, my nails digging into my thighs.

It was too much. Too fast.

Everything I ever wanted, wrapped around me in this romantically lit room. A sweet beta who knew me better than I knew myself. Who spoiled me.