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NIGHT
I stepped out of the shower just as I heard the front door close. After a pause, my wolf began to pant. Bryn was back. I waited for her to enter the bedroom, and when she did, her eyes widened.
“Wow,” she said with a slight groan. “You need to put all this away. I don’t have time for that body right now.”
I laughed and walked over to her. Pulling her in for a kiss, I caught a whiff of my beta on her. I growled before I could stop myself.
She snorted and kissed the underside of my chin. “Such a possessive mate,” she purred, slipping her hands over my neck. She pulled me down and kissed my jaw, my cheek, and my ear, where she whispered, “It was my brother who kissed the top of my head, Night. You better keep those teeth to yourself or I’ll kick your ass.”
Desire curled in my stomach. If the Alpha ceremony wasn’t so close, I’d have bedded the hell out of this woman right then and there. As things were, I slipped my hands over her hips and kissed her long and slow. She tasted sweet and hot and completely mine.
All too soon, she pulled away. Her hand found my cheek, her thumb pressing gently to my lips. “Down, boy,” she whispered.
Mm. I couldn’t get enough of this woman.
She stepped out of my embrace so she could change into the simple, earth-toned wrap Glenda had given her for the ceremony. I tried not to go wild at the sight of her smooth back and that perfect ass, but it was hard. So I focused on getting dressed.
“Were the Kings receptive to your help?” she asked. “I didn’t get to talk to you about it before we met with the council.”
“It went better than I was expecting. There was almost a fight, but I think it helped clear the air more than anything else.”
“Oh good!” At her happy tone, I had to turn around. She had wrapped the dress around her shoulders and waist, cinching it tight at her side to show off her curves. She tied the excess fabric of the wrap into a bow, the tail ends of it dropping to her ankles.
When I had seen the cloth draped over the bed, I hadn’t thought much of it. But now, seeing it on, I loved the way the deep brown fabric looked against my mate’s skin. It almost matched the chestnut color of her hair.
“Bryn,” I said gently.
She looked at me.
“I’d thought it would be impossible for me to forgive the Kings. All my life, I believed I would hang on to the anger and vengeance that pushed me to become Alpha in the first place. But after I met you, I don’t feel the same way. It’s so weird to me to see how far I’ve come from the night we first met, but I want to work on being better for you, on letting it all go.”
“Oh, Night.” She gave me a smile that I could wage—or end—a war for. “I love you.”
I reached for her hand, and she gave it freely. I kissed the back of her fingers, and she giggled. “Why don’t you tell me about your day? What did you do after I left?”
“Not much.” She pulled her hand out of mine and slipped past me to the bathroom. “I kind of just walked around to clear my head.”
“That makes sense. I know you have a ton on your mind.” I buttoned my pants and pulled on a button-up shirt. I swore that when I took over as Alpha, I’d do anything I could to smooth out the worry I saw pulling her mouth into a frown as she used the mirror to help her put on makeup. “Do you have your pick for beta?”
“I do.” She paused, and then she said, “It’s going to be Tavi.”
I paused. I knew I shouldn’t have been so surprised. She and my sister had been even closer than sisters ever since they met. I wanted to be happy that Bryn would choose to give Tavi such an honor, but doubt gnawed at me. Would she really be the best choice for the position? Dr. Stan assured us that she was physically healthy, but there were lingering mental scars that might affect her ability to protect Bryn. The position wouldn’t be permanent, and I believed that my mate knew what she was doing, but that doubt lingered.
“Does Tavi know?” I asked.
Bryn nodded. “We talked about her concerns. We both took them into consideration and weighed them against the position. We think it would be good for her recovery.”
I wanted to believe that my mate and sister had considered the weight of all of this, but neither of them were experienced with being an Alpha or a beta.
“I think it’s possible that having some responsibility might help keep her mind off things, but it could backfire, couldn’t it?”
“Anything could go wrong, but we trust each other, Night. She’s already acted as my beta in other ways.”
I blinked. “You mean her being at the meeting earlier today?”
“Yes. She helped me with that meeting, but she was also with me when I was trying to figure out how the reconstruction projects were going a couple of days ago. She’s had my back both times.”
I ran my hand through my hair, considering this new info. It did make me feel a bit better knowing that they’d tried Tavi in that role, but were a couple of test runs enough?
