“Mate.” Slade got up and pulled Finn into a man hug, the two of them thumping each other on the back. “So, you’ll come tonight?”
“Of course. I’ll get the lads at Stores to bring the beer and make sure the others get here as well,” he glanced at me. “Even if I have to drag them by the scruff of their necks. This is your night. Let’s make it a big one.”
Slade’s cheeky grin had returned by the time they turned to me. He looked like he was about to say something, when his phone rang.
“Yeah, Mum? Hey, yeah, I was just gonna give you a ring when Kelly came by. Yep, tonight. Bring everyone! You’ll meet her tonight...”
Finn dropped down beside me, placing a hand on my leg, and mine went to cover his automatically. “It’ll be OK, Jules. I’ll sort the guys and see if Ophelia can’t soothe Brandon’s ruffled feathers. Aaron’s gonna be devastated he has to go back to barracks living.”
“And you?”
He looked away, a wry smile twisting his face before shaking his head. I thought he was going to say something, organise something, but he grabbed the back of my neck and pulled me close, his arms going around me and his mouth crashing down on mine. His lips parted almost instantly, his tongue pushing past mine, and he dug his fingers into my hair. Then as quickly as he’d started, he stopped, taking a moment to rest his forehead against mine.
“I think you know where I am in this, Jules.” He kissed me again, a slower, softer thing. “Just, no matter what happens, no matter who you choose, I’m on your side, love. I’ll always do what I can to look out for you.” And as fast as he’d kissed me, he was up and taking several steps back, the back of his hand to his lips. He stared at me for a blink more, then turned and went.
“That was Mum,” Slade
explained, bouncing down on the couch beside me. “She’s a bit full on, so just stick with me tonight.” He leaned forward to look at me when I didn’t respond. “Don’t worry about Finnegan, princess. Your Tirian will choose him once he removes that oh so honourable stick out of his arse, and then it’ll all be happy families.”
It was all so simple for him, as he leaned over and kissed the spot Finn had—as if eradicating all trace of his friend—before dragging me onto his lap, bucking his hips so I could feel his reaction to it all. I felt it, the sweet thrum of his desire, which infected me, but within the dizzying maelstrom of sensation was a small, hard kernel of doubt.
4
A doubt I didn’t get a chance to resolve. Everything started to happen, fast. Trucks rolled up to the house, bringing in trestle tables and chairs, tableware and serving dishes, coolers and food—so much food. I ended up retreating to the bathroom, spending an inordinate amount of time cleaning myself. When I got out, the place was full of people.
“Hey, love. I was going to wait until the party started, but the girls, they just turned up.” I stood there, hair dripping, just clad in a damp towel as Slade came closer, two beaming women at his back. “This is my Mum, Cheryl, and my sister, Lisa.”
“Um... hi?”
“Oh, she’s so pretty. You didn’t say how pretty she was!” Slade’s mum said, surging forward and wrapping her arms around me in the world’s most awkward hug. My arms were pinned by my sides, holding the towel up. “Welcome to the family, Julie! I am so happy you’ve chosen my boy. Slade’s dads are dying to meet you! They’re at home, pre-celebrating.” She rolled her eyes at this. “But we wanted to come by, see if you need anything. Do you have something nice to wear tonight?”
“Not sure,” I said, my mind racing. Clothes had been largely optional since I’d changed, so I had forgotten what I had buried at the bottom of my duffel bag.
“Mum, you’re overwhelming the poor woman,” Lisa said, nodding to me with a smile. “This is why Slade didn’t introduce you beforehand. She’s just gotten out of the shower.”
“Oh, yes! Well, let’s get you dressed—”
“Mum!”
“Let’s leave Julie in peace for a minute, and we’ll talk in the lounge room,” Lisa said, steering her mother by the shoulders. She winked over her shoulder at Slade. “Nice one, bro.”
“Hey, I’m sorry...” His voice trailed away when his hand landed on my bare arm. His brows knitted for second before he looked at me. “Are you OK? Why do you feel like this?”
I met his gaze square on, fighting the reassuring waves of love and excitement rolling off him. How could he not see it? I got that he’d achieved some major milestone in his community when I bit him, but I’d been given the bare amount of information about what that meant and no time to process it. God, I’d been begging him to stick his dick up my arse before I was ready for it just a few hours ago.
I’d like to say this was the point I said all of these things to the man who confessed he loved me. That I let him in, shared my thoughts and fears. Instead, I said, “I need to see Brandon.”
His face fell for a second. Of course, it did. His family was waiting in the lounge room—my new lounge room, apparently—ready to welcome me into the fold. It seemed some kind of makeover was involved, from his mum’s mention of pretty. Maybe mani-pedis were a universal way for women to bond the world over. I looked down at the gnawed stubs of nails on my fingers. This just wasn’t going to work.
“Give my apologies to your family. I just need to do something first. What time is this thing on?”
“Sundown, but—”
“I promise, I’ll be back before it starts. I’ll sit down with your family and get to know them. I just need this, please?”
His nod was stiff, but he handed me the keys to his car and said, “He’ll be down at the Stores warehouse.” Then he turned on his heel and walked away.
I got dressed quickly, not in something nice, just something functional that covered my skin, protecting it somehow from the outside world. I slipped out the back door, jumped the fence, and got into Slade’s car like a criminal, Buddy sitting beside me as we drove down to the Stores building.