“I couldn’t stay mad at you.”
Ashley pulled away and stepped into his arms.
Daniel moved back and now it was time for the rest of the pack to make their judgement.
He waited with bated breath. Never had he wanted to be accepted more than he did in that moment.
“I have one request,” Ben said.
“Yes, sir, anything.”
“You take care of her, that is all I need.”
“Yes, sir. I will.”
Ben nodded. “Good. I think it’s time for us to leave and give these two lovebirds some privacy.”
Ashley smiled up at him.
“I’ll do more than take care of you,” he said.
“Yeah, what will you do?”
He winked at her. “You’ll see.”
Epilogue
Five Years Later
“You’ve done good, Phoenix,” Ben Simpkin said
Phoenix turned to his father-in-law and he couldn’t help but smile. It was five years in coming, but he figured that was to be expected. Ben had accepted him into the family, and he was there for all the necessary family dinners, parties, Christmases, birthdays, and every single occasion they seemed to come up with. There was always some kind of event for him to be part of. Ashley was worried that he would hate it, but Phoenix loved it, every single one of them.
Forty-five years of going without, of living on the cold and empty road, with nothing to look forward to. He’d come to find that pack life was exactly what he wanted. But none of that mattered. He was pleased with Ben’s approval, but this was all for his wife, for Ashley.
Her birthday was often a very private affair between the two of them. This year, their official fifth anniversary of being together, but technically ten years, he’d decided to get the whole pack involved and throw her a surprise party. He’d insisted on their son’s help as well. Paul was running around the town square with all the other kids.
He held their daughter, Bella, and looked over at his wife. He didn’t know if others could tell she was already pregnant with their third. They had been very busy the past couple of years.
With the help of the pack, they finished his home, furnished it, and Ashley moved in. They got married, at her parents’ insistence. It wasn’t long after their wedding that they discovered she was pregnant, which had changed his whole world. Being a father was the single most terrifying and exciting thing to happen to him. He didn’t want to screw up any kid, but had a horrible feeling that was exactly what he would do.
Ashley helped him, as always. The alpha gig didn’t come without complications. She was there by his side. The love of his life.
Ten years ago, he had fucked up big time. Five years ago, he had started to rectify his mistake, and now he hoped she was happy because he spent every single day making up for what he’d done.
Ashley glanced over at him, and she smiled. It was a subtle smile.
“Excuse me,” he said.
He made his way across the town, nodding at the people, trying to get through the throngs, until he finally stood in front of his wife.
She reached out, stroking their daughter’s cheek. “You didn’t have to do this.”
“Oh, yeah, I did. After what you did for me, I had to do this.”
Ashley had made it her mission to find out his birthday. For four years, they’d been celebrating the day he came to the pack as his birthday, but she had made some calls, got their best pack hunters, and found out his real birth date. She never told him, but she arranged a surprise birthday, and it sure had surprised him.
Wrapping his free arm around her, he pulled her in close. “I want the very best for my wife, my mate, and the love of my life.”
She sighed. “I’m never going to get tired of hearing that.” She reached out and cupped his cheek. “Thank you.”
“No, thankyou.”
He knew what she was thanking him for. For stopping by that day, for saving them, for coming back. But he thanked her for giving him a chance and showing him that there was more to life than loneliness.
The End