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“Is that my baby?” A voice called, followed by crunching on gravel.
My mother’s words pulled me back to my senses. “Yeah, Mom,” I said.
Joel took a step back, creating physical distance, but his eyes never left my face. Not even as my mother barreled through the five of them and pulled me into a hug. It didn’t matter that she was wearing a pale blue pantsuit and heels that could kill her on the gravel, she was here anyway.
“Hey, Mom. Happy Anniversary.”
“If I knew a wedding and a silly party would make you come back, I would have made Warren propose to Ellie earlier. Then maybe you would have come home.”
I hugged her back. “Planes exist,” I whispered lightly. “You could have come to see me.”
Pulling back, she waved a hand. “You know I’m not built for the cold.”
There were many times I informed her that the northeastern coast wasn’tonlycold, but it didn’t really matter. This was her home, and she was comfortable. I couldn’t imagine my mother in the tiny apartment I rented above a laundromat and a takeout Chinese place. It was better she didn’t know about that particular detail.
I might have oversold my living situation, knowing she would never see it firsthand.
“And this must be your lovely pack,” she said, looking around at the men surrounding me. “I have to admit, I was a little surprised when Isolde told us she was bringing a pack home. We had no idea she was even seeing anyone.”
Rowan stepped forward and shook my mother’s hand, towering over her even in her heels. “It’s incredibly nice to meet you, Mrs. Caruso. We’ve been looking forward to it. I’m Rowan.”
I watched as they all introduced themselves and were perfectly charming. Not like me, stuck to the side of the SUV like I was a bug that got smashed there on the highway.
Cade took my hands and wove our fingers together like it was the most natural thing in the world. And it most definitely didnotsend warmth shooting straight through me.
My mother led the way into the house. “Well, come inside. Geoffrey will take your bags to the suite, so don’t worry about that. I’m sure Henry will want to meet you as well.”
“The suite?” I asked. “What do you mean?”
“Oh, I’m putting all of you in the guest suite on the south side. It has a pack bedroom. I thought it might be more convenient.”
My mouth dropped open, my entire body freezing. “But you?—”
“I what?” She raised an eyebrow.
“You don’t let unmarried or unbonded people stay in the same room. Suite. Whatever.”
Mom rolled her eyes. “You make me sound like I’m an uptight prude or something.”
I looked at her hair, curled into an updo so tight it looked like it was slicked to her head, and gave her a face that saidreally? Whenever Beau came here, he had to stay in a separate room.
“Well, that may have been the case before,” she said. “But not anymore. You’ll have the suite. Ellie and Warren are staying together too. I’m not such a bore that I’m going to keep my daughter away from a pack. Especially not one like this.”
Hawk choked back a laugh, and the others glared at him. But I was still figuring out how this was going to work. Part of thisplan was the fact that I wasn’t going to be sleeping in the same place as them. AKA, no temptation.
When I had no idea who they were and what they looked like, I wasn’t concerned. Now? I was going to needseveralwalls between myself and them if I expected my body not to betray me.
“There she is.” Henry strode out into the foyer from the direction of his office.
I smiled. “Hi, Dad.”
He was my stepdad, but it never felt that way. I didn’t know my real father well enough to even remember him. The only thing I still had of my biological father was his last name.
Henry was Ellie’s biological father, but he never treated us differently.
“How are you doing?” He asked quietly, pulling me in for a hug.
“Surviving.Reallylooking forward to tonight.”
