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Elle chuckled. “Bailey is a riot. I just love her. Oh, she’s dragging Damian into the conga line. And he’s letting her. Someone should really warn her that she’s dancing with the son of Satan.”
Vinnie flicked his daughter an exasperated look. “Elle, you’ve got to let it go.”
The redhead’s lips thinned. “He painted satanic symbols on my front door.”
“Probably because you painted crucifixes on his bedroom door,” said Vinnie.
Elle threw up her arms. “How else can we combat his evil?”
Still cradling the baby, Havana looked at Luke. “Hey, how’s your left hand?”
The Beta’s brow creased. “My hand?”
“Yeah,” she replied. “Is it sore or anything?”
Luke slid Tate a confused glance before shaking his head. “No, it’s fine,” he told her.
Havana frowned. “Oh. Okay.”
Feeling his mouth quirk, Tate leaned into her. “You almost sound disappointed.”
“Not disappointed,” she said. “Just surprised. The universe warned me that something would happen to his hand. I don’t get why he’s fine.”
“I do. It’s because the universe doesn’t warn us.” But Tate still found it endearing that she believed differently.
“Come on, even you have to admit the signs are there. The movie Cool Hand Luke popped up as a new title on my streaming service, I saw a novel in the bookstore yesterday with that exact same title, and a song called Left Hand Luke played on the radio this morning.”
“I think it’s a coincidence. Nothing more.”
She sniffed. “There’s no helping you. There really isn’t.”
At that moment, Aspen sidled over with Camden close behind her. After cooing and awing over the baby, the bearcat said, “Bailey’s certainly popular with the minks. You have to admire her ability to blend into whatever social circle she enters. Not that she’s always welcome for long, since she can’t help but stir shit. Still …”
Camden looked at Tate. “Not sure if you know, but those two wolves look like they’re about to throw down. Well, the youngest doesn’t seem all that pissed. But the older one is getting all worked up.”
“Yeah, they do that often,” said Tate. “Nick, who’s the Alpha male of the Mercury Pack, doesn’t like that the son of the Phoenix Pack Alphas hangs with Nick’s daughter a lot. The two males regularly get into stare-outs, but they never take it further.”
Aspen tipped her chin toward Corbin and Dawn. “Those two are so cute together.”
“Totally,” agreed Havana. “I’ll be surprised if they don’t imprint on each other. Corbin’s absolutely gone for her.”
Luke smirked at Tate. “Kind of like you’re gone for Havana. Or ‘whipped’ might be a better word. Kidding, no need to growl.” He clapped Tate on the back. “Happy for you, bro. You might have tried to kill me several times over the years, but I still got nothing but love for you.” Luke sighed when Tate didn’t speak. “You’re supposed to return the sentiment.”
“You want me to lie to you?” asked Tate.
Luke rolled his eyes. “I know you love me.”
“Funny. You once accused me of hating your guts with a pathological passion.”
“You broke my leg in two places! And you did it because I went into your room without knocking first.”
“You missed out the part where you peed all over my shoes while you were in there.”
“I only did that because you tried to drown me for the third time.”
Tate shrugged. “They say ‘third time’s a charm,’ so I figured it was worth a shot.”
“Come on,” Havana cut in, tugging on Tate’s shirt. “Let’s go thank some more people before you and your brother get into a full-blown argument.” She returned the sleeping baby to Farrell.
She and Tate spent over another hour circling the Tavern and dishing out their thanks.
When they’d finally done their rounds and the night was coming to a close, Tate grazed her ear with his lips as he said, “Don’t know about you, but I’m ready to get out of here.”
“Sounds good to me,” she said.
Luke and Deke escorted them home, but Tate dismissed them the moment he and Havana stepped into the house. He then crossed to his mate, who was hanging up her jacket. Once she’d kicked off her shoes, he pulled her flush against him. “It’s been hours since I had a taste of that mouth. Open for me.”
Her nose wrinkled. “Not really feeling in the mood. Too tired.”
He felt one corner of his mouth kick up, knowing she was playing with him. “I’ll bet I could get you in the mood.”
“I don’t think that’ll happen.”
He backed her into the wall. “I accept your challenge.” He dropped to his knees, hiked up her dress, and pressed a kiss to a bite mark he’d left on her inner thigh. He had a very vivid memory of branding her there just before he’d flipped her over and claimed her ass. It was an experience he intended to repeat, but not tonight.
