“Um…” I look up at Wolf, and thank god, he looks as sucker punched as I do. Not that either of us should—this is a normal part of the getting-married process—but fuck, how did we forget rings?
“We…uh don’t actually have those yet,” Wolf explains to her, presumably right off his cuff.
Yet?We never even talked about it.
“This is a little bit spur of the moment,” he adds.
Judge Lafferty looks between us, her smile wide but not quite reaching her eyes. We’re clearly doing a shit job of selling this.
“We couldn’t wait,” I offer, sucking in a breath and smiling.
“How romantic.” She nods.
Yeah.
“That’s okay, we can proceed without them,” she says.
I let out a quiet breath, secretly cursing myself for being the worst fucking actress, and say the verbal pledge without actually exchanging rings. I try to act cool, but heat creeps under my skin. The good news is I’m not so nervous about marrying Wolf anymore so much as I’m worried about looking like a complete asshole while doing it.
I dare myself to look up into Wolf’s eyes, not at or through them like I’ve been doing this whole time but actually into them. I’m searching for anything that might center me. A sign that we’ve got this, or a terrified look of doom; either way, I want to know where he’s at, wherewe’reat.
I let myself get lost in the dark green forest of his gaze and am surprised to easily find a look of confidence. Deliberation. It’s a simple message of ‘We’re doing this… We’re all in.”
“By the power vested in me, I pronounce you man and wife.” Judge Lafferty finishes with a satisfied sigh.
Wolf’s stature seems to relax as he shifts slightly on his feet, and a weight lifts from my shoulders. We continue looking at each other, hands still joined, as if we’re both afraid of what’s next. If we look at the judge, walk out of these chambers, or even move, we’ll have to face our new reality, which is married to a stranger.
“You may kiss…if you like,” the judge says, the hint of a smile on her face.
Before I have time to think about how odd it is to kiss someone for the first time because you’ve been instructed to, Wolf leans forward, like this kiss will be no big deal, just two body parts touching for a moment. That thought should give me some kind of relief, so why does it hurt a little inside?
Wolf’s lips connect with mine. They’re soft and somehow firm at the same time. He lingers for a moment, letting our mouths move just enough to feel each other out. Much to my surprise, sparks explode inside me while chills shimmer and dance on the surface of my skin. The connection is electric, and when Wolf pulls away, I fight the urge to pull him back to me and crash my lips against his again.
On the way back to the truck, I try a million times not to read into it, but my mind wanders. Then, Wolf’s phone buzzes in his pocket.
“Fuck,” he mutters, retrieving it and shaking his head when he looks at the contact on the screen. “This better be urgent,” he all but growls into the mouthpiece, and I busy myself with my seatbelt so I don’t look like I’m full-on gawking. “For what?” he demands, sounding exceptionally grouchy.
A muffled male voice, probably one of his brothers, sounds over the phone, along with the wordsituationand phrase “it involves her too” before Wolf scoffs into the phone.
“Fine. On my way,” he signs off, tossing his phone down on his seat.
“What is it?” I ask as he starts up the engine.
“We need to stop by headquarters. You good with that?”
“Sure,” I agree, “because what the hell else are we going to do? Drive back to the home we now share and sit down and stare at each other?”
My response is met with a frown as he pulls the truck out onto the road.
13
WOLF
“Am I high on something, or is half the town here?” Molly says, glancing around and taking in the scene with wide hazel eyes.
I notice Uncle Bert, dressed in a grey suit with a pink button down underneath. I send him a telepathic message in the form of a death glare that seems to work when his smile pivots from greeting a guest to my demanding expression. And it doesn’t falter when he waves and wanders over as if we’ve just run into each other at the tavern.
“There’s the happy couple!” He holds his arms open in greeting and drifts straight to Molly. “You must be Molly. Welcome to the family darlin’.” He offers his hand to her and places a kiss on her cheek.
