Page 67 of Thrown into the Mob

“Soon.”

THIRTY-TWO

MADD

“You should wear something colorful. This is a happy occasion.” I was rifling through my mate’s clothes in the closet of our new home. “That’s what it said on the invitation.”

We’d moved in a week ago, and there were boxes strewn around the place. Conrad had nothing when we arrived, and we’d gone on a shopping expedition. But I’d accumulated stuff, even though most of my time had been spent away and undercover.

Conrad appeared out of the bathroom wearing a gray shirt. “Will this do?”

I groaned and marched him into the walk-in closet. My mate’s side was all gray, white, and black, and while I didn’t have Rudy’s flair for color, I had blues, greens, and yellows on my side.

“Come on, babe. This is Storm’s birthday party.” I didn’t say it out loud, but in my head I added, “Not the nightly dinner at the dragon compound.” I didn’t need my mate to give me the details, but I’d bet his father had insisted on silence during a meal and his sons dressed formally.

The party was at Flint’s rather than Ranger’s so the kids could run around outside. We debated whether to drive the mile to Flint’s or walk because it was less than that if we cut across the surrounding fields.

I was excited to see the entire family because we hadn’t been together in forever. But I worried my mate might be a little overwhelmed. Family had been his late father and now-treacherous brother.

“There’ll be a lot of people at the party.”

“Mmmm. I imagine brothers, mates, kids, a grandfather, and an Arnie who is a great-great-uncle to the little ones.”

I nudged him. “Someone else will be present, or I should say something else.”

He gave me a look. “What? Like someone’s wolf? Is that a thing?”

“S.U.G.A.R.”

“Ohhhh. We need to prepare ourselves. Damn, we should have brought shields and perhaps swords.”

I giggled. It was good to laugh at my mate being silly.

Flint's property appeared through the trees. My Alpha who liked rules and manicured lawns was the head of a family who constantly ignored, bent, or destroyed said rules. So I was prepared for a typical family get-together of turmoil and loud voices along with bumps and scrapes as the kids tore around.

Conrad turned toward me, and the sun created an elongated shadow of his baby bump. I cradled it and kissed his brow. When his father imprisoned me, I would have laughed in disbelief if anyone had described our lives now.

The driveway was lined with cars, and children’s squeals and high-pitched shrieks reached us long before we got to the front door.

“Put that down, please.” That was Ranger, and I guessed the amount of sugar the kids had consumed had already ramped up.

The door was open, and Tony was nearby with Kendric, wiping marshmallow out of his son’s hair.

“Great timing.” He put my hand in Kendric’s and asked me to finish cleaning him up. “Allegra put the birthday candles somewhere, and I need to find them.”

I kneeled beside the little boy whose sticky face didn’t stop him grinning, and I beckoned Conrad to get as low as he could with his burgeoning belly.

“Do you remember me?” I asked Kendric.

“Mmmm. You are Treyton’s brother.” He looked at my mate with wide eyes. “And you are a dragon. Can I see you fly?”

Conrad shot me a glance. “One day, but not today, because it’s Storm’s special day today.”

My mate was too heavily pregnant to shift, and his beast was frustrated not to fly. But he was content to stay inside until the baby arrived.

Kendric released himself from my grip and ran off shouting, “Daddy, the dragon is going to fly for us.”

“Oh, no. No, I didn’t.” Conrad eased himself up. “This is Storm’s birthday.” My mate wiped a hand over his face. “How did that happen? I didn’t say that.”