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Raven shrugged. It was no secret that she and I weren’t pleased about going, but Raven was more reluctant than me. “Not now. They’re all in the garment bag. I don’t want to take them out again.”
“I…” Asher started and my chest tingled knowing we were going to have a redo of the conversation we’d been having for weeks, and we’d come to the same conclusion as always. “We don’t have to go. It’s bringing nothing but anxiety for both of you.”
It would be stressful. “Asher, I want to go meet your parents. I’m only afraid that we could see mine in the process. These balls…everyone and their brother is invited. I don’t want to have a confrontation. And what if your parents are the same? What if they take one look at us and decide they hate us?”
Asher walked over and took Raven’s face in his hands. He was a good mate. Always thoughtful and gave his all for this mating. There were snags in every relationship, but both of my mates were worth it. “What are you really afraid of, love? Because the woman I mated doesn’t give two shits about what others think, and I love her for that.”
Raven’s gaze met his and then mine. All of us in one way or the other had to let go of our walls and be transparent with each other. Mine had been thicker than everyone’s combined, and being taken from Asher and Raven had broken them down in one blast. Raven’s were lighter than they had been, but Asher could always coax her from her mental kingdom. “If they don’t like us, then…” She sighed. It was hard for her. I went to stand behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist, resting my chin on her shoulder. “What’s going to happen if they don’t?”
We knew what she was saying. If they didn’t like us, if they didn’t want any part of someone whose parents—members of their own social set—had disowned her, was Asher going to abandon us like her parents did? She brushed the whole thing off but the truth was, her parents rejecting her mates and her choices in love cut her to the marrow.
“Raven, if they don’t like you, then they don’t. Nothing about us or this mating or our lives change. If they cut me off financially, it’s okay. I’ve been smart with my money, and we have plenty to take care of all of us.” His gaze shifted to me. “And while we’re on the topic, if we ever see your parents, I have some choice words for them. I honestly hope I do see them one day. I hope they see us happy and desperately in love and wish they hadn’t been colossal jackasses to one of the sweetest daughters on the earth.”
“Promise?” Raven asked. Gods, I loved her even more when she allowed herself to be this vulnerable.
“I promise. You two are mine, no matter what life throws at us. All of us belong to each other. Nothing will change our minds, right, Onyx?” He leaned forward and kissed my lips and then Raven’s, sealing his vows.
“Absolutely. No one has a say in our lives but us.”
Raven gave in to our hold, and we cuddled for a while before she decided to give us a show anyway. While she was changing from one sexy dress to another, Asher ran his hand up my thigh. Gods alive, it was like watching the sexiest, slowest striptease in the history of dance. Raven wore a strapless lacy black bra with a matching thong that made my core throb, and Asher was having a reaction as well. My mates always lit my body on fire. “She’s something, right?” He leaned over and whispered in my ear.
“Something is an understatement. She’s everything.”
Chapter Two
Valentina
“With all this mistletoe around, no one is going to drink or dance. They’ll be too busy making out,” I said, while untangling myself from strands of silver tinsel. Josephine had so much of it that by the time I was done fishing it out of the box, I looked like a disco ball.
“Yeah, but Tess will be here for the party…” Jeremy protested.
“So hang up a bunch at your house,” Jo quipped. “This is a business.”
Tess whispered something in Jeremy’s ear which, in turn, made him bend her backward and kiss the hell out of her.
Mates were the greatest. Mine were the best, but even seeing others with their fated mates was a joy.
Raven hadn’t texted me back when I asked if they’d arrived at Asher’s parents’ house but then again, she only responded when she had something to say. Her words.
“Maybe we need some mistletoe at the house.” Fox enveloped me in his hold, his arms winding around my waist from behind. He rested his chin on my shoulder.
“As though we need any encouraging,” I said, turning to kiss his cheek.
“That’s true,” he chuckled, making my entire body vibrate. My mates had such a profound impact on me, in all ways. Sometimes I wondered if it would fade, and I was sure it would, but for now, I was thoroughly enjoying this phase.
“What is he doing?” I tipped my chin to Bishop who was strong-arming a triple-box tower while he maneuvered around tables with ease. He was the buffest of all my mates but he moved with grace.
“Josephine said she had twenty-five Christmas trees in all shapes and sizes. He said he didn’t remember that many from the year before. They argued. Guess who won?”
I laughed while burrowing deeper into my man’s hold. “Josephine. Let me guess. Now he has to pull them all from the basement.”
“He walked right into it. Everyone knows better than to argue with Jo.” Storm came to stand next to me and held my hand. When we first got mated, I would make love with each of them individually but, somewhere along the journey, that line blurred. We all made love together now, and then that bled into our interactions. I was in Fox’s embrace but Storm was next to me, holding my hand and had kissed my temple. But thankfully there was no jealousy between us.
“There are twenty-five of them,” Bishop gruffed from the corner of the room where I watched him pile boxes of artificial Christmas trees of all shapes, sizes, and colors. Each box had a corresponding tote that had the matching decorations.
“I know.” Josephine tossed her salt-and-pepper braid over her shoulder and jutted her chin in the air. She had added jingle bells to her shoes in an effort to be festive, but I would never tell her they drove me nuts. The times when she sat down were like a vacation to my overworked nerves.
We had three of the trees up and decorated, the biggest ones, according to Josephine. My mates were on break from classes and all of us barely scraped by in our grades since we were a bit distracted by dying at the hands of Dean. Still, I was proud of us for even accomplishing a pass.
