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“But shouldn’t we wait for them to-”
“What, come in here and hand down their sentence?” Lo snaps angrily, yanking her shirt down her torso and cutting me a glare.
So much for basking in the afterglow of our mating.
I blow out a breath, fastening the button of my jeans as I move toward her. As soon as I’m within reach, I gather her in my arms, sliding a finger beneath her chin to tip her head up. “You’re still mad at me.”
It’s not a question. I know I fucked up with Lo, and I’ll own that. The good news is, now that we’re officially bonded, I’ve got our whole lives to make it up to her.
She stares up at me defiantly, so many emotions swimming in those clear blue eyes of hers. “Yeah, I am,” she confirms with a resigned sigh. “But right now, I’m a lot more pissed off at those alpha-holes out there who think they can make decisions about our lives without even hearing our side of the story.” She throws a hand toward the door dramatically. “Madd and Sloane’s bond snapped in the same night ours did, but do you think he’s once considered putting himself in our shoes? And Alpha Reid’s mate was actuallyworkingfor the shadow pack when she first showed up, but everyone conveniently seems to forgetthat!”
“Lo,baby, you’ve gotta take a breath,” I say calmly, pulling her in close and cradling her head against my chest. I drop a kiss on the crown of her head, pressing my nose to her blonde hair to take a deep inhale of her tantalizing floral and citrus scent.
Fuck, it makes me want to strip her down again and go for round two.
“Don’t you want to go out there and take control of our destiny?” she mumbles, her voice muffled against my chest.
I pull back to look at her and she lifts her head, peering into my eyes again. “Whatever you want to do, I’m with you,” I say, taking her chin in a hand and stroking the pad of my thumb along her lower lip. “A thousand percent,Cariño.”
She narrows her eyes. “Don’t try to butter me up with your pretty Spanish pet names, Javier Cruz. You and I still have things to work out, this just takes precedent right now.”
I chuckle softly, leaning down to press my lips against hers. “I look forward to it,mi amor.I love it when you get feisty like this.” I grab ahold of her perfect ass with both hands and haul her against me, claiming her mouth. She melts into my touch,her body going soft and pliant in my arms as I kiss her sweet and slow, and when I finally pull away and her eyes flutter open to meet mine again, some of the fight has drained out of them- but the steely determination is still there, simmering just beneath the surface.
“Alright, let’s go then,” I murmur, stepping back and offering her my hand.
She places hers in mine confidently, wrapping her lithe fingers around the back of my palm and holding on tight.
This is it.
I take a deep breath, then lead the way out of the room, the two of us walking down the hall side by side with our hands still holding fast. The dull drone of voices grows louder as we near the end of the hallway, my heart slamming against my ribs in time with our footsteps against the hardwood floor as we march toward our uncertain future.
As soon as we emerge from the hall, I see the members of six-pack leadership spread out on several of the black leather couches positioned around the large living room in a semi-circle. I’m familiar with the young guys, but I only recognize the senior alphas from photographs: Chase, Brock, Reid, and Theo. Lo clears her throat to get their attention, and all of their heads snap in our direction.
“I have something to say,” she announces, and the entire room falls so silent you could hear a pin drop, gazes pinging from her face, to mine, down to our joined hands.
“I’ve known all of you my whole life, and whenever I’ve been brought in on decision making, I’ve always backed you up,” Lostates, her voice clear and confident. “As you’re all aware by now, Javi is my mate. And I know you guys don’t know him that well yet, but you do knowme. You know I don’t make decisions lightly. I want him to stay, and I need you to back me up on this one.”
She pauses, sweeping her gaze around the room. “What he did today should be proof enough that he’s a good guy. It doesn’t matter who his parents were, what matters is whoheis. He did the right thing today, for his pack, for us, for me…” she trails off, her gaze flickering up to meet mine, then returning to the men seated before us. “And if you turn him away, you’re turningmeaway, too,” she adds, reaching up to yank the collar of her shirt over to showcase the fresh mate mark on her skin. “We’re fully bonded now.”
“The hell you are!” Iver growls, shooting to his feet.
Maddox jumps up to hold him back, flicking an annoyed look in our direction.
“Really, dude, under the same roof as her brother?” Theo mutters, aiming a scowl at me.
“Oh here we go…” Reid groans, flopping back against the couch cushions and rolling his eyes.
“You didn’t have to do all that, you know,” Madd grits out, shoving Iver back down onto the couch and turning to face us. He folds his inked forearms over his chest, lifting his chin as he meets my eyes. “We already decided he’s in.”
Lo’s mouth falls agape. “What?”
Madd nods as his gaze slides from me to my mate. “Yeah, once everyone was brought up to speed, we took a vote. It wasunanimous.” He heaves an irritated sigh, scrubbing a hand over his face. “I mean damn, you should know by now how much we respect you, Lo. We weren’t about to turn away your fated mate. If you sign off on the guy, then we trust your judgment.”
Lo’s still standing beside me, at a loss for words, and I belatedly realize that my own mouth is hanging open, snapping it closed as I process what Madd just said. My heart’s beating fast, hand squeezing Lo’s tighter.
I’m… in?
“Like you said, he proved himself today,” Archer says, sliding me a smug grin from his seat beside his father. “We were just debating where his pack should stay, since there’s a bit of a housing issue.”
