Read Online Wolf's Oath (After the Crash 3.25) by Maddy Barone - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Maddy Barone
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leisure in the privacy of their room.
Amid the raucous, joyous howls of his pack mates, he carefully signed his name on the marriage certificate Father John wrote out. Seeing his name written with Connie’s on the card flipped his stomach with fierce delight. The longer side of her pale hair swung loose as she bent to sign her name. The ring he’d slid on her finger a few minutes ago glittered on her left hand, flattened on the table to steady herself as she signed. Mine , he thought. My mate. My wife. Mine.
“We’ll need to get a frame,” Carla told Taye in a soft voice.
“Yeah,” Taye agreed, a note of the same pride and possession that flooded Des in his voice. “We’ll leave them here for the time being, though, on the fireplace mantel.”
“We should put them under the glass you salvaged from the windows at the Barker place,” she suggested. “To protect them.”
“Good idea.” Taye flicked a finger at Snake. “Go get the glass,” he ordered, and the younger wolf went out to obey. “Hungry, sweetheart?”
Supper was served straight away after the marriage certificates were signed. Des enjoyed a hearty meal as much as any other wolf warrior, and Renee was a fine cook, but nothing smelled as good as his mate’s scent. Nothing compared to the taste of her mouth. They sat at the head table with the Chief and the Lupa, and the other newlyweds. Connie sat between him and Taye. The lamplight gleamed on the tiny teardrops dripping from the bottom edge of a wide hoop from her ear as she ate. The earrings fascinated him. Or perhaps it was the sight of his mate’s earlobe. Could he nibble it with the earring in or would he have to remove it? He brushed the trembling jewels with his lips when he leaned close to inhale her scent.
His mate seemed to be trying to avoid him. In fact, over the course of the meal, she inched closer to Taye and further from him. He couldn’t control his wolf’s demand that he pursue her. Each time she shifted away he closed the space between their bodies. Taye shot him a pointed stare. Connie was all but pressed to Taye’s side. Des forced himself to sit back.
Renee brought out a cake that glistened with white frosting that looked as sweet and light as air. Des liked sweets. All the wolves loved to eat cake and pie and cookies, but they’d seldom had such things until Renee had come to live in the den.
“We don’t have individual cakes for each couple,” Renee said in an apologetic tone. “But I cut squares for each couple to share.”
Jelly, the youngest of the wolves at fourteen, sounded whiney when he said, “What about the rest of us?”
“Plenty for everyone,” Renee said, waving a hand at her mate, Bobby Hawk in Flight, who was coming out of the kitchen with a sheet cake carefully balanced in each hand. Jelly quickly relieved him of one sheet cake and carried it to the last table.
The Lupa rose to her feet. “In the Times Before, it was tradition for the bride and groom to feed each other a bite of cake. Do they still do that?”
Des had never heard of such a tradition, but he was happy to do it, if it pleased Connie. Renee set a plate holding a five-inch square of cake on the table between he and Connie. At the Lupa’s urging, all the newly wedded couples stood.
Connie looked at the cake, and then at him. “We’re supposed to feed each other cake at the same time.” She used her knife to cut their portion of cake into quarters, then picked up a piece with her fingers. “Ready?”
Des saw the other couples doing the same. Perhaps it was supposed to be a symbol that he would provide for her. No. That would be him feeding her, not each of them feeding the other. He liked the idea of each of them providing for the other. He took the morsel of cake between brown fingers, and tried to be gentle with it. “Okay.”
The wolves howled while they watched this odd ritual. Odd, but satisfying, since his mate had to pay attention to him while she lifted the
Amid the raucous, joyous howls of his pack mates, he carefully signed his name on the marriage certificate Father John wrote out. Seeing his name written with Connie’s on the card flipped his stomach with fierce delight. The longer side of her pale hair swung loose as she bent to sign her name. The ring he’d slid on her finger a few minutes ago glittered on her left hand, flattened on the table to steady herself as she signed. Mine , he thought. My mate. My wife. Mine.
“We’ll need to get a frame,” Carla told Taye in a soft voice.
“Yeah,” Taye agreed, a note of the same pride and possession that flooded Des in his voice. “We’ll leave them here for the time being, though, on the fireplace mantel.”
“We should put them under the glass you salvaged from the windows at the Barker place,” she suggested. “To protect them.”
“Good idea.” Taye flicked a finger at Snake. “Go get the glass,” he ordered, and the younger wolf went out to obey. “Hungry, sweetheart?”
Supper was served straight away after the marriage certificates were signed. Des enjoyed a hearty meal as much as any other wolf warrior, and Renee was a fine cook, but nothing smelled as good as his mate’s scent. Nothing compared to the taste of her mouth. They sat at the head table with the Chief and the Lupa, and the other newlyweds. Connie sat between him and Taye. The lamplight gleamed on the tiny teardrops dripping from the bottom edge of a wide hoop from her ear as she ate. The earrings fascinated him. Or perhaps it was the sight of his mate’s earlobe. Could he nibble it with the earring in or would he have to remove it? He brushed the trembling jewels with his lips when he leaned close to inhale her scent.
His mate seemed to be trying to avoid him. In fact, over the course of the meal, she inched closer to Taye and further from him. He couldn’t control his wolf’s demand that he pursue her. Each time she shifted away he closed the space between their bodies. Taye shot him a pointed stare. Connie was all but pressed to Taye’s side. Des forced himself to sit back.
Renee brought out a cake that glistened with white frosting that looked as sweet and light as air. Des liked sweets. All the wolves loved to eat cake and pie and cookies, but they’d seldom had such things until Renee had come to live in the den.
“We don’t have individual cakes for each couple,” Renee said in an apologetic tone. “But I cut squares for each couple to share.”
Jelly, the youngest of the wolves at fourteen, sounded whiney when he said, “What about the rest of us?”
“Plenty for everyone,” Renee said, waving a hand at her mate, Bobby Hawk in Flight, who was coming out of the kitchen with a sheet cake carefully balanced in each hand. Jelly quickly relieved him of one sheet cake and carried it to the last table.
The Lupa rose to her feet. “In the Times Before, it was tradition for the bride and groom to feed each other a bite of cake. Do they still do that?”
Des had never heard of such a tradition, but he was happy to do it, if it pleased Connie. Renee set a plate holding a five-inch square of cake on the table between he and Connie. At the Lupa’s urging, all the newly wedded couples stood.
Connie looked at the cake, and then at him. “We’re supposed to feed each other cake at the same time.” She used her knife to cut their portion of cake into quarters, then picked up a piece with her fingers. “Ready?”
Des saw the other couples doing the same. Perhaps it was supposed to be a symbol that he would provide for her. No. That would be him feeding her, not each of them feeding the other. He liked the idea of each of them providing for the other. He took the morsel of cake between brown fingers, and tried to be gentle with it. “Okay.”
The wolves howled while they watched this odd ritual. Odd, but satisfying, since his mate had to pay attention to him while she lifted the
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