Mom and I are currently at one of the three large picnic tables set up on the grass a few feet away from the patio for tonight’s dinner, which is just for the council alphas, Cat and Stan, and Cat’s sister and Tyson’s uncle. Right now, with all the wedding stuff done, me and Mom are having a glass of wine and a quiet chat while Tyson and Ivy cuddle on the back porch swing, acting like nobody else is even here.
“I just don’t know how this is my life,” Mom muses. “To have the attention of two men at once? Two very attractive men who are markedly different from your father? It’s been fun.” She shrugs, fiddling with fake flowers we’ve put aside to weave into Ivy’s hair tomorrow.
“Sounds like it’s good to be ‘Kathy’ instead of Kathleen,” I tease.
She smiles brightly.
“And both suitors are going to be here tomorrow for the wedding, so your dance card is going to be full tomorrow, for sure. Still not sure which direction you’re leaning?”
“Well…” she whispers.
I move in. “Keep it low or these guys with their supersonic hearing will hear,” I warn.
“I don’t know yet,” she whispers. “It’s too soon to make a decision. They’re both wonderful. And I don’t know that either of them expect me to decide between them. It’s just been fun so far. It’s been one date. And that doesn’t mean anyone wants to have a commitment.”
“They’re both alphas, Mom, and I don’t know a whole lot about alpha traits so far, but…”
My sister joins us and cuts me off, “They’re gonna want you to decide. And soon. Else there might be a brawl. Don’t have men brawling on my wedding day, Mom.” Ivy throws herself into a chair beside me and pops the tab on her can of Sprite.
“What can I say?” Mom flutters her lashes and flips her hair. “I’m in demand.”
We both laugh.
“Well, for now, I’m just having fun.” Mom shrugs.
“Do we need to have the birth control talk?” Ivy teases.
I laugh.
Mom rolls her eyes.
“Too bad it’s not a fated mate situation, though,” Ivy whispers. “Mom will miss out on the knotting.”
“Poor Mom,” I whisper.
“And the neck clit,” Ivy adds.
Mom’s face drops. And she looks sorely disappointed.
“Bailey’s mom was a second wife and I think she gets the knot,” I say.
“Really?” Ivy asks.
Mom straightens up.
“So, my best guess is that there’s more of a chance of that if you hook up with Lorenzo.”
“Why?” Mom asks.
“Because Cade is an unmated alpha. Lorenzo is a widowed alpha. You could pick Cade and he could suddenly identify his fated mate and drop you like a hot potato.”
“How do you know so much more about this than me?” Ivy asks.
“I got drunk with a couple of the girls last week. Cicely filled me in. She’s sworn off alphas for now. She has a thing for Lincoln and since he’s never mated but is in line to mate, probably soon…”
I feel heat on the back of my neck and look over and see Lincoln is staring at me, a face of stone. He’s over by the cooler, no longer at the barbeque grill.
Oh shit. Supersonic hearing. Duh, Amelia!
Yikes. I wiggle my fingers and giggle nervously.
He cracks open another beer and flicks the cap into the cooler before taking a long drink, looking pissed off.
I look to Mom and Ivy who both look uncomfortable.
“I think I need to make a call to Cicely,” I whisper.
“Yep,” Ivy replies.
Laughter breaks out and I look over and see Tyson at the arched wedding pergola where Mason and Joel are stringing lights round the flowers that me and Mom weaved through earlier. Mason and Tyson are both laughing hard, looking happy. The smile on my gorgeous man’s face fills me with joy. His eyes cut to me and go even warmer, so I blow him a kiss.
He reaches out and pretends to catch it. Swoon.
“Food’s ready! Where are the parents?” Jase calls out.
“They’ll be here any minute,” Tyson answers.
Me, Ivy, and Mom dash indoors to grab the salads from the fridge and as I step out, I look around. It looks perfect. Everything is ready for my sister and her big day tomorrow. Mom brought me three dresses to choose from, from a dress shop a few towns over since I couldn’t get away after the mayhem at the clinic yesterday. I chose a royal purple lace dress with a scalloped off the shoulder neckline.
All in all, it’s been great this afternoon, finally spending time with Mom and Ivy. And in addition to the beautiful weather today, the grass and trees have fully woken from their wintertime nap and the back of Tyson’s home has lush flowerbeds filled with tulips and daffodils.
The spot is the perfect outdoor wedding spot with the river, the beautiful rocky waterfall in the backdrop, and this house is gorgeous, too. I teased Ivy about that shack she and Tyson were staying in. Her reaction told me that she’s got fond memories of where her and Tyson had their beginning.