Her Sweet Alpha

Chapter Eight

“Where are you staying while you’re in town?” Halle shoved her hands into the pockets of her robe. They’d cleaned up after the interlude on the couch. Dade had put his clothes on but was sans shoes. As it was late, she’d put on her pajamas and a robe. She could barely keep her eyes open.

“I was hoping to stay with you.”

Halle paused in the middle of a yawn. That statement jolted her awake. There was only one bedroom. She slept in the master and she’d turned her old room into a hobby room of sorts. Dade was too big for her couch. “I only have the one bed.”

“Sounds good,” he said in a deep sexy growl.

“Um….”

“Halle, I’ll take no more from you than you’ll willingly give.”

Absorbing those words as a promise, she took a deep breath and nodded. “Um, I might have a spare toothbrush I got from the dentist around here somewhere.” She studied his five o’clock shadow. “But I don’t have a razor.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll get my bag out of my truck. Be right back.”

“Okay. I’ll just…go get ready for bed.”

Staring at herself in the bathroom mirror seconds later, Halle tried not to panic. She’d never spent the night with a man before. Taking a deep breath, she examined her feelings. She wasn’t afraid. She was…excited about waking up with Dade in her bed.

That sorted out, she felt much better and commenced with her nightly routine. She brushed her teeth and washed her face. She heard Dade enter the bedroom as she applied moisturizer to her face and arms. Hurriedly, she brushed her hair and twisted it into a bun.

Dade sat on the end of the bed waiting for her. He dwarfed what had been to her a luxuriously spacious queen-sized bed. They would end up cuddling, she realized. There was no other option. Dade would take up half the mattress. And his feet would hang over the edge.

When she would have slid into bed on the side closest to the door where she usually slept, he gently guided her to the other side. “I sleep closest to the door. I’m your protection,” he said.

She didn’t object as it didn’t matter to her. She put her robe at the foot of the bed and climbed under the covers. “And…what do I need protecting from?”

“Intruders,” he said.

“Suppose they come through the window?”

“I’d hear them opening the window.” He shrugged. “I’d hear them come through the front door as well. I’m a light sleeper.”

“This is a safe area. We all know each other here.”

“I’m sure. Still, I sleep closest to the door. Humor me. It’ll make me feel better.” He rooted around in his duffel and pulled out a smaller bag before heading for the bathroom. She could hear the sounds of him brushing his teeth. A few minutes later he exited.

She turned on the bedside lamp. “Could you turn off the light?”

“Sure.” He stripped down to his briefs. He tossed his clothing on top of his bag before going to turn off the light. Halle marveled at the sight of his broad shoulders and slim waist. The movement of the muscles in his back and thighs was hypnotic. He turned and she was staring at how his cock filled his briefs. Oh, dear sweet Lord…. The man could never be an underwear model. It would be obscene.

Dade cleared his throat. She looked up. His lips curled in a smile. She couldn’t even pretend she hadn’t been staring. Her face felt as hot as fire. She hoped it didn’t show even as she slid down the mattress and pulled the sheets up to her chin.

He slid into bed with her. She turned out the light and he pulled her into his arms. She tucked her head under his chin and sighed. He was so warm and he smelled delicious. Her eyes drifted closed.

Dade stroked her back with one wide hand. The other curved around her waist. “I know I’m asking a lot of you. I show up and tell you that I want to marry you and I want to change your entire world. But I promise you that for every sacrifice you make, there will be benefits. I won’t ever let you regret the decision to bind your life with mine.”

“I haven’t—”

“Shh…. I want to tell you about our life together.”

“Dade—”

“Shh…. You’ll love my cabin. You have free reign to change anything you don’t like. I’m the Alpha of my clan. So, my responsibilities—”

“Whoa!” That was the first time he’d mentioned that detail. She sprang up and turned on the lamp. He’d said he was an Alpha. She hadn’t taken that to mean that he was the Alpha of his clan. For some reason, she’d thought that his father was still filling that position. “Doesn’t that make you like their king?”

He shook his head. “No. People come to me for advice. If there are major decisions to be made about our community, I make them, but only after learning what my people want and taking into consideration what’s best for all. It’s not a role that comes with money. I’m not omniscient and I can step down when I want once I’ve identified a suitable successor. For the last five generations, the Alpha has come from my family line. My father, my grandfather, and great grandfather were all Alpha of our pack.”

“Oh. Does that mean that one of our children will be Alpha?”

His huge grin dazzled her. “Most likely.”

“What has you so happy?”

“You said ‘our children.’”

Halle groaned and snapped off the light again. She settled into his arms. Rather than argue with him, she asked, “How were you chosen to be Alpha?”

“Most of my childhood, everyone thought my brother Dillon would be chosen. An Alpha is most readily recognizable because of his size. My brother is five years older than me and usually the eldest is picked. At ten, he was bigger than any of the other boys. Same thing when he was a teen. His temperament was more laidback than anyone would have expected, but that was okay. Then I hit puberty. Within two years, I was bigger than Dillon.”

“How old were you?”

“I was fifteen. He was twenty.”

“Was he upset?”

“No. I think that Dillon as actually happy. That only confirmed what we’d already suspected. After high school, he decided to ‘go find himself.’” Dade emitted a short laugh. “My dad was furious. My father is the opposite of laidback. If my mom hadn’t intervened, Dillon would have been forced to go to work. In the end, he was gone only a couple of months. He met his mate and brought her home. He and Holly just had their third pup.”

She heard the longing in his voice and knew that he wanted what his brother had. With her. She could give him that. A mate and…pups. “Pups?” she asked to distract herself from such thoughts and the funny undefinable feelings they evoked. “They’re not born as puppies, are they?” That was gross and definitely a deal breaker. But wait. Wasn’t his being a werewolf and wanting transform her into one supposed to be her deal breaker?

“No,” Dade answered, breaking into her thoughts. “But wolf genes are strong. Our pups will definitely be shifters. Most of us can shift by the age of five.” His arms tightened around her. “I will be an excellent provider and protector for you and our pups.”

How she’d love to hear those words from a normal man. Well, except for the “pups” part. She didn’t know if she could become accustomed to referring to children as pups. Dade was offering her a dream that she wasn’t even aware of having. She wanted a close-knit family. Not like the one she’d grown up with. Her parents had been a unit. She’d felt like an interloper. She knew it wasn’t their intention to exclude her. If her father had ever gotten well, then maybe they could have grown close. Become a real family.

Dade said all the right things. He desired the same things that she did. And there was no denying their attraction. So, what was holding her back? Why couldn’t she reach out and grab this happy future with him?

“I’m scared,” she whispered. Change was scary. She’d weathered the deaths of her parents, but essentially, her life stayed the same. Aside from her years in college, she’d lived in this same house her entire life. He wasn’t asking her to move far, but it wouldn’t be her cozy little home.

And she’d be a werewolf. While the teen girl part of her was in awe of gaining the ability to shift into a wolf, the adult in her realized that the power would come with responsibility…and possibly danger. There had been no publicized werewolf kills as yet, but people were dangerous when they were frightened. What would that mean for any family she had with Dade? Would they be hunted for being different?

If she told Dade no, her life would remain the same. Safe. Boring. Empty. Lonely.

“Whatever you’re afraid of, I’ll take care of it.”

“You are too good to be true.”

“So…you think I’m a liar?”

“No, you’re a fairytale.”

His deep chuckle bounced her up and down on his chest. “Wolves are the villains in fairytales.”

“Then we need to write some new ones.”

“Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”

Her heart thumped as if it were trying to beat its way out of her chest. “Can I have a few more days? I promise I’ll have an answer for you soon.” She didn’t want to make a decision tonight while she was vulnerable, while she was still under his spell. They’d been intimate and even now it felt amazing to be in his arms.

Dade groaned. “You’re killing me.”

“I need to be sure. I’ve made enough poor decisions in my lifetime.” Like letting Lamar seduce her. Or attending college and choosing a major without any real plans for her future. Plus, once she said yes, she’d be fully committed. She didn’t make a habit of backing out on her promises so she thought long and hard before making them.

He nodded and kissed her forehead.

Halle flexed her feet and wiggled her hips. A contented hum escaped her throat. She was cozy and warm. She couldn’t recall ever having a better night’s sleep. Doing a full body stretch, she wriggled again.

Dade growled. His big hand spread wide over her lower abdomen and he pressed her back until no space remained between their bodies, making her intimately aware of the thick bar of his morning erection. “Don’t tease,” he rumbled. A shiver raced down her spine at his deep, gravelly tone. He rained warm kisses from the top of her shoulder to the base of her ear. When he bit the soft flesh of her lobe, the sharp points of his incisors sent a spike of desire through her belly. “Good morning.”

Gently, he rolled her onto her back. Stubble covered his jaw. His hair was a wild, vibrant halo. In the darkened bedroom, his pupils nearly swallowed the yellow of his irises. Unable to resist, Halle cupped the nape of his neck and pulled him down for a kiss. A smile curled his mouth as their lips touched.

The kiss started soft, but then he teased the corner of her mouth with his tongue. She opened to him. With a deep groan, Dade slid his thigh between hers even as his tongue glided along hers, goading her into kissing him back with just as much passion. He grabbed her knee and dragged her leg up over his hip. The ridge of his cock rode over her pussy, causing her to moan at the delicious friction. Halle undulated with him as he moved against her.

She felt surrounded by him, drowning in his heat and desire. And she couldn’t gather the will to fight her way to the surface. Dade’s mouth slanted over hers again and again. Her lips were swollen and tender when he pulled back. He placed nibbling kisses down her chin and neck. He licked into the hollow where her collar bones met. Even his warm breath fanning over her skin was arousing.

Dade tugged aside her shirt and lightly bit the top of her shoulder. “This is where I’ll bite you.”

“W-won’t that hurt?”

He drew back so that he could look into her eyes. Running his thumb across the same spot, he shook his head. “No. I’ll have my dick so deep inside you, you won’t even notice.”

Halle inhaled sharply. “Dade—” The doorbell rang. She grimaced. She didn’t know what she was going to say to him. Still, she wasn’t thrilled to have the moment interrupted. The way he held her felt so good. So right. She hated to leave the warmth of his arms.

Dade rolled away. He grabbed up his jeans and was already buttoning them before she’d even rolled out of bed. She shrugged into her robe and belted it. “Why are you getting dressed?” she asked. “It’s my door. I’ll answer it.”

“I’m coming with you.”

She frowned. “Why?”

“Do you usually have visitors at…six o’clock in the morning?”

“Rarely.”

“Then I’d say this was an emergency and you might need my help.”

“If it were an emergency, then they would have called,” she argued but she hurried to the door. “Grandma,” she exclaimed, suddenly fighting a blush. Halle glanced over her shoulder to where Dade stood, shoeless and delectably scruffy from sleep. She had to remind herself that she was an adult and it was perfectly acceptable for her to let a man spend the night.

“Where are your manners, Halle?” Grandma Annie queried, brushing by her and closing the door behind herself. “I’m too old to stand around on cold porches.” She held up a bag. “I picked up breakfast. Make some coffee and introduce me to your young man.”

Halle shot a glance at Dade and followed her grandmother to the kitchen. For a woman in her seventies, she was spry. “Grandma, this is Dade Stone. Dade, this is my Grandma Annie.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Dade said.

“And you as well,” Annie replied. “I’ve heard so much about you. I thought that it was time that we met.”

“How did you know he was here?” Halle asked.

Annie inclined her head of snowy white hair in the direction of her neighbors. “Thelma called me this morning.”

Halle should have known.

“Coffee,” her grandmother reminded her gently when she continued to just stand there fiddling with the belt to her robe.

“Oh.” Halle quickly set to work.

“There’s no hurry. Take your time. While you do that, Mr. Stone and I will sit at the table and have a nice chat.”

Halle’s eyes widened. “Oh.” That was her grandmother’s not so subtle way of saying that she was going to give Dade the familial vetting. Grandma had only done it once before where Halle was concerned. She’d had a “nice chat” with Lamar after he’d proposed. Afterward, her grandmother had told her that she would always support whatever decisions she made in life. However, it was her grandmother’s recommendation that she not marry Lamar. Grandma had said he was untrustworthy and lazy. If only she’d listened to her grandmother then, she could have saved herself a lot of heartache.

Hindsight was a bitch. Lamar had come to her sweating and complaining about her grandmother being nosey and meddling. He’d had more to say, but she’d shut him up by sharply reminding him that he was badmouthing her family. Halle could have said plenty about his parents if asked, but she’d always had the smarts and the decency to keep her lips sealed on the matter.

It would be different with Dade. He was an adult. And an Alpha. He could stand his own with a seventy-something year old. Couldn’t he?

***

Dade held out a chair for Halle’s grandmother then sat opposite her at the round table. He knew what this was. Werewolves had something similar. Usually it was the father that questioned a male to make sure he was worthy of his daughter. In a case like his and Halle’s however, the vetting would be merely a formality. They were fated mates. No one stood between that.

Halle’s grandmother examined him carefully, her gaze sweeping up and down his form. “You’re huge,” she said at last. “And you sure do look like a werewolf.” She didn’t say it like an insult so he chose not to interpret it as one.

He blinked, startled by her frank manner. His appearance frightened grown men yet this tiny old woman didn’t seem at all uncomfortable being in such close proximity with him. “You don’t seem afraid.”

“Well, you seem mostly tame. Besides, I’d die for my girl. And I’d kill for her, too.”

Dade took that as the warning that it was. He nodded. “I would, too.”

She smiles. “Call me Annie.”

“Yes, ma’am. Annie.”

“So, what are your intentions toward my granddaughter?”

“She is my mate. I want to marry her.”

“Just like that?”

“Yes.”

“What do you do for a living?”

“My family owns a construction company.”

“Let me see your hands.” He held out his palms for her inspection. She ran her fingers over them before sitting back and giving him a satisfied smile. “You’re a hard worker. You don’t just sit in an office while everyone else gets their hands dirty.”

“I’ve been working weekends and summers since I was twelve.”

“What’s the name of your construction company?”

“Stone Family Construction.”

“And you can support my girl so that she can stop working in that diner day and night?”

“Yes.”

“Do you have children?”

“No.”

“Do you drink? Gamble?”

“I drink the occasionally but it’s usually to be sociable. I can’t get drunk.” He was too big and his metabolism was too fast. “I don’t gamble.”

“How many cars to do you own?”

“I have my work truck and a SUV,” he replied despite his confusion as to why she was asking about his cars.

“Do you own your own home?”

“Yes.”

“Are the cars paid for?”

Dade smiled as understanding dawned. “Yes. I have excellent credit. I’m not in any major debt. I live within my means, but that doesn’t mean that I won’t occasionally splurge on something I want. Or that I won’t treat my mate.”

“Tell me about your family.”

“I have one brother. Both my parents and my brother are happily married.”

Annie made a humming sound. She studied him once more. “I might have more questions later. I’ll get your number from Halle.”

He fought to hide his smile. “Of course.”

“Now, go get my girl. I’m hungry. I’ve been up since five.”

***

Halle walked her grandmother out to her champagne colored Cadillac. The car was her grandmother’s prized possession. It was fifteen years old, but her grandmother treated it as if it were brand new.

“Can he hear us from here?”

Halle glanced back up at her house. She couldn’t see Dade. After their breakfast, he’d begun to clean up their coffee cups and food wrappers. They’d had a pleasant meal together. Halle was hopeful that her grandmother approved of him. “Probably.”

Annie opened her car door. “Get in.”

Halle did as she was told. She rounded the hood of the car and climbed in on the passenger side. Her grandmother turned on the car, but left it in park. Johnny Cash’s voice filled the interior. Grandma Annie loved her country and gospel music.

“I like him. You know you always have my support whether I agree with your decision or not. Thankfully, this time I agree.”

While she couldn’t hide her smile, she said, “I haven’t agreed to anything yet.”

“Why not?”

“Just being more careful this time.” She wondered if her grandmother understood that she wouldn’t just be marrying a werewolf. She would become one as well.

Annie harrumphed. “You’re comparing apples and oranges. You were a child.”

“I was eighteen.”

“A baby,” she stated firmly.

“You were seventeen when you married.”

“That was a different time. There weren’t as many options for women when I got married. Have you ever wondered why I don’t badger you as much as I do Missy?”

Halle shrugged. “Missy, needed you more. Her mother—”

“That’s not why. I don’t meddle in your life as much because you’re strong and you’re smart. You made some mistakes. Everyone does. But you’ll always land on your feet. You’re a survivor. When you mess up, you’re strong enough to deal with the consequences and smart enough not to repeat the same mistakes. Lamar severely underestimated you. He was a lazy, selfish boy. He never would have been able to handle you.”

Tears stung her eyes at her grandmother’s praise. Halle never knew that her grandmother held her in such high esteem.

Annie pointed at the house through the windshield. “What you have in there is a man—werewolf, whatever you want to call him. The two of you will fight and have rough patches, but he’s as strong as you are. At the end of the day, you will always be able to count on him. I listened to him talk. He understands the importance of family and loyalty. I watched him interact with you. He treats you with love and respect. And I watched you with him. You love him. Don’t let old mistakes scare you so much that they become future regrets.”

Halle nodded. “Yes, ma’am.”

“And make me some pretty great-grandbabies.”

Laughing, Halle wiped tears from her cheeks. “One step at a time,” she said, opening the door. “Thanks, Grandma. I’ve been on the fence about this for too long.” She waved at her grandmother and hurried back inside, eager to talk with Dade.

She found him in the kitchen tossing coffee grounds in the trash. He was so large that his presence dominated the small room. She bit her lip, her heart beating like a drum with excitement. “I hope the kitchen in my new home is bigger than this one.”

Dade stared at her blankly for a second. Once comprehension struck, he laughed. He slapped his hands together before coming to her and scooping her up in his arms. His mouth covered hers in a quick hard kiss. “I passed her test?”

Laughing, Halle nodded. “With flying colors.” She cupped his jaw. “You don’t seem surprised.”

“She’s your family. She has your best interests at heart. So do I. Aside from which, dealing with you humans is a breeze. Had I had to have a talk with a werewolf father, he might have wanted to fight me so that I could prove myself a capable protector.”

Her eyebrows rose. “Sounds rather…archaic.”

He grinned. “We can be animalistic occasionally.”

Halle spread her fingers over his shoulder. “Speaking of which…would you mind if we didn’t mate until after the wedding? I want to do this right.”

A low growl rumbled forth. His hands tightened on her waist. “Halle, I can’t.” He shook his head, his voice full of regret, his expression one of desperate hunger. “I can’t wait…. I need to claim you.”

“Give me two days. We can fill out the paperwork today for the license and get married at the courthouse once its ready.”

“You don’t want a wedding?”

She shook her head. “I don’t care about that.” While some little girls might have fantasized about such a day, she’d always dreamed about what would come afterward. Ordinary crap that other people took for granted. Homecooked dinners Having babies. Cleaning chubby, sticky cheeks and stubby baby fingers. Lazy weekend mornings of having pancakes for breakfast while watching cartoons. Vacations to touristy amusement parks with hot and whiny kids in tow. “Of course, Grandma and Missy will want to be there. Do you want to call your family?”

“That’s not necessary. Werewolves don’t need marriage licenses to show commitment. We only do it to blend in.” Dade grinned as he added, “And for tax purposes.”

“So practical.”

He nodded. Then he sobered. “Two days, Halle. I’m holding you to that.”