Chapter 13 - Mira
Party music blared across the yard and inside the mansion. Cheerful chatter echoed through the air. Beneath the tent, the sunset turned the sky hues of orange, gold, and red. People were dancing.
I stared, head swiveling to look at everything. It was incredible. How the hell Declan had managed to set all this up and gotten so many people to attend with a single day of prep time seemed almost impossible. Yet, here we were.
“Amazing what you can do as alpha,” I muttered, looking out at the town as I took a sip of champagne.
“Thinking of deposing our dear leader already?” someone asked behind me.
I gasped and turned, nearly spilling the champagne as I did. Nolan had strolled over to me, a lazy grin on his face, one hand stuffed in his pocket, the other holding a glass of what looked like whiskey.
“I didn’t think you would turn black widow quite this early,” Nolan mused, taking a sip. “I figured it would take at least a week for him to piss you off enough that you would end up strangling him.”
“Well, I knew him when we were kids, so that week came and went a long time ago.”
The retort was out of my mouth before I realized I was saying anything. For a wild moment, panic gripped me, and I felt certain that I had just made a huge mistake. Instead, Nolan threw his head back and barked out a laugh.
“Fair enough,” he said. “Can’t blame you there. I can imagine he was a massive heel back then.”
“We definitely didn’t see eye to eye,” I admitted.
Nolan nodded, as if understanding there was more to the story than I was letting on. “He was a bit of a dick when I first met him,” Nolan admitted. “But the Gold Wolves mellowed him out quite a bit. And Dani did as well. He’s a good guy. Seriously, you couldn’t ask for a better mate.” He flashed me a conspiratorial wink. “Myself excluded, but I’m quite happy being a bachelor.”
“That’s because women have common sense and run for the hills after the night’s over,” Trent said as he appeared next to him. “I just wanted to say congrats,” he said to me. “And give you an official welcome.”
“Yeah, you’re stuck with us now,” Nolan added.
The rest of the Gold Wolves came and congratulated me as well, shaking my hand, clapping me on the back. Chris even gave me a hug. The warmth and friendliness made my stomach clench with anxiety, as if my subconscious was refusing to accept the kindness.
When I finally got a breather from the chaos, Jackson found me, materializing by my shoulder. “How you doing, sis?” he asked.
I chewed the inside of my lip, fingers clutching the stem of the champagne flute a little too tightly. “I’m doing all right,” I said.
Jackson raised an eyebrow, clearly sensing that there was more lingering beneath the surface. Granted, I had never been a great liar, so him figuring out something was off wasn’t particularly surprising.
“What’s wrong?” Jackson asked.
“It’s just… everyone here…” I trailed off, not sure how to explain what I was feeling.
At the statement, however, Jackson tensed. His eyes narrowed. “What? What happened? Did someone say something to you?”
After all these years, having Jackson unequivocally in my corner and acting this defensive nearly made me burst into laughter. “No, no. It’s nothing like that. Kind of the opposite, really. Everyone is being so nice.”
He blinked, brow furrowing. “Okay, but why does that make you upset? You seem super uncomfortable. I would have thought that would make you feel better.”
I let out a puff of air, glancing around to make sure we were truly alone, as I didn’t know how to properly explain the situation. It was going to come across as silly. But the expectant look he gave me made it clear I wasn’t getting out of this.
“It’s just hard to believe anyone here actually likes me or wants me to be here,” I explained.
“But why? You’re smart and fun to be around. Of course they like you and want you here.”
“People haven’t thought that way about me in the past,” I said.
Jackson shrugged. “Fuck those people.”
I raised an eyebrow, not saying anything, but making my meaning fully clear. He held up his hand defensively. “Myself and Declan excluded. We realized the error of our ways.”
“You might be right,” I admitted. “But it’s not exactly an easy mindset to break.”
“No, I can’t imagine it is.” He made a face, tilting his head. His finger tapped against the side of the glass as he considered everything.
“Think of it this way, then,” he finally said. “If you can’t believe they like you for your own sake, you’re now Declan’s mate. You’re under his protection and part of the pack. They’re going to treat you like one of their own because they care about Declan.”
“But they all know it’s because of Harrison,” I said. “It’s not because Declan cares about me in that way.”
“Doesn’t matter. If Declan cares enough to go through all this—” he gestured around to indicate the party “—to protect you, then they are going to treat you like you’re his mate. And technically, you are, no matter the reasoning or how it happened. Which means they’re going to protect you and look after you.”
I stayed silent for a moment, a new piece of information settling into place at the words. Declan had gone through all this trouble for me. He was not only willing to go through an entire mating ceremony, but he’d also put together a really nice ceremony. He had gone through all of that because I needed help.
That realization stirred something inside me, only I wasn’t sure how to process any of it. Why had he gone to that much trouble? Just because he didn’t like Harrison?
“You’re part of the group now,” Jackson stated.
A lump built in my throat. I didn’t know how to respond to that. A dirge of emotions that I couldn’t properly parse out washed over me, seeming to drown me.
“I’ve, uh, got to go,” I said, suddenly wanting a breather and to be alone. I dipped away.
However, I didn’t get very far before I saw a tiny figure peering around a corner, looking into the dining room where several guests mingled. Some were sitting around the table, but more were standing as they sampled the wide array of food spread out before them. Dani was giggling softly, her hand covering her mouth to stifle the sound.
“What’s so funny?” I asked Dani, crouching to be at eye level with her.
She giggled again, eyes sparkling with mischief. “Daddy told me I couldn’t do any pranks until after the ceremony,” she said. “And even then, I could only do small ones.”
“I see, and what exactly did you do?”
A loud, fake fart sound ripped through the air. Dani broke into more giggles as a shifter I vaguely recognized jumped to her feet. A whoopee cushion lay flat beneath her.
“That,” Dani whispered conspiratorially.
I bit my lip, trying to remain stern even as I knew my eyes sparkled with hidden amusement.
“How many more traps have you put out like that?” I asked.
“Ummm… there’s another under the couch cushion.”
“That’s pretty mild for you,” I admitted. “I expected grease on all the door handles, and I figured you would try something during the ceremony.”
“Daddy told me I couldn’t do anything during the wedding, and he told me anything I did at the reception had to be mild,” she said. “I think he wanted to make sure I didn’t scare you off.”
And there it was. The motivation behind all of Declan’s work suddenly seemed perfectly clear. I was Dani’s nanny, and he wanted to make sure I stayed around for a while. Dani at least tolerated me despite my role as her caretaker.
The thought made my stomach squirm with something like disappointment, as if part of me had hoped there might be more to it. I pushed that feeling away. If that was the way it was going to be, then I could at least do what he had hired me to do.
“Come on,” I said. “I picked up a new building set for you while we were in town. I thought you might like to see it.”
Dani’s eyes lit up, and she beamed. “Really?” she asked.
I nodded. “It’s in your playroom. I—”
Before I could finish what I was going to say, Dani had already grabbed my arm and was dragging me up the stairs.
“Let’s go!” she exclaimed.