Chapter 51 #2
I looked gorgeous, sitting next to him in my pajamas with tousled hair and my mate’s mark showing.
I felt Aiden's contentment as he stared at me and couldn't help a small, satisfied smile of my own as he projected himself into my mind and I saw myself from his eyes.
With a pleased smile, I moved to open the box.
As I opened it and looked at the ring, my eyes widened happily. A beautiful princess cut diamond ring twinkled up at me merrily.
I knew it was the wedding ring handed down from father to son, the ring the Alpha of the Bloodfire Phoenix Pack bestowed on his luna. And Aiden had given it to me.
“Is this…mine?” I asked in disbelief.
He was giving me the ring he’d always meant to give Lexia.
Aiden folded me into his arms.
“Did you actually think I would never give it to you?” he spoke into my ear.
The top of my head brushed his chin when I nodded.
Josie smartly began ushering everyone towards the kitchen for hot cocoa.
“Giving you this was my choice, Rose. I didn’t have to.
But I did, because I want you to know that I chose you as my luna.
You’re the only one I want by my side, helping me take care of my pack.
You’re the only one I want to crawl into bed with after a long day.
You’re the only one that understands me and tells me when I’m wrong.
I love you, Rose, and I wanted to give you this to show you that whatever I did, I did because I love you not because the Moon Goddess made me do it.
But because I love you, your soul…your body.
I love all of you.” Aiden kissed me sweetly, pouring his feelings into that kiss.
“And I hope that after today, you would never ever be so insecure about your position as my mate.” Aiden pressed another kiss over my forehead and looked in my eyes with profound love as endless as the sky.
Aiden's POV
“Do you have a minute?” Rose asked, peeping her head into my study.
I looked up from my desk and smiled. Rose did that to me.I just had to look her way and I couldn’t help but smile.
She walked over, holding multiple account books spanning the past few years.
She came around the side of the desk, laying one book open in front of me, tapping towards an exorbitant amount of money being transferred to… Jake’s mother.
“What’s this?” Rose asked softly, leaning down as her hair fell to one side.
I expelled a breath as I took in what she was showing me. Each month, without fail, an amount was transferred to her. The transfers had stopped after Alpha Austin's death.
“Why was your father sending money from our pack funds to his sister?” Rose queried. “There’s no precedent for it. There’s no allowance for…for that kind of activity within the pack.”
I leaned back speculatively. “You don’t think it was...an incentive for them to stay away from you?” I really didn’t want to voice this concern about my aunt, but if I knew Rose, I knew she would talk it through with me without being “judgy”.
Rose sighed heavily, perching herself on my desk so that her right thigh was next to my right arm which was clutching the pages of the book open before me.
“You can ask him directly,” I pointed out, twirling my pen between my fingers pensively. “You can converse with them.”
“I tried before,” Rose said honestly. “I tried asking to talk to him, but he didn’t respond.
Instead, it was a bunch of other elders talking about how we need to find Dylan a luna.
" Rose made a face. "Dylan's only eighteen. He has time. So I wasn't too keen on that topic. When they realized that, they left. They’re not exactly at my beck and call. If anything, it’s the other way around. I just get whoever is on the other line,” Rose supplied the information rather bitterly.
“Maybe Dad just doesn’t want to expose my aunt,” I suggested, massaging my temples.
“What could your aunt possibly gain from harming me?” Rose queried.
I shrugged. “An opportunity for Jake to become an alpha of a pack? He has the alpha gene. That’s why he hasn’t joined a pack yet.
Most wolves find it hard to survive without a pack unless they’re alphas themselves.
That’s why banishing wolves from packs is thought of as a punishment worse than death. ”
“He didn’t touch me that day I was in heat,” Rose pointed out. “It would have been easy for him, but he called you instead, despite the fact that he disliked you.”
“My aunt might be acting without Jake’s knowledge,” I countered.
We fell silent, thinking and contemplating the issue.
“Well, I guess this is something we should ask the Council. Maybe they know something about it,” I supplied.
“Wouldn’t that get your father in trouble? That's why I came directly to you.” Rose bit her lip, she was visibly worried about the implications of bringing something like this to light.
“He’s not exactly here to be punished for it, if that’s what you’re worried about. My father wasn’t one to do things that went against the interests of his pack. I’m sure there was a good reason for this. You probably think he was trying to funnel pack funds illegally to help his sister but—”
“I didn’t say that! Oh, Aiden, I would never accuse Alpha Austinof something like that. You know I always try to get the full story before forming an opinion on something,” Rose cut in vehemently.
I smiled up at her. “I know, I know. But I also know it’s something that’s probably popped up in your mind, at least initially.”
I lifted my hand to squeeze her thigh, eyes training on the modest display of skin in her V-neck sweater. It was the same black sweater she’d worn last year on her date with Jake. She filled it out even better now. I teasingly let my hand run up her thigh before going up to cup her breast.
Rose let out a small yelp of protest.
“Aiden, you know I’m working right now. I wanted to get this out of the way before my training with Dr. Danvers starts in January.”
“These are looking fuller lately,” I admitted ruefully, palming her breast. “I think you’re about to have another heat soon.”
"Well, it’s been over three months since the last one,” Rose acknowledged.
“No no...it has nothing to do with time and everything to do with—” I brought another hand up to cup her other full breast. “These. They’re,”—I stood up, leering at her—“bigger.”
Rose batted my hands away playfully. “I think you’re just imagining things.”
“Hey, I suck on these every night, touch them multiple times a day. I think I know when their size changes,” I replied with a superior tone. I kissed her cheek. “I can’t wait to see how big they get when I finally put a pup in you.”
Rose’s hand went to her stomach reflexively. “I um…yeah, I’ll see you later,” Rose murmured suddenly, grabbing the books to get out of here.
I stared after her fondly for a minute. I could feel some of her nervousness now. She was probably just shy talking about babies. Ever since Rose had removed the mind-block, I was careful not to probe into her feelings. I didn't ever want her to feel like I'd crossed a line again.
Rose's POV
The moment Aiden began talking about me getting pregnant, I realized that my last period had been the beginning of November, ending a few days before Aiden and I had sex for the first time.
It was the end of December now. There was a possibility that I might be pregnant which is why I had immediately set up an appointment with Dr. Danvers.
And now, on New Year’s Eve, as we all gathered for the downtown fireworks, I found myself eager to break the news to my mate that he had put a pup in me.
I smiled to myself as I slipped my hand into Aiden's as we stood with our family and friends. I was bursting to tell him the news. This morning, Dr. Danvers confirmed I was a month and a few weeks along. I would no longer be able to turn into my wolf once my third month started. I’d tell him tonight, after the fireworks.
It would be a wonderful way to ring in the new year—with the news of a baby.
Aiden wanted kids; he kept talking about how turned on he got whenever he thought of me having his babies.
We’d both decided to take advantage of my next heat whenever it came.
I hadn’t expected to get pregnant without my heat cycle. Even Dr. Danvers pointed out how only a small percentage of babies were conceived outside it. This was yet another prime example of whatever was meant to be would always find a way. Just like me and Aiden.
I tugged on Aiden's arm, wanting to give him the news in private. I pulled him off to the side and away from the designated seating area which had been reserved for Alpha and Luna of Bloodfire Phoenix. Aiden's family sat a little farther off.
The fireworks finally started up, illuminating the dark sky with an array of colors. Red, blue, and pink sparks all shot up in quick succession of each other. Tony had gotten up to stand in front of us, at a distance discreet enough to give us our privacy.
“Happy New Year.” I turned my head to Aiden, the words drifting between us, my voice softly heard over the din of fireworks.
“Happy New Year, babe.” Aiden looked back at me, his face full of love. He gave my hand a squeeze. “I’m so glad I get to spend all my New Years’ with you.”
I opened my mouth to tell him I felt the same but before I could do that, exclamations and a loud whirring sound interrupted me.
There was an explosion, and a deafening roar made its way towards us.
I stood stock still, unable to even scream in horror as a whirlwind of fire and debris came straight towards us.
Tony quickly moved to cover us. In an instant, Aiden was moving his body forward, pushing me down and covering my frame entirely with his tall, muscular body, taking the full impact of the explosion.