Chapter Ten
Brodie
“I’m just going to get dressed; I’m sure I’ll be fine,” I insisted with a chuckle, but Callum just gave me an unconvinced look.
Since the incident three nights ago at the well house, he didn’t like to leave me alone for more than a few minutes, which I ate up with a spoon; the man treated me like royalty.
It started that night when we got home; Callum ran me a warm bath and gently scrubbed all of the dried blood off of my body while apologizing again and again for letting my brothers and father get to me.
I told him repeatedly it wasn’t his fault; they were evil people who wanted to hurt me.
They were the only ones to blame. Callum saved me for goodness sake, but he was just so hard on himself.
After the bath, he insisted on carrying me to bed even though I was already healed from my injuries and feeling back to normal.
Not that I minded at all ; I felt safe and cherished when he toted me around, holding me close like I was something precious.
The night that he carried me from the well house, I peeked at what he’d left behind.
I knew why he didn’t want me to look, but the scene didn’t scare me.
I needed to see it for closure that my family really was gone and couldn’t hurt me anymore.
When I confessed to Callum that I’d looked, he was worried that I’d think less of him because he lost control. But the opposite was true; I couldn’t respect or love him more for what he did. He protected me with everything he had and took away my demons.
I told him that his actions showed how peaceful he really was; he had that power inside of him for centuries, and only used it when necessary.
He fought for his king, and he fought for his mate.
He didn’t fight for the thrill or to show off his power.
Peaceful people can’t be peaceful unless they’re capable of great destruction or pain.
Otherwise, they’re not peaceful; they’re harmless, and there’s a big difference between the two.
“It’d make me really happy to surprise you with my outfit,” I told him, and his expression melted into an adoring smile.
It was the evening of our bonding ceremony, and I’d chosen special clothing to wear.
I didn’t let him see my outfit when I picked it out or tried it on at the store, and I didn’t want him to see it until we were at the ceremony site.
“You know I only want to make you happy,” he replied before stealing a kiss. “Okay, I’ll go to Lach’s to get ready. But if you need anything - anything , you call me.” He gently tapped my forehead as I chuckled. “Deal?”
“Promise. Now get out of here.” He snorted and turned around to leave, and I slapped his ass once he was on the other side of the bedroom doorway. When he turned back around with desire in his eyes, I shut the door quickly in his face and we both laughed.
Callum made me happy from day one, but now that I no longer had fear of my family clouding my mind, my playful side came out in full swing. I no longer hid any part of myself, and why should I? I had a sexy vampire soulmate who would love me no matter what, but he was happiest when I was happiest.
“Tease,” he called through the door.
“Only until after the ceremony. Then my ass is yours to do with as you please.” I smiled widely at the growl I got in reply.
“Well hot damn,” a vaguely-recognizable voice said in the distance. “Sounds like a party in here.”
“Sam! You can’t just waltz into other people’s houses!” My heart raced at the name, and now that I knew Sam was in the house, I placed the second voice as belonging to Ben.
“I was invited,” Sam argued.
“Well, you still have to knock.”
“Says who?”
“Literally everyone,” a third voice chimed in, and I recognized the accent as Bastian’s.
I pulled the door open and found Callum smiling at me. “This is my surprise to you,” he explained. “Your friends wanted to be here in person for our ceremony.” He laughed when I slammed into him and hugged him as tightly as possible. “Come on; it sounds like they’re already inside.”
He took my hand and led me down the hall and into the living room, where our friends waited; Bastian and Milo were inspecting my blown glass collection that had grown significantly the past few days, Flynn and Fletcher were shoving each other for their turn to kiss their mate while Ben watched and giggled, and Dante rubbed his temples like he had a terrible headache.
“Welcome, everyone,” Callum offered, and all of our friends turned their attention to us with a smile.
“Brodie!” Ben exclaimed and shocked me by running up to give me a big hug. He was a little shorter than me and about my weight, but he had a powerful squeeze. “It’s so good to meet you.”
“You too. I can’t believe you all are actually here.”
“We wouldn’t miss this,” he replied as he let me loose.
“It’s a very joyous occasion indeed,” Dante chimed in as he stepped forward and offered his hand to Callum. “Congratulations, my friend. And my apologies for our entrance.” He gave a pointed look at Sam, who just shrugged.
“No apology necessary; you are always welcome here.”
“Told you,” Sam snipped. “Now, let me get in on this hugging.” He bumped Dante away with his hip and wrapped me in a tight embrace. “How’s it going, trickshot?”
“Sam!” Ben scolded, but Sam just snorted.
“What? I’m just kidding.” He promised me, “I tease all of my friends.”
“Then I’m happy to be part of the group,” I told him seriously. “I’m just glad there are no hard feelings.”
“Eh, what’s a bullet to the head between friends?” When I laughed, he smirked and added, “I like you, Brodie.”
Milo stepped up and greeted me with a hug of his own. “We heard about what happened at the festival. Thank god you’re alright.”
“I’m lucky to have Callum; I’d be a goner without him.” My man thanked me with a kiss, and Ben gave an enthusiastic, awww .
“I’m afraid all of our mates have had scary encounters,” Bastian said sadly, pulling Milo closer to him.
I blinked in surprise. “Really?”
“Oh yeah,” Sam nodded, and pointed to Ben. “Kidnapped, tied up and beaten,” he moved his finger in front of Milo. “Kidnapped, beaten and stabbed,” and finally he pointed to himself. “And I’ve been shot I don’t know how many times.”
“You mean I wasn’t your first?” I asked in relief. Most of the group (including Sam) burst into laughter at a joke I didn’t understand, but Flynn and Fletcher growled at their friends.
“It’s okay, my little gingersnaps,” Sam soothed them, petting down each of their chests, “You know you two are the only ones that count.” I still didn’t know what the hell was going on, but I also didn’t want to ask.
He turned back to me and clarified, “Nope, not my first, so don’t worry; it happens a lot.
But I always snap back together, so it’s all good.
” I shook my head at how chill he was about being used for target practice.
“I hate to run off,” Callum interrupted, “But I need to go prepare for the ceremony.” He looked at me and asked so that only I could hear him, “Is it okay if I ask them to stay here with you while you get ready?”
I knew how important it was to him for me to have someone close by, and I was happy to spend more time with my friends. “I’d like that.”
“Thank you.” He kissed my forehead and asked the group, “Would you mind keeping Brodie company?”
“It’d be our pleasure,” Dante answered with a knowing smile.
“Thank you.” Callum took my cheeks in his hands. “I’ll be waiting with bated breath to see you and present our bond to the coven.” My heart flipped at his sweet words as he pressed a gentle kiss to my lips. He bowed his head to our friends and left through the front door.
“Oh no, I’m getting started already,” Ben said as he dabbed at his misty eyes. “I’m such a sap when it comes to weddings.” Our ceremony wasn’t technically a wedding, but I understood the sentiment.
“Benny, you’re not a sap,” Dante insisted, taking his husband in his arms. “You’re romantic and perfect.” Ben sighed and the two kissed deeply. Sam rolled his eyes at the scene before reaching beside him to tweak Fletcher’s nipple through his shirt.
“Where’s mine?” Flynn asked indignantly. He smiled when Sam pinched him as well. “That’s better.” How Sam handled two mates was beyond me. I knew how big Callum was; if I had double the dick coming at me, I’d probably never be able to walk again. Maybe it’s because he’s a vampire.
“Are you wearing a kilt for the ceremony?” Milo asked, interrupting my thoughts.
“No.” I thought about it, but ended up going in a different direction. Callum bought me several kilts to wear everyday, and I wanted something special for our ceremony. “I got a tuxedo. I’ve never worn one before.”
"Very nice," Bastian smiled. "You can never go wrong with a tux."
"I better go put it on. I'll be right back. Oh, and um, you can sit down if you want to." I was new at entertaining guests, but my friends smiled and Ben and Milo took a seat on the sofa together.
I hustled into the bedroom and dressed in my crisp black tux, with a white dress shirt and shiny black shoes. I felt classy and sophisticated, and hoped Callum liked my choice.
I tried over and over to knot my tie, but each time it just ended up in a tangled mess. I draped the silky black material around my neck and shuffled back into the living room. When my friends saw me, they all smiled and Ben got all misty again.
"You look so nice," the sweetheart offered, and everyone nodded their agreement.
"Thanks. Could one of you please help me with my tie? I can't figure it out."
"I've got you," Sam said as he stepped in front of me. "I used to have trouble with them too until everyone started getting married and I had to wear them all the damn time." I chuckled at his teasing sense of humor; I'd never met anyone quite like him.
"Thank you," I said when he had the fabric tied into a fancy knot. "And I was wondering…could you help me with something else?"
"What's up?"