Snowflake Unbound, page 14
“Whoa. Aren’t you going to court her first?”
“How? She can’t see or feel me now, so what would I do?”
“I don’t know. Go skating with her in the morning? Introduce yourself? Don’t be a dick?”
“She skates?” He blinked. “She can’t see where she’s going.”
“The book club rents the ice for an hour for her. She blasts music and skates.”
“Wait, she skates blind?”
“Yeah, she used to fall down a lot or hit the boards, but now, she can do routines and enjoy herself.” Luna smiled. “She says it’s like flying.”
Rayd jolted, and he narrowed his eyes. “You strike some low blows.”
She grinned. “That’s why I get the big bucks. Well, you answered what I most needed to know. Can I contact you if I need any other details?”
“Sure.” He rattled off his number, and she keyed it into her phone.
“Well, thanks for this. Enjoy your day with the mostly naked ladies.”
“I usually do, but now, I am going to imagine curves on ice.”
Luna let out a throaty chuckle and left the office.
She walked out and got into the car that Karo was guarding. “So, what do you think? Are you going to tell Emma that you want to meet him?”
Zara spoke from the second phone in her pocket. “He seems nice. Just like she said he was.”
“And that is a yes?”
“I think it might be. I am a little freaked out at not being able to feel him near me until after the marking.”
“And the mating.”
Zara’s blush was audible. “And that.”
“Sweetie, there is nothing to be afraid of.”
“Fine for you to say. You can see it coming.”
“Honey, if you can see him coming, you are doing it wrong, or it’s foreplay.”
Zara laughed and said, “I have made it this far in my life without sex. I think I can manage a while longer.”
“Honey. Weren’t you listening? You don’t have a while longer. Now that you can manage on your own and are actually going out in the world, one of them is going to find you, and you won’t even know what the hell happened until afterward... you have to get in front of this.”
“I just wished that dick wasn’t the answer.”
“Sweetie, you are just lucky you can’t see it. The first time I saw one in person, I didn’t know whether to run or laugh.”
“I don’t get to see anything.”
“Apparently, the point of the marks goes with the blinding. You can use your mate’s sight through the brands.”
“Woo-fucking-hoo.”
“You will figure it out; it’s a way into a future, Zara.”
“I know. I just want to go back in time and be me again.”
“None of us can, so we deal with what we have. Are you going to be at the meeting tonight?”
“Sure. Emma looks forward to it. Like, she is baking one of my cookie recipes right now.” Zara chuckled.
“Ohh. What is it?”
“Chocolate chip with toffee chips. Dangerous to the waistline and your dental work.”
Luna chuckled. “I look forward to it. I think Karo is bringing the coffee, so plan not to sleep for a few weeks.”
Karo snorted from the front seat and said, “Where to, Miss Tesso?”
She picked up her phone, and Jack told her to meet him at his parents’ hotel.
“Back to the hotel, Karo. Thank you.”
She spoke to Zara. “Erik has talked to Rayd a bunch of times, and he said he seems nice. My boy is a good judge of character.”
“Okay. But, I am going to give you a gory play-by-play after the first time we have sex.”
“Fair enough, but you might want to ask Emma to skip that day.”
“Oh. Wow. I don’t think she would, and I think anytime I mentioned I was freaked out or uncomfortable, she would use it as an excuse to box his ears. I know she’s got my back on this one.”
“That’s good. You have us backing you up, but we can’t follow you into the bedroom.”
“Good because that would be creepy.”
“So very creepy.”
They both laughed, and the call was ended. Carrying Wren around for meetings like that had given her the idea to do the same with Zara. She had enjoyed not hiding any aspect of the conversation from her.
* * * *
Rayd checked the body scanner, grinned, and then checked the frequency scanners. She had had a cell on and in her pocket the whole time. He was guessing that Zara was on the other side of that call.
He picked up his phone and dialled. “Grandma, how are you doing?”
“I am fine, Randolph. What do you need?”
“Is your charge around?”
“Yes, she’s sitting in the living room, and she’s talking on the phone to Luna.”
“How long has she been on the phone?”
“About twenty minutes.”
He chuckled. “That is what I wanted to know. What would you think of me pursuing Zara as a mate?”
“I think you had better be quick. She’s fast.” His grandmother laughed. “Well, if you are looking at her as a permanent partner, she has great hips, and I want to see great-grandbabies before I die. I think they could just walk out of her.”
He chuckled. “Can she hear you?”
“Probably, but I dissect her physique all the time. She doesn’t even notice.” Her voice firmed up. “By the way, if you hurt that girl, I will cut the fuel lines of every helicopter you touch. Are we clear?”
“We are clear. It will take me a few days to set things up, but courtship should be underway in a few weeks.”
“Good. I am gaining weight with all these recipes. Did you know that she used to be a professional baker? No wonder she hung onto those curves.”
“No, I did not know that.” He smiled. His grandmother’s ability to get information out of people was legendary. “But, can she bake your gingerbread recipe?”
“Her recipe is better, but yeah. She can do it blindfolded.”
He chuckled. “Good to know. So, no objections to my stepping forward?”
“No objection, but do it carefully or be the last of your line because I will cut it off, dear grandbaby.”
His eyes were wide. “Noted. Talk to you soon, Grandma.”
“Yes, you will, Randolph.”
She hung up.
He had his answer and authorization from the most important person in his life. Now, he had to collect some demons.
* * * *
Luna smiled. “So, Karo, how is Gwen doing?”
“Pretty good. Her coven has agreed to a settlement. She isn’t marked, so she’s being released to find a new one if she wants more blood alphas. I have put her in touch with one from my old group, and he’s eager to meet her.”
“You would send her off to them?” Luna was surprised.
“He has promised to keep her to himself, even if the coven leader asks for her. He will fight. Though, I think he has already asked Kroan and gotten exclusive permission if she agrees.” Karo moved smoothly between cars and pulled up at the hotel.
“Is it up for discussion tonight?”
“It is. Along with Dell’s placement with an omega and her pack.”
“Right, well, I will see you tonight, then.”
“Call me if you need me. I am on duty all day.”
“Thanks. I will.”
Luna got out of the car as Karo held the door. She walked into the hotel, and the concierge scampered out from behind the counter to take her to her party in one of the lounges.
Rickart was smiling and chatting to the Realms, and there was an empty seat next to him.
Luna arrived, and she nodded as the guys got to their feet while she sat in the chair Jack held for her. She smiled. “So, the amount of goats has been settled on?”
Everyone laughed.
Jack muttered, “Sixty million is your dowry.”
Luna looked at a smug Rickart. She smacked him. “Are you insane, Daddy?”
He laughed. “The ruse is uncovered. The rumours of my perversion were grossly exaggerated.”
Luna sat back. “Thank goodness. Watching women look at you with trepidation in their eyes was getting old. You really picked a winning twist.”
He grinned. “And you sold it.”
Jack shook his head. “I have been hearing those rumours for years. I am rather disappointed that your fetish turned out to be smoke and mirrors.”
Luna smiled. “He was a good father and an excellent grandfather, but he didn’t want to be tied down with a mate of his own.”
“Not if it wasn’t Luna, and there was no way I was going to take on a child that young. so this was a means to save face and keep her safe.” He grinned. “So, I have decided to give the couple a lovely home as a wedding gift, and it is just over a few blocks from Omega Lane.”
Jack shook his head.
Luna looked at Rickart. “What?”
He pulled a document and a picture out of his pocket. She laughed as she opened the picture, and then she stopped laughing at the price tag on the listing. The paperwork was a purchase agreement over a year old.
She looked at him. “You bought this a year ago. That would be when I was talking with Erik about going to Niko’s for his mentorship.”
Rickart beamed. “I knew that once Nikolai saw Erik, he would know who the father was, and that snowflake on your back is rather distinctive, Luna.”
She looked at him. “So, you knew who he was this whole time?”
“Of course. But I didn’t want his resentments to wreck Erik’s development. He was doing so well with you.”
She looked at her adoptive father and sighed. “Right. Well, Jack is the one with the bone to pick. You took good care of me.”
Jack looked at Rickart and nodded. “He’s right. I would have been a sucky father. I need to take a more managerial role and less of a shepherd role. I will remain in town, and I am guessing that this will be my transitory territory?”
Rickart beamed. “It becomes yours when I get another grandchild. You have three years, and then, I boot you out if there is no grandbaby. I need the grandchild.”
Luna raised a brow. “You still playing some form of baby bingo with other alternative alphas?”
“I just need another grandbaby, and then, I get a rose named after me.”
The Realms were staring in surprise. “You are betting on having grandchildren?” Johnathon raised his brows.”
“I already have one, but to win, I need two. Either gender and any designation.”
Luna chuckled and was about to say that she didn’t know if Jack wanted kids, but she turned, and his dragon’s gaze was glowing at her. His voice was deep and rough. “I think we can manage that.”
She blinked. “Fine, but if you leave me alone for even one day, the deal is off. I will liquidate my assets and move in with Rickart or those elite.”
“Three days. That will allow me a chance to fly back to you from anywhere in the world.” He looked at her with arched brows.
“Three days max, but no travelling in the last month. Erik came early, and if it happens again, I am dead. I don’t have the same energy I did two decades ago.”
The dragon’s gaze was concerned. “Absolutely. Agreed. If he does not agree, I will just fly his ass home.”
There was a shudder, and Jack nodded. “I agree. Wholeheartedly.”
She smiled, and they met for a kiss. She paused. “Wait. Does this mean proposal and wedding and stuff?”
He nodded. “Luna Tesso.” He slipped to the floor and knelt. “Will you marry me? We can have as many children as you are comfortable with, and Rickart can get a jump on his next wealthy asshole bingo cards.”
She laughed. “We can. Daddy, when can we move in?”
“Immediately. It’s furnished, and I think it would be a great place to hold the wedding. Or any weddings for your beta collection.”
Jack cleared his throat on his knee with a box with a giant pale blue diamond in a cushion setting. She grinned and nodded. “Yes, I will marry you.”
That seemed to have been the magic word because when the ring was on her finger, staff came out from every corner, and there was champagne and laughter and congratulations.
It was just the thing before they all had afternoon tea and started discussing plans. Luna’s head was spinning, but she knew who to call on for help. The book club started in four hours.
She had a thought. “Can we see the house now?”
Rickart grinned. “Of course. Are you wanting to take possession?”
“Yeah. And try it out for a club meeting.”
Adrea frowned. “A club?”
“Yes, for women like me who ran into an alpha and were transformed. Some encounters were violent, some just casual contact, but all changed the physiology of the betas involved. I was perfectly normal until I ran into Jack.”
He sighed. “I know.”
Johnathon picked up on it as well. “Ah, so his mark is on his chest, yours is on your back. Got it.”
“It was a first impression.”
She caught the double entendre and laughed. Jack pulled her close, kissed her, and gave her fire without making it obvious. She tangled her fingers with his, and he gripped her hand. They kissed quietly while the parents made their choices for what they wanted to see at a wedding and how fast they wanted to see it.
Luna murmured, “Soon. I want Erik to be legally adopted by Jack before he turns eighteen.”
Jack blinked. “Right. How much time do we have?”
“I am not going to be pregnant and getting married.”
“So, sooner. As soon as possible.” He kissed her.
She laughed, and the others agreed.
Rickart called a car, and they headed over to the new house.
Karo stopped the car as requested, and the family got out on the drive and looked at it.
Luna muttered, “To think, I shall be mistress of Pemberley.”
Jack looked at her, and they burst out laughing then tore through his shirt to release his wings so he could take a quick flight.
Adrea looked at Luna and smiled. “He developed that a few years ago.”
“When his son turned fifteen.”
“Oh. That was why?”
“Yup. It was a reminder that he needed to start teaching Erik how to become a dragon and get his first and second forms.”
“But, he didn’t know about Erik.”
“His dragon started the clock way back when.”
They got back in the car, and they drove up to the huge house. “Oh, I am going to need people.”
Karo grinned. “Fortunately, you know where to find them.”
Luna frowned. “Won’t that be weird?”
“To be protected and doted over? Nope. Who cares if you have to vacuum, garden, or do dishes? Zara is doing them all blindfolded.”
They laughed and looked at the house. “With some help from Wren, this can be a very safe space.”
“In that case, let’s call her.” Karo smiled.
Chapter Thirteen
The ballroom was bright with light. Everybody had snacks, and Wren was curled in a wingback chair in the corner, nodding off into her hot cocoa in a pool of light.
Luna sat with one of the newbies who was feeling awkward because she didn’t have any obvious alterations. “Sweetie, it isn’t a contest. We aren’t trying to prove who is freakier. The ladies with wings are just enjoying getting them out.”
The little blonde said, “I need water.”
Luna held her hand. “There’s a glass in your grip.”
“Oh, not this kind. I have a physical manifestation, but I need a body of water. I have a tail.” She looked at Luna with fat tears in her eyes. “I am a mermaid, but I am scared of open water.”
Luna hugged her and rubbed her back. “I think I can find someone to help you. Eden?”
Eden came over with her huge white eagle wings on her back. “Hey, Luna. Congratulations on the engagement.”
“Thanks, Eden. Eden, this is June. June is a mermaid who is afraid of open water.”
Eden crouched and stuck out her hand. “I am a bird beta who’s really afraid of heights. I have been trying to practice my flying and can do a messy vertical takeoff, but I can’t steer or go horizontal in flight. I hadn’t even heard of eagle alphas.”
Luna smiled. “That is because folks call them angel alphas, Eden.”
Eden grinned. “I am no angel.”
“We know.” Luna laughed, and June smiled.
Luna moved away, and they talked about ways to get a handle on their alterations.
The club members got together and discussed dealing with their changes and how to get support or even charge their alphas with the initial attacks. She watched Karo and Gwen discuss their blood alphas, and Karo was helping the sobbing Gwen, who had just won a financial settlement and restraining order against her original alpha. Gwen had been seduced and coaxed into becoming helpless. No matter what she did, she wasn’t an omega, which is all that her alpha wanted. So, he hurt her, and she had physically healed, but she still had needs and paying the price was on her head.
Karo was saying, “He’s kind and sweet and just wants to cuddle up to you and wallow in you. I promise. But, start with a date. There isn’t any rush.”
“But what about you? You will be alone out here.”
Karo smiled and stroked Gwen’s hair. “We are literally in a room full of women who understand what happened to me. I am not alone.”
Luna stepped in. “Sorry to eavesdrop, but I know what Karo went through. I will be there for her if you step back into dating. She won’t be alone.”
Gwen looked at her with watery eyes. “But you are getting married.”
“Yes, to the man who knocked me into this situation all those years ago. He has come around, and if he can, anyone can.” Luna qualified, “I mean, out of the nonviolent ones.”
Karo snorted. “And if Luna can come to grips with that, then there is hope for any of us. Some of us can find love again, and others can find it for the first time.”
