Betty
Betty glanced at the clock, Scott was late. Every night at six they ate dinner together, it had become their thing. She twisted the dishtowel in her hands, pacing back and forth. Her bear made a big deal out of being on time. If he had a meeting he was ten minutes early, the same thing usually happened with dinner.
He’d come strolling in from either working outside or in town and watch her set the table. She knew he would’ve helped with the cooking if she asked. Some women liked gardening, which Betty thought was boring. In her kitchen she got to see the results of her hard work in an hour or two. Sometimes six if she made a stew or roast, gardening took months to pay off.
Nobody ever said she had patience. That lack of patience made her glance at the clock again, then at her phone. Mason bought her a cell phone after the shootings, but she hadn’t taken the time to actually learn how to use the darn thing. She could’ve tried him through the home phone. Only Betty didn’t want to nag the man.
They weren’t mates. Betty couldn’t just call and badger him about where he was. Just as her resolve was about to crumble, Scott’s black SUV rolled to a stop in their driveway. “About time.” She muttered under her breath.
Turning back to the counter, Betty hurriedly warmed up dinner. “Darling.” Goddess, her heart melted when he called her darling. The smell of fresh carnations mixed with her homemade ravioli, making her feel like a bitch for mumbling about him showing up late.
Especially when the sweet bear had brought home her favorite flowers. “Sorry I’m late, Grace stopped over and all of us got to talking.” Scott laid a sweet kiss on her cheek. “Dinner smells delicious, like usual. I’m going to take a shower real fast, it was hot as hell out there today.”
When she turned around, only Scott’s slightly sweaty scent remained in his place. “On second thought, we need to talk.” He came back around the corner, his eyes blazing the green of his bear. They weren’t lime green like Carter’s, more like a natural green. “I love you.”
To say Betty was surprised would be an understatement. Betty knew he cared for her, but she’d never thought he loved her. This was more than she could’ve hoped for. “By the look on your face, I obviously haven’t done a fantastic job of showing you. I just…I needed you to know how I feel about you.
“At least this way, when you kick me to the curb I’ll know I did everything I could to make you my mate.” He looked and sounded so sad. What the hell did he mean, when she kicked him to the curb? Did he honestly think she was about to let him slip through her paws?
“Now you listen to me, Scott Harrison.” Betty poked him in the chest, using her no-nonsense grandmother voice. “You aren’t going anywhere. I will not live apart from my mate, damn it. You just get that stubborn head of yours out of your ass before I kick it into next week. Do you understand me?”
“Your mate?”
“Is that really all you heard out of everything I said?”
“Of course it was. The woman I love, the woman I want to make my mate, just called me her mate.” Well, he did have a point there. “Now, tell me you love me because I know you do.”
“That’s pretty cocky for a bear who only two minutes ago thought I was about to put him out to pasture.” Scott pulled her to him, melting her body to his. He made her tingle in places she hadn’t used in a long time. She wasn’t some spring chicken. At seventy, Betty’s body didn’t look too bad, shifters did age slower than humans.
But she wasn’t in the best of shape. Hell, she hadn’t had anyone to look good for. Scott, on the other paw, looked fantastic for seventy-six. The bear still had abs. Betty knew, she’d seen him without a shirt on. “I’ll tell you, if you promise me something first?”
“Anything.”
“Promise me you won’t change, that you’ll still be my sweet Scott after you mark me.” Goddess, she sounded like a nervous eighteen-year-old girl again. Only this time, Betty didn’t feel like she was making a terrible mistake. Even back then, her bear was leery of Frank. She felt different about Scott.
Everything about him was different, but in a good way. “I’d never treat you badly. That bastard really did a number on you, didn’t he?”
“You knew?” Betty thought no one knew. That no one had heard the snide remarks, or seen the many human women Frank took out of town on ‘business.’
“Betty Callahan, hopefully soon to be Harrison, I’ve had my eye on you for a long time.”
“Why didn’t you ever say anything?”
“It’s wasn’t my place to challenge the alpha on how he treated his mate. Besides, you two knew how to play the loving couple part. Then I thought you were mourning his death, not building up a wall to protect yourself. All these years I watched over you. I made sure any male who might have caught your attention knew they didn’t stand a chance. And I was so certain I played second fiddle to Frank in your heart-”
“Never. Scott, you mean more to me now than Frank ever did. It almost feels like you should’ve been my mate all along.”
“We’ll have a conversation about those feelings another time.” He gave her a sheepish smile before his expression changed. Growing fiercer, more passionate. “Now, I want to hear my mate say she loves me.”
“I love you, my sweet bear.” He kissed her then, making her feel young. Making her feel like with him at her side, she could conquer the world. “Make me yours forever.”
“Oh mate, it’ll be my pleasure.” His voice held a silky, sexy undertone to it. “And yours.”
“Oh dearie, you look breathtaking.” Grace radiated happiness. Her pure white, lacy gown showed off a dainty side Grace usually hid. Her red locks were pulled back into an intricate braid. Betty felt her eyes tearing up. She’d acted like Grace’s mom for most of the girl’s life.
Before Ella, Grace was the daughter she never had. Betty still thought of Grace as a daughter, but now there were more women for her to lean on. Currently in the small white tent, Grace stood surrounded by Ella, Lani and Annie. All of whom wore matching mint green bridesmaid dresses. Vivienne, Betty and Carter’s mom, Natalie, stayed closer towards the back.
While Lily, a shy, brunette doe shifter stood with Evie. A fiery, orange haired fox shifter who didn’t hold her tongue. Lily snapped some photos, since technically, she was the wedding photographer. Although, Betty knew Grace had invited her into the tent because she liked the shy woman.
Evie fretted over Grace’s gown. The fox had taken over Lucy Lu’s after the owner passed away in the fatal shooting two months ago. She also had an eye for design and had handmade Grace’s wedding dress. The two women chatted over their designer jobs, forming a quick bond. “Grams, Natalie, I got you both a gift.”
Grace lifted two velvet boxes, opening them to reveal necklaces. Natalie’s was a small paw print pendant in all diamonds. While Betty’s held two small bears with both her and Scott’s birthstone encrusted in them. “Sweetheart, you didn’t need to do this.” Natalie bent at the knees, making it easier for Grace to clasp the necklace on her.
When it came time for Betty, she knew the moment her mating mark came into view. It was as if Grace wasn’t the one getting married anymore. The hugs and congratulations caught her off guard.
“It’s about damn time Grams, you deserve to be happy.” Ella, her beautiful granddaughter-in-law, hugged her close before kissing her cheek. “Mason is going to be thrilled for you two.” She squealed, her eyes tearing up. The woman was notoriously hormonal when pregnant. Her rapidly changing moods didn’t faze Betty.
“Thank you. Thank you all.” She looked around the room, Redwater had never looked so different. Yet, so full of love as it did right then. Betty guessed this was the good part of growing old.
Getting to see all the shifters she’d taken under her wing grow up. To see them fall in love and have children. She especially loved being a grandmother. But the best part of all? Seeing them turn into adults Betty was proud to say she knew.