Chapter Ten
Jameson
Mate.
I’d always known Russell was mine, but to hear him say the words aloud and to hear Ollie say that he, too, wanted me—that I was his third daddy—well,, there was nothing to even begin to express the way my heart exploded in that moment.
I’d been going through the motions, waiting for the stars to align, and they finally had the day Russell came back. He was mine for always, and in only a few short howls I would mark him for all to see—to scent. My wolf was howling, pushing me not to wait. Pushy bastard.
Not that I was feeling any happier about not being able to claim him right then and there, but there were more people involved than just us. First, we had to deal with the asshole born daddy. While I was relieved he wasn’t the one who had tormented my mate, I still didn’t like the guy.
It was hard to emotionally handle before our mating was complete, too. My wolf wanted to challenge him. To prove I was the alpha worthy of Russ. But the harsh reality was Kyle brought the blessing who was Ollie into our lives, so ripping him to shreds might appease my wolf, but it would destroy the human side of me.
So, sitting through parental negotiations it was. In the end, nothing was decided other than Ollie was our pack’s and would be staying with Russ as long as our mating was truly completed. As if anyone could have stopped us once we both admitted to ourselves and each other what we wanted.
Negotiations turned from wanting Ollie as his exclusively, to him agreeing that we were best for him. I had a hunch the entire thing was more about proving himself an alpha of worth than his love for Ollie. He planned to come visit him every week for semi-supervised visits until we all, including Ollie felt comfortable. I had a feeling that was going to be quite a while.
After negotiations, I got the joy of being interrogated by Travis. For someone who was good and ready to accept any mate his parents found for his sorry ass, he sure was protective of his brother. I knew he felt like he’d exposed his weakness by having been a part of checking up on Russell during his exile, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized it showed his strength. He was a good alpha and would grow to become an amazing one once he found his mate, of that I was sure.
And now I was waiting for my mate, the one who would make me a better man. He had brought Ollie over to his parents’ and wanted me to stay at my place until he was ready At first, it had my insecurities bouncing around, but then I overheard him saying to Ollie that they were making cookies, and it all fell into place.
Russell was planning to follow the traditions of old, only with cookies. Instead of feeding me meat he prepared from my hunt, he was going to make my weakness—his peanut-butter-chocolate-chip cookies. Damn, I was a lucky man.
I took a shower, cleaned up the house, not that it was dirty but because it gave me something to do, and then I put on my very best clothes. Which was silly, given that our mating would take place naked, but special occasions require looking the part.
I had just pushed my errant lock of hair back for the fifty billionth time when he came home. Technically, it was my house, but that was going to change first thing in the morning. Sleeping a house away in a home too small just didn’t work for me or my wolf.
“Hello, mate. What do you have?” I tried to walk all sexy up to him, holding my hands out for the basket of what I knew were cookies.
“Me. I have me.”
Fucking sexiest thing ever.
“What a coincidence.” I grabbed the basket from his arms and set it on the coffee table before enveloping him in my arms. “You have me, too.”
There was so much to say about how I felt and what this moment meant to me, but words evaded me, and I let my lips do the talking, taking his mouth with mine, tasting, exploring, nipping. I was lost in him.
His body pressed against mine, both of our needs firmly pressed between us. He was mine, and I was his. Finally, things were the way they were meant to be. When we broke the kiss, for no other reason than to catch our breath, his head nestled into my shoulder close to where I knew he’d soon mark me.
“I had plans,” he gruffed.
“Plans. Do tell.” I squeezed him closer to me, wanting to be skin to skin, not that there was anything but our clothing between us.
“I made cookies so I could feed you, show my worth like in times of old but with your love language, not Bambi.”
“I like Bambi, but you are right. I do prefer chocolate.” Yeah, venison was yummy, but nothing beat peanut-butter-chocolate-chip cookies. Nothing.
“But to feed you, I need to let go of you, and I’m not ready to let go yet.”
It was official. He was trying to kill me.
“Agreed. No cookies for me.”
He chuckled against my shoulder.
“So does that mean you’re ready to knot me? Mate me? Mark me as yours?” How I didn’t crumple to my knees at hearing those words would always amaze me.
“Yes. Please,” was all I could muster before scooping him up and carrying him to what would become our bedroom.
“You seem as ready as I am.” He snuggled in close as I turned on the light with my elbow. The room was basic, probably too basic, but we could make it ours, adding things that made Russell feel like it was just as much his as mine. I’d already seen him trying not to get too comfortable in the old house, as if it could be yanked away from him at any moment, and my wolf and I needed him not to feel that here in our den.
“I am.” Probably more so, in that I had been ready for this day years before I’d even admitted it to myself. Less, in that I had no idea what I was doing and trusted that my instincts and our love would be enough. It was a little bit intimidating knowing that he already had done at least the knotting part of this before. My wolf never let me fester on that. We had more important things to do, like mate my omega.