Austin gripped Wheeler’s shoulders and looked him in the eye. “You okay?” He dropped his forehead against Wheeler’s. “Tomorrow we’re going to have a long talk, you and I. Maybe now I get where you’ve been coming from. You’re a man I respect, and a good example for the pack. Well… except for the tattoos. That dragon freaks the hell out of people.”
Wheeler shook his head. “I never wanted to break up the pack. I wanted him to change but didn’t know how to make him. I thought I could keep it under control.”
“You’ve got nothing to be sorry about,” Austin said, backing up a step. “Not unless you don’t complete your assigned duty by cleaning up the front lawn after the party—then my woman will give you something to be sorry about.” He patted Wheeler gently on the cheek. “Join the party. We’ll work this out tomorrow.”
When Austin left the room, Wheeler slid down to the floor, draping his arms over his legs. He grimaced and shed tears, and I allowed him a moment to grieve for the separation. Maybe now he’d realize that some people are beyond help if they’re not willing to help themselves.
I knelt down beside him and pinched at his stretchy shirt. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
I averted my eyes. “I’ve never been with a man who trusts me. I’m not sure how to feel about it, especially since you took my word over your own brother’s.”
His voice lowered and he wiped his wet cheeks. “I’ve never trusted him.”
I tugged on his black burglar shirt. “You have on the wrong outfit. Lexi chose the police uniform for you. Why did you swap with Ben?”
“Cops piss me off.”
“Well, too bad. I have a thing for men in uniform.”
“That why you came in here with Ben?”
I lightly pushed his temple. “I thought he was you. I found out soon enough that he wasn’t.”
“Was he… forceful?” Wheeler jerked his head to the side.
“All I saw was an insecure man desperate to prove he was the better brother. It didn’t have anything to do with me. Maybe that little boy inside him still sees you as the better half and that’s why he’s always tried to take what’s yours. But guess what? He was a terrible kisser.”
Wheeler’s eyes flashed up. “You kissed him?”
“I’d hardly call him mashing his sloppy lips against mine a kiss, but yes. He didn’t smell like you, or touch me the way you do. It only took a few seconds for me to know.” I stroked the patch of beard on Wheeler’s chin. “No one compares to my lover.”
“Think we ought to make this official with the papers?”
“Well, I suppose that would be the proper way to go about it, although I’m sure the Council will turn up its nose at our pairing.”
Wheeler sniffed out a quiet laugh. “Should we have kids?”
“Mmm,” I said, snuggling against him. “You want to make babies with me?”
“Someday. Unless you don’t think it’s a good idea. I’m not exactly father material.”
“I think whether we have a panther or a wolf, we’re going to have a beautiful child. With my good looks and your charming personality, how can we lose?”
He wrapped his arm around me and lowered his left leg. “What do I smell like?”
“What do you mean?”
“You said you knew it wasn’t me because of his smell. So, what do I smell like?”
I nibbled on his ear. “Smoked meat. You need to stop eating that stuff.”
“At least it’s not raw meat.” He slipped his finger beneath a strap on my garter belt and snapped it against my skin. “This is sexy.”
“Do I have a smell?”
Wheeler pulled me so I was straddling him, and he kissed the base of my throat. “When you’re not bathed in that perfume, you smell like an oven full of hot sugar cookies.” His tongue glided across my skin and I lightly rocked my hips. “Better stop doing that,” he said, his voice husky.
“Why?”
The bristly hairs on his beard scratched at my neck as his mouth reached my ear. “Because it would be a damn shame for me to have to rip this costume off you when the party just started.”
“Save it for later then. Come on.” I stood up and gave him my hand. “Do you think Austin told everyone?”
Wheeler shrugged. “Guess I’ll find out when I get the stares or not.”
Outside, the sharp snaps and muffled booms of fireworks were sounding off. We stepped onto the front porch and glanced up at the dark sky. Giant sprays of white lights twinkled overhead like pieces of glitter thrown to the heavens. Then another that looked like a green mushroom.
I expected to see the children, but I only saw Melody on Jericho’s shoulders at the end of the porch. When I walked down the steps and glanced up, I noticed Maizy standing alone on the upstairs balcony with a melancholy look on her face. She watched the changing colors turn bright and then quickly fade until they were gone.