Every Angelic Moment

by R. E. Butler

  When the trio had followed the trail to the river, Angel let out a gasp and stopped walking, taking in the scene.

  “What’s all this?” she asked.

  “Dinner,” Quill said. “Brin’s been cooking all day.”

  Brin pulled out Angel’s chair, and she kissed him and sat down. “I wondered where you were, but Ian and Quill said you were running errands.”

  He kissed her cheek with a chuckle. “We didn’t want to ruin the surprise.”

  “I’m very surprised,” she said, smiling.

  Ian and Quill sat down, and Brin set the food on the table. Angel’s stomach growled, and she said, “You made lasagna! I love it.”

  “I know, sweetheart,” Brin said. “I made all your favorites.”

  Her brows rose. “Even chocolate cake?”

  Bring lifted the lid of the cloche and showed her the cake. She smiled so sweetly that he felt like a king.

  Quill filled the plates while Brin poured sweet tea into glasses. They were saving the champagne for their celebratory toast later. As he sat down, he picked up Angel’s hand and kissed the back of it.

  “Did I remember everything?”

  “Are you kidding? I’ve got my favorite meal, plus my three favorite guys. I’m in heaven right now.”

  If he was a peacock, he’d be strutting around with his tail feathers puffed out in all their colorful glory. As it was, his beast was doing back flips in his head over how happy she was.

  While they ate, they talked about the campground, the coming trip to Beyton, and meeting her parents. They had a few weeks before the trip, but the time would pass quickly.

  “Do you think your mom is surprised you have hyena mates?” Brin asked.

  “Not really. I think she always suspected I’d end up with a shifter mate, and after Whisper and Bliss found hyena mates themselves, I think she believed it was probably going to happen for me, too. We never really talked about it, though. She always just told me that I should find a guy who treated me right, and it didn’t matter if he was human or a shifter or something else. And I found three.”

  “Where did your mom meet your step-dad?” Ian asked.

  “A few years after my dad died, the restaurant she worked in was bought by a wolf pack. She kept working for them, and the new owner’s brother, Fred, came for a visit and asked my mom out. She said no at first, said that it was too soon, but I encouraged her to follow her heart, because that’s what she told me to do when it came to romance. When they got married I was in high school. He moved us to Beyton and I met Whisper and Bliss, and we were the Three Musketeers.”

  “Do you miss living in Beyton? Do you ever think about going back there to live?” Brin asked.

  Her brows rose. “Not at all. I really love living in the mountains. Even if I wasn’t working for the campground, I still feel at home here. Even more so now that we’re a family.”

  “Where you are is home for us, too,” Quill said.

  When the meal was finished and Angel had declared she couldn’t possibly eat another bite, Brin put the food back on the rolling tray and covered it up with the tablecloth. Then he and his brothers took Angel to the river’s edge. The water was slow-moving in that spot, babbling in the shallow areas over the rocks. The sun had set while they ate, and the moon and stars had come out, giving them a brilliant backdrop in the dark sky.

  Quill cleared his throat. “Angel, we wanted to have a special dinner tonight because we have a very special question to ask you.”

  “You do?” she asked. Brin could hear her pulse quicken, and a smile curved the corner of her mouth.

  Brin and his brothers dropped to one knee, each pulling a ring box from his pocket and opening it. The ring Brin had picked out had a flower made of diamonds. When he’d seen it in the jewelry case, he knew it was perfect for her. Not only did he love going flower-picking with her, but the day they’d met had been because of flowers.

  Brin lifted the ring from the box and held it up.

  Angel’s eyes glistened with tears.

  “We love you, Angel,” Quill said. “Will you marry us?”

  She let out a soft, gasping sob and said, “Yes! Of course!”

  Quill put his on the ring finger of her right hand, then stood and kissed her. Then Ian put his ring on the middle finger of her right hand, standing for his kiss. When it was Brin’s turn, he pushed the ring onto the middle finger of her left hand. They’d purposely left the ring finger of her left hand bare for the wedding band in their future.

  Brin stood and pulled Angel into his arms. “I love you so much, Angel.”

  “I love you, too, Brin.”

  “You’ve made me the happiest male on the planet.”

  Ian cleared his throat noisily.

  Brin smiled. “Right. One of the three happiest males on the planet.”

  “I’m the happiest woman on the planet right now,” Angel said.

  Brin kissed her, drinking in the sweet taste of her and the utter rightness that settled over him as this one aspect of their future was coming together.

  “Not to spoil the moment or anything,” Angel said, “but how are we all going to get married?”

  Quill explained, “You’ll marry me legally, but we’ll have a ceremony that will include all of us. Brin and Ian will sign the marriage certificate as witnesses. So legally you’ll only have one husband, but in reality, you’ll have three super-lucky males worshipping you forever.”

  “Oh, I love the sound of that,” she said.

  Quill opened the champagne and filled their glasses. They stood by the water and toasted to their future. As the sweet, bubbly liquid slid down his throat, Brin smiled at his brothers and then turned his gaze to Angel as she leaned against him and sighed happily.

  “When can we get married?” she asked.

  “Whenever you want,” Quill said.

  “I always wanted to get married in the winter. I think having a snowy backdrop for the ceremony would be cool.”

  “Plus, it’ll be after the gathering in November, so we won’t have to worry about work,” Ian said.

  “Can we put a wedding together in about three months?” Angel asked.

  “With three determined mates, there isn’t anything that we can’t do,” Brin promised.

  “Good,” she said. “I can’t wait to be Mrs. Mercer.”

  “We can’t wait, either,” Quill said.

  After cleaning up and returning the supplies to the main cabin, Quill and his brothers properly thanked Angel for agreeing to marry them, chasing the night from the sky with their pleasure. This was what he’d always wanted – a woman to share every night and every dawn with.

  Forever.

  * * *

  On Sunday night, Ian and his brothers had been invited to shift and hunt in the baro’s territory. Hyenas didn’t have a particular time of the month where they felt compelled to shift like some shifters did, but he and his brothers would go out on a random evening during the month and run around. Angel was going to stay with Ally in their cabin while everyone else went out, including Brierley and Axtyn. Although Ally was a hyena shifter herself, Ian hadn’t wanted Angel to be home by herself while literally everyone was gone. He’d offered to stay behind, but Ally said she’d like the chance to hang out with Angel.

  They drove to Ally’s home. As Angel got out of the truck, she said, “I can’t wait to see you guys in your shifts. I wish I could shift into something and go with you.”

  Ian pulled her into a hug. “If you could shift, you wouldn’t be the you that we love; you’d be someone else.”

  Brin nodded. “That would mean we’d all be alone still. So I’m glad you’re the you we love.”

  She smiled. “I still always wanted to shift. Fred told me once that he sometimes wished he was human, that feeling compelled to shift on the full moon and having a noisy wolf in his head wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.”

  “I’d agree with that,” Quill said. “I think everyone wishes at one poin
t or another that they had something different.”

  “Yeah, like when I wished I had curly hair and got a perm. I looked like a frightened poodle for a month,” she said.

  “I’m sure you were adorable,” Ian said. He cupped her face and kissed her gently. It was tempting to do more, like kiss her deeper or haul her over his shoulder and take her home, but he was honored to be asked to join the baro’s hunt, and he wanted to get to know his bosses and their sons, too.

  They knocked on the door and Blake hollered from inside, “Come on in.”

  Entering the homey cabin, they found Ally, her mates, and their three sons in the family room. Ian and Quill had worked with Harry, Mark, and Taylor around the campground.

  “Have a seat,” Richard said.

  Ian and his clan sat on one part of a sectional couch. Ally smiled.

  “Does anyone want anything to eat or drink?” she asked. “I know it’s a dumb question since you’re getting ready to go hunting, but it’s still good manners to ask.”

  Quill chuckled. “Thanks, we’re fine.”

  Richard said, “We mentioned to you all a while ago that once you were mated and settled in, we’d like to offer a place for you in our baro. Since our nephews left, I have to say the baro feels pretty empty. Have you given it any thought?”

  Ian and his brothers had talked about joining the baro since they mated Angel. There were benefits to joining, among them having what amounted to a large family nearby, for support and help in times of need. They’d never been part of a baro before; even their parents had lived as a solitary clan, and their father hadn’t ever really said why. Ian suspected it was because there were no other family members around in order to have a baro, but looking around the family room right now, he realized that baros weren’t always just family groups. They could be something more complex, like this.

  Quill said, “We’ve discussed it, and we’d love to join your baro.”

  The hyenas all cheered, and Ally and Angel both stood and hugged each other. “It’s like we’re a family now,” Ally said. “I’m so happy for all of us!”

  Angel said, “This is so cool. Thank you for letting us join.”

  Richard’s clan and their sons all shook hands with Ian and his brothers. Then Troy clapped his hands and said, “Who’s ready to see who can bag the biggest deer?”

  Harry cracked his knuckles with a smile. “It’s been us the last few times. I’m going to bet that our winning streak will hold.”

  Angel said, “I just don’t want to see anything dead, okay?”

  “Promise,” Brin said.

  “Aw, you don’t want to learn how to make venison jerky and sausage?” Ally asked.

  “Um, nope. Unless you bring me the cleaned meat, I won’t be touching anything that was once a live deer.”

  The baro headed out onto the back deck just as Brierley and Axtyn walked into the backyard. Angel had told Ian that Brierley said they’d also been invited to join the baro, even though they weren’t hyenas, but that she and Axtyn had turned them down. They were their own group, and that was fine with everyone.

  After Angel hugged Brierley, she asked, “What do you call a group of minotaurs anyway?”

  Axtyn’s brows rose. “A herd. But there aren’t groups of us anymore.”

  “Are there female minotaurs?” Angel asked.

  Brierley giggled. “I asked the same thing. So, a male minotaur is a bull, right? A female would be a cow. Like, literally a cow. Could you imagine being a shifter and your shift is a big old cow?”

  Axtyn cracked a smile as he looked down at his mate. “There aren’t female minotaurs. When males mate, any male offspring will be minotaurs, and females will be whatever the female is.”

  “So expect to see a big old flock of owls,” Brierley said. “We both want a big family, and I hope we have some girls.”

  Angel said, “That would be very sweet to see.”

  Hyena clans always had at least three children. Males formed clans of three, so unless there was a physical reason why more children weren’t born, clans birthed a minimum of three to ensure that another clan would be continuing on. Of course, if they happened to have a female, they could wind up with more children than three, but Angel had already said she wanted to have a big family, and that was all right with Ian and his brothers.

  “Let’s get this night going,” Richard said.

  Ian and his brothers pulled Angel around to the side of the house and stripped. While he removed his clothes, he said, “Remember, stay with Ally. We’ll be back in a few hours and then we’ll go home.”

  “I know. I’m not planning to go anywhere,” Angel said.

  “Just making sure you’re safe,” Ian said. “It’s my job.”

  “And you’re very good at it. I always feel safe.”

  “Ready, love?” Quill asked.

  “You can understand me in your shift, right? You’re still you even though you’re a hyena?”

  Brin nodded. “Yep. We just can’t speak to you.”

  “That would be cool. And weird,” she said.

  Ian agreed one hundred percent. There were times when being able to speak would be helpful, but it would just look odd.

  “Love you,” Ian said, giving Angel a final kiss.

  “Love you too.”

  He and his brothers shifted, letting their human forms go and their beasts take over. Angel dropped to her knees and cupped Ian’s head, kissing the tip of his nose. “That was so neat to watch. I never really got to see it with the wolf pack. It always seemed so intimate, even though they’re very casual about it.”

  Quill and Brin bumped against her and she scratched all of them behind the ears. Ian’s leg thumped like a puppy’s, eliciting a string of giggles from their mate. Then she kissed them each on the top of the head and said, “I hope our kids can shift, and that they look beautiful just like their daddies.”

  Ian thought their kids would be lucky to be beautiful like their mom, and he’d tell her so when he got back from the hunt. They walked to the backyard, and Angel let out a short gasp as she saw Axtyn in his bull form. He was massive, with huge curved horns and red, gleaming eyes. He would have looked downright frightening if it weren’t for the owl perched on his back. Her sweet innocence took the edge off the bull’s fierceness.

  Ian left Angel with Ally and joined the group. Nine hyenas, a bull, and an owl headed into the woods to hunt, leaving behind two precious mates. Although his beast wanted to stay with Angel, he was also anxious to hunt with his brothers and their new baro, and enjoy the fall night. It was just right for hunting.

  A crackling branch echoed in the quiet, and Ian’s ears twitched. Listening intently, he heard what he was certain was a deer and took off in the direction of the sound, the wind rushing around him. His brothers were at his side as they sought out the deer, exhilarating in the hunt. Later, he’d get to share the details with Angel, and he was looking forward to that, too. Even if she didn’t want to know all the gory bits.

  Chapter 13

  Because of how things had ended between Angel and Whisper, Angel opted to go directly to her mom and step-dad’s house and not try to seek out Whisper. She’d heard from her mom that Bliss had gone into labor the week before and had a boy. Bliss and her family were coming to the baby shower, but Angel wasn’t going, so it didn’t matter. Her mom was hopeful that Angel, Whisper, and Bliss’s friendship could be salvaged, but Angel wasn’t sure. Could she forgive Bliss and Whisper for thinking the worst of her mates?

  The front door opened and her step-dad smiled at them.

  “Hi Fred,” Angel said.

  “Welcome back. Come on in, your mom’s just checking on the pie.”

  Angel’s stomach growled. “Mom made pie?”

  “Your favorite.”

  “Oh, yay!”

  “I thought you liked chocolate cake the best?” Brin asked.

  “For cake, yes. But I have a ton of favorite desserts. There are so many wonderful ones, after a
ll.”

  “What’s your favorite pie?” Ian asked.

  “Chocolate pecan. Mom makes the best crusts, too.”

  She kissed Fred on his cheek as she passed by.

  “Let’s save the intros for when we’re all together,” Fred said.

  They followed Angel through the house to a cozy kitchen done in red gingham. Her mom straightened from the oven and turned to face them, smiling broadly as she said, “I made your favorite, honey.”

  “Thanks, Mom.”

  Angel’s mother put the pie on a cooling rack and set the hot pads on the counter. Then she hugged Angel. “I’ve missed you so much!”

  “I missed you, too,” Angel said. Tears stung her eyes, but she blinked them away. She wasn’t sad that she didn’t live in Beyton anymore, but she did miss her mom and step-dad. She smiled at her mates.

  “Mom, Fred, these are my mates, Quill, Ian, and Brin. Guys, this is my mom, Darlene, and my step-dad, Fred.”

  Darlene hugged them, and Fred shook their hands.

  “It’s nice to meet you,” Quill said. “Thank you for inviting us into your home.”

  Darlene lifted Angel’s fingers and gasped at the rings. “Wow, the pictures you sent don’t do them justice. They are beautiful!”

  Angel loved all the rings. Each one represented one of her mates, and they’d chosen exactly the kinds of rings that she would’ve picked out. “My mates have good taste.”

  “Especially in their mate,” Fred said. “Let’s sit and get to know each other.”

  They moved into the family room and sat down. Angel loved the couch. It was worn and comfortable, the sort of couch you could sink into and fall asleep. Her parents asked her mates questions. It didn’t surprise her that her mom asked about the wedding after only about ten minutes.