“What do you want, Riley?” Maia asked him.
“I want to talk to you, explain that I’m leaving,” he answered.
“I already know that. Good luck, travel safe,” and she turned to go back inside.
“Wait! What the hell happened? Why won’t you even talk to me. I’m your Mate, and you treat me like a stranger!” he shouted.
Delilah snarled, “Do not raise your voice to this female.”
He didn’t answer Delilah, but changed his tone, “I miss you.”
“Then maybe you shouldn’t have stopped coming around,” Maia said softly.
“You know it’s hard, too many fucking Alphas here, and I’m too Alpha, too. I’ve told you that before,” he said.
“Yeah, you have. But on the phone it’s just me,” and she lifted her eyes to his, her Wolf flashing in them.
“It’s so hard to talk to you, to need you, to not be able to be near you, or touch you the way I need. And the need just fucking grows, exponentially. I have to stay away. Do you understand? It’s just too much to control,” he tried to explain.
“Then go!” she shouted at him, tired of his excuses, and still very raw from hearing his voice telling the female at his house to take his shirt because it smelled like him.
“I am!” he shouted back. Then a little calmer, “I just need you to understand.”
She looked at him, unbelieving that he wanted her blessing to move on with his life without her, “You’ve got to be kidding?”
“No! I’m not kidding, why is it hard for you to see that I need you to understand. I need you to let me go. I have to do this. Can’t you see that I have to, it’s for the best! You’ll see one day that it was the right thing. It hurts now, but we’ll both be so much better later on. It’ll make the future better for both of us.”
All Maia heard was I want you to let me go, my life will better without you, so she let him go, “Fine. Riley, I renounce you. I give up all claim on you. I will never darken your life again. Go, leave me, do not look back, I won’t.”
He was yelling, shouting, trying to make her stop speaking, but she powered through it in spite of his shrieking, “No! Don’t do this! Stop it, Maia! Stop it!”
She turned and strode calmly back into the house, closing the door behind her, and found Valerie and Maverik standing there. She lost all control, falling into their arms, crying and sobbing uncontrollably. She was nearly inconsolable. And from the sounds of it, Riley was seriously losing his shit outside. Kaid went back out. Delilah stood on the porch holding him off, preventing Riley from coming back in the house. Kaid hurried to where he stood, trying to come back up the steps. “Riley!” he shouted in his face. Then again, “Riley! Listen to me!”
Riley’s chest was heaving, his eyes were the gold of his panther, his jaw was squaring as he fought the need to shift. Kaid let loose his hold on his Bear, and in just a moment the snarl of a grizzly was bringing Riley up short.
Riley snapped his eyes to Kaid’s, “Back the fuck off these steps. Control your damn self. Do not make me whip your ass right where you stand.”
Riley snarled, trying to form words, but none came. He gestured helplessly toward the house, and Kaid understood.
“I know. I do. She’s your Mate, and she just renounced you. But she’s young. Things will change. Give it time,” Kaid instructed.
Riley struggled for words again, finally managing, “Need.”
“I know. I’m not sure what’s going on here. Just that she’s seemed lost for a little while. Valerie and Vince are both fiercely protective of her. And you really don’t want to fuck with Delilah or Maverik. Neither wants you around her anymore. But it’ll all clear up. The fates matched you to her. Give her time, do what you need to. Go, build your life, make a place, and if she’s truly yours, she’ll come to you. Have something to offer her when she comes to you.”
Riley’s Panther snarled low and deadly, looking over Kaid’s shoulder at the now closed front door.
Kaid rumbled at him, taking him down a notch, “You need to go now. You need to go before you do damage to our relationship with you. I know you’re torn up. But she isn’t going to see you right now. She just renounced you. Honor her wishes. Go, make a place for yourself. If she’s supposed to be with you, she’ll seek you out.”
“Need to fix…” Riley started.
“You can’t. Not tonight. No matter what you do it will only make it worse. Just go, call her a couple weeks after you get settled,” Kaid told him.
Riley didn’t answer, just looked at the door again.
Kaid hugged him, patted his shoulder, “Go. Now.”
Then Kaid turned and walked away, going back inside and closing the door, shutting Riley out of Maia’s life.
Riley’s Panther yowled in frustration, then screamed loudly into the silence surrounding him. He fell to his knees, his heart broken.
Sometime later, how long he didn’t even know, he finally climbed to his feet, got in his truck and drove away. Leaving his heart behind, in the dirt, outside Kaid’s house.
Epilogue
The cold night air of the Christmas Festival slapped Avaleigh in the face as she stepped up onto the platform, waiting in line to get on the Ferris wheel with Daniel. She loved Ferris wheels and was very excited about the ride. Daniel was acting kind of weird though, twitchy almost. She looked over her shoulder and found Remi where he stood with Bane, Janie and Daisy, waiting for her and Daniel to have their ride and come back to him. He couldn’t ride on it - he was too short, and he was not happy about it. He had told her clearly, “I can fly higher than that!”
“Yes, I know, but you have to be this tall,” she held her hand to her chest, “to ride this ride. And you’re not. I’m sorry, baby.”
Then Daniel had taken him aside and spoken to him a little. She wasn’t sure what he’d said, but Remi had come back all smiles and told her happily, “I’ll wait with Uncle Bane and Aunt Janie. You can go ride with Papa.”
So here they were, waiting in line.
As the cars came around, and the people took turns getting on, they slowly moved toward the front of the line. When it was finally their turn, Daniel made sure to help her step into the car, then take a seat next to her. The Ferris Wheel operator fastened their seat belts and their safety bar and away they went.
He watched her; she was thrilled, loving the view and the sensation of the huge wheel turning and taking them higher into the air.
She was excited, pointing out landmarks in the distance and straining to see if she could see Remi as they came back around to the ground, then again looking for landmarks as they were moving up high again. She’d been so engrossed in the ride that she’d missed the look that Daniel had given the operator as they again passed him. The operator inclined his head and smiled. As they got to the top, the Ferris Wheel stopped.
“Oh, I love this part! I love when we get to sit up here for awhile and feel like we are on top of the world!” she said.
When Daniel didn’t answer, she turned to look at him and found him looking right at her, a beautiful smile on his face, and a diamond ring sitting in a red velvet box, waiting for her to look at him.
When her eyes focused on the ring, he said, “It’s a heart-shaped diamond, and if you look closely, you’ll see that it’s held in a dragon’s maw, his heart being held in offering to you. My heart being offered to you. You are my world, Avaleigh. I would surely die without you. You are my Mate, will you agree to be my wife, too?”
Avaleigh was stunned. She’d watched her friends get married and hoped that one day she would, too. But she had no idea that Daniel had noticed. That he wanted the same thing. She was smiling, so big her cheeks hurt, and she squealed, loudly, causing Daniel to wince, then laugh out loud at her exuberance, as she shouted, “Yes! Oh, My God! Yes!!!! I will marry you!”
Daniel took the ring from its red velvet-covered box and held it up to her, so she could really look at it. The heart-shaped solitaire diamond was set in platinu
m, and the ring itself was constructed to look like a Dragon’s tail, wrapped around her finger, the other end of the tail coming to curl around its head, the Dragon’s claws wrapping around its tail to further strengthen the band. The diamond, itself, sat in the Dragon’s mouth, the teeth of the Dragon the prongs that held the diamond in place.
As he slipped it on her finger, he said, “I designed this ring to represent me, my heart and to always remind you that we are yours.”
“It’s perfect, Daniel. I love it, it’s so perfect,” Avaleigh told him, leaning into his arms and kissing him passionately.
“I love you, Dragon’s Mate,” he told her smiling.
“I love you, too, Dragon’s Mate’s Mate,” she told him smiling.
“Are you happy, love?” he asked.
She nodded her head, grinning, absolutely glowing with happiness, “So happy,” she told him. “Are you,” she asked.
“Avaleigh GreyStorm, every day of my life is happier than the one before it. And each day I think there is no way I could ever top this day. Then I wake the next morning with you in my arms and think; I was wrong, today is even better.”
Then they heard Remi’s little voice from down below, “Well? Did you ask her yet? Did she say yes?”
They both laughed, Avaleigh leaned over and kissed Daniel, “We should hurry, my Dragon, we don’t want to be late.”
Bam and Everly held hands as he led her through the garden of Christmas trees that all the different businesses, churches and schools of the area each volunteered to decorate. Some families had volunteered to decorate them, too. There were so many of them, all decorated in varying themes. Some were classic Norman Rockwell style, some were flocked and decorated in white and silver, some had 60’s Christmas themes, some were stunningly decorated and looked as though they were dripping in real gemstones and swaths of golden lame, and yet others were all children’s hand made ornaments. There were other trees, undecorated but in huge pots, both ceramic and wooden, framing the perimeter of the Christmas tree display, which covered an area the size of two city blocks. There were tiny golden twinkling lights strung back and forth above the entire area, making it a Christmas wonderland. As soon as they entered the Christmas Tree Garden, Everly became lost in the array of trees and took her time taking in the details of each one. Bam followed her patiently, until she found one she was particularly taken with and was taking her time walking around it, looking at each individual ornament on it. As she made her way back around the tree, she almost stumbled over Bam kneeling there. She startled and took a step back; he smiled and reached for her hand. Confused, she placed her hand in his. When he reached into his pocket and produced a velvet ring box, her breath caught. Her other hand flew to her mouth as he spoke, “My Ever, I asked you once before if you would become my wife, but I didn’t have a ring. So, now, I do, and I’m asking you again, will you marry me?”
Everly’s eyes filled with tears, and she smiled a huge happy smile as she said, “Yes, Bramley, I’ll proudly be your wife. I love you with all that I am.”
Bramley smiled, tears in his own eyes, as he leaned forward and caressed the swell of her belly, then kissed where their baby sat, nestled safely inside his Mate, “I love you, too, Everly. You’re my Ever. You’re my everything. My soul, that’s what you are, my soul, and I never lived a single day ‘til you loved me. I existed, but I never lived. Everything I am is yours.”
He removed the ring, a 1.5 carat emerald-cut emerald, set in 18 karat gold, and slid it on to her finger. “I wanted this one for you. It matches your eyes, and it’s golden. It’s very special. Nobody else’s is just like it.”
“Bramley, it’s perfect. I couldn’t dream of a more perfect ring.”
He stood and took her in his arms, kissing her lovingly. Everly cupped his face in her hands and said, “I love you so much, Bramley. You are everything to me,” then they both startled when applause greeted them. Bane with Janie and Daisy having just made it in time to watch the proposal; Goldy and Ms. Sadie; Kaid and a hugely pregnant Delilah. Maverik with Valerie and Maia, and Vince with Brandi, all clapping and smiling their support. Even Daniel and Avaleigh had managed to get there in time, with Remi riding Daniel’s shoulders as they all looked on.
“So does that mean we’re going to have a wedding soon?” Kaid asked, grinning.
Bam grinned back at him and raised his eyebrow in question. Delilah and Maverik exchanged looks, then shared knowing smiles.
“Let’s take a walk to the back of the garden, I saw something there earlier that I wanted to show you, Bam,” Delilah said.
Bam nodded enthusiastically, “Let’s go to the back, Ever - we can come back and look at all of the rest of the trees later.”
Everly loved when Bam got excited like this. He was like a little child in his excitement sometimes. She’d never known anyone who got so much joy out of the simple things in life. She prayed everyday that their little one would inherit that trait from his or her father. It was one of the best parts of Bam. “Okay, let’s go see what you want to show me.”
The entire clan walked with them, smiling and whispering to each other, happiness filling the lack of words as they walked. As they reached the back of the garden, and Bane, Kaid and Vince stepped aside for her to see what they were hiding from her line of sight with their big ass bodies, she lost her ability to speak. She stood there, clutching Bam’s hand, unable to form intelligent thought. She knew, finally, what if felt like to be Bam. She had thoughts, but they were all emotions, no words, and her eyes were filled with splashes of colors, well one color: Gold.
Before her very eyes were two dozen trees, eight on each side. Beautiful deep-green scotch pines, all draped in golden sparking tulle ribbon, golden lights, golden crystal and glass decorations of every size and shape. The were positively elegant. They were arranged to frame a path, set more close to each other across the path, making it slimmer as it approached tables at the end of the path. The remaining eight trees were decorated in like fashion and placed both behind and at the end of the tables. The tables were draped in golden and cream-colored table cloths, piled high with chafing dishes filled with steaming foods, and crystal punch bowls nearly overflowing with punches that had fresh fruits and even scoops of sherbet floating in one of them. There were plates and napkins, all trimmed in gold. To the left was a portable mini bar, with a bartender - she was actually one of Vince’s waitresses, manning it. It was covered in bottles of champagne and bottles of beer at the ready.
A throat clearing brought her attention back to the trees in front of them. It was then that she noticed they were standing on a golden cloth. She turned to look behind them, her eyes following it all the way up to the front; where Preacher Manley stood waiting for them to approach.
Bam touched her gently on the shoulder; she turned to him, her mouth hanging open. He smiled at her, his nervousness almost smothering her, “I guess I should have said, will you marry me tonight?”
Her mouth fell even further open, and her eyes followed his as he looked up toward all the golden decorations, then back at her.
Bam waited; he said nothing, just waiting for her to respond. His fear grew by the second. He was thinking that maybe he shouldn’t have done this. Maybe it was too much, to surprise her like this. He had thought it was a good idea - it had worked well with everyone else. And he had made sure it was very fancy. ‘Cause his Ever deserved everything special and golden. He still couldn’t see their gold, though he now understood why. That’s why everything was decorated in gold. He was determined that they be surrounded in it, and that he could see it, even if he provided it.
Then she saved him again when she finally spoke, “Yes. Yes!” She looked around at everything again, trying to take it all in, then whispered, “I can’t believe you did all this; it’s amazing,” as she looked back at him.
Bam smiled, his relief clear, his smile huge. “Here, I got you this, too.”
He held his hand out toward Bane. Bane darted over to th
e tables, reaching under one and coming out with a hanger draped in plastic, like a dry cleaning bag.
He hurried back to Bam and handed him the hanger. Bam took it from him and immediately tore the plastic with one hand, as he held the hanger out from him, holding it high so she could see.
Her hand flew to her mouth as she looked. It was a dress, strapless, and cream-colored. A sweetheart neckline, dropping to a fitted bodice, all covered in gold embroidery and beading. The skirt was flounced, supported by a crinoline under slip that held it up almost like a longer ballet tutu. When she wore it, it would fall just below mid thigh on her.
He held it out to her and she took it from him, still stunned.
“Go put it on. Valerie helped me. It should fit,” he told her, gently touching her shoulders and nudging her toward Valerie.
Valerie stepped forward, smiling at the still stunned expression on her best friend’s face,“Come on, Ev, let’s get you ready.”
Everly didn’t say anything - she was still dumbfounded. She just allowed Valerie to lead her away to get changed, looking back over her shoulder a time or two to look at Bam as Valerie pulled her by the hand.
As soon as she was out of sight, Bam and Bane darted for the table again, where Bane had stashed Bam’s clothes, too. Then he helped Bam get dressed.
Maia stood just outside the Christmas Tree Garden which they’d paid to have private access to that evening, waiting for Valerie and Everly to come back. As soon as she caught sight of them, she turned and hurried toward the others, calling out, “They’re coming!”
Everyone took their places, Bam standing to the right of Preacher Manley, Bane and Avaleigh to his immediate left. Delilah on the preachers other side, and the rest of the clan sitting in the chairs just a few feet in front of that, except for Maverik, who was running around snapping pictures. He’d declared himself official photographer.
Bam's Ever Page 27