Page 71 of A Beta Protects

“The first?”

“The first.” And he kisses each and every freckle. I assume he does, because the day has been a long one, and he takes his time doing it.

When I wake up, we’re back in our bed, my rain-dampened skin dry, and I have a warm comforter over me as Dom snores beside me. It’s late. The house is quiet and there’s not even a hint of moonlight peeping in from the edge of the curtains.

Then I wake him up.

He doesn’t have any freckles, so it doesn’t take nearly as much time to kiss him all over.

That doesn’t mean I don’t take my time.

22

DOM

I’m working on a sketch of the outbuilding when I smell her. My mate. My wife.

I keep my head down, busy sketching out our new home as the sun from the skylight bounces off my wedding ring.

It’s been three days. Three whole days of being a husband, something I never imagined I would ever be, and I haven’t stopped smiling.

My wolf, initially, wasn’t fond of the idea of a ring, until I explained that this is Kira’s way of bonding, just as a bite is his.

My mate is quiet, but not nearly quiet enough.

I hide my smile at her for thinking she can sneak up on me.

But this isn’t a sneak attack this time, something my wolf is very fond of. She slides her arms around me from behind and I hear her inhale like I smell as good to her as she does to me.

“What are you doing?” she asks. “You ran off right after dinner.”

I did.

I flip the notebook closed, toss it on the floor and turn around, so we’re face to face. She’s beautiful in another of the short-sleeve, midi-dresses that she loves to wear. This one is a blue polka dot one and the blue almost matches her eyes. “I am making plans, wife. Big ones.”

Her head tips up, and her wavy strawberry-blonde hair looks redder under the skylights. She has more freckles on her nose, a result of all the time we’ve been spending outside, walking in the forest.

“What kind of plans?”

I back her across the room, and her gaze turns hooded. She must see exactly where things are going. And they are going there. Just not yet. There are things we need to talk about first. “Future kind of plans.”

She scowls at me. It’s fake. I can always tell when my wife is trying not to smile. “You’re being frustratingly vague, mate.”

My wolf rumbles happily. He’s still getting used to the idea of being a husband, as am I. But he very much loves it when Kira calls us mate.

Her back bumps the wall, but softly. I would never want to hurt my mate. “Am I?”

“You are.” Her eyes dip to the notebook I dropped. “Is it about me?”

“It’s always about you.”

“You sound like a man obsessed,” she says with a smile that she doesn’t do a thing to hide.

“I sound—” I kiss her, “—like a man in love.”

She wraps her arms around me, and I tuck her against me. We’re as close as we could be, but it never feels close enough. Long minutes later, I break the kiss and peer down at her, taking in her flushed cheeks, the soft look in her eyes, and rosy lips. “We have to talk.”

Wariness flits across her gaze. “About?”

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