Page 56 of Fury

Except Sawyer was already shaking his head no. “I don't think Penelope is ready for one of our mating season parties.”

“Why not?” she asked, a little offended that Sawyer didn't want to take her to a gathering that included his entire pack.

He lifted her hand and pressed his soft lips to her fingers. “Hmm. How to say this without freaking you out...”

Her insides froze. Of course, just saying that much freaked her out. What the hell?

“He's worried you'll freak when you find out mating season gatherings are traditionally—uhm…”

“Sex fests,” Sawyer blurted.

Faith gave him a dark look. “I was going to say they are traditionally considered as an opportunity to call on the magic of the moon to increase our chances of mating and fertility.”

“Sex fests,” Sawyer said again.

“Stop saying that. You're going to scare her.” Faith moved to the seat next to hers and sat. “Damien and I want to get pregnant.”

Penelope took a deep breath. That statement made her stomach loosen a fraction.

“And I'm told mating season can be the perfect time for a wolf's fertility. So we thought why not improve our chances by bringing our family and friends together to harness a little extra something from the moon.”

“And this involves everyone having sex at this little gathering?” she asked.

Faith laughed and Damien knocked Sawyer in the head for his part in her thoughts. “No. We aren't performing some sort of weird sex ritual. Not at all. It's a party. We celebrate the season with food and drink. The full moon shines down on us and with a little luck, that energy gets translated into something else down the line.”

"That sounds simple enough.” She turned to Sawyer. “Why did you call it a sex fest? Are you trying to scare me? Or do you not want me going to a party with your pack?” She hated that her insecurity about not belonging had flared to life and in front of witnesses no less.

“No, babe. Not at all. I'm all for taking you to this party. You belong with us now. You are one of us no matter what.”

Faith and Damien nodded their heads.

“However, you should know what you're getting into. The party itself is what they say it is. But, babe. It is mating season. The drive to mate is in every single one of us right now. You add alcohol and a little moon magic to that and it's going to lead to—”

“A sex fest.”

They all laughed. “Now you're getting it. We're not exactly shy people.”

“It's just a party?”

Faith nodded. “Yes. We've had a lot of bad happen lately, but we've also had a lot of good. We think it's time to celebrate that.”

The knots in Penelope's stomach unfurled and she smiled back at her new friend. “Then I think we'd love to be there.”

* * *

Two nights later,the pack gathered around a huge bonfire on the beach and with Damien and Faith leading them, they called down on the energy of the moon to bless their pack with strength, love and fertility.

While she was completely on board with the strength and love part, the fertility talk made her a little nervous. They were already magical beings who could shift from wolf to human at will, what if this little moon gathering actually did bless them with fertility?

Was she ready for something like that? She still had her birth control pills with her that she took every morning, but nothing was supposed to work one hundred percent of the time and if anyone could defy conventional medicine it would be her wolf man.

She spied him across the fire speaking to his best friend Creed and his very pregnant mate, Dani. The cliché about being radiant during this time certainly applied to her and the way Creed possessively held an arm around her waist and the frequent touches she gave him back, made it obvious to anyone they were madly in love.

And speaking of love...

She returned her gaze to Sawyer and found him staring at her over the dancing flames. He said something to both Creed and Dani without taking his eyes off her that made them both look her way, then he broke away from them and headed around the fire.

She loved to watch him move. He did so with purpose, making each muscle flex and bend to his will. In the light of the full moon she could make out the deep scars on the side of his face and neck that always made her want to touch him.

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