Page 58 of Mating Mia
Marriage. A human custom, technically unnecessary for wolves because our bonds are more powerful than what a paper could provide.
But Mia deserves everything—every protection, every tradition, every symbol of commitment available to her.
After the childhood she endured with those monsters who kidnapped her, after all the years she spent believing she was unwanted.
I want to give her this. A ring. A ceremony. A declaration in front of everyone that she belongs with us, that we’ve chosen each other for life.
I grip the steering wheel tighter, my knuckles whitening as I imagine asking Liam for his blessing. The man intimidates me, though I'd never admit it aloud. He survived decades of captivity, never losing hope of finding his mate and daughter. He protected his family against impossible odds.
Will he think that my pack and I are worthy of his daughter?
The glove compartment seems to taunt me from the passenger side. I reach over at a red light, popping it open to reveal the small velvet box nestled among vehicle registration papers and emergency supplies.
The light changes, and I snap the compartment shut, accelerating through the intersection. Twenty more minutes until I reach the waterfall, twenty minutes until I face Liam. My wolf paces anxiously beneath my skin, recognizing the importance of what I'm about to do.
I slow as I approach the hidden turnoff that leads to the waterfall, carefully navigating the rough track that keeps most casual hikers away. The isolation has served Sarah well all these years, keeping her scent masked by the constant mist and spray of falling water. It serves us well now, too, providing a sanctuary where Mia's parents can rebuild their life together while Orion was still out here terrorizing local packs.
My mind fills with images of Mia in white, standing before our pack and her parents, her belly perhaps already swelling with our next child as she says words that will bind us together in human custom.
Would she want a traditional wedding? Something small and intimate, or a larger celebration?
I realize I have no idea.
But now, with Ash in our lives, with her parents found and our family expanding, it feels right to offer her this additional layer of security. A ring on her finger, a certificate with our names, a human acknowledgment of what our wolves have known from the first moment we scented her in that cafe she worked in. She's ours, and we're hers, until death and beyond.
The track widens as I approach the small clearing where we park when visiting the waterfall. Liam's truck is there. They're building a life out here, piece by piece, reclaiming the years stolen from them by Orion and his pack.
I cut the engine and sit for a moment, gathering my thoughts. The velvet box seems to burn in the glove compartment, a physical manifestation of my intentions. I reach over and take it out, opening it to look at the ring one more time before I ask Liam for his blessings.
With a deep breath, I step out of the car and head toward the path that leads to the waterfall. I can already hear Ash’s delighted squeals echoing from behind the curtain of water, the sound making me smile despite my nervousness.
My son. My cub. The miracle I never knew I needed until he arrived.
The mist from the waterfall cools my face as I step through the hidden entrance to the cave system. Ash’s delighted squeal echoes against the stone walls, followed by Sarah's melodic laughter. But when I round the corner and see my son's face light up at the sight of me, everything else fades into background noise. He immediately begins crawling toward me with determined speed, his chubby hands slapping against the stone floor in his eagerness to reach me.
“There’s my boy,” I call out, crouching down to receive him. He barrels into my arms with the same reckless abandon he approaches everything in life, his little body solid and warm against my chest as I lift him.
Sarah stands nearby, her smile so like Mia's it sometimes startles me. The same curve of lips, the same dimple in her left cheek, the same light in her eyes. She's wearing her hair pulled back in a loose braid, comfortable in worn jeans and a soft sweater. She’s glowing and very different from the wary, tense woman we first encountered behind the waterfall six months ago.
“He’s been watching that entrance for the last hour,” she tells me, her fingers absently folding a small blanket. “It’s like he knew you were coming.”
I press my nose against Ash's dark hair, inhaling his scent. Milk and baby soap and something uniquely him, already developing the undertone that marks him as alpha. “Is that right, pup? Were you waiting for me?”
Ash responds by grabbing a fistful of my beard and tugging hard enough to make my eyes water. His strength continues to surprise me, though it shouldn't. He comes from a long line of alphas on both sides.
“Careful there, little warrior,” Liam says, emerging from one of the side passages with a bottle in hand.
“It’s fine,” I say, gently disentangling Ash’s fingers from my beard. “He’s just testing his strength. Aren’t you, son?”
Ash grins at me, showing the two tiny teeth that have emerged on his bottom gum. The sight never fails to fill my chest with a fierce pride.
“Thank you both for taking him,” I say, bouncing Ash gently as he attempts to climb onto my shoulder. “I know it was last-minute.”
Sarah waves away my gratitude. “It’s never a burden to have him here. He's a joy.”
“Even at three in the morning?” I ask with a raised eyebrow, remembering all too well Ash’s tendency to decide the middle of the night is the perfect time for playing.
“Even then,” she confirms, reaching out to smooth a wild tuft of Ash's hair. Her eyes soften as she looks at him, decades of maternal love that had nowhere to go finally finding its outlet in this grandchild. “Besides, we had twenty-seven years of uninterrupted sleep. We can handle a few midnight wake-up calls.”
