Page 22 of My Omega's Miracle

“That I brought my mate home? They’d think I was crazy if I had left you. Come on,” Garrick said. He jumped out of the truck while I moved across the seat to the passenger side. He walked around and opened my door for me. I was counting to ten, trying to stop myself from hyperventilating. He gripped my hand. “You’re gonna do great. They are going to love you.”

“Who’s going to love who?” came a kind, calm voice. The woman’s smile was radiant. “Who’s this, Garrick?”

Garrick put his arm around my shoulder and grabbed my other hand with his so our hands were clasped in front of us. It might’ve looked like casual affection to some, but it wrapped me in a tight embrace. It felt like it was the only thing keeping me from flying apart.

“Mama, this is Noel. He’s my mate.”

Her eyes widened, and a hand clamped over her mouth. “You found your mate?”

“I did,” Garrick said. He gripped my hand tighter, standing by my side as we waited to see what her reaction would be.

Tears pricked at the corner of her eyes. Then she wrapped her arms around me and held me tight. She rocked me gently, swaying back and forth.

“Welcome home, son,” she said. “We’ve been waiting for you.”

Never in my life had I felt such a hug, filled with such acceptance. Was this what it felt like to be hugged by a mother? If it was, I wanted to feel that way every day.

Chapter 16

Garrick

“You sure like to make an entrance, don’t you, Garrick?” My best friend and second-in-command, Troy, clapped me on the shoulder and pulled me into a hug. He had arrived shortly after I did. My mother had embraced Noel into her arms, then led him through the house to give him a tour. He had looked back at me, his eyes sparkling with unshed tears of happiness, assuring me that he would be fine on his own.

“You’re gone a week, and you come back with a mate! That’s fast work.” Troy’s grin was huge, his excitement for me palpable.

I smiled back. “I did. He landed right in my lap, like fate had it planned that way all along.”

“You are one lucky wolf, you know that?” He shook his head, but his happiness for me was evident in the sparkle in his eyes.

I laughed. “It does indeed seem that way.”

“Seems awfully convenient,” my father said, a scowl on his face. He hadn’t greeted us at the door, but instead, waited for us to come inside. I hadn’t expected the red carpet roll-out, after all, they didn’t know I was bringing my mate home.

“Father,” I said. My wolf rose to the surface. Was he going to question my relationship with Noel? He couldn’t. Anyone who saw us together, with our combined scents and the mark on his neck, knew we were mates. “Be careful how you speak. Noel is my mate.”

“Now, I’m not saying I don’t believe that he’s your mate. Anyone can scent that on you, but you might have pushback from the council.”

Anger boiled within me. This was our moment. One my parents had been waiting for, one I had been waiting for. I’d found my mate, claimed him, fell in love with him, and we were starting our life together. This should be a happy moment, not one overshadowed by the council and their convoluted rules.

“Fuck them!” I roared.

My father pinched his eyes closed. “You’re not Alpha yet, boy,” he said.

“I know that, but he is my mate. I did find him, just as fate intended. Hell, that is probably the reason I felt so compelled to take that trip, because it was destined to work out this way. I wasn’t destined to have a mate hand-selected by the council, especially not a mate that belonged to another. Noel was booked in the same cabin that I was, then we were snowed in together.”

“That’s so romantic,” Troy said. “Ben will love that. He and I want to hear every detail.”

I shot him a glance, and his cheeks burned red. He shrugged as he slipped his hands into his pockets, looking more sheepish than wolf-like.

“I might have sped up the whole ‘making sure no one hones in on my omega’ process,” he said, holding up his hands. “I know it was out of turn. I should have waited until you returned and gotten your permission. I just… couldn’t risk losing him.”

As a mated wolf, I understood the sentiment. “Finally,” I said, and he laughed.

“Yeah, that’s what Benjamin said, too. And his parents. And mine. Pretty much everyone has had that reaction.”

I put a hand on Troy’s shoulder, and he lifted his gazed to mine. “I’m happy for you. I truly am. Ben is a lucky omega, as are you.”

Troy bared his neck. “Thank you, Garrick. That means the world to us.”

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