Page 107 of Her Second-Hand Mate

“Apology accepted,” I said and kissed his forehead.

“I’ll go get Gabriel from Mom’s now. You can use that time to hide your knives around our new home,” he grinned, and I shoved him as I got up from his lap.

“Don’t make fun of me!”

“Making fun of you? I’ll never stop praying for your Nana Myrtle to get all the bounties of paradise! She saved your life with her wisdom, and we’ll be passing it on to our pups. Actually,” he took hold of my hand and started dragging me to the deck, “I bought something to honor her memory.”

He led me to a pot that held a young tree.

“What is it?”

“It’s a crepe myrtle,” he said, his pride unmistakable. “We’ll plant it in our backyard after the first frost. It’s a beautiful tree.”

My eyes got all blurry as I nodded.

“Hey, no tears,” he took my face in his hand and wiped my cheeks with his thumbs.

“These are happy tears,” I said, and it sounded really nasal because my nose was stinging. “Are those allowed?”

“Hell, yeah.”

Epilogue

14 years later

Dear Gabriel,

I hope your visit to Wales is going well. We miss you a lot, but, as your Dad loves to remind me, this is good for you, and you are having fun. We want you to grow and develop and not be a little pup forever. Still, it’s hard some days. You’re only 15, and this is the first time you’ve been away from me for so long.

Luckily, I trust Regina and David implicitly, and I have no doubt you’ll be safe during Alpha training with them.

Okay, the self-reassuring portion of the letter is done. I can practically hear you rolling your adolescent eyes at me all the way to Massachusetts.

Your Nana Eden is here for the summer, and we’re having the best time with her. She’ll wait for you to come home before going back to Utah, don’t worry. I won’t lie, though; your sister isenjoying the spotlight now that she has the chance to experience what being an only child feels like.

But one morning, after a bad rainstorm, I saw her coming out of your room. She must have slept in your bed for comfort. I am very grateful for many things in my life, but the sibling love that the two of you share is one of the top five.

I’ll never forget the moment I told Dominic I was pregnant, which was something that we never got to experience with Gabriel. He fell to his knees, and we both sobbed. He was by my side for every milestone of that pregnancy.

Many days were hard because of old hurts, but we made it through to the other side, where our daughter Lauren Myrtle Hedge was waiting for us. Our family was finally complete.

Another wolf who was there for me every step of the way was, surprisingly, my stepmother, Eden.

After we lost my father in the dark months following what was now known as the Larson Rebellion, I made a conscious effort to get to know the female who, until then, had quietly existed in the background of my life. She turned out to be a delight – warm, caring, and compassionate. Her support was invaluable during all the challenges my poor sister had to face as she grew up into the female I’d always known she could be.

Speaking of siblings, your Uncle Isaac will be attending a seminar in Wales in the second week of August, so you will get to see him and your Auntie Katya. Since your Nana Eden is not in Utah, your cousins will go stay at your Aunt Evie’s in Alaska so you won’t get to spar with Leo.

I keep busy with the daycare and the Foundation, but I will be making a trip of my own in the second week of August! It is time for the annual sleepover week! This year, we’re staying at Charlotte’s in Texas. I haven’t seen her since last year, and I’m very excited to spend time with all of my friends.

Charlotte had finally found her mate while visiting Anthony at his workplace at the Royal Hospital. The poor male had been in a coma for years, which his wolf promptly woke him up from after smelling Charlotte in the hallway outside of their room. Their meeting story was one that was often retold at get-togethers, and everyone loved hearing it because it was so heartwarming and happy.

I was thrilled that all my friends were now settled and in relationships where they were loved and cherished the way they deserved to be. Charlotte was in Texas, Anthony was in Florida, Lynn was in Illinois, and Tammy was in Kentucky. I still had Theresa, Mira, and Grace close by, but my heart felt the fullest when my original gang was together in the same place.

Now, I won’t make this too long because I have to go to lunch with your grandma Florence and her females, but I fully plan on writing a longer letter for your uncle to deliver to you (along with some cookies, maybe). I just want to address something that I mentioned in my last letter – the fact that you’re now at the age where you’re supposed to start writing your letters to your mate.

I know that you’ve been told about this at length in school and by older pack members growing up. I can only speak from theperspective of someone who was the recipient of such letters and I can tell you it was wonderful to get an insight into my mate’s personality via what I would classify more as diary entries.

It can help your mate get a better sense of the years before she knew you, and it can help you open a line of communication with her in your mind that will be ready and waiting for her once she’s there.

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