Page 22 of Wolves' Midlife Reunion
Maeve held out her hands for the dish. “I’ll put that on the table for you.”
“Thank you.”
Tina appeared then, coming in from another room. “Oh, good! You made it. Where’s Sage?”
“Already off making friends, it seems.” His heart picked up a few extra beats per minute when he saw her, and his mind instantly flew back to that passionate night at her apartment. He wanted to hold her in his arms again, to trail his lips along the side of her neck, to do a lot of other things that weren’t appropriate to think about right now.
Chelsea winked as she nudged her sister with her elbow. “I think Arden has a little crush on Sage.”
“Well, that’s adorable.”
Dex nodded toward the swinging door through which Maeve had disappeared. “Your mother already took my contribution for the meal.”
“I told you that you didn’t have to bring anything,” she reminded him.
“You should try it first, then you can tell me whether or not I should’ve brought it,” he challenged.
Chelsea cleared her throat. “I’m just going to see if Mom needs any help.”
Tina shot her sister a look and then gestured for Dex to follow her. “Come on. I’ll introduce you to everyone.”
The next few minutes were a whirlwind of introductions. He met all of Tina’s extended family, including their mates if they had them, as well as several friends of the coven. A whole clan of dragons was present, as well, since Maeve was mated to their retired Alpha and Chelsea was mated to their present one.
Beck, their current Alpha, pulled Dex close as he shook his hand. “Don’t let all these women intimidate you. They just want to know you better and protect their own. Not that they can’t be kind of scary sometimes.”
“I heard that,” Chelsea remarked, pinching her mate’s butt.
After a while, it was time to eat. Everyone was seated at a massive table in a formal dining room, with every leaf expanding it until the chairs nearly bumped the walls. One seat remained empty to commemorate those who had passed on. Maeve stood and raised a glass of wine. “I want to thank all of you who have joined us for Samhain this year. It’s a very important day for us, and it’s all the more so when we know we can share it with friends new and old. Blessed Samhain!”
The cheer was echoed through the room, and everyone dug in. Dex watched Sage, who’d been seated at a kids’ table off to the side with Corbin and Arden. She was smiling and laughing, and when Kristy came to offer something to the children, she answered politely.
“I think she’s enjoying herself.” Tina was seated next to him.
“She seems to be very much at home,” he agreed.
“But not you,” she replied quietly. Tina gently placed her hand on his knee. “It’s all right. It’s just that I can tell. I know something like this is a lot, and I appreciate you being here with me.”
“I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.” It was awkward, yes, but he would take that all day long if he were there with Tina. His wolf was so content, sinking into a more relaxed state than it’d been in for years.
“Even when everyone keeps staring at us?” she challenged.
“I’ve noticed that your sisters are rather interested,” he replied. “It’s all right. It kind of makes me wish I had something like this growing up.”
“What about your pack?” she asked as she passed a casserole dish of baked sweet potatoes.
“We’re very close, but it’s the magical element I’m referring to right now. I could’ve really benefitted from a big, welcoming group of witches like this when I was young and learning. Mygrandma helped me here and there, but she was never in very good health. Otherwise, I was just trying things on my own.”
Tina considered the butter tub, shrugged, and slathered some of it on her potato. “Sage will find a lot of support here. We take new witches under our wing all the time.”
“Who made this?” A blonde woman down the table was looking around as she tapped on the side of a dish.
It washisdish. Dex’s mind raced back through the steps, wondering what he’d forgotten.
“I don’t know, Lil, but you’d better pass it back over here.” This came from a dark-haired man with narrow eyes who was seated across from her. “I need more of it!”
“You’ll have to get it from me first, Griffin,” Lilith teased. “Seriously, who made this?”
Dex slowly raised his hand.
