Page 27 of The Alpha's Temptation
She blushes and bites her lip.“Maybe you could show me,” she says seductively.“I could stand to lose some weight.”
“No, you couldn’t,” I snap.“You’re fucking perfect.”
She blinks at my vehemence.
“You’re gorgeous, Selena.Every inch of you is perfect.I don’t want to hear you talking badly about yourself ever again.”
“Noted.”
“I mean it.”
She sighs.“I know.I’ll try.”
“And I’ll be there to remind you if you mess up.”
She gives me a small smile as I slap some money on the table and grab her hand.
“Where to now?”she asks as we head out of the diner.
“Now we go back home because I apparently didn’t do a very good job of showing you how hot you are or what your body does to mine.”
“And you’re going to show me?”Her voice is low and husky.
“Yes.Over and over again,” I promise.
She giggles as I pick up the pace, pulling her along with me.
And when we get home, I make good on my promise.
ELEVEN
Selena
Five Years Later…
The lanterns comeon one by one, like someone is stringing a constellation down Main Street and along the riverbank.Paper moons sway over the vendor stalls, the air sweet with kettle corn and woodsmoke, and laughter echoes everywhere.
Our booth is quiet now, the donation jar heavy with crumpled bills and glittering coins.
Wildlife cams & de-escalation training, the sign says in my careful handwriting.
The kids pressed stickers on the poster until it looked like a star map, and the old hunters who used to look through us stopped by to ask real questions today.
I hand the last brochure to a retiree who promises to come to story hour and try not to cry.
“Coach,” Foster murmurs, sliding in behind me and looping his arms around my waist.He dips his chin to the place he always finds beneath my ear.“You ready?”
“For what?”I smile, even though I know.
The kids tug eagerly at my sweater.
“For glory,” he says, dead serious.
I laugh because he’s Alpha to the bone, yet still completely ridiculous when it comes to our children.
I turn and bend down, taking in our kids.Their cheeks are painted with tiny silver paw prints, and their hands are already full of stones.
“Mom!Dad!They’re calling the four-to-six kids,” our daughter says, eyes as bright as the lantern light.Nicole has my careful intuition and Foster’s fearless instincts.“And the family cup right after.”
