Every Sunset Forever (14 page)

“It wasn’t quiet in Beyton?” Nyte asked, skimming his fingers down her arm and catching her hand with his.

“I guess so, but not like this.  This is more like…country quiet.  I’m used to hearing sounds from the bar, people coming and going, and seagulls in the morning.”

“Seagulls?” Az asked.

“Sure, they’re like the roosters of the ocean.  Always squawking at dawn.”

They walked up the front steps and opened the front door, and Nyte called out, “We’re here!”

“We’re in the kitchen,” Mason called back.

Az took their coats and hung them in the hall closet, and they escorted Whisper down the long hallway to an enormous kitchen where the other eight members of their
baro
were gathered around the island.

“Guys, this is our mate, Whisper Callahan.  Whisper, these are the members of our
baro
.”  Nyte introduced each member from the two clans.  The males came up and shook her hand, keeping a respectful distance from their cousins’ not-technically-mated mate, but the females hugged her and welcomed her with broad smiles.

“It’s so nice to meet you, Whisper,” Alyssa said.  “Welcome to the
baro
.”

“Thanks,” Whisper said.  Alyssa pulled her gently away from her mates and led her towards Sydney.  It made Nyte happy that she was so quickly accepted.  She glanced over her shoulder at them and smiled tentatively.

Dante motioned to Nyte, and he and his brothers followed the males out of the kitchen and into the large dining room, which had been set for dinner.  Their
baro
whooped and cheered, clapping Nyte and his brothers on their backs and wishing them well with Whisper.

“We’re happy for you,” Mason, the youngest of Dante’s clan said.  “Lys couldn’t wait to meet her.”

“Syd, either,” Orion, the eldest of his clan, said.  “I think our mates will become fast friends.”

“I’m sure they will,” Nyte said.

Dante cleared his throat, and everyone quieted quickly.  “Of course congrats are due to Nyte and his brothers for finding their mate at a
gathering,
of all places.  Who would have guessed?”

Nyte snorted.  He’d certainly not expected to actually meet his mate, and he was glad they hadn’t decided to skip out of it this year.

“On to business.  Now, is there anything you guys need for the mating tomorrow?”

Because they were on a tight schedule in order to move up their mating to the following night, all three males were pitching in, along with the males from the
baro
.  “I think we’re good.  We’ll take turns making the master into a den tomorrow, we have appointments in the morning for our tattoos, and Mason’s got the supplies for the ceremony all ready, right?”

“You bet,” Mason said.

Nyte said, “Do you think the girls could keep Whisper busy tomorrow?  We want the den to be a surprise, and it’ll be hard to keep it under wraps if she sees everything that’s going on.”

“Sure.  Bring her over for breakfast tomorrow, and Lys and Syd can take her around town.  I’ll go, of course, and I’m sure that Crux will go along, too,” Mason said.

Crux, the youngest of Orion’s clan, nodded.  “Sounds like a plan.”

Nyte looked at Az, who was frowning in thought.  He was probably thinking about the car that Whisper said looked familiar.  Nyte explained about the car to the clans and all of them tensed, glancing towards the kitchen.

“You think it’s a coincidence?” Orion asked.

“Yeah,” Nyte nodded.  “She’s stressed out from her whole life being turned upside down within a matter of a week.  That’s enough to make anyone think they’re seeing things.”

Az’s frown deepened.  “Still, to be on the safe side, you should keep an eye out for a dark sedan.”

Mason clapped Az on the shoulder.  “We will, okay? Your mate is as safe with us as our own are.”

“Good luck tomorrow with your mating night,” Dante said, shaking Nyte’s hand and those of his brothers.  “And if you need anything at all, let us know.”

Nyte appreciated the support from the clans.  He and his brothers were cousins to Dante and Orion’s clans, and they’d grown up together in the
baro
in Tennessee.  In many ways, the
baro
was like a small wolf pack, where they often lived and worked together in the same area, but unlike the pack which had a single leader in the alpha, the
baros
handled decisions with a majority vote.  Sometimes that worked and sometimes it didn’t, but he didn’t suppose the
baros
would change their way of life anytime soon.  When he was a child, he remembered sitting at the back of a big living room with his brothers while a clan brought up the reasons why the
baro
needed to move away from Gorge.  The clan, who had been cousins of Nyte’s parents, wanted the
baro
to move out of Gorge, which was a farming community, and into one of the more mountainous areas, to escape the growing human population.  The clans had voted down the move, saying they had lived in Gorge for two generations and had no desire to leave, and the dissenting clan left anyway and went out on their own.  He had no idea what became of them, but he was glad that he had the support of his
baro
when it came to important matters.

Back in the kitchen, Nyte found Whisper talking to Sydney and Alyssa about the gym.  Both females worked at Stone’s Gym with Nyte and his brothers, but in the office.  This reminded Nyte that they only had a few days before they needed to get back to work.  They were spending twenty-four hours in their makeshift den, and then they’d need a day to recover, and then the real world beckoned.

Whisper settled against him as he enclosed her in his arms and continued to listen as Alyssa and Sydney talked about the gym and the town.  Az went out with Mason and Crux to tend to the grill where dinner was cooking, while the others milled around the kitchen and talked.  Nyte didn’t care what the conversations around him were.  All he cared about was the heaven in his arms.  He couldn’t believe how lucky they were to have found her, and how perfect she was for them.  She was sweet enough to melt Fade, patient enough to handle Az’s fussiness, and sassy enough to handle Nyte’s bossiness.

He kissed the top of her head and inhaled slowly, savoring the naturally sweet scent of her.  She reminded him of vanilla and sugar, sweet and lightly spicy.  She rubbed her hands over the top of his as she listened to the females talk, relaxing into him with a barely audible sigh.

When dinner was ready, the
baro
headed into the dining room.  Nyte pulled out Whisper’s chair and pushed her in gently, then took a seat next to her.  “Do you guys eat together often?” she asked as Az began to fill her plate and his own with the dishes that were passed.

“Every Sunday,” Alyssa answered.  “It’s why we have such a huge dining room table.  And soon, we’ll need room for more.”  She patted her extended belly for emphasis.

“Have you had a baby shower?” Whisper asked as she picked up her knife and fork and looked down at the food that Az had piled on her plate.

There was a long enough period of silence that even Nyte wondered if something was wrong when Whisper looked at him in confusion.

Alyssa looked like she was fighting not crying, and her clan rallied around her, which seemed to make her struggle more.  Pushing them away gently but firmly, she said, “Stop, stop.  You’re making me sweaty.  I’m fine.”

“You’re not,” Mason snarled softly.

Alyssa smiled at Whisper apologetically as she dabbed at the corner of her eyes.  “I don’t have many female friends.  My pack turned their backs on me when I left, and my sister lives in Alaska.  The people in Dalton are nice, but they don’t really understand us.  Not just that we’re weres, but the whole multiple-husband thing.  So no, I haven’t had a baby shower.  But I have everything I need,” she added quickly.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything,” Whisper said.

“Don’t apologize,” Dante said tightly.  “We should have been paying more attention.  It’s hard to let people into our circle of friends, because we value our privacy and the protection of our mates.  It’s why
baros
are usually bigger, so there are more females and children.”

“Our
baro
is just perfect,” Alyssa said, squeezing Dante’s hand on top of the table.

“Actually, some of our cousins have expressed an interest in joining the
baro
up here in the spring,” Dante said.  He glanced at Nyte, who hadn’t heard the news.  He continued, “They just contacted me a few days ago.  It’s Jaylon’s clan, Nix’s clan, and Zack’s clan.”

Alyssa’s eyes widened.  “I didn’t know you had so many cousins.  I thought the Gorge
baro
was mostly your aunts and uncles.”

“Jaylan’s clan is from Gorge and are our second cousins, while Nix and Zack’s clans live in southern Indiana, and are third cousins to us.  But it’s not the time right now to talk about new clans, since we’re supposed to be welcoming our newest member.”  Dante lifted his glass, and everyone stopped eating and lifted theirs, toasting Whisper and her joining with the
baro
.

She touched each of her clan members’ glasses and said in a low voice to Nyte, “I’m only a member half-way.”

“To tomorrow night,” he said, winking at her and touching the rim of his glass to hers once more.

After dinner, the clans lounged in the large family room, which had several couches and an enormous flat screen hanging over the fireplace.  While everyone chatted, Nyte began to wonder about Whisper.  Az had mentioned more than once that he wondered if she was really happy about living in Dalton or if she was keeping her thoughts to herself.  He couldn’t tell, because he didn’t know her well enough yet to know when she was keeping her feelings hidden.  He didn’t believe she was lying, but he thought that maybe she’d been thinking about her pack when Alyssa said she hadn’t had a baby shower yet.  Whisper had two best friends, but she also had her brothers and dad, plus the pack.  They weren’t just taking her away from her parents, they were taking her away from her entire support system and moving her to a place where the only women she could really be friends with were so few in number.  Concern settled in his gut.  Were they doing the right thing by staying in Dalton?  He just didn’t fucking know.

Eventually, Alyssa said she was too tired to keep her eyes open any longer, so everyone said goodnight.  Nyte shoved the keys into Az’s hand and climbed into the back seat before he could complain.  Whisper giggled as she snuggled into Nyte’s side, and Az grumbled when he started the engine.

“I’ve never had so many hot guys want to be with me before,” she peeked up at him in the darkness of the truck as the vehicle turned out of the driveway and down the long road that would lead them home.

He liked that she thought they were hot.  He stroked his thumb along her jaw, settling his fingertips along her throat and feeling her pulse jump.  He hadn’t really given his feelings for her much thought since they’d been so preoccupied with her reuniting with her birth family, but here in the darkness of the truck, he could feel his heart swell.  He’d known he would care about his mate when he found her, but he didn’t know how deep and true the feelings would grow.  Or how quickly.  He wasn’t completely in love with her yet, but he knew it wouldn’t be long before he’d be head over heels.  Already she had him and his brothers wrapped around her finger without trying.  There wasn’t anything on earth Nyte wouldn’t do to see her safe and happy.  He’d never really understood the nuances of mating before, hadn’t known how males could get so wrapped up in their mates the way that they did.  But he was completely wrapped up in Whisper, and he was content.

“Baby,” he said softly, rubbing his thumb back and forth over her jaw.

“Yeah?”

“I’m crazy about you.”

“I’m crazy about you, too.”

Lowering his lips to hers, he lost himself in the sweet taste of his mate and the heady knowledge that the following night, she’d belong to them forever.

* * * * *

Fade flexed his hands and looked at the tattoos that now adorned each ring finger.  The left one was for Whisper…the clan’s promise to love and cherish her forever.  The right one was for his clan…their promise to support and protect their mate, their cubs, and each other.

Barker, the tattoo artist, snapped off his gloves and tossed them in a trash bin.  “They good?”

“Yeah, thank you.”

He grunted in reply and stood, stretching and walking over to the cash register.  Fade stood and pulled his wallet from his back pocket and joined Barker, handing him cash.

“Good luck with your girl,” Barker said as he closed the register with a thud.

Fade nodded and said goodbye, leaving the small shop and walking to his truck.  Once inside, he slipped on a pair of black leather gloves to hide the intricate tattoos.  Even though Whisper had been dropped off for breakfast at Alyssa’s house and was spending the day with her and Sydney, it was customary for the males to keep the gloves on until they revealed the tattoos in the den.  Barker had opened early that morning so that Az could get his done before he took Whisper to breakfast, since he was spending the day with her.

A little flare of jealousy rose up inside him, but he quashed it as he turned on the engine and pulled out of the parking lot.  Whisper belonged to all of them, and they belonged to her.  He wasn’t really sure if he was jealous of Az’s time with her, or if he was jealous that he wasn’t the one watching over her.  Not that he didn’t trust Az to keep her safe, but ever since she’d mentioned thinking she’d seen the same car more than once, it had put his beast on edge.