Charity Rising (Charity Series Book 2) (29 page)

“Hey, who’s that?” I asked, noting Eli ushering three people to Irena and Joseph. They embraced as if they knew each other.

“Oh, that must be Eli’s family. Let’s go meet them,” Levi said, grabbing my hand.

“Levi and Charity, there you are,” Eli said with excitement. “Mom, Dad, this is Levi and Charity, the alpha male and female I’ve been tel ing

you about.” There was great pride in his voice, and I know Levi recognized it as wel . “Levi, Charity, this is my father, Steven, my mother, Helen, and this is my sister, Rose.”

I almost swal owed my tonsils as I peered into the lovely face of Rose. She was the spitting image of Raven’s Rose Monroe. But Eli’s last

name was Jameson. The wheels in my brain were turning fast.

“Charity, are you al right?”

Oops, I hadn’t realized I was staring
.

“Um—yes. I’m great. It’s very nice to final y meet al of you. Eli has told us so much about you and has been highly anticipating your arrival. ”

“Yes,” Levi said, looking at me in confusion. “It’s nice to have you here at last. Would you care to take a tour of the facility? A lot has changed since you were here last. And I’l be glad to show you to your living quarters, so you can settle in.”

“Yes, that’d be lovely,” Steven Jameson said with a smile.

Levi looked at me then.

“Oh, you go on ahead. I’d like to talk to Rose,” I said.

He smiled. “Of course, kitten.” He kissed my forehead and escorted the Jameson’s out of the room.

“So, Rose, are you happy to final y be here?” I asked.

She shrugged. “I guess. I’m a little nervous about changing schools, especial y in the middle of the semester, but this place seems pretty

cool. I hear these werewolves are big gamers, and Eli says you have a game room.”

“Yeah, and we also have a massive library. Eli told me you love to read.”

She smiled a lovely smile, and in that moment I had no doubt that this girl was somehow related to Raven’s Rose. “Um, Rose, may I ask you

a question?”

“Sure.”

I could feel her warming up to me, and it pleased me. “Are you named after any of your relatives, by chance?”

“Um, yes. As a matter of fact, I was named after my great-great grandmother Rose. Why do you asked?”

My heart pounded in excitement at the possibilities of this new revelation.

“It’s just that you remind me of someone I’ve seen in a picture. But I could be wrong. Was she a werewolf?”

“Um, no, but she married one. His name was Carter Jameson.”

So Raven couldn’t marry her because he became a vampire, but she ended up marrying a werewolf, how ironic. My smile must’ve been

scary big, but I couldn’t seem to tame it. “I’d like to introduce you to someone if that’s al right?”

“Sure, I guess.”

“Good. Come with me.” I took her hand and led her across the room. When we approached Raven, his back to us, I hesitated. Once he saw

her he’d never feel the same way about me. For a brief second I was sad, but then I shook it off and proceeded. “Um, Rose, wait here for just a

minute, okay?”

She nodded.

I went and stood in front of Raven, his lovely face was already healed from the beating he sustained trying to protect me. “Raven.”

“Oh, hel o, my queen. You know, my only grievance against this soiree is there seems to be no popcorn here. Oh, you are looking lovely

tonight. Like the shirt.”

“Thanks. I’l take care of the popcorn later. Right now I’ve got someone I want you to meet.”

He started to turn until I grabbed his arm, freezing him in place.

“But before I introduce you, I want to say something. I want to thank you for trying to protect me. I’m very sorry you got hurt in the process, and I want you to know that it meant a lot to me that you put yourself in that position—and—as a friend—I love you.” I stood on my tiptoes and hugged

him.

His surprise was evident, but then he put his arms around me and squeezed.

“Okay,” I said, pul ing out of his newly tight grasp. “Raven,” I reached over and grabbed Rose’s hand and pul ed her to my side. “This is Rose

Jameson, Eli’s little sister. She’s the descendent of the same Rose you used to know.”

Raven’s eyes grew wide in astonishment. He just stared at her for a long minute. I could see the renewed hope in his dark eyes; a priceless

moment so precious I felt like crying.

“Rose, this is Raven Vanderburg.”

“You knew my great-great grandmother Rose?” she asked him. “But how is that possible?”

Raven just stared without speaking.

“Wel , Raven is a vampire,” I answered for him. “He’s a good friend of ours. As a matter of fact, he’s part of this pack. His living quarters are

across the facility. He knew Rose before he was turned. Actual y, they were engaged to be married, but I’l let him tel you al about that.” I took her hand and joined it with his. They both looked down at their joined hands in unison, but neither withdrew them.

I smiled happily and applied fresh lip balm as I made my way back to my seat.

“Josh and I saw the whole thing,” Ashley commented as I took my seat. “Are you gonna tel us what that was al about?”

“Eli’s little sister is a descendent of Rose Monroe.”

“Raven’s Rose Monroe?”

“The very one—looks just like her. I got to watch as his broken dreams final y came true.”

“Yeah, now al he has to do is get her to fal in love with him.”

“Like that’s gonna be hard. Just look at them. They’l be married within the year.”

“Oh, Charity, you’re such a romantic.”

Eli plopped down in the seat beside me. “What have you done? She’s the only teenage girl in this pack and the vampire gets her? My sister

—with a vampire?”

“Oh, come on, Eli. Get with the times. He’s a great guy, and you know it.”

“Yeah, I know.” He huffed. “So, Bel , since you’re playing matchmaker, know anyone for me?”

I laughed. “You ignore every girl I introduce you to.”

“I meant any
real
girls you could introduce me to.”

“You’re unbelievable, you know that? You and your brother are just alike.”

“Yeah, we both have great taste.”

I smiled. “Thanks, Eli. I love you too.”

He kissed me on the top of my head and disappeared into the crowd.

With the party winding down, and after several trips to the kitchen for popcorn, I decided it was time to take my leave and get some rest. My

feet hurt so bad that, instead of a werewolf bride, I was walking more like the Hunchback, only instead of the back, my bump was in the front. I took off my shoes, slung them over my shoulder, and hobbled my way back to my room.
No wonder platform shoes went out of style, they hurt like

Hades
.

When I final y made it to my bed, stopping first to pat Fang on the head, I plopped down on top of it and laughed out loud.

“What’s so funny?”

I gasped and jerked to a sitting position. Levi was standing in the doorway of the bathroom, wet hair in his face and a towel wrapped around

his waist. “Gee, blow your nose next time—you scared me.”

“Sorry. What’s so funny?”

“What?”
I couldn’t seem to concentrate in view of his bare chest, my eyes trailing a droplet streaming from his neck all the way to his

waist.

“You were laughing to yourself.”

“Oh that,” I said, forcing my gaze up to meet his. “No more Go Fish for me. Tonight I got a match. Now it’s your turn to draw a card.”

“What do you mean?” he asked, eyeing me suspiciously.

I rol ed my eyes. “Haven’t you ever played Go Fish before? You need to find your brother a mate.”

“What? No way! What do I know about matchmaking? You’re the secret agent man, remember?”

“Oh come on, Levi.” I drew in a sharp breath and grabbed my stomach.

“Charity! What is it?!”

My eyes grew wide. “I just felt my first kick.”

“What? Just now?”

“Yes.” I gasped again.

He rushed to me and put both hands on my stomach. We both gasped in unison as we felt another kick—then another. This went on for

several minutes. We shared a smile as we marveled at the movement beneath our eagerly searching fingertips.

Levi shot to his feet and walked across the room toward the door.

“Hey, where are you going?”

“I’ve got to tel my mother.”

“Wel , maybe you should get dressed first.”

He gazed down at his towel and laughed.

“You know, for such a big guy you sure are whipped.”

He smiled. “Only by you.” Suddenly his countenance changed. He became serious and a burning fil ed his eyes as he slowly scaled the

distance between us, keeping my eyes captive. He took my face in his hands and gently pressed his lips to mine. “I love you,” he whispered into my

lips. Looking down into my eyes he said, “I’ve never loved you as much as I do in this very moment. If I died right now there has never lived a more blessed and happy man.”

“Oh, puppy, I love it when you talk sweetness to me. Do it some more.”

“I live only to please you,” he said, towering over me.

I smirked. Then the night closed in around us as our passion ignited and Sparky set me ablaze.

When I woke in the morning, Levi was lying on his side staring at me, a huge smile covering his face. “So,” he said, “Raven met Eli’s sister,

Rose, did he? And how did that come about, I wonder.”

What I wondered was how long he’d been lying there staring at me
. I stretched and yawned. “As if you don’t know, but I’l humor you—once I

realized that she was a descendent of his Rose Monroe, I introduced her to Raven. That was the logical thing to do.”

“No doubt. Wel , they’re practical y in love already.”

I sat straight up in bed. “Real y?”

He laughed. “You should get paid for this. Yes. They spent most of the evening talking, and I think he’s taking her out to dinner tonight.”

“Oh, Levi! I’m so happy! Now, if we could only settle on names for our boys everything wil be perfect.”

“Wel , let’s make a list of names and get together and compare notes.”

“That sounds good.”

“I’l get to work on mine right away, but now I have to get some work done. See you at lunch?”

“Of course, but before you go, hand me my lip balm, wil ya?”

“I have your coffee here. Don’t you want it first?”

“No, lip balm first—then coffee.”

He laughed as he pressed the white tube into my hand, then kissed me and took his leave, shaking his head as he exited.

Christmas Eve at the Drake House was better than I could’ve expected. The meeting room was transformed yet again, with the biggest

Christmas tree I’ve ever seen in person, decorated beautiful y. Tables lined the wal s with the most remarkable food; one with prime rib, roast beef, and filet mignon.
I mean these are werewolves after all.
Another with al sorts of salads and side dishes, and another with every kind of dessert ever made, along with tal glasses fil ed with Champaign. A musical group played al my favorite Christmas songs, including
Silent Night
, and
Grandma
Got Runover by a Reindeer
.

I wore a new, red dress, cut slightly low in the front with beading along the neckline, drawing the eye away from my pregnancy bump, if that

were possible.

“You are breathtaking, as usual,” Levi remarked, sweeping me into his arms for a sweet kiss. “Come with me. I have something for you.” He

took my hand and led me out of the room and down the hal until we final y entered our room.

“Why are we here? Are you sure this is the proper time?”

He laughed. “Actual y, we’re not here for that, but maybe later,” he winked and then glanced at the wal and my gaze fol owed his. That’s when

I noticed a sheet covering the wal over the bed. “Levi, what—” He jerked the sheet off to reveal a large framed photo of me, one he took on our

honeymoon in Charleston. I was speechless as I studied the image. It was a silhouette of me in the surf at sunrise. Memories of that moment came

flooding back to me, the way Levi and I connected on a strange and powerful level unlike anything I had ever experienced before, or since.

“Levi, it’s remarkable. What made you do this?” I asked in awe.

“I remember how free you were that morning, splashing around in the surf like a child. But when you turned to look at me and I snapped this

shot, you were so beautiful I could hardly catch my breath. When I look at this photo of you I’m reminded of how blessed I truly am.”

“I don’t know what to say. It’s wonderful. Thank you so much. Um, actual y, I have something for you.”

“Wait! I’m not done.” He reached under the bed and pul ed out a smal present wrapped in sparkling, silver wrapping paper with a red ribbon.

He picked up my hand and set the gift in the center of my palm. “Merry Christmas, kitten.”

I giggled with anticipation. Levi knew I loved surprises. I ripped the paper and quickly opened the box. “Oh, Levi! They’re beautiful!” I pul ed

out a pair of diamond earrings, each one dripping with three diamonds, each diamond bigger than the first. “I’ve never had anything like this in my life. Thank you so much.” I hugged him fiercely, and then anxiously put them on. “Wel , how do they look?”

“Hmm, something’s missing.”

“What do you mean, something’s missing?”

He reached under the bed again and pul ed out a bigger box wrapped identical y to the first. “I think it needs this.”

I squealed as I ripped open the second package. My mouth fel open, and I was silenced as I studied the matching necklace. I couldn’t

imagine how much he must’ve spent. “Oh, Levi,” was al I could manage to say.

I lifted my hair as he fastened it to my neck, kissing the back of my neck softly.

“It looks lovely on you, just like I knew it would.”

I turned to him and wrapped my arms around his neck. “It’s more than I could’ve ever asked for. I’d say you shouldn’t have, but I’d be lying.”