Wolver's Reward (42 page)

Who'd have thought he could be so lucky?
Who'd have believed Fate would finally smile?

Reb held his hand while he pledged his
loyalty to the pack and he said the words without regret. His few
days with Charles settled that, too.

"A pack should be a home, River. I'm happy
you finally found one. This is where you were meant to be."

Meant to be. It seemed like River was hearing
those words everywhere.

Those words gave him the courage to tell his
pack the truth when it came time to declare his pledge to Reb.

"Fate decreed that I be born into darkness,"
he told them, no longer ashamed. "I was surrounded by it. I lived
inside it and it lived inside me. It was like living in a tunnel
deep in the ground. There were points of light along the way, but
they blinked out pretty fast. I wanted to be free of the darkness
in that tunnel, but no matter how far I ran, I couldn't escape it.
Fate kicked me in the teeth every time I thought I was close to the
light. So I ran some more, and I kept running even when good
wolvers showed me the way out. I knew by then that freedom from the
darkness was for others. It would never be for me. I was content to
watch the light grow in the pups who ran with me, but the darkness
was my home."

No one said a word, but he felt it through
his new connection with his pack; not pity, but support. They knew
how hard those words were to say.

"And then I met a girl with white blonde hair
and neon orange sneakers, who lit me up. You know when you've been
hit with a baseball bat and you're still interested, it's got to be
something special. And okay, she's hot." He had to pause for the
laughter and comments to subside.

"But there was something else about her, too.
I had to follow her light. I thought I could protect my darkness
while enjoying its soft glow. It was clean and pure, but it wasn't
a bright light. It didn't blind me. It didn't make me squint and
throw up my hand to block it or drive it away. I was comfortable
with my darkness and her light posed no threat. And that's what I
kept telling myself while she surrounded me with it, while she
found the cracks in my darkness, and worked her way in. She sneaked
past my guard and started lighting candles with her beauty and
understanding and laughter. Darkness is an empty place and before I
knew what was happening, Reb filled it with something golden,
something I never thought would be mine.

"Rebecca is more than my mate. She's my life.
I can't live without her light. I don't want to live without her
light, and I'll do whatever it takes to keep her. I'm going to
cherish her and protect her, and make her as happy as I can, so I
can bask in her glow for the rest of my days."

He kissed her hand, and teary-eyed, she spoke
her piece.

"That's River," Reb sniffed. "He can use
every dirty word in the book, but he can't use the one that's clean
and pure and filled with light. He'd rather tell you it's me.

"It doesn't matter what Fate decreed, River,
you were blessed by the moon at your birth. A seed of love was
planted in you and even in the darkness, it grew. It wasn't fear
that sparked your anger. It was love. It wasn't anger or
happenstance that made you do the things you did or take those pups
with you when you ran. It was love. Love is why you cared for them.
Love is why you mourned their loss. Love is why you didn't take
them away from the place where they could find it, too.

"Kat told me what you did for her. You don't
take a bullet like that for someone you don't love. Without love,
you don't worry about a pack going hungry. Without love, you don't
care if they're cold or wet. Up until a short while ago, I thought
you were driven by something else, but now I see that something is
driven by love.

"Love makes you kind. Love makes you brave.
Love makes you handsome in my eyes. Love and light, River, they're
two in the same. You give to me what I give to you, light and love
forevermore. That's the reason we were meant to be. Here, and with
each other."

River kissed her then. He had to. It was
either kiss her, or make a fool of himself and cry. While he
savored the warmth and softness of her lips, he made a vow to say
the words he knew she longed to hear and he, in his heart of
hearts, longed to say.

He waited until they were alone in the one
room cabin that was meant to be a base camp for the hunting parties
that would someday pay them for the privilege. River had made the
repairs himself, but it was Ben and Celia who made it special.

"On the condition that it stays this way and
next month, Ben and I get to use it," Celia agreed when River asked
for their help.

It only took a minute for River to stoke the
fire in the pot-bellied stove. It took a few minutes more to light
all the candles Celia had scattered throughout the room. They'd
borrowed curtains for the windows and rugs for the floor. The white
bedding, he was sure, was borrowed from the Alpha and Mate. Someone
was sleeping without a mattress, though neither of the pair would
tell him who it was. There were roses in a vase and a box of fudge
beside it.

"It's perfect," Reb declared. "When you told
me where we were going, I expected creaky springs and mice in the
cupboards. I would have loved it anyway, just because it was
private and away from all that. I wanted you to myself. But this,"
arms spread, she whirled in a circle, "this is perfect." She
stopped in front of him, lifted up on her toes, and kissed him.

"I remembered what Charles did for Kat. I
wanted to make it special for you, too."

They kissed, drank cheap champagne, and ate
fudge. They talked and laughed and kissed some more as if they had
all the time in the world, which in a way, they did. River wasn't
going anywhere but here. He was home. He was mated to Reb, or he
would be, as soon as he completed the ritual that would bind them
together.

He undressed her slowly, and though he'd done
it dozens of times before, this time was special. She took her time
undressing him, too, and when they were finally under the covers
together, they held each other in a momentary awkwardness, both
aware that this wasn't ordinary love making. This was the beginning
of a new adventure for them both.

Another kiss broke the tension and they
laughed realizing this wasn't a new adventure, but a continuation
of the one they'd begun at the broken down van. The kiss evolved
into the searching of hands and the giving of pleasure, until Reb
was on her hands and knees, accepting River from behind.

Heat rising between them in search of
ecstasy, River folded his body over hers, surrounding her both
physically and emotionally within his protective embrace. He
brought her to her peak, and just before he drew blood from the
soft spot between her neck and shoulder, he whispered the
words.

"I love you."

They weren't hard to say at all, because they
were true.

Reb's body shook beneath him as she climaxed.
River came with her and for the first time, they were truly
together. He could feel her joy and happiness. He didn't have to
wonder if she heard the deep truth in his words. He knew, just as
he knew how very much she loved him.

To love and be loved. Wonder of wonders.

Holding onto each other, they listened as
their wolves sang.

Epilogue

"Nope. You put them right back where you
found them." The Alpha stood with his fists on his hips to
emphasize that he wasn't kidding.

"But River, they're a hundred years old.
They're nothing but dust collectors and need to be thrown out."

"They aren't that old and as your
Alpha..."

"Oh poo. It's only been three days since my
father put aside the mantle and you're already tossing the title
around." Reb waved away his declaration away.

"I like the title. It suits me."

"It does," she said, giving in to a laugh.
"And with your new magic, I definitely like being the Alpha's
Mate." She stretched her neck up for a kiss.

"Ha. Leave it to you to reduce everything to
fudge."

He complied with her unspoken request, but
only so he could snatch the orange sneakers from her hand. He set
them back on the dresser next to the Christmas tin that stood on
its side so the picture would show. The box was empty now, but
served as a backdrop for his collection of the little mementos of
those he loved. Next to Reb's sneakers was the latest addition, a
pair of baby shoes that his son had outgrown. Reb's bracelet was
secured in the laces.

Reb huffed as he carefully arranged the
ragged shoes. "I hate those things. I always did. I only wore them
to irk my mother."

"Do you ever wonder what Charlie will do
someday to irk you? Where is the little devil, anyway?"

"He's gone fishing with his grandfather. He
showed up an hour ago, right after you left. Father said it was
time the pup learned the gentleman's art of fly fishing and now
that he was retired, he had plenty of time to teach him. According
to Father, fishing and philosophy go hand in hand."

"He'll change his mind when he gets one of
those fancy flies hooked in his ear." He shifted his eyes to the
door. "Where's your mother?"

"With Darla, arranging a celebratory tea for
the latest pregnancy. I told them they should leave the table
permanently set. There are going to be a lot of pregnancies now
that you're the Alpha." Five years had deepened her girlish giggle
into a throaty and deeply sexy chuckle.

River kicked the door closed with his foot
and took his Mate in his arms. "Roland off with Charlie, Margaret
busy with Darla, Ben off with one fishing party, Scar off with
another, Toby and Quentin taking the final rafting group out..."
The list could go on all day, but he came quickly to his point
before this precious time ran out. "We've got maybe a half hour
before someone comes knocking on the door, Babe. What do you say to
making sure that Alpha's touch still works?"

Reb wished River was kidding about the time,
but he wasn't. The business had flourished. Every weekday, weekend,
and holiday was booked, even those that fell on the full moon when
only wolvers were accepted as guests.

No one was surprised when Roland put aside
the mantle in favor of the wolver he looked upon like a son. River
had slowly taken over more and more of the Alpha's duties as they'd
agreed five years before. River needed maturity and seasoning.
Roland, acting as friend and mentor, taught and counseled the young
wolver in wisdom. They argued, and sometimes they fought. Margaret
and Reb weren't bothered by it. Polished teacher and rough cut
student, the two wolvers loved each other and Roland was the one to
say River was ready.

"I'd like a few years of freedom," he told
them and laughed. "Yes, the yen for freedom isn't exclusive to the
young. Poor Margaret's never had a moment to herself."

Reb was determined to make the most of her
time with River.

"Have you ever known me to turn down fudge?"
she asked him now.

River leaned back, taking her with him, to
turn the lock on the door.

"I love you," he told her before his lips
took hers.

Reb's wolf sang at the sound of the words
that came so easily to her mate's lips. River used them often; to
her, to their son, and to the other pups in the pack. He couldn't
yet say it to adults, her mother being the exception, but the pack
felt it in everything he did. They felt it in the way he cared for
them and worked beside them. No matter how dirty the task, River
was always first to arrive and last to leave. His decisions were
fair, and while his temper never cooled to the point of her
father's, he used it judiciously and only when pushed.

He was an Alpha and she was his Mate and this
was what Fate meant them to be. Together.

###

For my readers,

Thanks for reading
Wolvers Reward
. I hope
you enjoyed it. If you’d like an advanced announcement of dates for
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Thanks in advance and, as always, Bless
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Jackie

About the Author

Jacqueline, known as Jackie to her friends,
lives in rural southern Ohio with one lovable husband and two
spoiled dogs. She believes coffee is a food group and always has a
pot brewing. When not writing, she can usually be found with her
nose in someone else's book or working in her garden. She also
spends a great deal of time chasing deer and rabbits who apparently
also like gardening.

Jackie loves hearing from her readers and is
always willing to chat. She can be reached through her website,

http://www.jacquelinerhoades.com/
or at
[email protected]

Other Books by Jacqueline
Rhoades

Available at All major retailers

*Paranormal Romances *

The Guardians Of The Race

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Guardian's Joy #3

Guardian’s Faith #4

Guardian’s Patience #5

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