Authors: Ivy Sinclair
It had been several days since the attack in the clearing. Somehow, Lukas convinced the rest of the shifter leaders to still meet for the Summit. I had barely seen him in four days. What happened after that was unprecedented. Since Reddon was dead, that left his clan in quite a conundrum without an alpha. Lukas didn’t think that majority of the Lopers had any idea what Reddon had been up to, and so he still invited them to participate. Then he suggested getting rid of the antiquated clan law against allowing females to become the alphas of their clan.
Although I did not like her in the slightest, Vivian Reddon had volunteered to step into her father’s shoes. Lukas believed her when she said that she didn’t know what her father had been up to, and it was another situation where I had to trust him. I thought everyone was embarrassed and mortified by what had transpired. Luckily, everyone agreed that it was for the best to sweep Reddon’s death under the rug. Vivian spoke to the press and told them that her father had made the spur of the moment decision to retire and had gone on an extended holiday. In a few weeks, she’d release any statement saying he died peacefully in his sleep. Then it would all be over.
As for me, I was settling into my new life. I had moved my things into Lukas’s house in White Oaks and patiently waited for my alpha to come home to me.
It was late on the fourth day when I heard Lukas’s boots on the front porch. I could faintly hear the murmur of conversation outside. Joshua hadn’t been apprehended, and although both Lukas and Billy figured he had hightailed it out of the state, they still insisted on a guard outside the house when Lukas wasn’t home.
I wasn’t sure what to expect. I knew that the Summit was over. Now we would be able to go about our lives. But I couldn’t help but wonder if he would still want me. Our new relationship had started with Lukas asking me to help him solve the mystery of his brother’s death. Now we had, and everything was different. Different, but the same which was a surreal feeling.
I heard the doorknob turn, and Lukas stepped into the front hallway. I was sitting on the couch underneath a blanket in front of a blazing fire in the fireplace. I was dressed for bed. It was almost midnight, and I had dozed on the couch on and off throughout the evening.
“You’re still up." It wasn’t a question.
“Of course," I said. “How did it go?"
“Better than I expected. Vivian is quite the firecracker,” Lukas said with a slight grimace. “She’s not to a pushover; that’s for certain. She’s willing to think about my proposal. I think we all agreed that together we can do a lot more good than we could on our own. They all need time to let the idea settle in, but I think we’ll see it happen before the year is out."
“So it’s finally all over?”
Lukas crossed the room and knelt in front of me. He pushed the blanket away out of my lap. He pulled me into his arms, and my breath caught in my throat at the intensity of the hunger in his eyes. He kissed me deeply, and I felt a familiar warmth begin to build in my core. After several long moments, he pulled back.
He seemed to hesitate on his next words. “Are you still sure this is what you want to do?" The question had nothing to do with the Summit or anything else. I realized that Lukas was as uncertain about the future as I was. It made him vulnerable in a way that I was able to completely relate to. Even though he rarely showed any fear or uncertainty, I appreciated seeing this side of him.
“I’m not going anywhere,” I said simply.
“Well, in that case, I guess I should give you this,” Lukas said. He pulled a small box out of his pocket and presented it to me. He looked slightly sheepish. “If you don’t like it, just say so, and I’ll get you whatever you want.”
A slow smile crept across my face as I opened the box. Inside was a diamond ring. It was a cut in an oval shape and sparkled in the firelight. “It’s beautiful,” I said softly.
“I know we got a little bit ahead of ourselves this time around,” Lukas said. “But I want you to know that I believe this commitment I’ve made to you is forever. We’ve consummated that in my world." I blushed as I remembered the encounter. “It’s time we made things official for the rest of your world. Tell me what you want babe, and I’ll make it happen. Big or small. Here, Europe, a beach in Mexico. I want you to be as deliriously happy with me as I am with you. I can’t deny you a thing.”
It was funny. I thought that I wanted the big fancy wedding. But over the last few days, as I roamed his big, empty house, I realized that all I really needed to be happy was Lukas. The rest of it didn’t matter as much. As long as we were together, then I was content.
“How about we just go into town to city hall and see the justice of the peace tomorrow then?” I said. “We can make it official that way. I don’t need a big production. I’m ready to start living the rest of our lives, Lukas. That’s all I want.”
He helped me put the ring on my finger, and then his mouth closed on mine. I wrapped my arms around his neck. He pulled me to my feet and then swept me up into his arms. I laughed as he smiled down at me and made his way toward our bedroom. Then the rest of the world faded away, and I knew that my dreams of a life with Lukas were finally coming true.
The End
The adventure doesn’t end here. Join Billy Miller as he follows a lead in Joshua’s cold case to Copper City, where he meets the woman who could be his fated mate.
Ready to Bear (A Greyelf Grizzlies/Urban Dwellers Crossover)
is available now!
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Ivy Sinclair cut her romance teeth on classics like
Gone With the Wind
,
Casablanca
,
An Affair to Remember
, and
Sabrina
. She is a firm believer in true love, a happily ever after ending, and the medicinal use of chocolate to cure any ailment of the heart. Ivy's guilty pleasures include sushi, endless Starbucks lattes, and wine. Readers of Ivy's stories can expect smoldering sweet stories of romance that tug at the heartstrings.
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Titles by Ivy Sinclair:
The Protect Her Box Set: Parts 1-3
The Protect Her Box Set: Parts 4-6
The Protect Her Box Set: Parts 7-9
A Bear of a Reputation (Greyelf Grizzlies #1)
Becoming the Alpha (Greyelf Grizzlies #2)
Mating the Alpha (Greyelf Grizzlies #3)