Total pages in book: 32
Estimated words: 30663 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 153(@200wpm)___ 123(@250wpm)___ 102(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 30663 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 153(@200wpm)___ 123(@250wpm)___ 102(@300wpm)
“Do you want to dance?” he asked. There were already couples on the dance floor and he wanted any excuse to hold her in his arms. “Everyone is dancing.” He winked at her.
“I’d love to dance.”
She moved close to him and he took hold of her hand, walking her onto the dance floor.
“You know, I’m going to be the envy of a lot of women,” she said.
“Why?”
“Did you not know that you’re an eligible bachelor? And you’re the alpha’s son.” She let out a gasp.
He wrinkled his nose. “You’d think they would be more interested in finding their mates.”
“True, but it’s always so nice to dress everything up as if it’s easy. It’s not always easy to find a mate. Some men and women go their whole lives and never discover their mates. It can be hard.”
“So, people settle?”
“Some see it as settling, others see it as falling in love and making the most of it,” she said.
“You didn’t settle,” he said.
“I didn’t want to settle, and also, I was very much aware of what happened to Kelly.”
The woman in question was standing with his parents, chatting away. It had happened some time ago, and she hadn’t found her true mate. He didn’t even think the woman dated, she just raised her children and lived a quiet life.
“It does make me wonder why anyone would settle after knowing what happened to Kelly,” he said.
“It’s our need to be close to people.” She shrugged. “Some people can wait for that right person, others settle.”
To Joe, the whole pack faded away, and there was just the two of them. The music was soft and slow, giving him the perfect excuse to hold her close. He had both hands on her waist, but he wanted to grab her ass and pull her in close.
“You look amazing tonight,” he said.
“Thank you.”
“I didn’t know if you were going to come.”
She shrugged. “It was tempting not to. You’re so young, and you’ve got your whole life ahead of you.”
“And my life is going to be with you,” he said.
He saw her press her lips together.
“I know what I said to you last night made you nervous. I get it. I’m nervous, but it doesn’t change the fact that you and I are in this together.” He kissed her cheek. “And I’m not going anywhere. I’m happy to keep us a secret for however long you need us to.”
“Are you sure you don’t want to be with a younger woman first?”
“No, I love that we’re both virgins,” he said. “We get to explore everything together, and I for one am looking forward to it, but I’m happy to go at your pace.”
Only, the music had changed.
Darcy looked like she wanted to escape the dance floor, but he wasn’t going to let her go so easily. Taking her hand, he spun her away from him and then brought her straight back. Holding both of her arms, he molded her against his front, and danced. He didn’t care who saw them.
They were dancing and enjoying the party, and there was no one else he wanted in his arms. The only person he craved was her, and he wasn’t going to stop until he had his fill, which he knew would never happen.
For so many years he’d been waiting for this moment, and now that it was finally here, he wasn’t going to give up the chance. After they danced for a good hour, he took her to the table of food and started to fill them both a plate.
A couple of women approached asking if he wanted to dance, and he made excuses. The only person he wanted to be with was his mate.
This wasn’t a curse to him. This was what he wanted, so damn much.
He made sure to put a large slice of the lasagna she had brought onto his plate. He knew from previous experience, when it came to food, the whole pack always took Darcy’s first. She was an amazing cook. Darcy burst out laughing when she saw the size as it pretty much covered his plate, and he was more than happy to enjoy her and her alone.
“You make me laugh,” she said.
Good, because that was all he wanted.
****
Darcy knew a lot of the women were annoyed with her for taking up all of Joe’s time. She tried to make several excuses to let him go and enjoy his party, but Joe, bless him, wasn’t having any of it. She wanted him to have fun, but Joe’s idea of fun was eating food, and then drawing her back onto the dance floor.
There was a point when they had stood with his parents. His father was talking to Joe about something and Callie spoke to her about work. They had a new shipment of yarn arriving, and Callie wanted her to be to work early on Friday to help take stock and then fulfill orders. She was more than happy to do the work, she loved her job. By the end of the night, she was getting tired.