Молли Харпер - The Art of Seducing a Naked Werewolf

Nick had been worried about the ceremony. His buddy Dane, the best man, had posted our engagement announcement on the video game’s Web site. I assumed it was to prove to the fan boys that one could have both games and a sex life. The announcement got a lot of traction on the Internet. Nick was convinced that his mom would show up to cause trouble. He, Cooper, and Clay were discussing increasing security around the valley for the wedding, until I pulled him aside and asked, “Have I ever mentioned that we have very, very distant cousins in Kentucky?”

“No.”

“Well, we do. And I asked them to drop by and visit your mother in Nashville. Just to talk to her, convince her that the loving, selfless thing to do would be to stop harassing you and let you move on with your life. I just wanted her to know that you’re part of a family now and have people watching out for you. I don’t think she’ll be calling again anytime soon.”

Other than subtly threatening my future mother-in-law, I was far more interested in planning our life after the wedding than in the actual wedding, which, according to the one bridal Web site I was willing to admit to looking at, was a good sign. I was enrolling in a few online classes at U of Alaska Anchorage. I hadn’t mentioned it to Nick yet, but I was sure he’d be thrilled and would probably help me if I had any problems. I foresaw a lot of study sessions that ended up with us being naked.

And then, of course, Mom found my brochures, which I’d stashed under my mattress like dirty magazines. When I confessed my interest in taking a few classes, she burst into tears. I immediately said that I was just holding the brochures for a friend. Then Mom sniffled and said she was so proud, which I have to admit was a new thing for me. I swore her to secrecy, because given the level of crap I gave Cooper over wanting me to go to college, I didn’t think I could live through the epic “I told you so.”

“I can’t believe you’re making me do this,” I whispered after Cooper had handed me off to Nick. “We could have gone to Vegas!”

“You’re beautiful,” he told me.

I was probably the only bride to scowl at her husband while being led to the altar. (Well, the only non-mail-order bride, at least.) But when Nick turned with me toward Pops, who oversaw the vows as the oldest member of the pack, I was grinning like a big, happy idiot.

I tried to think of some other words to describe my state. But big, happy, and idiot seemed to sum it right up. I would probably learn fancier words when I started those college classes. Nick clasped my hand in his, and I mentally calculated exactly how many hours stood between us and boarding the ferry to Washington. Nick was finally going to visit my happy place, in the less sexual sense of the word.

Surely, normal brides did not have these thoughts as their grandfathers/officiants began reciting the wedding vows.

I grinned up at Nick, and he winked at me. We turned toward Pops with joined hands. I was going to see the world, a little bit at a time. But for right now, I was where I was needed, and loved.