With Everything I Am(145)

Without looking up, she said softly, “I know you’re there.”

“I know you know,” he replied.

She finally looked at him and her fingers stilled in their turning but they didn’t release the rings. “So why are you standing all the way over there?”

“I’m wondering what’s on your mind,” he told her truthfully.

She dropped her hand but wrapped her arms around her belly and explained, “What’s on my mind is, I’m wondering why my husband stopped in the doorway when he never stops in a doorway when I’m in a room. He always comes to me. So, what’s on my mind is, I’m wondering what’s on your mind.”

She was probably telling the truth.

Just not all of it.

He walked to her and when he arrived she slid her arms around his middle and leaned her body into his, tilting her head far back to look up at him.

It struck him then that she did this a great deal recently. Effortlessly putting her arms around him, leaning her weight into him. Before, her hugs and moments of affection were rare and when they came seemed, compared to the recent ones, uncomfortable.

Now they were relaxed and natural and Callum preferred them greatly.

He returned the favor, wrapping her in his arms, pulling her deep in his body and dipping his chin to look down at her.

“All right, Sonia, now what’s really on your mind?” he asked.

“I told you,” she fibbed.

“You weren’t standing at the window twisting my rings for the fuck of it,” he informed her, his voice meticulously even and calm, that unease he felt was still acute.

She scanned his face. Then she sighed. It wasn’t the fluttering sigh that he loved. It was a frustrated sigh.

He knew this by the sound but he also knew it by the irate flash in her green eyes.

“You’re too perceptive,” she muttered, her voice just as irate then she informed him of the obvious, “It’s annoying.”

He preferred his topic of conversation so he gave her a gentle squeeze and said warningly, “Sonia…”

“Oh all right,” she breathed out, her frustration still clear and then suddenly her eyes left his and she looked at his shoulder a moment before they came back. “Okay, Callum, what I was thinking was…” She hesitated a moment before stating, “And you can say no because, well, I’m sensing you’re not big on human stuff and, well, this is definitely human. Obviously I wouldn’t dream of asking you to go whole hog or anything because considering, even for my Christmas party, you wore cords and a nice sweater…” She paused and went off tangent, “Though, the boots you wore were really nice that night. I liked them. You should wear –”

He couldn’t help it. He started chuckling and gave her another squeeze, cutting her off by saying, “Honey, your point?”

Her eyes got big a moment, she pulled in breath and whispered, “Right.” Then she went on swiftly, “What I was saying was, you don’t have to do the big thing for me, you know, even though, outside your sixteenth birthday, it’s the most important day in a girl’s life. But I wouldn’t ask you to wear the tuxedo and get a photographer and all that formal stuff but can I…” She looked at him, her eyes filled with discomfited yearning. “Would you mind if…?” She hesitated yet again and then forced out the words, “I know it isn’t the done thing but, at our Mating, can I at least wear a pretty, white dress?”

He stared at her a second, thrown, because he had no fucking clue what she was on about. At Matings wolves would dress up but dressing up for wolves was just wearing nicer but still casual clothes.

Then, unusually slowly, it hit him. Her twisting her wedding rings, talking of tuxedos and formalities and the most important day of a girl’s life.

Fuck, she was talking about a human wedding.

Which, being his mate, she’d never get.

But, being his human wife, she would want.

And she wanted it and her wanting it meant she wanted him.

That unease sifted away leaving Callum feeling only the soft warmth of her body pressed to his and her arms around him.

“Baby doll –” he started.

“You can say no,” she blurted. “It’s probably a stupid idea. Your people will think…” Her eyes got big again and she said, “Oh no, would they be offended?”

One of his hands traveled up her back and tangled in her hair as his face got closer to hers. “No, they wouldn’t be offended. Wear whatever you want.”

He saw excitement light in her eyes for a second before it extinguished. “Will I look stupid?”

Callum grinned, pulling her tighter to him. “Impossible.”