Should have Put a Leash On It (26 page)

It was a good thing Remy paid his inner circle well.

Skylar had been adamant that he wear a tie as well, but his wolf hated feeling confined. So he’d waited, leaving the Alpha House before undoing the knot and bundling the silk into his inner suit pocket and he’d left the top two buttons on the shirt undone.

Then he’d ridden his beloved motorcycle here and used the time to think of what to say to Rylan.

As he shifted nervously from foot to foot he tried to remember his speech. This whole big elaborate plan to get his mate here under the impression that Remy wanted him to check the place out had seemed like a good idea at the time.

Now, he was starting to freak out. He wasn’t good with words and usually when he did open his mouth it led to an argument. And what if Rylan didn’t like the flowers and thought they were too girly or cheesy. Perhaps he should have waited to do this until the snow had melted.

The sound of a car engine and the crunch of stones and slushy ice under tires signaled show time. Micah swallowed audibly as Rylan’s car drove around the corner and his mate paused, spotting him.

“Here we go,” he said to himself.

The time it took for Rylan to park and get out was the longest three minutes of his life. Micah shuffled and his wolf stayed watchful. Big romantic gestures were not in his comfort zone, he’d never wanted to be romantic with anyone before. But in the last two days, all he could think about was the time he’d rejected Rylan when he’d come to Micah’s house dressed up with flowers. He wanted to give Rylan that memory again but with a better ending.

“What’s going on, Micah?” Rylan’s heated gaze raked over him and lust permeated the air and it gave him confidence.

“I’m formally asking you to be my mate,” he said before he got distracted by Rylan’s tempting scent.

Micah thrust the bouquet out, almost knocking Rylan over. “Sorry, shit, sorry.” He took a deep breath and recited what the woman in the flower shop had told him about the plant. “This kind of gladiolus symbolizes strength of character, faithfulness and honor. The little white flower in the center is a gardenia for secret love and to tell the one you love that they bring you joy.”

Rylan’s silence made him start to sweat.

He hated being so off balance. This aching insecurity was going to drive him insane if Rylan didn’t say something soon.

Luckily he didn’t have to wait too much longer as Rylan shakily took the flowers from him. “Thank you, the flowers are...unbelievably sweet.”

Micah smiled in relief. He watched Rylan look him up and down again and glancing back at the flowers.

“This is like when I...” Rylan frowned for a moment before his expression cleared and Rylan’s bright green eyes fixed on him curiously.

“When you came to me and tried to get my attention. I let you down,” Micah finished with a wince. That really wasn’t one of his finest moments in history. “I wanted to make things right.”

Doubt knotted in his stomach, but he stood his ground.

He barely had enough warning to catch his mate as Rylan flew at him. “Thank you doesn’t seem like enough. I never expected you to be the flower giving and suit wearing type of mate, but I have to say that when you do something you do it well, with one hundred percent commitment.”

This was his opening to explain the rest of what he’d done. “Well, it’s good you think that because there’s something else.”

Rylan cocked his head and slid down his body until they were both standing again. “Micah, this is more than enough—you’re incredible and I can’t wait to rip that suit off you.”

Laughing, Micah kissed Rylan soundly on the lips. “You better
not
rip the suit. I didn’t know clothes could be so damn expensive. Hey don’t tell Skylar I referred to this designer whoever suit as just clothes, okay?”

“Yeah, don’t worry, I won’t—he’ll rip your throat right out for that,” Rylan promised in commiseration, brushing a hand down the soft fabric. “For a blind guy he has great taste, though,” Rylan added appreciatively.

Running his hands over the well-fitting suit, he smiled at the smooth material “I’d still prefer jeans, but Skylar has a certain flair for textures.”

A bird cawing in the distance reminded him of what was supposed to be doing.

He lifted his hand and gestured to around them at where they were. “What do you think of this place?”

Rylan looked around, considering the large open space. “How do you mean, the land? It’s nice, there’s a peaceful quality to it I guess since it’s so far out and away from anything. Why?”

“I just bought it from Remy.”

Jerking back, Rylan stared at him as if he’d lost his mind. “What? How”

“I had some savings and Remy gave me a good deal since this land isn’t much good for pack runs since there’s no forest here...yet.”

Rylan jumped onto his emphasis of the last word. “Yet?”

“I figured we might not want to live with Remy forever. After a hundred years or so I’ll probably be ready to strangle Skylar. So I thought that we could plant some trees all over the plot and by the time we’re ready to build a home here, the place will be a homegrown forest. Just for us.”

“You—” Rylan licked his bottom lip. “—You’re going to plant me a forest?”

Micah met Rylan’s eyes unflinchingly. “I figured we could do it together and maybe start with an apple tree, but yes.”

Rylan cupped his face and shook his head in amazement, laughing. “That, Micah Lupe, is the most romantic thing I’ve ever heard. And it came from you—the big bad beta wolf that growls at everyone.”

“Hmm, come here so I can growl some more,” he teased, hooking his fingers into Rylan’s belt loops and tugging him closer. The flowers crumpled between them, but he didn’t worry. The flowers he’d chosen were tough, survivors, just like his mate.

There really is nothing better than a good book and a big mug of tea on a rainy day, which is often needed when considering the wet weather in Wales. She is rarely found without a book of some description on her person and a notebook, she can always be seen scribbling and doodling while lost in thought about sometimes random nonsense or day dreaming about alternate worlds of fiction. Real life may not be much fun but the imagination allows infinite possibilities to be explored and lots of naughty fun too if you’re up to the challenge. So in the words of a crazy scientist—I reject your reality and submit one of my own. Happy reading.