Viper raised his free hand, and all the bikes revved at once; when he dropped his hand, they all stopped, and it was jarringly silent again.
Snake stood in his tuxedo shirt covered by his cut, his mouth still hanging open as it had been during my entire approach. His Harley was parked behind the group to the side. “Who gives this babe in marriage?”
Viper said, “I do, in place of her parents.” He leaned over, kissing my forehead, before he gave my hand to Snake. I was led up next to him, standing facing each other as he took both my hands in his. I looked into his eyes, his love gave me the strength to do anything, and I needed that right now. “Dearly beloved, and those just here for the free beer, we are gathered here today to unite Snake and DeWalt in the bonds of holy matrimony. May God have mercy on their souls. Oh wait, wrong page.” The club cracked up along with me. “Marriage is a sacred bond. My Catholic school taught me that the shortest complete sentence in the English language is, ‘I Am.’ Amazingly enough, the longest complete sentence is ‘I Do.'” He carried on for a while. I really wasn’t listening too much, I was staring at the love in my man’s eyes.
“So if any of you think they are making a huge mistake, speak up now or you’re getting blamed.”
“YO!” I looked back, Moose was standing up. “DeWalt, you’re hot, educated and you have your own Harley. You sure you want to tie yourself to this short-ass fry cook?”
I just laughed. “He’s named Snake for a reason, Moose. He tempts me into sin. EVERY DAMN NIGHT.”
“Sit your fat ass down,” Viper said, “You’re holding up the party.”
He sat, and Crash continued on. “You got the rings? Cool. And now for the vows. Do you, Snake, take this hot biker babe to be your Old Lady? To go home with her after every party, to let her ride next to you, to protect her and keep her, forsaking any other hot babes, skanks or sweetbutts for the rest of your miserable, boring-ass married life?”
“You bet your ass I do.” He put the white gold band on my finger.
“Do you, DeWalt, take Snake to be your Old Man? To ride him like your Harley, to take care of his shit, and put some meat on those skinny-ass bones, as your last ex-boyfriend ever?”
“Hell yeah,” I said as I slid the ring on his finger.
“Well, you can’t say I didn’t warn you. Then by the power vested in me by the State of Minnesota, and a two-hundred-dollar check to a sketchy mail-order seminary, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now molest the bride.”
Snake pulled me into his arms, kissing me deeply. Everyone was cheering, and I was hiding my face in his chest as he carried me over to his sled. He got on in front of me so we could take the ceremonial ride back up the aisle. All the bikers pulled out behind me, and we made a single lap of the parking lot before stopping in front of the entrance again.
We entered the clubhouse again, which had been decorated for the reception. It was the wildest party I’d seen there, and there had been some good ones. All too soon, it was time to go. We went up to our rooms, which had been locked tight to prevent the members from doing anything to our luggage. We tore our clothes off, sating our lusts in the shower, before dressing and going out to meet the waiting taxi.
Fourteen hours later, and as newly minted members of the Mile-High Club, we were at a resort in Key Largo, Florida. I had struggled to figure out how to get through my heat without my scent attracting wolves, and when I saw this in a travel magazine, I knew we had to go. The resort, called Jules Undersea Lodge, was located offshore, and the room was accessible only by using scuba gear to reach the airlock thirty feet under the sea. Snake and I had taken classes to get ready; I was renting the place for a week, and from how hot I was getting, the timing was perfect. The owners had already stocked the place with food and drink per our preferences, and all we had to do was get in there.
My first heat as a werewolf would certainly be memorable, I thought, as we stowed our gear and moved into the bedroom. The place was not large, but we wouldn’t need more than the bed, bathroom and small kitchen inside of it. “This place is freaking amazing,” Snake said as he looked out the window at the reef fish swimming by.
I hugged him from behind, our naked skin heating up. We wouldn’t need clothes this week, just food, water, lubricant and a big bottle of Viagra. I reached around his body, my wolf was horny, she wanted her man.
And she got him.
Repeatedly.
When we emerged from the pod a week later, Snake was walking funny but had a permanent smile. My wolf was sated, I was married, and we were heading back home.
I was looking out at the waves, thinking about the decision to leave the Packs behind and just move on with my life. Snake pulled me into his arms as we sat in the boat for the ride back to the dock, not liking my sudden gloom. “Do you regret choosing me, knowing you won’t be able to have children?”
I shook my head. “If I wasn’t in danger, I would kill my wolf and live completely with you as a human,” I said. We had discussed it, then rejected the idea. Since my DNA wouldn’t change, I could still be bred by a werewolf, my scent would still have just enough in it for them to tell if they paid attention. I could still be forced into mating, I just wouldn’t have a mate bond. Without my wolf, I couldn’t sense male wolves or tell when I was in danger. I wouldn’t have the vision, the smell, the strength or the rapid healing. And I’d miss the presence of my wolf in my head.
Instead, I turned to my new Pack for protection and they rallied around me. I had the guys melt pure silver, then pour it into the hollow-point bullets they used. Knives were coated with silver and wolfsbane, both of which would make it much more difficult for the wounds to heal. I’d gotten my carry permit finally; I never left the Clubhouse without a . 45 strapped to my waist, a knife in my boot, and at least one of my brothers with me.
I shifted inside now, my wolf becoming a favorite “visitor” to the day care upstairs. The young ones loved to play with me and take rides. Only the full Club members knew what I really was; to the rest, I was a dog Snake took care of for his buddy occasionally.
I didn’t have to work unless I wanted to. The ownership of my old Pack’s property had passed to me as the sole survivor. I sold the land, cashed the insurance check and moved on.
I had a new life with my husband. And I loved it.
Snake’s POV
The plane trip back home felt weird. After a week spent naked with my new wife, having to share her with the rest of the world was hard for me. I looked down at her, her face tucked into my chest, my arm around her in the first-class cabin. She had fallen asleep as soon as we took off. A part of me was proud that I had worn her out, because she had worn me to a nub. She warned me, but the intensity of the heat was like nothing I had ever experienced.
If I wasn’t totally, completely in love with her before, I was now. Our souls had literally combined in that room under the sea.