Claudia hugged Avelyn tightly and closed her eyes to better enjoy the moment. “I’m so happy to see you. I missed you so, so much.”
“I missed you too.”
Avelyn sniffed loudly, but didn’t try to hold back her tears. Of all her friends at Alma Venus, she had probably missed Claudia the most. Sweet, gentle Claudia who never bothered anyone and was always friendly and sincere. Well, it might have also been because she had just seen Delyse and Amelia a couple of weeks before and kept in touch with them almost daily. She hadn’t been able to keep in touch with Claudia, though, because as long as the brides were at the boarding school, they were isolated from the outside world. Either to guard their innocence, or to keep them in the dark when it came to the realities of marrying a shape-shifter to whom they were sold like live stock.
Avelyn held Claudia at arm’s length so she could see her better. She looked her straight in the eyes for a long moment, as if she wanted to read her thoughts. And that’s how she knew: Claudia wasn’t happy. Sure, she was happy to see her, but she wasn’t happy overall. She had always read her like an open book. There was a sadness there, underneath the joy and excitement, and Avelyn couldn’t wait to be alo
ne with her to ask her what was wrong.
“You look amazing,” she said instead.
Claudia chuckled. “You look way better. Tell me: is it because you’re a hybrid, or because you have three rambunctious children?”
“Oh, it’s because I’m a hybrid, trust me. And it’s what saved me, too. If I were a mere human, those three would have sucked the life out of me by now.”
They both laughed, and Karl and Max joined them. Avelyn turned to Karl.
“You bought her and you didn’t tell me.” She punched him lightly in the shoulder. “You little liar, you…”
“Hey! It’s not lying, okay? You didn’t ask.” He raised his hands in front of him, as if to protect himself from her fury.
“You’re saying that if I had called you yesterday and asked about her, you would have told me?”
“Nah,” Max intervened. “He wouldn’t have. We wanted it to be a surprise.”
“No. No you didn’t!” Avelyn crossed her arms over her full chest. “You knew and you didn’t tell me.”
“Now, now, honey. That’s how surprises work.”
Avelyn shook her head, but she was smiling. She had to admit that the Blackmane brothers did a great job when they worked together.
Jocelyn approached them with Jake in her arms. The oldest boys, Nick and Luke were trailing behind her, curious about the new stranger in their home. They all loved Karl and were excited when he visited, but now they were reluctant to jump into his arms because of the weird, dark lady standing by his side. They felt she was someone important, especially to their mother, so they had stopped fighting amongst themselves and decided they had to make a good impression.
“Well, well…” said Jocelyn, a warm smile on her face. “I thought I’d never live to see the day my oldest brother got married.” She turned to Claudia and studied her carefully. “Welcome to Schloss Blackmane, Claudia.”
“Thank you…” Claudia wanted to add her name, but then changed her mind. For some reason she couldn’t comprehend, Jocelyn intimidated her. She was tall, athletic, with perfect skin and perfect sharp features. She rocked a pixie cut like no one Claudia had ever seen. “I’m glad to finally meet you.”
Jocelyn nodded, satisfied. She knew Claudia wasn’t a Lupi bride, but at least she wasn’t a Vulpes bride like Avelyn had been. She could give a Ursi girl a chance and see where it led.
“Now that we’re done with the introductions,” said Matt. “Are we going to eat already? I’m starving!”
Avelyn rolled her eyes and motioned for Claudia to follow her to the table.
“We’re not done with the introductions, Mattie,” she said, taking Claudia’s arm and pointing to the other people at the table. “This is Kevin, Max’s Beta, and I guess you could say my Beta.” She stuck her tongue out at Kevin. The tall, bulky man with long blond hair and deep green eyes stood up to shake Claudia’s hand. “And this is grumpy Ryan, Jocelyn’s Beta. You’ll see they’re a perfect match. A grumpy Alpha and a grumpy Beta walked into a bar…” She laughed out loud when Ryan threw her an annoyed glance.
Claudia didn’t quite know how to react, so she shook his hand and smiled politely. Ryan intimidated her just as much as Jocelyn. He was two times bigger than all the men in the dining room, and his hair was cut short, military style. He looked as if he could crush someone between his thumb and his index finger. And again, looking at Kevin and Ryan, Claudia wondered for the thousandth time where Matt fit in as a Beta. She looked for him in what was now becoming a crowd, and spotted him filling his plate with food.
“And last, but not least, meet the most important men in my life,” said Avelyn. “I mean, you already know Max,” she added cheerfully when her husband cleared his throat behind her. “This is Nikolas,” she pushed the boy towards Claudia, forcing him to take a shy step forward. “Nicky, what do you say?”
“Hello, Claudia.”
“Hi there!” Claudia ruffled his hair. To her surprise, the boy didn’t complain. The bright smile he gave her meant he liked it and wouldn’t mind if she did it again. Wolf pups…
“And these are Lucas and Jacob. Boys?”
They both stepped in line with Nick and said their “hellos”. Claudia did the same gesture and laughed when Jacob, the youngest one, let out a small snarl and pouted.
“Don’t mind him,” Max said. “He’s the spoiled one.”