Page 79 of Brandt's Rule
“Then be happy more quietly.”
Emmalyn laughed. “So, tell me everything!”
“I don’t know what to tell you,” Brandt admitted. “She’s just… everything.”
“Awwww!”
“Throws me off balance, makes me damn near lose control.”
“Makes you lose control? That all famous Marchande’ control? Damn! What is she?”
“Dragon. And Gargoyle, and elemental.”
“Uh, okay. I’m not even sure what to say.”
“All I know is it’s right,” Brandt said.
“Mama said it was. I talked to her this morning and it was all I could do to wait to call. Then when a woman answered, I thought, no!!!! They already made it official?!”
“Wasn’t planned, just happened,” Brandt said. “And nobody else knows yet, so don’t go blabbing it to anybody until we get a chance to live with it for a few hours before they figure it out.”
“I won’t tell. And I think it just happening is the best way. Naturally without too much planning.”
“Agreed,” Brandt said.
His bedroom door opened and Tempest came out wearing his teeshirt and a pair of his sweatpants. “Let me go, I gotta go feed my woman.”
“Listen to you all grown up and shit,” Emmalyn teased. “Seriously, happy for you. I’ll see you soon.”
“I’ll hold you to it.”
“I know!” she said, laughing as she ended the call.
“Come sit. I made tomato smothered smoked sausage and rice. It’s not as good as jambalaya, because it’s a quick throw together meal, but I still had to cook it so I want full credit.”
“You get full credit,” Tempest said, sitting down in the chair Brandt gestured to. After she was seated, she looked up and smiled at Barron, sitting on the other side of the table from her. “Morning.”
“Good morning, Miss Ma’am. I think you got some ‘splaining to do,” he said, teasing her.
“I do?” she asked.
“You do. I leave the two of you perfectly fine and all single. And when I come back in the morning you’re mated. How the hell does that happen?”
Tempest smiled and gratefully accepted the hot bowl of food from Brandt when he handed it to her. “Well, I’ll tell you Barron…” she started, “if you still don’t know by now, I’m kind of afraid for your future mate,” she teased back.
Barron barked out a laugh and shook his head. “Knew she was awesome. Should have claimed her myself.”
Brandt’s chest rumbled and he scowled as he plopped a spoonful of sausage and sweet onions simmered in tomato sauce on top of a serving of rice he’d already put in the bowl.
“Why are you all upset? Obviously she wouldn’t have accepted me. No damn body accepts me,” he grumbled, reaching for the bowl Brandt was holding out to him.
“She will. She’s just not ready,” Brandt said, serving himself before taking a seat next to Tempest.
“No, she won’t. Did she even say a single thing about me? How is Barron? You seen Barron? He doing alright? No, she did not. Not a single word. Want to know why? Because I don’t even cross her mind. It’s not the same for her,” Barron said, plunging his spoon into the steaming bowl of food and taking a bite without wincing at the heat at all.
“You know how she is. She’s all, I don’t need anybody. I don’t want anybody. I’m out here living my life and doing my thing while I’m young.”
Barron lifted his gaze to Brandt’s and smirked as he took another bite.