Page 61 of Rebel's Fairytale
“You guys approve… of me, don’t you?” Her question was quiet, but she really wanted to know. Bri suspected that was what the whole conversation was about — the twins giving their approval. She just needed clarification.
She set the kettle on the burner and turned the burner on while she waited for their answer.
“Ruby,” Ryker said, softly.
She looked over and saw both of the twins staring at her. “Yeah?”
“You don’t need our approval,” Ross began, “but you have it.”
They both smiled at her, and she smiled back through her happy tears.
“Why in the hell are there tears in my woman’s eyes?” Rebel’s voice, rough with sleep, rang through the room. Then, he was standing next to her and wrapping her in his arms.
“Because she’s a woman, and that’s what they do when you tell them you wouldn’t mind it if they moved in with you and your much-loved cousins,” Ryker answered as he poured milk in their cereal.
Rebel looked over at her and kissed her lips. “They freak you out?”
“A little, but it’s okay.”
“We were just saying we’d help if she was moving in.” Ross took a bite of cereal. “We weren’t demanding that she promise to do it right now.”
Rebel kissed her lips again and grinned.
When the whistle from the kettle sounded, she turned off the burner and moved it over. Rebel had grabbed two of the new mugs he bought and quickly washed them, while she grabbed the box of chai tea from the island.
Ryker snorted a laugh. “You two already move like a long-mated couple.”
Once the twins were gone and Rebel had whipped them up some omelets, the two of them settled on two of the stools at the island and ate their breakfast. As he ate, Rebel used his free hand to keep a physical connection between them. He brushed her hair out of her face. He caressed her back. Rebel gripped her thigh. Anything he could do to keep them in contact, he did.
She loved that about him, his need to touch her. He wasn’t selfish with affection, but he also seemed to recognize when it was bordering on too much. He would pull back and give her a bit of space. How Rebel managed to read her so well boggled Bri’s mind.
When she was finished with her omelet, she took a sip of her tea and sighed. “Okay. Talk time.”
Rebel nodded, still chewing his last bite. He grabbed their plates and forks, and carried them to the sink. When he returned to his stool, he began, “I talked to the brothers. Part of the money needed at the library will come from the club businesses. For the rest, we’re going to do a charity carnival at the compound. All the proceeds will go to the library. Either way, the library will not lose one cent of donations, no matter what the dissenters do.”
Bri stared at him for a long moment, trying hard to wrap her mind around what he was telling her. “Just like that?”
He shrugged. “Yeah.”
“Rebel, it’s a lot of money.”
“It isn’t the first time the Howlers have done something like this for the town. You’ve been here long enough to know that.”
She nodded. Shehadbeen in town long enough to know that the Howlers were an integral part of how certain services and business remained functioning. When she moved to Warden’s Pass five years before, she was surprised by the number of services offered in a town of that size, but it didn’t take her long to figure out how. The Howlers were how. They took care of Warden’s Pass the same way they took care of each other and their families.
“You all don’t deserve what they are doing.”
He reached out and tucked her hair behind her ear. “Neither do you.” He sighed. “I need to tell you something, but I don’t want you to freak out.”
She narrowed her eyes on him. “What?”
“I claimed you as my Ol’ Lady to the club.” When she opened her mouth, with the full intention of telling him she hadn’t agreed to anything yet, he held up a hand. “I know. And like I said last night, I’m not trying to pressure you. The fact of the matter is no other woman will be my Ol’ Lady no matter what you decide, and that is what I’ve decided. They would have done it, anyway, but claiming you to the club just solidifies their commitment to treating you like they would Sugar or Pixie or Gorgeous. They already feel that way about you. I just made it official.”
“So, they’ll hate me if I don’t agree?”
He shook his head. “Nah. They’d never hate you, Ruby.”
She wanted to be irritated about it. She wanted to tell him he was being pushy, but he wasn’t. He hadn’t asked for anything from her. He gave her the facts and told her to take her time. Just because he was sure didn’t mean he was demanding she feel as comfortable with things. He was doing what he told her he would. He was showing her what things would be like while allowing her time to make up her mind.