The Blessed Blend (29 page)

“Aren’t you forgetting that the Wallace-Hawken girls have the Wallace-Hawken boys for brothers?” she asked. “I think they’ll be rougher on anyone who comes sniffing around their sisters than even you could be.”

He considered that and shook his head slowly. “God help the poor lads then,” he breathed. “They’ll be lucky if they manage tae get away wi’ their manhood intact.”

The twins had fallen asleep. Euan got up and Callie handed him each one to put in the cradle beside the bed. He kissed each babe tenderly before settling them down and tucking them in. His eyes misted as he looked at them sleeping so peacefully side-by-side. So small and yet so perfectly formed. So innocent and helpless.

Euan got back in bed with Callie and pulled her close. He kissed her brow and gazed into her eyes as he caressed her cheek. “I love ye, Callie. I always hae. Always will.”

She was tired from giving birth and was sure it showed, yet the love in Euan’s eyes was as vibrant as ever and the desire flickering in their warm brown depths didn’t escape her notice. Of course his erection gave her more than sufficient proof that her husband found her sexy even now. “And I love you, too, Euan,” she purred. “But you’re going to have to wait a few weeks before I can take care of that thing there.” As he laughed, she added, “Honestly, after holding my hand and listening to me holler and all today, I don’t know how you could even be turned on like this.”

Euan’s mouth curled up in a wry smile as he shrugged. “It’s joost somethin’ tha’ happens when we’re close like this, Callie. I canna help it.”

Bringing his lips down upon hers, he kissed her gently but passionately and then ran his fingers through her hair while smiling at her. “Ye bewitched me the first time I saw ye, Callie, an’ it’s only gotten stronger o’er the years,” he said. “Is it any wonder tha’ I get hard joost lookin’ a’ ye?”

She chuckled. “Is it any wonder we’ve got eight kids?” she asked. “You witched me, too, you know. There’s never been any one else I ever wanted. Or loved.”

“There’s nae anoother mon who’d put up wi’ ye, either!” he teased, grabbing her hand as she swatted at him. He kissed her tenderly and settled into a more comfortable position so they could go to sleep. “But ‘tis a happy penance for me.”

Callie shifted and rested her head upon his shoulder, her body flush against his. His body was long, lean, and strong, and she always felt safe and loved when she was next to him like this.
 
Her nostrils flared as she breathed in his clean masculine scent and her body relaxed as she let out a contented sigh. Exhaustion overtook her and she asked him to put out the light.

Euan cradled her in his arms and rested his chin upon the crown of her head. He listened as her breathing deepened in sleep and he felt the warmth of her body against his. Tenderness welled up from deep within and he tightened his embrace and kissed her forehead. Aye but he was blessed more than any man he knew.

Soft moonlight drifted down from the well in the ceiling and silvered their room and up on the mountain the pack sang out a hunting song. They still came to visit their former alpha and play with the children but they were almost truly wild now.

The original four- Raze, Smoke, Nightside, and Snake- were old, their muzzles gray and their joints a bit stiff. Euan had built them their own den in a sheltered place behind the house but this past winter had seen them sleeping in the house during a particularly harsh freeze. Whenever Euan and Callie went hunting with Sequa and Meatloaf, a pair from Brutus’ last-known litter of pups, any meat was always shared with the elderly wolves, which preferred to stay close to the house.

The four years they’d been apart seldom crossed his mind now, but when they did he always gave thanks that John
had
stuck his nose in.

Life wasn’t always easy and there were the occasional spirited debates or heated arguments. Given that both of them had a temper that was to be expected. There were the challenges of raising their growing brood, making a living, and managing family obligations on two continents. Some days things didn’t go quite right and some days were disasters.

Still, he wouldn’t trade it for anything. He had a good life here with his wife and lady, she who was the heart of his heart. Her mountains had become part of him as well, his heart beating to the rhythm of their song. Some day the two of them would be laid to rest here, living on not only in their descendents but also in the land itself.

But they had yet many years ahead full of love and family and Euan looked forward to each and every one.