Page 291 of One Winter Knight
“Me, too, please,” I agreed. “Lucky, too.” Did Lucky have an account? He should.
“The dining room is now open. Please take your seats. Auction items will close in half an hour,” someone announced.
Hale offered Fiona and me his arms. “Shall we?”
Fiona took his arm. “I think we should.”
“We should.” I took his other arm. Then, I grabbed Dusty and linked my arm with him. Saoirse took Fiona’s, so we were in a line of the five of us.
“You look great.” Bailey took another photo.
My pack was pretty great. Yep, it was time for Pack Himbo to enter the party.
Chapter Sixty-Three
Carlos
Three months later
“It’s hotter here than I expected. Also, the bugs. Ugh.” Fiona fanned herself with a paper program, as we sat on white folding chairs, on the grass at Briar University.
“I know.” I waved an insect away as graduation droned on, one department at a time for undergraduate commencement. Unfortunately, chemistry wasn’t underC. No, it was underSforscience.
Fiona squeezed my hand. Saoirse sat on the other side of her, Dusty next to her. All of Hale’s siblings had come. Big brother Creed. Grace and her pack. Verity and her pack. His brother Dare. Even his little brother from Bayside and those two parents, and the little ones.
None of the other parents had been invited. His omega dad had apologized. Most of the money had been returned. But Hale wasn’t ready for a relationship again. Mercy was also not talking to them either. She had to get a lawyer involved to get her money.
It made him sad, though. I could see him go to text his dad amillion times about classwork things and stop himself.
Somehow, Grace had brought out the three little siblings from London, who were hysterical. That cheered him up.
Finally, we got to science, and of course we had to wait for the T’s.
“Hale Thorne, Organic Chemistry,” somebody called.
Hale walked across the stage in his cap and gown and got his diploma, beaming. We cheered. Then he set off a confetti cannon and did a backflip off the stage.
Graduation finished and we went to find him.
“I did it.” Hale picked me up and twirled me around, giving me a big kiss.
“You did. I am so proud of you.”
“I’m proud of you, too.” Fiona jumped into his arms and he held her, giving her a kiss.
“We’re all proud of you.” Dusty put an arm around him.
“We are,” Saoirse agreed.
He had worked hard this semester, and it wasn’t just his studies or his research. It was him learning to schedule everything in order to maximize his time. It was him growing into an alpha we could all be proud of.
Yeah, Hale was absolutely not the same person who’d stolen his sister’s car to race in Manhattan After Midnight.
But still a lot of fun.
That’s not to say the past months hadn’t been without hardships. There were definitely a few times Hale wanted to quit his classes. The nights Fiona sobbed, because both Hale and I were away at the same time. Days when Saoirse looked like she’d change the locks on us. Times I felt guilty, because I was happy to have a night to myself at an away game. Moments where Dusty apologized for things he didn’t do, because he wanted to keep the peace. Times where the puppy ate my things.
But we were working through it. I was so fucking grateful forhealth insurance that covered therapy and all the support we got from new pack services. They held our hands every step of the way.
