Page 102 of Alpha Brock
Again, she says, “I do.” Each time, she says it with even more certainty.
Dad pauses, then continues. “Do you vow to do your best to be compassionate and understanding in the face of conflict, and to be firm and fair when practicing discipline within the pack?”
The corner of her mouth lifts in a knowing little smile. She’s well aware that I’m a hothead and discipline isn’t my forte. All the more reason why I need her as my Luna to help balance that out. “I do.”
Dad nods again, proceeding to recite the final vow. “Do you swear to protect and defend this pack with your life, and that you will never abandon or give up on your pack, from this day, until your last day?”
“I do,” she responds firmly.
Goosebumps break out over my skin. We’re halfway through the ceremony- now all we have to do is complete the blood rites. A long pause settles over everyone as Dad turns to Mom, holding out his hand. She places a small dagger in his palm and he turns back to Astrid and I, removing the sheath.
“Having sworn your vows of loyalty to the pack, it is now time to seal you to the pack and our land through the blood rites,” he announces, holding the dagger in one hand and outstretching the palm of the other toward Astrid.
Still holding her hand, I lift it to place it in my dad’s, palm up.
“First, the land,” Dad barks, bringing the dagger to Astrid’s palm. He drags the blade across her flesh, applying enough pressure to carve a shallow slice through her skin. My girl’s a warrior; she doesn’t even flinch.
Dark red blood seeps from the wound on her palm, and Dad gives her a nod of encouragement to continue the ritual. She lifts her hand from his, holding it in front of her and squeezing it into a fist until several droplets of blood fall onto the earth below.
Satisfied with her offering, Dad continues, turning to me with an open palm. I place my hand in his, facing up, and he slices open my palm as he did Astrid’s, blood immediately seeping from the cut. “And now the pack,” he declares.
I lift my hand from Dad’s, looking to Astrid positioned across from me. We each hold our sliced hands up, bringing them together between us and lacing our fingers. As our blood mixes between our palms, our wolves push to the surface, peeking out at each other through our irises. We’ll now be able to communicate through the mind-link while in wolf form, which is a big part of why I was in such a rush to have this ceremony.
Dad grins as his gaze slides between the two of us and he concludes the ceremony. “Having taken vows and performed the blood rites, the ritual is now complete,” he booms. “It is with great pleasure that I present to you, Alpha Brock and Luna Astrid.”
Astrid and I turn toward the crowd, lifting our intertwined hands triumphantly as they break out in a roar of celebratory exclamations and thunderous applause, the sound deafening. We keep our hands locked together, advancing down the aisle and toward the packhouse together as the sounds of jubilation follow us.
The back door to the packhouse is still ajar, and I nudge it open with an elbow, pulling Astrid inside and going straight for the damp towel that was laid out on a table near the door in preparation for the ceremony. We both use it to clean the blood from our hands, the cuts on our palms already closing thanks to rapid shifter healing. We’re both a little fucking giddy, riding the high of the ceremony.
Once both of our hands are clean, I toss the towel aside, grabbing Astrid by the waist and lifting her off the ground. “Luna Astrid,” I proclaim, holding her up high, her head above mine. She squeals and giggles as I spin her around, then lower her enough to bring her mouth level with my own so I can kiss the hell out of her.
Her arms wind around my neck as she kisses me back, her lips parting for my tongue to sweep in. I devour her kiss, only coming up for air because I know the pack is waiting for us to re-emerge so they can share their excitement and congratulations with us.
I feel every inch of Astrid’s body slide against mine as I set her back down on her feet, stifling a groan. What I wouldn’t give to take her upstairs and strip her out of that dress right now, but… duty calls.
“So how’d I do?” she asks, smoothing the front of her gown, her cheeks flushed.
“You were fucking perfect, babe,” I growl, hooking an arm around her waist and yanking her into my chest. I gaze down at the way her dress hugs her curves, how her wavy hair cascades over her shoulders and down her back, and how her eye makeup accentuates her big brown doe-eyes, her mascara-slicked eyelashes fanning out as she bats them at me. Astrid’s a saint, but tonight, she looks like pure sin. I slide a hand under her jaw to cup her cheek, tilting her chin up. “Absolutely perfect,” I growl, leaning down to lick along the seam of her lips.
“You two coming or what?” Jared interrupts, poking his head in through the back doors.
I groan in protest, loosening my grip around Astrid and shooting him an annoyed glare for interrupting.
“Hey, don’t give me that look,” he chuckles, holding his hands up innocently. “Lots of people are out here waiting to congratulate you two. C’mon.” He gives a flick of his head, beckoning us back outside.
It won’t be long before we’ll need to head up to the lodge for the big post-ceremony celebration, so we need to make the most of our time here with the pack before a lot more people are added into the mix and our attentions are divided.
I heave a sigh, looking to Astrid. “I suppose we should get out there.”
She nods in agreement, slipping her hand in mine. We head to the door as Jared steps back out and pulls it open for us, any lingering thoughts immediately drowned out by the roar of the crowd gathered outside.
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
Astrid
I have no business being this happy when there’s a war on its way, yet here I am, flitting around the ballroom of the lodge on Brock’s arm with a permanent smile etched on my face. I’m overwhelmed by the number of people that came out to celebrate with us tonight- not only from all six packs in the territory, but from Denver, too. Even my parents showed up, shockingly tearing themselves away from their vacation home in Arizona to make the trip here to meet Brock.
Hundreds of people are here in the ballroom tonight, and once dinner is over, Brock and I are constantly being tugged in different directions to chat with our guests. Brock gets pulled away by the guys for a while and I get distracted with the girls, sipping on too many glasses of champagne. The bubbles tickle my throat and go to my head, and I’m even more giggly than usual, lost in laughter as Quinn tells the story of when she and Jax were keeping their relationship a secret and she made him hide in her closet.