Chapter 16
By the time the school year ended, Jax and his family had settled into a comfortable routine. Hope was now staying with them most of the time, and he and Holden truly considered her their own daughter. She’d taken to calling them both dad, which he loved to the core of his soul.
They were leaving for Ashland the following day and staying for two weeks. Hope was only staying through the weekend, and would be returning with Eli so she could spend the summer working at a day camp for shifter kids. It was sponsored by the King police department, but all shifters were welcome, not just mountain lions. She thought she might like to work with kids as an adult, so it would be a good experience for her.
Aside from getting to spend time with their niece Melody and her family, and their friends in the pride, they were going to marry Honor in a ceremony in the backyard of the boarding house. They were skipping the honeymoon until they were finished with their visit to Ashland, but on the way back home they were going to spend a long weekend at a resort in the mountains of Pennsylvania.
“Ready to get on the road, honey?” he asked Hope when he walked into the kitchen with his suitcase.
“Yep,” she said, looking up from the tablet they’d bought her for the trip. “I just finished downloading three movies and a whole season of my favorite show.”
“Didn’t you already binge-watch that with your mom?” he asked, arching a brow.
“Yeah, but the new season starts in September, so I have to rewatch it.”
He rolled his eyes with a chuckle. “Sounds like a great use of free time.”
“It’s summer,” she pointed out. “And it totally is. I’m sure I missed things the first two times I watched it.”
“You’re adorable, and a little delusional.”
“Runs in the family, I think.”
“What does?” Honor asked as she joined them. She slid her arm around Jax’s waist and gave him a squeeze. His cat purred at how good she smelled.
“Adorable delusions,” Hope said.
“Oh?” Honor asked.
“Rewatching TV shows before they start a new season.”
“Ah, that’s totally important. I also reread books in a series before a new one comes out.”
He shook his head at his mate and daughter, kissed Honor, and went to make coffee for everyone.
“Dad’s on his way,” Honor said, looking at her phone. Eli was driving separately so that he and Hope could return to King in time for her to start her job at the camp. “He’s stopping for bagels.”
“Oh, yum,” Hope said.
When Eli showed up twenty minutes later, the truck was packed and they were ready to go. Jax got behind the wheel, set his travel mug in the cup holder, and gave his sesame bagel with veggie cream cheese to Holden, who sat next to him. Honor and Hope were in the back, headphones on as they stared at the tablet. Holden looked back at them and smiled. Jax backed out of the drive, waved at Eli, and turned onto the road, heading out of town. It was hard to believe that they’d been in King for a few months already. So much had changed, and while he was looking forward to being in Ashland, King was his home now.
Despite the early start they’d gotten, they didn’t get to the boarding house until nearly eight on Friday night. Every light in the big house was on, making it stand out in the darkness like a beacon. There were cars everywhere; he knew that everyone who could be there would be. He stretched and rolled his neck as they got out of the truck. Thankfully he and Holden had taken turns on the drive. Honor and Hope had ridden with Eli for part of the drive as well.
“Wow,” Hope said as she got out of Eli’s car and looked at the house. “Does the whole pride live here in this one house?”
“No,” Jax said. “A few families live on the farm with Rhett and his human mate Lisa. They have an adopted daughter, Treasure, who’s a dragon shifter.”
Hope’s brows rose. “I didn’t know there were dragons.”
“I imagine there are a lot of shifters we don’t know about because they’re not in the States,” Eli said.
“In the Ashland pride, there’s a wolf, a hawk, bears, and albino panthers, plus some human mates.”
Hope hummed. “It sure is different than King. We only really have lions, a wolf family, and humans.”
The front door swung open, and James Fallon stood in the doorway. “Welcome back, everyone. The pride’s out in the backyard, waiting for your arrival.”
“Sorry we missed dinner,” Honor apologized as she shook James’s hand.
“No worries,” he said. “We’ve all made the trip before and know how it can take a lot longer than we plan for.”
“James, this is our daughter, Hope,” Holden said. “You remember Eli.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Hope. Nice to see you again, Eli.” He shook their hands and smiled. “My mate’s in the kitchen with John. Jilly and the panthers will be here tomorrow, but they’re staying in the field behind the boarding house in their RVs.”
They walked into the kitchen after leaving their bags in the hall by the stairs. James introduced his mate, Rue, and her other mate, John, to Hope and Eli. Hope looked out the kitchen window and made a strange purring sound.
Jax frowned. “You okay, honey?”
She turned and faced them, rubbing the space over her heart. “Yeah. I feel weird.”
“Weird how?” Honor asked.
“Just weird. I want to go outside.”
“Of course,” Holden said. “There are a ton of people for you to meet. Maybe your cat is just anxious?”
Honor put her hand on Hope’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “If you feel overwhelmed by being around so many lions, just let one of us know and we’ll bring you inside for a breather.”
John’s brows rose. “She okay?”
“Yeah,” Jax said. “She was poisoned once when she was a toddler, but not any of the other times. She’s not fully affected by the females’ venom, but she does have trouble being around a lot of males. It’s probably why she feels strange.”
“Do you guys need to stay somewhere other than the boarding house?” James asked. “You could stay at Rhett’s and Lisa’s. They have a spare room, and I’m sure they wouldn’t mind.”
“No,” Hope said, squaring her shoulders. “I want to stay here. It’s only for two nights anyway, and tomorrow we’ll be busy setting up for the wedding. I don’t want to miss anything.”
“Okay, sweetie,” Honor said. “Let’s go say hi to the pride.”
Jax smiled at the warm welcome the pride gave them, cheering and clapping when they walked out of the screened-in porch and onto the large patio. Picnic tables and folding chairs filled the yard. Honor hung back with Hope while James called for quiet and introduced them, asking that pride members not overwhelm Hope and come to introduce themselves in small groups.
“The pride’s so big,” Hope said, when she’d finally met everyone.
“King’s is bigger,” Eli said.
“Yeah, but they don’t hang out together like this,” Honor said. “I think Ashland feels intimidating because there are so many of them in one place.”
“Yep,” Hope said.
“Sorry we’re late,” Rhett said as he walked out onto the patio with his wife, Lisa, and their adopted daughter Treasure. “We got stuck in traffic.”
“In Ashland?” James asked.
“No, coming from Indianapolis. My girls wanted to go to the outlet mall.”
“Hey, I’m Treasure,” she said, stopping in front of Hope. “You’re pretty.”
Hope’s eyes went wide. “Uh, thanks. You are too.”
Treasure smiled. “I’m a fairy-dragon hybrid. I turn thirteen in September. Can you shift yet?”
“I shifted once, but it’s too early for me to shift again until I’m sixteen, maybe.”
Treasure hummed and looked at Honor. “You two look the same.”
“She’s my daughter,” Honor said.
Treasure giggled. “No, I mean your auras are similar.”
“You can see auras?” Hope asked.
“Yep. Have you met my mates?”
“You have mates? You’re so young,” Hope said, her head tilting.
“When you know you know,” Treasure said. She turned around and waved at the crowd. Kevin and Brian jogged up, both giving her cheek kisses. She eyed Hope for a quiet moment and then said, “It’s too bad you won’t have a chance to meet Owen, Nathan, and Ben.”
Hope gave her a puzzled look. “Who are they?”
Jax said, “They’re Aaron’s boys. He’d scheduled an end-of-school camping trip a few months ago and had a non-refundable deposit. They won’t be back until the middle of the week.”
“That’s too bad,” Treasure said.
“It is?” Hope asked.
“Yeah. Fate’s a funny thing, though. It’ll all work out.” She smiled brightly, her eyes flashing bright blue for a moment. “In the meantime, you and I are going to be best friends. Do you have a bestie? I only have my boys. I don’t have any girl besties, and Mom says that’s important.”
Lisa smiled. “It sure is.”
Treasure hooked her arm through Hope’s and pulled her away from the patio, Kevin and Brian trailing behind.
“She’s a sweetie,” Honor said.
“I’m honestly so glad you’re here,” Lisa said. “And not just because I love planning weddings for the pride. I told Treasure she needed not to be focusing all her attention on the boys, that having a best friend is something special and part of growing up. I was really hopeful that she and Hope would hit it off.”
“How are things in King for her now?” Rhett asked.
“Better,” Holden said. “Although what happened with Victoria and the females was awful, it showcased very clearly how different Honor and Hope are. The pride has really embraced them both.”
“That’s good to hear,” Rhett said.
“Would you like to see the centerpieces that the pride ladies and I worked on for your wedding?” Lisa asked.
“I’d love to see them,” Honor said, blowing a kiss to him and Holden before following Lisa into the house.
James handed him and Holden glasses of iced tea.
“Lisa said that Honor and Hope could stay at our place,” Rhett said.
“That works,” Jax said. “We’ll stay in our rooms.”
Little Bradley toddled over to them and climbed into Jax’s lap. He smiled at the boy, who reminded him of their brother, Bradley, who the little lion was named after.
“We’ve got some news,” Melody said as she and her mates joined them around the bonfire.
“Good news, we hope,” Holden said.
“The best,” she said with a smile. “I’m pregnant.”
“That’s wonderful!” Jax stood with Bradley in his arms and hugged his niece. “Congratulations.”
“Thanks,” she said after accepting a hug from Holden. “I’m due January fifteenth.”
“Due for what?” Honor asked as she joined them. Bradley immediately climbed down from Jax’s lap to climb onto Honor’s.
“We’re having another baby,” Melody said.
“Oh, wonderful! You’re going to be a great big brother, aren’t ya kiddo?” she asked, tickling Bradley until he laughed.
“He’s excited to be the ring bearer,” Tristan said, smiling at his son.
“And Callie’s little girl Sophie is going to look so sweet as the flower girl.”
Eli joined them. “I’m sad to say that this old cat needs to get some sleep after the long drive. Where am I bunking?”
“You can have my room,” Jax said as he stood. “I’ll show you to it.”
Eli said goodnight, and Jax took him up to the third floor. By the time he returned to the patio, those who didn’t live at the boarding house were saying goodbye. Soon enough only a few of the adults were still outside, watching the fire crackle and the sky wink with stars.
“We miss you guys,” Rue said. “But we’re happy you’re all together now.”
“Do you think you might move back here after Hope graduates?” John asked.
“I don’t know,” Honor said. “She likes King, but she might like it here, too. And she wants to go to college. The future’s wide open right now.”
“It’s good that she has choices,” James said. “I’m very thankful that the King pride got their heads out of their asses and are treating you both respectfully now.”
“Me too,” Honor said. She looked at Jax and smiled. “I’m ready for bed.”
“I second that,” Holden said.
Hope had been invited to spend the night at Rhett and Lisa’s. Treasure and Hope had taken to each other quickly, the two as thick as thieves right away.
They said goodnight to those who were still outside, and headed up to the third floor. He opened the door to the room they were sharing, and said, “I’m glad we’re back here for the wedding, but it’s not home anymore.”
“I agree,” Holden said. “I guess home is where your family is.”
“Melody’s here, though,” Honor pointed out.
“Yeah, but we’re happy in King,” Jax said. “I’m looking forward to our vacation, but I’ll be glad to be back home.”
“Home’s where you guys are,” Honor said. “The life we’ve made in King is better than I could have ever imagined, and it’s all because of you.”
Jax pulled her into his arms as Holden shut and locked the door. “You’re the center of our world, sweetheart. I don’t care where life takes us, as long as we’re together.”