Every Miraculous Moment (Hyena Heat #6)(23)

“I’m so proud of all of you,” Mack said. “Kross, Kayne, and Heaven proved themselves to be worthy alphas, and Whisper and her mates backed them up like family is supposed to. I wasn’t sure when I left a month ago what would happen – if it was even possible for my wolf to feel a connection to someone, or what it would mean if I did find my mate. Meeting Miracle was…miraculous.”

Miracle snorted and started to chuckle. “That’s so sweet. And goofy.”

He looked at Kross and Kayne, with Heaven sitting between them. They each held one of her hands, and the trio looked so happy together that Mack knew he was making the right choice.

“I’m going to step down officially as alpha at the next full moon. We can have a meeting with the pack in a few days to alert them to the permanent change, but I have no doubt in my mind that you three can be wonderful alphas and the pack will be in good hands.”

“Wow, thanks Dad,” Kayne said.

“We won’t let you down,” Kross promised him.

“I know you won’t,” he said.

“You’re still staying, though, right? Just not being alpha?” Whisper asked, her brows drawn in worry.

“Exactly. I’m going to run the bar full-time, and help Miracle with her glassware business. I’ll be building a studio for her behind the house once the ground thaws.”

Kross and Kayne explained their plans to start a music studio. Whisper was going to join them as a piano teacher, and Heaven was going to work in the office, handling appointments and selling instruments and gear. Whisper’s mates all worked at the bar, and were going to continue. Mack was thrilled to hear that his kids were making thoughtful choices about their futures. Once spring came, Bliss and her mates would be moving to Ocean City, Maryland, where they were from, and Whisper would lose her best friend. Fortunately, Heaven and Whisper were already becoming like sisters, much in the same way that Miracle and Tonya were.

When the kids had finished eating the snickerdoodles, Miracle and the girls disappeared into the family room to chat for a while and Mack took the opportunity to talk with his sons and the other males.

“Are you sure about this?” Kross asked.

“Very much so. I’ve been alpha for a long time. It’s time to pass the torch. You stood up for Heaven and your alphaship. There’s no better choice in my mind than the two of you and Heaven. You feel ready, don’t you?”

“Of course,” Kayne said. “We kind of figured since you found Miracle that you might want to retire, but we weren’t sure.”

“Miracle and I had a lot of time to talk in the mountains. I know she could handle being alpha female, but I like the idea of just being a regular pack member, being in charge of the bar, and taking good care of my mate.”

“She’s a lucky female.”

“I’m the lucky one,” Mack said.





*





As May’s sunshine heated the world, Mack stood next to a pile of wood and watched his mate take down a few trees with her powerful dragon paws. Her clawed fingers gripped the thick trunks and pulled them from the ground like weeds, and she set them gently on the other side of the house.

“Looks good, babe,” he said.

She let out a snort and gave him one of her dragon smiles that showed all her sharp teeth. He heard the rumbling of a truck out front and said, “That’s the contractor. I’ll be right back.”

He jogged around to the front to greet the contractor who was going to level the ground and make the forms for the concrete to be poured later in the week. The concrete would be the foundation for Miracle’s glass studio. The male, a human who lived in the next town, got out of the rig and shook Mack’s hand.

Then he gasped and said, “Holy shit!”

Mack glanced over his shoulder and saw Miracle leaning over the house and staring at the truck.

“It’s just my mate.”

“I…she’s a dragon!”

“Yes. Anything else you want to tell me that I already know?”

“Sorry,” the male said, shaking his head. “I’ve never seen one before.”

Miracle opened her mouth and let out a billow of smoke, blowing smoke rings as big as hula hoops. She chuckled in her dragon way, her wings rustling with the motion.

“She won’t hurt you. I just fed her,” Mack said, winking at Miracle, who stuck her forked tongue out at him.

The contractor, still looking a little green, followed Mack around to the back of the house as his workers unloaded the equipment. Mack stood next to Miracle, leaning against her foreleg and running his hand up her warm scales.

“It’s coming together, babe,” he said, looking up at her as she watched the workers.

She nodded and turned, lumbering into the woods. Her form swiftly shrank as she changed back to human form in privacy. A few moments later she reappeared, fully dressed, her eyes bright with excitement.

“Thank you for all your hard work.”

“How many times do I have to tell you that I’ll do anything to make you happy?”

“And how many times do I have to tell you that you alone make me the happiest?”

She leaned against him, and he wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. “I love you,” he murmured against her hair.