Wolf Girl (Wolf Girl, #1)(31)

“It makes up for my terrible looks,” I joked. I couldn’t stop, they just kept fumbling out of me.

Before he could respond, the car stopped.

“That was short,” I mused.

The door opened and Eugene helped me step out. What the…? Did he ride up front? Man, these guys were good at being seen when they wanted to be and scarce when needed. I took the guard’s offered hand and stepped out onto…

A boat dock.

“Why are we—?” I started when a woman’s shrill voice cut me off.

“Sawyer!” she screamed in excitement.

There were tons of people here. A red carpet had been set up and dozens of black limousines were waiting to drop more people off. I scanned the end of the red carpet and my eyebrows hit my hairline.

There was a cruise ship, or a yacht, or whatever the fuck rich people called those giant boats. It was docked and had the most beautiful white twinkling Christmas lights wrapped around the railing.

“Good evening, Mrs. Pepper.” Sawyer nodded to the woman approaching us, but I could hear a hint of annoyance in his tone.

Pepper. As in Meredith Pepper?

Sawyer slipped his hand into mine and interlaced our fingers together, like it was no big deal. The brown-haired woman with way too much make-up on noticed we were holding hands and lifted a brow.

“I trust you’ve already got the list of top twenty? I’m sure Meredith is on it, no?” the woman said with a conspiratorial wink.

Sawyer gave a nervous laugh. “Should we really discuss these things at my father’s birthday party?” He winked back.

She gave a short burst of nervous laughter and patted his chest. “You’re right. Have fun at the party, dear.”

When she walked away, I looked up at Sawyer, who stared down at me behind those thick black eyelashes. “You brought me as a date to the alpha’s birthday party?”

Sawyer grinned. “He’s just my dad, but yeah I wanted you here with me tonight.”

That was … really sweet. Oh Lord, help me, I was falling hard. There was no way out of this unscathed. Not now.

I smiled. “And to think I almost didn’t change. What if I’d worn that ‘single but not interested’ shirt?” I scolded him as we started to walk the ridiculous red carpet.

Sawyer grinned, showcasing that damn sexy dimple and chin butt. “It would have been talked about for years to come.”

We followed the throngs of people while I processed the fact that not only was I going on a yacht to the alpha’s birthday party, I was doing so wearing a tube top, and with the alpha’s son as my date.

I paused mid-walk. “I feel like I should change.” People were wearing legit ballgowns.

Sawyer looked down at me, eyes hooded and shook his head. “You’re perfect.”

My cheeks reddened as he squeezed my hand and we continued to walk hand in hand onto the boat.

A piano was playing somewhere in the distance as we stepped on board, the sound setting the stage for what I was sure was a classy and expensive evening.

A man wearing a black suit bowed to us. “Sir Hudson.”

Sawyer gave the man a genuine smile. “Roland, I’d like you to meet Demi Calloway.”

He gestured to me and I smiled at the older man.

He bowed his head. “Good evening, Miss Calloway.”

“Roland is our family butler. I’ve known him since before I could walk.” Sawyer smiled warmly at the man.

“Hi.” I waved shyly. “I left my butler at home.”

Roland’s calm fa?ade broke as he chuckled and my gaze went to Sawyer, unsure if my joke was well received. He was grinning ear to ear, chin butt and dimple on full display.

Whew.

“Demi has a healthy sense of humor,” Sawyer told his butler with a wink.

Roland nodded. “You’ve never brought a girl home with one of those. It’s a nice change.”

Oh snap.

Sawyer chortled and then someone pulled his arm and we were moving into the crowd and away from Roland. It was his mother, pulling us through the throng of people with a bright smile on her face. Well, pulling Sawyer and Sawyer pulling me. Leaning into my ear, Sawyer whispered, “Did my butler just totally burn me?”

I grinned. “Yep. Looks like you have horrible taste in women. Until me of course.”

He smirked. “Of course.”

After we were pulled into an opening, I noticed a stage set up at the back of the boat. To the right of it was a live piano player, and in the center was a giant white cake with blue piping around the edges.

Mrs. Hudson was wearing a floor-length black ballgown, and now that we had the space to face each other she gave her son a big hug. I dropped his hand, feeling awkward about holding hands in front of his mom, and he wrapped his arms around her.

“Good evening, Mother.”

When she pulled back, her gaze went to me and I prepared for the scowl or a salacious scan of my dress, but to my surprise she pulled me in for a hug next.

“Oh.” I was caught off guard, my arms coming up behind her back and she squeezed me.

When she pulled back, she was beaming. “Your father will be so delighted to see you both.”

Sawyer slipped his hand back into mine and my stomach did flip flops.

Okay…

Maybe it wasn’t a big deal, him bringing me to his dad’s birthday party … but it felt like a big deal to me. Meeting his parents like this, holding hands in front of all the big mucky mucks of Werewolf City … it was … a lot.