“Our family,” he replied and when her eyes grew wide he explained simply, “It’s Christmas.”
The doorbell rang again and when it did Callum regretted his decision to give her the exact opposite of her lonesome Christmases past.
That was until he felt her hand at the side of his head, her thumb sweeping along his cheekbone and he heard her soft voice say, “No, it’s the best Christmas I’ve had in years.”
Callum gazed at the tender gratitude gleaming in his mate’s eyes only a second before he slanted his head and did what he’d intended to do moments before.
The doorbell rang three more times before the door was opened.
* * * * *
“Fucking hell, Cal, is that a wedding band?” Calder practically shouted at him from across the dining room table.
His family, and hers, had arrived bearing shopping bags stuffed full of even more presents. Everyone got a cup of coffee while Callum started a fire in the fireplace in the living room, Ryon started one in the dining room and Sonia turned on Christmas music. Then they had Christmas around Sonia’s downstairs tree before Sonia and Callum went upstairs and dressed in all new clothes. After that, Regan and Sonia made breakfast. It was Sonia’s recipe. Crepes filled with cream cheese sweetened and flavored with almonds and citrus, drenched in a sweet, slightly alcoholic citrus syrup and sprinkled with roasted almonds. His wife, he was pleased to note, when she had a mind to do it, could cook. It was f**king glorious.
Calder’s exclamation came after breakfast while everyone was still seated at the table.
Sonia was walking back into the room with full mugs of coffee for the both of them and she stopped dead at Calder’s words as everyone at the table, which was littered with their breakfast dishes, turned to look at Callum’s left hand.
“Yes,” Callum replied calmly, pushed his chair back and reached forward, snagging Sonia with an arm around her h*ps and pulling her to him at the same time he divested her of his mug of coffee.
“Our males don’t wear wedding bands,” Caleb declared, his eyes looking at the ring as if it was a rotting sinew wound around his finger.
“One of them does,” Callum returned firmly, carefully seating Sonia’s stiff body in his lap under the studiously remote gaze of Gregor and the openly annoyed gaze of Yuri as well as everyone else.
“For God’s sake, why?” Calder demanded to know.
“Because, this morning, for Christmas, Sonia gave it to me,” Callum answered.
“It’s not our way,” Caleb announced dismissively.
“Maybe not, but it’s our way,” Callum stated forcefully, making his point by drawing Sonia nearer and beginning to lose his patience as Sonia’s body didn’t lose its rigidity. “My mate is human. This is their symbol. It means something to Sonia therefore it means something to me.”
“But, what happens when –” Caleb started but Callum cut his brother off, knowing what he was going to say. Their males didn’t ever wear rings because they’d lose them if they needed to transform or the rings might do harm during the change to wolf.
“Caleb, let it go,” Callum ordered.
“But –” Caleb began again.
“Let it go,” Callum bit out.
Caleb snapped his mouth shut.
“You don’t have to wear it,” Sonia said quietly and Callum’s head twisted to look at her.
“Did you buy it to sit in a box?” Callum asked.
“Well…” she started hesitantly. “No.”
“You bought it because you wanted me to wear it,” he stated and she pulled in breath then nodded. “So I’m going to f**king wear it.” His gaze sliced through his brothers and he warned, “Not another word.”
Caleb and Calder both looked away.
Regan and Ryon both stared at Callum and Sonia and they were grinning broadly.
Gregor’s lips were twitching.
Yuri looked like he’d just drunk a mouthful of sour milk.