My cousin was awesome, and I was thrilled to see her.
“That’s Minori,” I told him. “She’s Jiro’s younger sister.”
Kosuke’s eyes narrowed, and he looked over to me. “The cousin who murdered your parents? And you invited her to your wedding?”
“She didn’t kill my parents. Her brother did. Minori is the best. Honestly, she’s one of my favorite family members, other than my grandmother. Who would be your granddaughter, if I remember my family history correctly.” Casually, I leaned back and toward him, lowering my voice. “Minori’s the person who’s acting head of the family. Should be head of the family, but a bunch of stodgy old men don’t think she can hack it. Eventhough she singlehandedly saved her family’s dealings with my pack.”
He turned and stared at me, eyes narrowed all the way to slits. “Is that right?”
“Dakota,” Minori exclaimed as she reached me. “I’m so sorry I’m late.”
I turned to face her, smiling. “Please. I’m impressed that you made it at all. And grateful. You’re one of my favorite family members. Plus Obaasan told me how the council was harassing you about how a ‘real’ head of family could easily take on every meeting and get to my wedding as well.” I looked her over, effortlessly stunning in a pale gold silk dress. “Which you have clearly done, and in style. That dress is gorgeous.”
She blushed and ducked her head, then sighed. “They really are insufferable. Kenji told me that if I couldn’t handle it, I should step down and save them the trouble. As though being in two places at once is easily overcome if only you have enough willpower.”
“Kenji,” Kosuke said, frowning. “Like that little weasel Tanaka Kenji?”
Minori . . . turned to face him, blinking. “He . . . is, yes. He is Tanaka Kenji.”
I lifted a brow, frowning. “Was that his, maybe, grandfather’s name, too? Great-grandfather?”
She hesitated, considering, then nodded. “I believe they do pass it down as a family name. Why?” Then she glanced back to Kosuke, frowning, like something was wrong but she couldn’t quite put her finger on what.
It made sense, because since we’d started bonding, he had also started to seem more corporeal to me. Assuming she saw him as I did, he was just a handsome young Japanese man in somewhat old-fashioned clothing.
He was scowling now. “Why is he on the Igarashi council? The Kenji I knew was bad enough. He was a compulsive exaggerator. I’d have never let him sit his worthless ass on my council. And his family are minor powers. Barely related to us and weak of magic.”
Minori just stared at him for a second, then turned to me, stunned. Before she could say what she was thinking, she seemed to think of something else and turned back to Kosuke. “Grandmother always says he lied his way onto the council, and we should see him out in favor of someone better suited to the position. I just... never thought I could do that.”
Kosuke scoffed. “Acting head or actual, it’s your council. You can call for a vote to remove anyone.”
Before she could ask who the hell he was and how he knew it, I cleared my throat. “Minori, this is the ghost of our great-great-grandfather, Igarashi Kosuke. He came home with me, and he’s been... teaching me.”
Kosuke turned and lifted a brow at me, but then smiled. “It’s been interesting, getting to know the new generation. The world has changed quite a lot.”
“Less in Japan,” Minori said with a sigh and a rueful smile.
Kosuke crossed his arms over his chest. “Then perhaps, it’s time for me to return home and help you change that.” They turned to walk off together, and the last thing I heard from him was, “Tanaka Kenji indeed.”
“Are you all right?” Jax asked, coming up behind me and wrapping his arms around me.
I turned my face up to look at him, and heard a camera clicking somewhere in the background.
“I’m amazing, actually. See, I got married today.”
He smiled back. “To anyone in particular?”
“To the best alpha any pack has ever had.” I leaned into him, taking a deep sniff of the rose in his front pocket, and more, ofthe man himself under the layers of silk and wool. “Best night of my life, the night I met him.”
He chuckled. “That’s funny, I heard it was a one-night stand.”
“Mmm,” I agreed. “One night, one lifetime, who can tell the difference?”
We drifted there, swaying slightly to the music, as our pack and the whole Crescent family danced and drank and were merry all around us. And the Idaho Wildwood pack. And a few select members of my blood family.
“Oh,” I said, only half present. “Kosuke might be taking his leave.”
Jax hummed in response, then seemed to realize what I’d said. “I thought you two had worked things out, and Prudence wasn’t looking for a way to put him to bed anymore?”
