“Same page,” Suzie said.“It feels as if the last time we were alone was weeks ago.”
“It was,” Niall growled.
“Everyone is ready outside,” her sister said, beaming with satisfaction.“We collected all the singles.”She leaned closer.“Wolves, felines, and a few humans.”She rubbed her tiny hands together, patches of excitement glowing on her cheeks.“I can’t wait to see who gets your bouquet.Come on!”
Bemused, Suzie followed her sister outside, and Niall trailed them.Suzie blinked at the crowd.She’d assumed her sister and her friends would collect the unmarried women, but no.Confused males shuffled their feet amongst dozens of single women.Her sister and young friends ringed the entire group, resembling sentries holding a crowd at bay.
“Ready?”Suzie asked, and everyone fell silent.
“To catch the bouquet?”Henry, a single wolf, asked disgustedly.“Really?I’m out!”
Suzie grinned and turned without another word.As the bouquet left her hands, several voices cried out in dismay.
“No!”came an irate male voice.
Suzie stifled a giggle, satisfied with her true aim, while Henry glared at the daisy bouquet in his hands and shook his head.He glanced in Suzie and Niall’s direction, and when he found them grinning at him, he glowered.He thrust the bouquet at the nearest woman.“You take it,” he snapped and stomped away.
“You can run but can’t hide,” Niall murmured.
“Yeah,” Suzie said.“I believe in the bouquet’s power.I caught one at my cousin’s wedding six months ago.”
“We’re fated mates,” Niall said with satisfaction.
“I can’t wait to get to the good stuff and claim you.”
“Me, too,” Niall agreed while they gave their thanks and made their goodbyes.
Their farewells were lengthy, and she thought Niall might’ve been impatient.Relief filled her on checking his expression, along with a touch of awe.Niall radiated happiness.Her friends and family had taken to him immediately, and he was blooming under the acceptance.Her friends were the best.Scott had introduced Niall to those he hadn’t met during the days before their wedding, and he and Scott had gone for a run with the Mitchell brothers.He’d toured their vineyard and mixed with tigers, leopards, and wolves without missing a blink.
Niall opened the door of his rental car for her and closed it again once she’d settled in the passenger seat.He hurried around to the driver’s side and climbed inside.Before he started the vehicle, he said, “I’ve had a lovely day.Everyone has made me so welcome because I was smart enough to fall in love with you.But I must admit.I’m pleased we’re alone now.”
“Me too,” Suzie said.
Niall drove the quick trip to the country resort where he’d been staying.Suzie had popped by to pick up Niall several times but hadn’t set foot inside.Butterflies danced around her belly, but they were the good kind.
Niall jumped from the vehicle and was around it before she moved.He opened the door.“I’m going to miss your friends and your family, even your siblings,” he said with a grin.“Saber asked if he could bring Emily to visit.He’s planning a surprise trip for her.”
“My grandmother told me you taught her how to make an online call.She is eager to try her skills once we return home.”Home.That was precisely how Scotland felt, and that told her everything.Niallwashome.
They entered the luxurious cabin together.Niall had told her that although secluded, the lodge had every amenity.
Suzie admired the open-plan room.The place oozed elegant class and comfort.
“Want a drink or anything to eat?”Niall asked.
“No, thanks,” Suzie said.
“Thank goodness!”Niall plucked her off her feet, and she shrieked with joy.
“I could’ve walked,” she protested.
“Yes, but I like you in my arms.”
He set her on her feet in the bedroom.A massive bed occupied the room, and a slightly open door indicated an attached bathroom on the right.
“I have to keep pinching myself.”Niall traced a finger down her cheek, his expression full of tenderness.
Suzie laughed and brushed his hair off his face.“Our marriage does seem dreamlike.”
