“Nash… This is…”
She gently places the box on the workbench then carefully lifts up what’s inside.
Her rebound special edition. I don’t have a foiling machine myself, so I found a local printing press to help me out. When I was asking around about designers, Damon told me that his packmate was an artist. Laz had immediate availability and drew a custom cover to match the story—even though I had to bribe him with a copy of Conker’s Bad Fur Day game for his Nintendo 64 to keep it quiet from Faye until Delilah got the gift.
The results were worth it. The hardback cover is intricately detailed, the ethereal scene done in foil detailing.
I also hand-sprayed the edges myself. It took hours to cut detailed stencils and ensure the colors matched perfectly. I had to test on a dozen of my own books before I was sure the composition was perfect.
She inspects it, rotating it slowly to look at it from all angles, like it’s a work of art she’s afraid of breaking. My pulse picks upspeed when she carefully opens the first page, eyeing the thick, luxe endpapers—again, another custom design made for her—before turning to the title page, where I managed to rescue the signature page from her original signed copy.
Her bottom lip quivers. “It’s signed. How?—”
“I salvaged what I could from the book you dropped on the night we met. I wanted to get it personalized with your name too, but I didn’t have time. I can take you to meet the author the next time there’s a signing.”
She doesn’t speak. Her hands tremble as she holds it, admiring it in awe.
“Do you…?” Maybe she hates the artwork? Maybe she preferred the original? I could have just driven a few hours to a bookstore in the nearest city to try to hunt it down. “Like it?”
“Like it? I love it!” Her eyes are extra twinkly. “This is the best gift anyone has ever given me. It’s the most incredible book I’ve ever seen.”
“If there’s anything you don’t like about it, I can change it,” I say quickly. “I bought a few extra copies if you’d like me to change the sprayed edges.”
“You did everything yourself?”
“Mostly.” I shrug. “Aside from the foil and the art, which Laz helped me with.”
“Laz drew this?” She ogles it. “I thought he only did cartoons.”
“Apparently not.” I try not to fidget, worried she’s not pleased. “Are you sure it’s okay?”
“This isn’t just okay.” She carefully puts the book back in the box. “It’s everything.”
THIRTY-SEVEN
Delilah
“This must have taken you forever.”
I’ve never seen such a gorgeous book, and I’ve seen my fair share of special editions. I can’t believe he did all this for an emotional wreck he just met—plucking a book out of a puddle and breathing life back into it.
He shrugs like it’s nothing, but I can tell how much effort he’s put in.
“But when we first met…” I search for the right words. “You didn’t even know me.”
“When you told me your name, it confirmed what the others had told me. They met an omega named Delilah who changed their lives.” Nash steps closer, casting me under his large shadow. “As soon as I met you, I knew it was you. And I knew I wanted you.”
“But I was a sobbing mess who dropped a vibrator!”
He chuckles at the memory, cupping my face in his hands. “But you weremysobbing mess. I knew you were my match. If that book was special enough to make you cry, then I knew I had to fix it. I want to fix everything for you.” His gaze softens. “I want to be the guy you can depend on. The guy who builds you a house you never want to leave. A place for a family. One day.”
A tear slips down my cheek.
“More crying?” Nash arches an eyebrow. “We have to do something about that.”
“These are happy tears, promise! It’s just… I always dreamed of finding a pack. I had all these fantasies about finding my scent matches.” I babble on. “After Jagger left, I almost gave up hope that love really existed beyond the pages of a book. I didn’t think it was something I could actually have. But this?” I gesture to the book then to him. “This makes me believe that the kind of love I read about may be real.”
“Well, I may not be a hockey player with a large trust fund.” He nudges his head toward the book. “But I’ll do my damnedest to make sure you get the love that you deserve every day. All of us will.”
