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“So, fill us in. Maybe we can help.”

“If I needed your help, then I would have asked for your help already.”

“Do you have the ring?” Jase asked. “According to my daughter, it’s important that there are diamonds in it.”

“Yeah, I remember what you told us.” Mateo laughed. “Yep, diamonds are involved in the ring. But I have a lot to compete with since she has her grandmother’s jewels.”

“I hope you ponied up,” Brax said.

“I rode a horse, okay?” he gave his friend a pointed look.

“Okay. Okay. Okay.” He threw his hands up in the air.

Gideon winked at him.

“Have I told you how happy I am that you pulled me in to work on this?” Leila said for the third time.

“Why wouldn’t we?” Lark asked.

“Sometimes I feel kind of out of things, since I’m always travelling so much with my job.”

Lainey laughed. “And I feel just the opposite, all of you are employed. I’m the lump on the log, just sitting around with pie-in-the-sky ideas.”

“Uhm, have the doctors given you the all-clear?” Bonnie asked tentatively.

“Sure they have,” Lainey said. “I’ve been good for ten weeks now. Why do you ask?”

“It’s just something Jase said.”

Lainey narrowed her eyes. “Which means it came from Mateo. Okay, let’s have it.”

“Bet you and I heard the same thing,” Jada piped up. “Gideon told me that it’s only been in the last two weeks that you’ve been okay to go back to work, and before that we should all take it easy with you.”

“I’ve got to have a talk with Mateo. He is way-over-the-top protective.”

All the women around the table burst out laughing. Finally, after she caught her breath, Lark said, “Good luck with that.”

Lainey frowned. “What do you mean?”

“They’re all over-protective alphas. If they could wrap us in bubble-wrap and keep us under guard at home 24/7 they would do it.”

“Mateo’s not that bad…”

Lainey looked around the table at her new friends who were all grinning at her.

“Oh my God, he is that bad.”

“It gets worse when you have kids,” Lark said.

“We’re not even engaged,” Lainey protested.

“Not yet,” Bonnie grinned.

“Did my girl do good by you?” Gideon asked when he followed Mateo into the kitchen.

“Gianna is an amazing artist,” Mateo enthused. “But I don’t know how she had time to design Lainey’s engagement ring with three kids under the age of four running around.”

“Did I tell you that the oldest boy’s middle name is Gideon?” Gideon asked.