Free Marrying Her: The Keeping Her Christmas Wedding (The Keeping Her Series Book 5) by Kelly Lucille

of getting married,” Sara said into the hubbub that followed. 
Her eyes stated clearly how she felt about being the last to know.
    Clytie shrugged her
shoulders.  “I admit the first time he asked me I said ‘no’,” she smiled at
Demon a teasing light in her eyes. “But he eventually wore me down.  Eventually,
as in this morning,” she added with obvious irony.  “I have no idea how
everyone here knew about it before I did.”  She looked pointedly up at Demon.  “Care
to explain just when you sent out an all-points bulletin for a wedding that I
did not agree to until,” she looked at the clock above the oven, “about two
hours ago?”
    Demon growled and then
turned narrowed eyes to Ben who shrugged and winked at her.
    “I had faith,” Ben said
with a wicked smile, then his eyes turned back to his mate and narrowed
ominously as he watched Roxy slop yet more pancake batter around.  His teeth
clenched and his smile turned brittle, his accusing eyes were all for his
mate.  “I think that about covers the morning breakfast needs,” he muttered and
came around to take the spatula from Roxy’s hands.  He smacked his mate’s ass
as he went by – hard, if her squeak was any indication.
    Roxy looked at the big
piles of steaming pancakes, then back at the bowl that still had some mix in
it.  “No, Uncle Ben, I still have some to make.”  She gave Ben big eyes, and
Clytie had to bite her lip when he sighed and handed her back her spatula.
    “Why don’t I just pour it
on the floor right now,” he mumbled, but he said it low and trained his
displeasure where it belonged.  On his mate.
    Cassie smiled big right
in his face and headed around the island towards the rest of the women.  She
seemed to think there was safety in numbers.  Ben watched her go, but stayed
beside Roxy to help her finish destroying his kitchen.  Mac caught her before
she made it all the way to Clytie and said something that took the smile off
her face and put a distinctly nervous look in her eyes.  She looked from Mac to
Ben and blushed so hard Clytie could see it from where she stood in the family
room.  Then she cleared her throat and leaned up and said something to Mac that
had his eyes flashing and his seldom seen smile tipping across his lips.
    “Holy crap,” Jordan
whispered beside her, obviously catching the exchange and feeling the heat
Cassie and her mates generated.  She had seen it before but that did not lessen
the impact one bit.
    “Tell me about it,”
Clytie whispered back, and felt Demon bend down so his lips were right at her
ears.
    “You want to invite your
sister to sit and eat with us or do we stall?”  The question told her exactly
how much Demon did not like Sara, and how hard he was trying to stay on his
best behavior.  Anyone else he did not like, and he would have already insulted
them and kicked them to the curb.  She turned fully into his body and gave him
a hug.  Then turned just her eyes to look at her sister, her head still resting
on Demon’s heart, his hand in her hair and across her back.
    “Do you want to have
breakfast with us?  We can talk about the wedding.”
    Sara looked from her to
the hulking brute holding her so tenderly, and a look of regret crossed her
face.  Real regret.  “I can’t actually.  I just wanted to drop Jordan off.” 
Neither of them mentioned that Jordan had her own car and came and went on a
regular basis, at least she had before the Oklahoma trip that kept her away for
the last few weeks.  “I have to get to the Dragonfly.”  Then her voice turned
tentative.  “Maybe some other time?”
    Clytie smiled at her
sister.  “Any time,” she said quietly.  Clytie let go of Demon and started to
step toward her sister.  “I’ll walk you out.”
    “No,” she said quickly,
and Clytie stopped moving.  “You have guests, and important things to talk
about.  I know the way.”  Then she smiled at Clytie, and then the rest of the
room.  “It