Chapter 66

Judy’s POV

“You agreed to do what??” Gavin asked, folding his arms across his chest as he glared at me. I sat on his bed, with my head down. “Why would you agree to go to that barbeque?”

“Because Irene asked,” I told him. “She’s my friend, Gavin. She needed me to be there… so I’ll be there.”

He sighed, running his fingers through his hair.

“Let me go with you,” he said after a moment of pause.

I stood to my feet and closed the gap between us, wrapping my arms around his neck. I like that he wanted to go and protect me, but it wasn’t a plausible solution. It would only make a scene and reveal our special relationship.

“And how would we explain that?” I asked him. “We would have to come up with an excuse as to why you are there defending me, Gavin. I don’t think it’s a good idea.”

He sighed and wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me close to him.

“I was invited, you know. I’m invited every year, but I never attend,” he murmured.

This surprised me. I peeked up at him.

“If you feel like you must attend, then attend. But I want to prove to myself that I can handle this on my own without you intervening. Plus, I doubt Irene wants your presence there. This is supposed to be her moment. You being there takes the attention away from her,” I told him.

He nodded and pressed his forehead against mine.

“You’re right. I don’t like it. But you’re right. But if he gives you any issues—”

“I’ll call you,” I assured him. I stood on my toes and kissed his lips. “Mr. Protective.”

He rolled his eyes, but I could see a hint of a smile on his lips.

“That’s me,” he murmured. “Always the protector.”

He deepened the kiss and then pulled me into his bed where we made love for most of the night before falling asleep.

……

“Where have you been?” My mother asked as I walked down the steps of the house. It was late morning, and I had gotten home a few hours ago from Gavin’s villa. I managed to get a few more hours of sleep before waking up for the day. I wanted to get here and act as if I had been here all night before my mother woke up, but apparently, she had noticed my absence.

“I just woke up,” I told her, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes.

“You hadn’t been home all night,” she told me, folding her arms across her chest. “Don’t think I didn’t hear you coming home early this morning. You’ve been like this for weeks, Judy. You stay out all night and return in the morning.”

My cheeks flushed at her words.

So, she had noticed. I bit my lower lip and glanced at the ground. She studied me for a moment before her eyes grew wide.

“Are you seeing someone?” She asked.

“What? No, of course not.”

“Is it Ethan?” She suddenly asked, making my blood go cold. I could see the hopefulness in her eyes. “Did you two reconcile?”

“No, Mom,” I told her, bursting her bubble. “Ethan’s engaged to someone else… remember?”

She sighed and rubbed her temples as if she were gaining a headache.

“Well, I hoped seeming he’s your fated mate and all that you both came to your senses. But I guess that’s not the case. Anyway, we are going to the Cash family barbeque tonight, so just make sure you are on your best behavior.”

I frowned at her and folded my arms across my chest.

“I’m not the one you should be worrying about,” I told her.

She rolled her eyes.

“Honesty, Judy. It’s an attitude like that that gets you in trouble,” she murmured. “I’m going to ask them for some help paying your father’s debt, so I need tonight to go well.”

My mouth dropped open.

“Mom, we don’t need their money,” I told her. “I already told you that I’ll take care of it.”

“And I appreciate that, sweetie. I truly do. But your father can’t stay another minute in that awful prison. My wolf has been taking all the pain he’s been feeling and my heart breaks for her. We need our mate back and safe and my last hope right now is the Cash family. They are rich enough that they could help us. It doesn’t hurt to ask.”

“His family isn’t nice,” I reminded her. “They’ve never treated our family kindly no matter how much you and Dad tried to suck up to them. They looked at us like we were bottom-of-the-barrel trash and not even worth polishing their shoes.”

“That isn’t true,” my mother told me. ‘His mother, Meredith, had always been kind to me and his grandmother as well. They are friends, Judy. They will help us if asked.”

“I don’t trust them, Mom,” I told her. “They aren’t good people…”

“Well, I just don’t believe that,” she said, shaking her head.

I sighed; there was no point in arguing with her. I knew I wouldn’t be able to change her mind. After a while, I gave up on the conversation and made my mother and me some lunch before we got dressed for the barbeque. I settled on a skirt and a blouse. It was a designer skirt, so hopefully they won’t comment on my clothes.

I braided my hair and applied some makeup to make my features pop. By the time I was finished dressing for the event, it was time to leave. My mother drove us in her car, and it didn’t take long to get to the Cash family manor. It was huge and there were a couple of guest houses off to the side.

If they truly wanted to, they could easily pay off my father’s debt and make things okay again for my family. But they were greedy and would never help us without there being a secret motive behind it. I just hoped my mother was careful with whatever she agreed to.

My mother walked through the manor as if she owned the place; she had her head held high and I admired that. She didn’t look as if she spent a month in bed; she looked as if nothing was wrong. She wore one of her designer dresses and her hair was tied in a neat pony, flowing evenly down her back.

She wore heels that made her legs look great and makeup that made her look professional and dashing. We reached the back patio where the barbeque was happening; the Cash family had a huge yard with an attached garden which I knew Ethan’s mother loved, and a pool yard, where his sister, Kelsey, usually hung out.

They usually invite most of the pack to their annual barbeque so they can see how well off they live. They also invite the riches from other packs as well, including Gavin apparently. Part of me hoped that he’d show up… but another part hoped that he didn’t. It would be weird for him to suddenly make an appearance, especially now that his daughter is marrying into the family. Irene would have felt as if he was following her or watching her. This was her first time meeting Ethan’s family and truthfully, I wanted it to go well for her. I didn’t want them to treat her like they treated me.

“Judy! You made it!” I heard the familiar voice of Irene as she rushed over to me. I saw the large smile spread across her face, and she quickly wrapped her arms around me to hug me before stepping back. “You look lovely.”

“You look great too,” I told her, hating how true that was. Irene did look stunning in her black backless dress that showed off her cleavage perfectly and her long flowing blond hair cascading around her shoulders and down her back. She didn’t need to wear a lot of makeup to make her features pop, and her smile was brighter than the sun.

My stomach twisted and through my mind’s eye, I could see my wolf lowering her head. This was the woman our mate left us for; through my haste with Gavin, I almost forgot about that fact. I shouldn’t let it bother me, but in a way, it still kind of hurts. Whenever they are kissing or remotely intimate, the mark on my neck burns and it’ll keep me awake at night. I couldn’t imagine what it’ll feel like once they officially have sex.

“I’ve been here for a couple of hours, and I’ve gotten to know his family,” she told me, looping her arm through mine and walking me towards the crowd of people. My mother had already disappeared, and I could see Ethan speaking with a group of men, including his father.

“What do you think of them?” I asked, bracing for her to tell me how awful they were.

“Oh, they were so wonderful. I can’t imagine them being mean to anyone honestly. Especially his sister,” she breathed lovingly. “I can’t wait to marry into this family.”

I frowned. Kelsey was Ethan’s 18-year-old sister, and she was worse than them all. I was glad they didn’t treat Irene badly, probably because she was a Landry, but it still hurt knowing she fit in better than I ever did. I bit the inside of my cheek, though, and chose not to say anything in response.

“Well look what the wet dog dragged in,” a crude voice said from nearby. “You have a lot of nerve showing your face here.”