Demonic Regime

Chapter 19: Sharpshooter (Jax)

Max carried me out onto the lawn that had tables and chairs arranged under tents. Humans were carrying trays of food to the werewolves that were mingling around the area.

Alice turned and clasped her hands in front of her muzzle. "There you are." She reached out to us. "You're so beautiful, Jax."

I shifted, feeling a little awkward. "Thanks."

"Everyone is so excited to get to meet him. Come, come." She led her son over to a cushioned woven bench.

Max set me down in the corner and adjusted some of the pillows. There were a lot of werewolves here. They weren't all dressed up like last night, though some of the women had on jewelry or floral dresses.

"Would you like something to drink?" asked Alice.

I shook my head. "I'm fine. Thanks."

"Just let me know if you need anything. I'll be sticking around here"—she scanned the gathering—"as I soon as I find your father. Where did that man wander off to now?" She left us to go search for him.

"Did you feel alright?" Max tucked the blanket I was wrapped up in around my legs.

"I'm fine. You can stop fussing over me," I whispered.

Max just smiled and sat beside me. "I'd figure you'd want to stay warm. The cold weather is only going to make your muscles seize up."

I bristled at the comment. "It's not that cold." I pulled the white blanket under my chin. The morning had been hell because of Max. I didn't understand why he wouldn't just listen to me and let my body heal on its own.

Couples started to file by. I mostly just smiled and nodded at their comments. Max did most of the talking, which I was completely fine with. A pair of men approached us. One looked like me with a bit of red on his chest. He was lucky and didn't have some stupid diamond smack dab in the middle of his forehead, though.

"Max."

My mate stood and hugged the man. "Hi, grandpa."

The old dominant cupped the successor's face. "You don't seem old enough to have a mate."

"Weren't you two engaged at like seventeen?" laughed Max.

"Fourteen," breathed the sub. "I was thirteen."

"I'm late compared to you two." Max hugged the white werewolf. "Thanks for coming. I know it's a long drive down here. How are things up Northern?"

"Fine," said the sub. "Just a bunch of old werewolves reliving the good old days in retirement."

"You're not that old. You still have a good fifty to sixty years left."

"Says this pup." The dominant ruffled my mate's head fur. "Introduce us properly to your mate." He motioned to me.

Swallowing hard, I sat up straight.

"Jax, these are my great," he took a deep breath, "great grandpas, Daven and Jesse."

Daven scoffed. "You can leave out the greats."

Jesse smiled to himself. "I just realized their names rhythm," he whispered to his mate.

"I think Hector would get mad," Max said with a smile, ignoring the comment. "He hates when I just say grandpa. He never knows if I'm talking to him or someone else."

"Well, Hector isn't around." Daven wink at his grandson. "So leave out the greats."

"Hi, Jax." Jesse held out his hand. "We're so excited to have you in the family. Be sure to take care of Maximus for us, alright?"