Forbidden Temptation My Mafia Fiance's Alpha Father (Brooklyn and Aden) novel Chapter 81

Chapter 81
Brooklyn

I study the invitation in my hand.

“A…beach party?” I say, cocking my head to the side.

“It’s about an hour away,” Aden tells me. “Friends and family only, apparently. Some kind of ritual, a gathering for those close to Remington.”

I look up at Aden my eyebrow raised. “Did you…read my mail?”

He stares at me impassively, not needing to confirm.

I study the envelope, wondering how the hell he re-sealed it, and then why he bothered to reseal it…

“Brooklyn,” Aden says sharply, and I look up to see that he’s frustrated with me. As usual. “Are you going to go?”

I look back at the invitation and see, in particular, that it’s made out to me.

No mention of Aden or Hudson. Apparently, it’s a private party.

“Am I…allowed to go?” I ask, looking back up at him.

Aden shrugs.

“I’ll send you with my guards. There’s no real reason to refuse. You said you wanted freedom.”

Aden says the final words ruefully, but my lips crook into a smile, recognizing my language from this morning.

He was listening. He’s trying.

“Okay,” I say, moving towards Aden and then past him, walking down the hallway to where a man is waiting by the front door.

“Are you the messenger my father sent?” I ask.

The messenger just bows a little, which I assume is a confirmation. “

I smile. “Please tell him that I’m happy to accept.”

The messenger nods, reaching for the handle of the door so he can go deliver the reply.

“Oh,” I stop him. “Would you tell my father that we might be late? I apologize—it will take us some time to get ready.”

The messenger hesitates, and then ventures a word. “We?”

I smile broadly. “Yes,” I say, turning for the stairs. “My fiancé will accompany me to the party. It is friends and family, correct?”

As I head up the stairs, I see Aden out of the corner of my eye, smirking.

Apparently, he approves.

***

Hudson mopes in the car the whole way. “I can’t believe you agreed to this for me,” he murmurs. “I hate this kind of thing.”

“Oh, come on.” I nudge him with my elbow. “You don’t even know what this is about. And it’s at the beach! I hear there’s barbeque.”

Hudson just scowls and I laugh, smoothing out the wrinkles in my blue-and-white striped skirt, which I’ve paired with a white crop-top.

Or, I should say, which Aden has paired with a little white crop top.

Because this adorable outfit just magically appeared in my room after my shower, complete with a wide-brimmed straw hat.

Now that Jayde is gone, Aden has no plausible deniability anymore. We both know he selects my clothes for me.

Luckily, he has immaculate taste.

“You really do look pretty,” Hudson says, looking at me from the corner of his eye.

“Thank you,” I say, and feel Lena preen herself.

I could tell that Aden approved, too, when I had come downstairs ready to go. He hadn’t said anything, but the look in his eye had been enough.

Lena had liked that, too.

I had hesitated, before we left, seeing that Aden was sending us with two guards each to keep an eye on us.

“Is it…” I had asked, looking at the guns strapped to their hips. “Is there any reason to think it will be like last time?” I ask, worried. “With…the guns?”

Aden had looked down at me reassuringly.

“No,” he had said. “Whoever was responsible for that won’t pull that move again.”

I frowned, but Aden had put a hand on my shoulder, moving on.

Which, of course, makes me blush.

That’s when I feel it. He’s definitely a wolf.

I turn to Hudson, trying to cover up my discomfort.

“Ready?” I ask.

Hudson shrugs and sighs. “Into the lion’s den we go.”

“Brooklyn!” my father says, coming toward us as we walk over the sand. He’s dressed in white pants rolled at the ankles, and a soft linen shirt with the top buttons undone.

This is a big, Italian man with wolf blood—I haven’t seen him in anything less than an Armani suit yet, so such an abrupt change is…well, it’s abrupt.

He comes forward and gives me a kiss, shaking Hudson’s hand without a word about the uninvited guest.

“Welcome,” he says. “Have a drink! Make yourself at home!”

A waiter comes forward, then, offering a tray of soft and hard drinks. I select a can of spiked lemonade while Hudson takes a Coke.

Lennox opens his mouth to say more when Logan runs up to us.

“Hi, Brooklyn!” he says, waving to me, apparently genuinely excited to see me. I lean down to greet him, excited as well.

“Hey, Logan,” I say, reaching out to ruffle his hair. “Are you having fun?”

“Yes!” he says, excited, but then he turns his attention to Hudson. “But we’re one short for volleyball. Do you know how to play?”

Hudson hesitates, looking at me. But I shrug, encouraging him. Hudson’s a bookish guy, but I do know for a fact that volleyball is one of his favorites.

“Sure, kid,” he says, smiling at Logan and handing me his drink. “Lead the way.”

I watch them head off down the stretch of sand, and my father puts his arm around me.

“Good, good,” he says. “It will be good for the boys to get to know each other, since they will soon be family.”

He smiles at me.

“Now,” he says, giving me a little tug and pulling me over to where some chairs are arranged around a fire. “You come with me. I have some people I want you to meet.”