CupidRocks (12 page)

She cocked her head. “Let him. We don’t have to apologize.
And if he wants grandpups any time soon, he better be in favor of sexual
intercourse between us.”

Joe rubbed his forehead and walked over to his mirror to try
to neaten his hair. “Shit, I haven’t got a comb.”

“I need to take care of my makeup. Show me where the
bathroom is and I’ll dig you out a comb while I get rid of my raccoon eyes.”

He nodded, quietly opening the door and all but tiptoeing
down the hall. Mandy shook her head in disbelief. He was forty years old, not
some wet-behind-the-ears kid who was doing it for the first time, but he acted
as if he’d gotten caught misbehaving.

Joe turned to look at her. “Look, I’m sorry. But this is
long tradition okay? The old wolf has ruled us all with an iron hand and it’s a
tough habit to break away from.”

She hugged him. “Just remember you’re an adult now, my love.
It’s time to quit asking how high when he says, jump.”

He held her tight. “Easy to say. Tough to do.”

“Joseph! Amanda! We’re waiting for you.” It was as if
Leopold was right there and Joe jumped and grumbled under his breath.

“C’mon. Let’s get cleaned up and go face the piper.”

“I’m not apologizing for seducing you.”

“The seduction was mutual.”

She smiled. “I’m glad you admit it.”

“That doesn’t mean I really want to get the lecture he’s
just waiting to deliver.”

“Let him wait a little longer. Now, where’s the bathroom?”

Ten minutes later, Joe shook his head impatiently as he
watched Mandy carefully repair her makeup. Nothing on earth was going to
convince her to hurry either. No matter what he said, she just gave him a look
and returned to the mirror. He could almost feel his father fuming downstairs.

“Joe, has it ever occurred to you that he treats you like a
kid because you act like one?”

He blinked. “No, I hadn’t really considered it.”

“Well do. If you act like a grown alpha male, which you are,
he may begin to treat you like one. With the respect you deserve.”

Joe swallowed, leaning against the wall. She was right. He’d
always acted like he was a sixteen-year-old fuckup around his sire. Always
expecting to get yelled at. Waiting for the old man to pounce on him as if he
was prey. But he wasn’t. Not anymore.

She turned to him and kissed his cheek. “Much better. Now
hold on to that and remember that you deserve respect.”

He swallowed and followed her out of the bathroom. There was
a cold breeze in the hallway.

“Oh shit!”

He ran into his bedroom and shut the bedroom window. At
least the room didn’t smell like sex anymore, but it was fucking cold now.
Mandy stood at the door and raised her brows at him. He laughed.

“Right. Act like an adult. It’ll take some practice.”

“Time to get started.”

She took his hand and tugged at him, leading him down. As
they rounded the landing, Joe had to swallow. His father stood at the foot of
the stairs with his arms crossed over his chest. They came to a stop in front
of him and Mandy slipped her arm around his waist.

You’re an adult and you don’t need to apologize for
anything.

This is their house.

Do they want grandpups?

Okay. Right.

“What have you to say for yourself, Joseph?”

“About what?” He fought a wince. He sounded like a defiant
teenager. His father frowned and his gut began to dance with nervousness.

Keep it together. No apologies. He’ll respect you for
standing your ground.

Are you sure?

It’s a good guess, but I could be wrong.

Great.

Man up, honey.

“You and your mate were upstairs rather long.”

“We were talking.”

“Talking? That is
not
what it sounded like to me.”

“Then you shouldn’t have listened.” He tried to smile
pleasantly at the old wolf, but he had the feeling it looked more like a
grimace.

“It was rather difficult not to listen, son. You were not at
all discreet or circumspect. It embarrassed your mother.”

“Mother or you?”

His father’s lips tightened and he straightened. Joe got ready
for the blast, but his mother joined them and took his father’s arm.

“I wasn’t embarrassed, Leo. I did, however, have trouble
stopping the laughter from bubbling out at the expression of outrage on your
face.”

“It’s inappropriate. His brothers are impressionable.

“Jacob and Julian are adult males. They wanted to laugh out
loud too.”

“Did they?”

“Yes. The only reason they didn’t was out of respect for
you. Think about it. Joseph and Amanda are young and newly mated, my love. I’m
sure you can dredge through your own memory for that time in
our
lives.”

For the first time in his life, Joe saw his father blush.
Leopold always seemed such a stoic male. Almost like a robot. Yet, the look he
turned on his mate in that moment was intimate and disturbingly erotic. Like
the minute he got Maria alone after their sons left, Leopold was going to chase
her to the bedroom for some fun.

He probably will. You had to get your passion from
somewhere.

Yeah, but…damn, I really didn’t want to think about that
in relation to my parents.

Welcome to the real world, honey.

He glanced down into her eyes and the laughter there made
him grin. He dropped a light kiss on her lips and hugged her.

“If you want grandpups someday, Leo, you better hope we do
that an awful lot,” Mandy pointed out.

The old wolf’s lips twitched as he met his daughter-in-law’s
gaze. “Perhaps. But it would be well to make less noise.”

“Hey, think about it. If I’m screaming, he’s good at it.”
She tugged Joe’s hand. “C’mon stud. I’m sure your bros are gonna want to rib
you mercilessly.”

Joe followed her, glancing back once. Leo took Maria in his
arms and planted one hot kiss on her. Joe shook his head and followed his mate
back to the living room. He really didn’t want to watch his folks get wild
together. He got enough of that hanging out with Carly and Eddie, and Sharon
and Tom.

When they walked into the living room his brothers caught
sight of him and stood up and began to applaud. Joe’s face heated and he ducked
his head, but he also felt proud. Shit. It must have sounded good down here. He
knew it felt good upstairs.

“Funny guys,” he growled.

“Impressive, big brother,” Jake teased him. “It is
big
brother, right Mandy? Don’t mess with my hero worship, please.”

She chuckled. “Oh yeah. Rest assured he’s Big Joe,
not
Little Joe.”

Julian clapped him on the shoulder. “You should have seen
Father’s face. It was priceless.”

“Was Mother really fighting laughter?”

“Hell, yeah. She looked at me and at Jules then had to look
away. Her lips were twitching and her eyes were dancing. She loved it.”

Joe wouldn’t want to distress his mother for anything.

“Hey, I was there too you know. Surely you heard
him
howling.”

Jake blushed. “Well, yeah. But it’s not right to talk
about.”

Mandy burst into delighted laughter. “So you can tell him
he’s a stud, but you can’t tell me I’m one sexy little wolf bitch?”

Jules glanced at her. “We want to live to see another day
and if we said that Joe would kill us.”

“Smart thinking, baby brother.”

Mandy shook her head. “What a pathetic double standard! I am
hot
.”

“Yes, angel, you are. But I don’t want my brothers telling
you that.”

She hugged him. “You big baby.”

“Naw, he’s a possessive bastard. That’s what he is,” Jake
argued.

“Language, Jacob.”

Joe and his brothers jumped in reaction to his father’s voice.
Mandy gave him a look and he fought his natural inclination to apologize for
getting busy with her upstairs. She squeezed his hand. This True Mate stuff was
coming in kind of handy.

I come in handy for all kinds of stuff.

You sure do, angel.

Maria came forward and gave Mandy a hug. “We’re glad you’re
a part of our family now and we’d love to welcome you here for a longer visit.
It’s something of a family tradition to celebrate Valentine’s Day together.”

“February fourteenth is my mother’s birthday,” Joe said.

Mandy bit her lip and glanced at him and he knew she was
thinking of her parents. “Well, my folks are staying with me in Whitewolf for a
few weeks. Valentine’s Day is their mate anniversary—and this year is number
forty, so I really need to be home with them to help them celebrate.”

“Forty years. That’s wonderful. How did they meet?” Maria
asked.

“They met at a Valentine’s Day dance when my mom was a
senior in high school. She was eighteen and he was this older guy in a leather
jacket with a bad attitude. Grandfather hated Eddie, but Carly adored him.” She
laughed.

“Are you having a large party?” Maria asked.

“I wanted to, but they wanted something quiet. Just family,
you know?”

“I can understand that. Meeting your True Mate is a very
intimate experience.”

“Yeah, I know.” Mandy smiled. “Eddie and Carly usually take
some time off the road for their anniversary and this year the band is going to
be recording a new release using the studio they built at my place. So I really
need to be there.”

“Oh. We understand, don’t we dear?” Maria nodded at Leo.

Mandy tilted her head. “You know, my place is really huge.
There’d be room enough for
all
of you to join us. We could have one big
family celebration to celebrate your birthday and my parents’ anniversary.”

Mandy, what the hell are you doing?

Extending an invitation.

Are you insane?

I don’t want to hurt your mother, and there’s no reason
your parents and brothers can’t join us.

You’re nuts.

I love you too.

“We wouldn’t want to impose.”

“You wouldn’t be. Not at all. I know it might be odd not to
be in your own home when you live so close, but all of us could be under the
same roof and get to know each other,” Mandy said.

Maria glanced inquiringly at Leo. Her brows rose and his
lips curled in a small smile. “We’d love to. How kind of you to offer. Are you
sure you have enough room?”

“Oh yeah. I could open the place as a B&B if I wanted
to, so there are plenty of bedrooms for everyone.”

His father nodded once. “Then all of our sons can be under
one roof to celebrate their mother’s birthday. How pleasant.”

Jacob and Julian, who’d been grinning at him and nudging him
in the back, paused. “You mean you want us to go there too?” Jacob asked.

“You aren’t in a performance or teaching this semester, are
you Jacob?”

“No, actually I’m not. I won’t start teaching until the
summer semester and I missed the auditions for the next opera.”

“And you Julian?”

“Me either and for the same reasons.”

“Then Denver’s loss is our gain. We may all share some
family time together. It will make your mother very happy.”

His brothers exchanged looks then glared at him. He
shrugged, trying to reassure them that this hadn’t been his idea at all.

“Good. Then it’s settled.”

“You’re welcome to drive out today.” Mandy cocked her head.
“And if you stay through next weekend, you can see Joe in action. The Pack is
booked to perform at a bar in Whitewolf.”

Leopold raised his bushy white brows. “Rock music?”

Mandy laughed. “Oh yeah. They play covers and original
music.” She turned to him. “Is any of it yours yet?”

“Yeah. I’ve written a couple of our regular ones. We always
need good material for the CDs so your dad and I have co-written quite a few.”

“You have written music, Joseph?”

He colored. “Yes, Father.”

“Fascinating.”

Mandy drew his attention back to her by setting her hand on
his arm. “If I remember Eddie’s process, it’s sometimes a group composition
too, right?”

“Yeah, Eddie loves to jam and see what happens,” he agreed,
smiling at her.

“I bet you do too, don’t you?” She winked at him and he
laughed.

“Yeah. That’s how we connected when we met.”

“Cutting heads?”

“Right.”

She laughed in delight. “I wish I’d been a fly on a wall.
Will you guys do that while you’re all here? Please?”

“You’d better talk to your dad about that one. He’s pissed
at me. Remember?”

“Language, Joseph.”

Joe colored and glanced at his mother. “Sorry, Mother.”

She winked. “You’re forgiven, dear.”

“What is this cutting heads?”

Joe looked at his father in surprise. Surely they’d heard of
it, even in the rarified air of academia and classical music.

“It’s a challenge,” Mandy explained. “Musicians play riffs
back and forth trying to top each other. The winner is the one who plays the
best riff that the other guy either can’t replicate or top.”

Leopold’s brows rose. “And you do this, Joseph?”

“Yes, sir.” He shrugged, “That’s how Eddie hired me. I beat
him after an hour of jamming and going back and forth.”

“You beat Daddy?” He nodded and she grinned. “Oh, I’m gonna
give him crap over that. To my knowledge, no one’s ever beaten him before.”

Joe blinked. “He was undefeated?”

“Yeah, and he’s challenged, and been challenged by, some of
the best players out there.”

Joe opened his mouth then closed it again, thinking back to
his audition day. He’d been so focused on Eddie, he hadn’t really noticed how
the other band members reacted, but now he could remember how shocked they
looked.

“I had no idea.”

She gave him a hug. “No wonder he hired you. If you cut him
down, he’d want you in the band. He wouldn’t have given it a second thought.”