Sugar

Twenty Six

Dominic volunteered to grab some, giving the top of my head a swift kiss as he stood. I thanked him with a smile, watching as he exited.

As soon as he was gone, I knew it was a mistake.

"Sweetheart, we do not want to create a beautiful ceremony for someone that A) is not prepared for it," Ida claimed, ticking off her fingers as she went. "And B) will not enjoy the grandeur of it. No offense, but it is a waste of all of our time. We want you to want this, Cara. Do you?"

Laura and the male, whose name was Galen, nodded in agreement. "What do you want, as our future Luna? As every Shifter's future Luna?" Galen tested skeptically.

I was at a loss for words, staring uneasily between the three of them. "I... I don't know much about what I want. But I do know that I want Dominic to be happy. This makes him happy, this is what he wants. So I will follow his lead with it," I said defeatedly. "He wants it enough for the both of us. I will make do."

Dominic returned a few moments later, seeming to feel the tense atmosphere that built after he left. He sat back down and place the items in front of me, one of his hands resting now on my thigh instead of curled around mine. So I could draw.

The only other requirement was that the dress had to be floor-length. To the best of my abilities, I sketched the outline of the dress. I didn't want it to be poofy, especially around the skirt, and I wanted it to be form-fitting to my upper half but loose around my legs so walking, sitting, et cetera would possible as well as comfortable. The only design I wanted on the bodice was a sweetheart neckline with off-the-shoulder lace sleeves.

"We could have our seamstress finished with this by tomorrow evening. Would you two be able to come in for sizing in the early afternoon?" Lauren asked, who was the head of design for the team.

Dominic glanced at me and began nodding. "Yes, we'll be free. Right, Cara?" Without looking at him, I agreed.

Ida folded her arms across her chest as she gazed fiercely between the two of us. "Are you two absolutely sure you are ready to go through with this? That there isn't anything that should keep us from moving forward?" she said tensely.

I didn't move, hardly even breathed. Instead, Dominic was going to be the one to make the ultimate decision. I was tired of decision-making, and so far today my decisions had landed me in some bad spots. So maybe it was time for me to take a step back from it.

Dominic looked at me for a long time, his eyes scrutinizing every inch of my body, which seemed to last hours for me. Until finally, he gave his answer.

"Yes, actually, there is," he claimed.

Everyone's head snapped to look at him, even mine. Obviously, no one was expecting Dominic to object. Just me. Especially since Dominic had been the one to set this meeting up and to come up with the idea for the ceremony date. Literally, he had done everything so far. Everything that would lead one to believe he wanted this.

Dominic turned to look at me with a sad look on his face, grabbing my hand tightly. "Listen, Cara, darling, I am sorry. But you are just moving way too fast for me. I like you a lot, but I need more time to enjoy what we have," he announced dramatically.

My brows were raised in confusion, unsure what he was trying to say. What the hell was going on. "Dominic... Um-"

"No. Sugar, I know how excited you were about the ceremony. I know how much you wanted it and you've just been counting down the days, the minutes," Dominic said. The more he spoke, the more a small smile was growing on my face. "I know Caroline is the one I want for my mate. But I need more time before Mating her. I hope you'll forgive me, Cara."

By now, I was biting my lip to keep from laughing. I don't think anyone was fooled by his whole facade. But who was going to question him? Laura thrummed her fingers across the table, one brow arched. "So you want to cancel the party a couple days before? That's quite extreme."

"Could we still hold it, just minus the Mating ritual?" Dominic quizzed.

Laura nodded slowly. "Yes. But I'd recommend that you don't tell anyone that the ritual isn't occurring. It can be faked."

Dominic's lips turned down. "What? Is that allowed? That sounds against-"

The three of them all laughed lightly, good-naturedly. "Hon, your father and his father before him did the same thing. It is not uncommon for the ritual to be an illusion. No one would ever know. We simply do all of the same steps to the ritual, but you don't consummate it. It isn't as mad as you may think," Ida explained. "How does that sound?"

Dominic glanced at me from the corner of his eye, a grin appearing on his face. "Perfect. Is that a good compromise, sugar?"

I bobbed my head. "Yeah, that's fine. I guess."

He shot me a subtle wink, lifting my hand to his mouth so he could place a kiss on my knuckles. "Alright. So it's settled. Thank you all for coming, I apologize that this meeting did not turn out quite as planned, but hopefully, you will be here soon for the real ceremony. Now, my mate has had a long night and I would like to get her into bed as soon as possible."

Dominic saw the three of them out and had a pack member drive them to where they were staying before returning to my side, where I stood at the front doors. He closed and locked them before grinning smugly at me.

Normally, that look would make me want to smack him, but instead, I found myself bouncing up on my tippy toes to kiss his cheek. "Thank you, Dom."

"You're welcome, sugar," he responded, wrapping his arms around me tightly and mashing me to his warm chest. "You were right and I have been too stupid and ignorant to see that. This is me compromising." For the first time, or maybe the first time I had been strong enough to acknowledge it, his embrace made my skin tingle without the help from the mark. 

"I'll owe you for this, won't I?"

His lips pressed into my hair repeatedly as his hands massaged my back. "We aren't business partners, Cara. We're mates. There's no owing, just working together. Compromising. We have to be fair with one another, and thus far, neither of us have been doing that."

I couldn't help but nod in agreement, heaving a heavy sigh. "I'll be better, but that doesn't mean you should expect me to roll over and submit to every idea you have. Nor do I expect you to do the same for me-"

"Sweetheart, I know. Relax. Don't get yourself so worked up before bed. It isn't good for your sleep."

I inhaled sharply as he swept me up into his arms suddenly, placing a dramatic, wet, and audible smooch on my cheek as he did. "Let's get you all tucked up in bed, sugar. We'll need all the rest we can to dream up the awful, gruesome things that Scott deserves tomorrow."