Mated to the Alpha and His Beta (Lanie Stanton) novel Chapter 454

Chapter 454
Zane

I’d never had much chance to get to know Lanie’s best friend, but watching the two of them laughing together was a real treat. The four of us had been a tight-knit unit and a team, but I could tell Lanie had longed for female companionship. Seeing her with her best friend made me realize how lucky I was that Xander was not only my Alpha, but also my best friend.

Lanie had her arm around Stella’s shoulders as she introduced her to Mindy, who understandably looked boggled. Her mouth hung wide open for a few seconds before she caught herself. She finished chewing and swallowed, then got to her feet.

“This is baby Stella?” Mindy asked, shaking her head and looking astounded. “I expected all the pups to be bigger, obviously, but this is way, way more than any doubling!”

Stella’s light laughter tinkled through the air. “Everyone was surprised. But it’s me. Baby Stella.”

“All grown up,” Lanie said.

We hadn’t told anyone in Constantine that Stella was a Celestial, but rumors about her advanced aging had managed to get here ahead of us. Maxim and Monroe, Xander’s most trusted High Guards, had been among the first he’d contacted when we were on our way back home. They’d been able to fill him in on some things we could expect.

They’d told him there’d been news coming to Constantine about the destruction of the High Council, but that the details had been sketchy, and they were doing as much damage control as they could until we got back and could fill everyone in on the truth. As Mindy’s mates, they must’ve made the choice not to tell her much, since she was so clearly shocked.

It was obvious that Mindy was bursting with questions, but she only nodded and got up to hug Stella before she sat back down at her chair. Lanie took her seat again, too.

“Where are the twins?” Lanie asked Stella.

“Still sleeping if you can believe it.” Stella laughed. “They were wiped out. But I bet they’ll be up all night tonight!”

Mindy’s eyes got even wider. “The twins…baby Lanie—er, Alaina—and Isaac...they’re not all grown up, too, are they?”

“They’re bigger than they were the last time you saw them,” Lanie assured her, “but they’re not quite as grown up as Stella.”

The three women chatted while the rest of us helped ourselves to the buffet.

“This is new,” I said to Xander as he stacked thick, savory, cheddar and jalapeño waffles on his plate.

He grinned. “Yeah. But I like it. Lanie, love…keep this morning buffet!”

Mason shot him a look, then one at Xander, who was spreading a bagel with a thick layer of cream cheese. When Xander didn’t answer, Mason said, “We figured it would happen pretty quick. We don’t want people spending too much time worrying or wondering what happened, or what how we intend to move forward.”

I could feel him almost holding his breath as he waited for Maxim and Monroe to respond. I couldn’t blame him for being a little anxious about it. They were the trusted High Guards, and he…well, he’d made no secret before about his loathing for his brother. It was going to take some time for Mason to feel like he had the right to be here, and in charge.

“We’ll call it for after breakfast,” Xander said casually. He didn’t emphasize the “we,” but we all heard it.

Maxim and Monroe exchanged looks.

“So…it’s true, then?” Maxim asked after a second.

Xander wiped his mouth. “What was?”

“About your father,” Monroe said. “We were hoping it was just another rumor.”