Epilogue

 

Beth

 

One year later

“How much you want to bet she runs him down before this is over?”

I laughed and elbowed Chris in the side. “That’s not nice. And she’s doing much better than yesterday.”

“Ow! I’m just calling it as I see it.”

“You’re terrible. And you’re going to lose because he’s too fast to get run over.”

I turned my gaze back to Sara, who was slowly navigating the long driveway on her new Ducati Monster. Nikolas had bought her the smaller, lightweight model months ago, but he hadn’t wanted to risk teaching her to ride in the city. He’d had it shipped home to Westhorne for when they finished up in New York. Sara was eager to learn to ride, but I didn’t think Nikolas was enjoying it as much. He was beside her the second the bike wobbled even a tiny bit. I had to admit, it was fun to watch the two of them.

Chris moved behind me and tugged me back against him. Trapping me in the circle of his arms, he nuzzled my neck beneath my ear, making it hard to pay attention to anything but him.

“What do I get when I win?” he asked against my ear.

“Um…”

For a moment, I completely forgot what I wanted to say. It amazed me that he could still render me speechless after a year together.

“No fair. You know I can’t think when you do that.”

His husky laugh made my knees weak.

“Okay. If I win, you have to polish all my weapons tonight.”

I shrugged. Polishing blades was easy enough.

“And if I win, you can wash the Harley.”

“Deal.” He nipped at my ear lobe. Did I mention, there are no clothes allowed?

I rolled my eyes. You have a one-track mind.

A shout and a string of Russian pulled us from our little bubble. I looked for our friends and found Nikolas rubbing his shin and wearing a pained expression. Sara was beside him on her bike, and her words carried to us.

“Sorry! Did that hurt?”

Laughter rumbled from Chris’s chest, and I couldn’t help but join in. Our mirth earned us a dark look from Nikolas, which only made us laugh harder.

When I’d first met Nikolas, that scowl would have made me want to run and hide. After a year working and living with him and Sara, he was more like a big brother than the legendary warrior who used to intimidate the crap out of me.

Chris and I had gone back to California after two amazing weeks in Newfoundland, but only to pack our things. Los Angeles didn’t hold the same appeal for me anymore, so we’d talked about it and decided to join Sara and Nikolas in New York. Nikolas had been glad for our help with the new command center, and the four of us had quickly become a tight-knit group.

I still saw Mason, although not as much as I would like. After Raoul took over the Los Angeles command center, Mason had decided to stay there. He loved the beach, and he got lots of fighting action once things went back to normal after the Lilin died. His and Brock’s bromance was still going strong, and the two of them were planning a trip to Hawaii to catch some “real waves.”

“Whenever you’re ready to polish my weapons, let me know,” Chris said suggestively.

“Is that what we’re calling it now?”

I grinned at Jordan as she strolled toward us. I missed having her around all the time. She had spent Christmas with us in New York, but she’d told me she was a California girl at heart. She thrived on the nightlife and the fighting, and every week we heard a new story about her latest escapade. She was quickly building a reputation as a bit of a hellion, to our amusement and to the dismay of the Council. People were calling her a female Nikolas, and it was a title she wore with pride.

“Beth just lost a little wager we had,” Chris informed her smugly.

“Technically, I didn’t lose. You said Sara would run him down. He’s still standing.”

Jordan snorted. “Does Nikolas know you guys are taking bets on his life now?”

Chris let me go and held up his hands.

“Hey, he knew what he was getting into when he said he wanted to teach Sara to drive a motorcycle.”

“I heard that,” Sara called as she and Nikolas headed in our direction.

They didn’t get very far before two huge black, furry beasts came bounding across the grounds toward them. Sara handed her helmet to Nikolas and went to hug her hounds. Her hellhounds. She talked about Hugo and Woolf all the time, but even after being at Westhorne for three days, I was still getting used to seeing them in the flesh.

Sara used her sleeve to wipe slobber from her face.

“All right. Go find Niall, and see if he needs help on patrol.”

The hellhounds panted excitedly and took off into the woods. I could only imagine the look on Niall’s face when those two brutes came after him.

Sara saw us watching her, and she shrugged. “He shouldn’t have made fun of my driving yesterday if he didn’t want retribution.”

Chris chuckled. “I remember when you were such a sweet girl.”

“When was that?” Nikolas deadpanned.

Sara punched him in the arm, and everyone laughed.

“Now that the driving lesson is over for today, let’s talk about going to Boise tonight,” Jordan said.

Sara groaned. “You don’t get enough clubbing in Los Angeles?”

Jordan put her hands on her hips. “This isn’t about clubbing. It’s about having fun with my BFFs before they desert me again.”

“We’re going to Miami, not China,” I said. “And you could always come with us. I hear they have a great nightlife there.”

We were spending two weeks at Westhorne before we started our next assignment, which was to establish the new command center in Miami. The Council was so pleased with the success of the first two centers they had plans to create them in major cities around the world. It looked like Sara and I were going to get in some of that traveling we wanted to do.

Chris took my arm and smiled at the others.

“Whatever you guys decide is okay with us. Now if you’ll excuse us, Beth and I have plans for the rest of the afternoon.”

“We do?” I asked as we walked away from our friends.

“Not really,” he said when we were out of earshot. “I just wanted to spend some time alone with you. Let’s go for a walk.”

We crossed the grounds and entered the woods. Geographically, Westhorne was a lot like Longstone, surrounded by woods and miles from the nearest town. I already loved it here.

It didn’t take long for me to realize where we were headed. Sara had taken me to see the lake on my first day here. Sure enough, we arrived there five minutes later.

“It’s beautiful here,” I said as we strolled near the edge of the water. “So peaceful.”

He pointed across the small lake. “See that spot over there between the two big oak trees? That’s where Nikolas plans to build their house when we finish with the Miami job.”

“I can’t believe Sara didn’t mention it. She loves this lake.”

“She doesn’t know yet. He’s going to tell her today.”

I wished I could see Sara’s face when Nikolas dropped his surprise on her.

“She’s going to flip. Not that I can blame her. It’s gorgeous here.”

He stopped walking and faced me, wearing a smile that told me he was up to something.

“How would you feel about us being their neighbors?”

I gaped at him for a full ten seconds before I saw he was serious.

“You want to build a house here?”

He smiled. “If that’s what you want. Nikolas and I thought it would be nice for the four of us to have a private place to come home to between jobs. And since this whole valley is protected by Fae wards and hellhounds, it’s safe to –”

“Yes!”

I threw my arms around his neck and kissed him soundly. When neither of us was steady on our feet, we sank to the grass and made out like teenagers until the not-too-distant bark of a hellhound reminded us this place wasn’t that private.

Sitting on the grass with my back to Chris’s chest, I pictured a pretty little house nestled in the trees with a deck overlooking the water. I saw Chris and me sitting on our deck waving to Sara and Nikolas in their own house across the lake. The daydream changed, and I saw little blonde and brunette children playing together while we looked on. Warmth filled me, and I heaved a sigh of pure bliss.

Chris rested his chin on my shoulder. “By the way, do you know what today is?”

I frowned. Our one-year anniversary was last month, and I couldn’t think of anything else.

“No. What is it?”

“Exactly fifteen years ago today, you and I met.”

I gasped. “Oh, my God, you’re right. You remembered the date?”

He hugged me tighter. “I told you, Dove. I remember everything about you. Meeting you is something I could never forget.”

I thought back to that day, but I couldn’t remember much beyond the heat of the fire and the smoke burning my nose and throat. And Chris. Most of my memories of that day were a blur except for him. The moment I’d looked up into his eyes, I’d felt safe, and when he’d held me, I’d known that was where I belonged.

“Do you know, I think I fell in love with you a little that day?” I said.

Chris nodded slowly. “That explains why you’re so crazy about me.”

“Whatever.” I rolled my eyes even though he couldn’t see them. “Don’t you believe in love at first sight?”

“I don’t know, but I do believe I was supposed to go to that building. Whether it was fate or some higher power at work, I was meant to find you.”

I smiled dreamily. I loved it when he said things like that. “And now, I’m your mate.”

He pressed a kiss to the corner of my mouth.

“Now, you’re my everything.”

 

 

~ The End ~