“FINE,” she cut him off, “I’ll learn the first one, just quit hollering them out already.” She walked over to the bar and nudged her grinning mate out of the way. “Okay ‘O great bartender, please teach me your ways.”

She felt his breath on the back of her neck as he stepped up close behind her. Sally froze just as she started to turn a glass over. She trembled as his warm breath tickled her skin and she nearly moaned out loud when he pressed his lips to her ear. She was expecting a flippant, flirty remark, and she wouldn’t have minded it. It was one of the things she loved about him. But every now and then, he surprised her.

“You are so beautiful.” His hands gripped her hips and she felt his fingers squeeze and bite into her skin. “In all my life I never imagined I would be blessed with someone like you.” He paused and she held her breath, waiting for what he would do next and knowing it would be something that might just make her pass out.

His next words were punctuated with breathtaking kisses on her skin. “You honor me, Sally mine,” he kissed her neck. “You amaze me,” then below her ear. “You bring life and passion to my world,” then on the other side of her neck. “I love you more than anything,” then he kissed his bite mark. He held onto her as she gasped, and Sally gripped the bar to steady herself. She closed her eyes and leaned back into his chest. His lips still hovered over her skin and his arms wrapped around her holding her securely.

He had written those words on her heart, and she never tired of hearing him say things like that to her. She reveled in it, and she forced herself to believe him because it wasn’t only by his words that she felt the truth, it was in his actions as well. Since he had watched her die, he had become even more attentive and showed her his serious side more often. But gradually his playfulness was returning and it brought her joy to see her mate healing from such a traumatic experience.

She looked over her shoulder at him and smiled. “Thank you, Costin, for loving me.”

He leaned down and kissed her lips gently and stared into her big brown eyes. “You don’t have to thank me for that. It’s a blessing to get to love you. But if we’re throwing around thank yous, then you can totally toss me one for last night.”

And he’s back, she thought to herself. Sally turned in his arms and gently pushed him back, giving him a playful smirk. “If that’s the case, mate, then I think you owe me.” She tapped her finger on her lips and looked up at the ceiling seemingly in thought, “four, wait,” her eyes widened and she grinned, “no make that five; you owe me five thank yous.”

Costin chuckled as he reached out to snatch her around the waist. “You’ve been hanging around Jen too much, Sally mine. She’s rubbing off on you.” He nipped her ear playfully.

Sally snorted. “You weren’t complaining last n—,”

Costin whipped her around and pinned her to the bar and pressed his lips to hers before she could finish her sentence.

“Behave,” he growled in her mind.

He heard her laughter through their bond and he wanted to howl with joy.

“Only if you do.”

“That’s going to be a problem.”

Sally pulled back from the kiss and winked “That’s what I’m counting on.”

Perizada

“I’ve decided to move. To hang up my fairy magic and move to an obscure little town, buy a creepy looking house, and fill it with cats. Every day I’ll walk to the mail box, talking to myself and yelling profanities at annoying neighbors. Yep, I’m going to be that lady. Why, you ask? Well, because right now, that is looking a whole freaking lot better than my current situation. Yeah, it’s that bad.”

“So kind of you to grace us with your presence,” Jen said as Peri appeared in the library where Jacque, Sally, and she were drinking hot chocolate and staring at Thia like she was the best thing since sliced bread, which she was, so it was totally appropriate.

“I’ve been busy,” Peri snapped as she walked over to where they sat on the floor, circling the little baby that was lying on a blanket. “Now quit your whining and let me see the crumb catcher.”

Jen reached down and picked Thia up and handed her to Peri. Peri held her with one hand under her neck and one under her bottom, holding her up in front of her face so she could get a good look at her.

“I have to admit, she’s beautiful,” Peri smiled at her. She tucked her into a football hold and then leaned down and kissed her forehead. Then she whispered something the others couldn’t hear. A soft glow emitted off of Peri and enveloped her and Thia for several seconds and then was gone.

The girls stared at the fae with opened mouths.

“Okay, what was that?” Jen motioned to the area around Peri where the glowing had been.

Peri waved her hand at her as if batting the question away. “Mind your own business. That was between me and Thia.”

“Fine, whatevs,” Jen said with a shrug, “let’s talk about what’s really important. Why are you hiding?”

Peri’s eyes narrowed at the Alpha. “I’m not hiding.”

Jen smiled knowingly. “Oh Peri fairy, I’m totally in the know, so you might as well just spill it.”

Jacque frowned. “What are you in the know about? You didn’t tell us you were in the know. Sally, did you know she was in the know?” she rambled quickly as she looked from Jen to Sally then Peri and then back to Jen.

Sally shook her head. “I never know jack around here so welcome to my world.”

“I haven’t really had time to tell you guys because I’ve been investigating. I wanted my facts straight first,” she told them, sounding a tad defensive.

“What investigating?” Peri asked as she narrowed her eyes.

“There’s been a certain wolf hanging around the Romanian, and sometimes Serbian, mansions. And I might have followed him one day to Vasile’s office. And I might have heard him say that he knew who his mate was when Vasile hinted that he would have a good chance of finding a mate now that the fae were compatible. And I might have noticed that said wolf has some new art work running up his neck.”

“No!?”

“Seriously!?”

Jacque and Sally spoke together as they gasped at the same time. They both looked at Peri with wide eyes.