Epilogue
September 2044 - Coeur d’Alene Forest,The Orclind
The waning daysof summer passed in a haze of golden light and ceaseless desire. Dom worried that the rut would be too much for her — he hadn’t, after all, had a mate to think about before — but his wee Chageling took it in stride, and for that he was immensely grateful. Things were easier with her. The aggression didn’t build up until he wanted to lash out at anyone and everything, and when the lust became too much, she was there to ease that terrible pressure with an enthusiasm that made him feel like the luckiest demon in the world.
It was an exhausting two months, but it was a deeply pleasurable time. The rut was always hard, but with her, it felt almost normal. He couldn’t remember being more content than he was when he came home from patrolling his territory to find his mate experimenting with her craft, or waking up with the sunlight streaming across her naked form, curled up in the safety of his arms, or when he slid into the tight heat of her body and listened to her gasp out his name.
They slotted into one another’s lives like they were always meant to be there. He even grew to like it when she sassed him, and he knew she loved him when she began to smile through her exasperation. Arguments ended with hard, needy kisses, so he tended to pick fights more than was probably necessary.
Dom didn’t know how he’d ever lived without the sound of her padding barefoot around the property. He couldn’t fathom a life in which he didn’t wake up to the sight of her, or fall asleep knowing she was safe under his guard.
When her parents did eventually come for their tearful reunion, the travel ban having been lifted as promised, Dom felt so settled in their life that he didn’t bat an eye when they asked about her return to the EVP.
Charlotte loved her parents, even when it was clear they didn’t entirely understand their daughter. He knew it hurt her to tell them that she would not be returning home with them, but he also knew that she was certain in her choice to stay by his side. She’d told him as much a month after their arrival at the cabin.
He didn’t tell her that he’d already figured it out. No one who clutched that tightly in their sleep would leave their mate. And if he was privately smug about the fact that Charlotte didn’t even consider moving into one of the apartments the clan owned in the nearby town of Kellogg to have some space after the intensity of the rut, Dom didn’t feel too bad about it.
He’d won his mate, he loved his mate, and he’d be damned before he let himself take her for granted.
Dom didn’t even mind it when his clan decided it was time to meet the new member and descended on his cabin with food, drinks, and purely demon lack of boundaries.
Charlotte’s parents clearly loved every second of the party thrown in their honor. Despite being as average as arrants could get, they didn’t even blink when they were handed a baby with soft nubs for antlers, or when a good natured brawl broke out between two hot-headed juveniles over the last of the barbeque. They were good people. The clan took to them immediately, even when they both ended up getting too drunk to do much more than fall asleep on his couch.
Dom wasn’t one for the big gatherings his clan liked to throw, but he endured it without complaint when Charlotte was welcomed with open arms. Half the clan oo-ed and ah-ed over her pretty wings, and the other half let out loud whoops of admiration when she turned a glass of wine into a poison so intensely volatile, it melted the glass.
He didn’t even mind it when his Nan gave him one of her usual tight hugs, cuffed one of his antlers like he was still a kid, and smugly asked, “Didn’t I say you’d find your fate, boy?”
Dom cracked a smile and pulled his mate in until she was curled against his side. One of Charlotte’s sneaky little hands slid under the back of his shirt to tease the base of his spine as he grinned down at her. “Yeah. You did, Nan. Thanks for the tip.”
Charlotte winked at him before turning her blazing smile on his Nan. “I’ve got no complaints. Although maybe next time, you could give the poor soul a little more to go on?”
His Nan, a weathered demon who’d seen ages pass and whole generations come into being, gave his mate a light tap under her chin. Her eyes, butter yellow on deep black, sparkled with mischief when she answered, “Foresight isn’t always clear, little bug.”
Dom shook his head. “You also like to make trouble.”
“Worked out well enough for you, didn’t it?” She clicked her tongue and glanced over to where a fire raged in his stone-lined fire pit. His cousins mingled, their shadows rolling happily together in the flickering light of the fire, and sipped from an odd assortment of beer bottles. Someone was telling a story with more enthusiasm than skill, but none of the tipsy demons seemed to care. They tossed their antlered heads back and roared with laughter.
Dom followed his Nan’s gaze. Smiling ruefully, he asked, “Who’s next?”
She shot him an innocent look and straightened her spine. Even ancient, his Matriarch towered over him. There was no lost strength in her spine, no slow grind of age. She was old, but with her mate still living and her health holding, she would be the unquestioned leader of the clan for many, many years to come. Grateful to her in more ways than he could ever say, Dom prayed for more years after that. As far as he was concerned, his Nan had earned the right to godsdamned immortality.
“Now,” she drawled, giving Charlotte’s cheek a pat before turning to walk away, “where would be the fun in telling you that?”
Dom pulled Charlotte into his chest, giving in to the need to have her close. A grin stretched across his face. “You’re right. It’s more fun not knowing.”
His mate snorted. A small finger jabbed him in the kidney. “Is it?”
“Yeah,” he answered, stooping to press his lips to the crown of her head, “it makes the happy ending that much sweeter.”
THE END