“Oh, I don’t think we’ll stand on ceremony here,” Ophelia said. “And I’m perfectly capable of getting my own. Sit down, Peter.”
We all did, hands becoming fists that sat uncomfortably on the table tops.
“With all due respect, Ophelia, I involved Lois in today’s celebration as I knew nothing had been done when Flick first came to town. She was in no state for a mating party but…” Renee’s head whipped around, her eyes flashing green as she stared at Lois. “You speak that way to my grandchild one more time, and you’ll answer to me.”
“And me,” I said with a frown. Who the fuck was this bitch?
“And me.”
Lois had obviously expected us to rail against her, but when Peter’s deep voice joined us, she jumped like she had been stung.
“You’re raising your voice to me?”
“I don’t believe anyone raised anyone’s voice,” Daphne said with a low growl. “You had a go at a child, in his mother’s home?”
“Now, we all need to calm down,” Nelly said. “I’m sure no one meant any harm.”
“This is what you’ve tied yourself to? You’re so desperate to have someone…deal with your malformation, that you’d take on some battered thing someone else had thrown away?” Lois said with a sneer. “Who’s to know if she could even shift? You might end up with some kind of halfling like that bloody Nerida girl—”
“That’s enough,” I said. I stared the woman down, feeling the throbbing pressure to look away, but I didn’t give into it until she’d done so first. “Renee, thank you for taking on all of this. I didn’t even know a celebration was the thing to do after taking a mate, so you stepping in and organising this is a great help. Your choices are amazing, and you don’t need my approval. You know better than me how this all works. Just make whatever preparations you think necessary, if that’s OK?”
“More than fine, Flick,” she replied, taking my hand.
“Just see Kade first. He’ll be jumping out of his skin wanting to explain everything he’s built, and poor Aidan will be holding down the fort.”
“Of course. I’d love to.”
“Ladies, I don’t know you well or even what a matriarch is really, but from what I can tell, you’re the elders and pillars of the community. And what a place it is. I love Sanctuary. It could have no better name, and as this is all a result of your hard work, I really respect that.”
Ophelia, Daphne, and Nelly all nodded to me.
“But, Lois, you can bugger off back to whatever hole you’ve crawled out of. I don’t think you wanted to be here in the first place, but probably felt guilted into it. Don’t be. I love my mates with my whole heart,” I said, reaching across the table and taking Peter’s hand, “but Peter, like me, holds a lot of scars. I’m willing to bet a lot of them came from you. I’ve heard snippets about your tragic background, which I get, really I do, but no context or social ritual is gonna make it OK for you to have a crack at my child and my mate within a ten minute period. I rescind my invitation to come into my house.” That drew some gasps from the surrounding women. “Until such a time that you’ve worked whatever bug is up your arse out and you’re prepared to treat them with the love and respect they deserve. Now, I need to spend a little time with Peter, alone. I need to check in with him, away from an audience. If the rest of you want to stay and have a cuppa, or hang out with Aidan and Kade, or just kick back and watch Clone Wars, please help yourself, but you’re going to need to excuse me.”
I didn’t wait for their reaction. I just stood up, grabbed Peter’s hand, and dragged him after me, not feeling OK until the door was closed and it was just him and me.
“Are you alright?” he asked, a looming figure in the gloom of the unlit bedroom.
“Are you?”
He answered me the way he often did—with actions rather than words. Peter scooped me up and threw me on the bed, following me down. My hands went to his face as he stopped, just looked at me, and then kissed me deep.
“You have no idea how hot that just made me,” he growled as he placed kisses down my neck.
“Kade’s in his room, and the ladies are outside,” I said, swatting him as the kisses grew lower.
He looked up with a grin that softened as he became more serious.
“Really though…” He pressed a long kiss to my lips.
“I know, babe,” I said, wrapping my arm around his neck and then holding him to me.
We spent a while just like that, resting against each other, until finally, we knew we had to go out and face the music. When we did, Kade was in the living room, having set his toys up on the coffee table, with a captive audience of matriarchs all sitting around him. He talked about the stories behind his build with great animation, and the ladies all nodded along, asking questions when relevant. We slipped into the kitchen to find Aidan watching it all with wide eyes.
“They’ve been like that since we came out,” he whispered, ostensibly making yet more tea. The water was boiled, the tea bags in the teapot, but he just stared at it.
I busied myself, moving around him and getting it all ready before picking up the tray.
“So?”