Extending Family (House of Garner Book 5)

by Erin R Flynn

  And I’d sold my soul by giving her my oath.

  Maybe that was what I deserved for betraying my twin. Then again, my father had taught me that real men pushed back when insulted.

  Right, because he’s a role model anyone should listen to ever, you fool. I was. I raced after Bahati and wondered how everything had gone so wrong and what I could honestly do about any of it.

  15

  “I know you think this is too soon and you didn’t want it like this and I’m sorry for that,” Cerdic whispered against my lips before kissing me. “But I’m going to be selfish because I need you, Inez. I’m going to take what you offer, even if you’re not fully ready, because you have to be mine. I promise I won’t be so selfish again. I swear to you, it won’t turn out like you think and we’ll fix everything. I will.”

  I woke out of the dream when someone shook me. I blinked up into Cerdic’s worried ocean blue eyes, just as he had been when he’d told me what I was dreaming about before taking me.

  “You passed out after we finished only once,” he muttered, cupping my cheek. “You were a lot more tired than we realized, love.”

  “Stress is a killer,” I mumbled, wanting to wipe my eyes, but remembering the makeup at the last minute.

  “And you’ve not been feeding as much because of how it makes you feel,” he added. He brushed his lips over mine and pulled me to sit up. I glanced over at my hand and saw the cut hadn’t healed and blood was still dripping out of it like a pretty fast leaky faucet. “And you need to eat.”

  I was going to argue my stomach was upset, but it growled loudly as if letting me know it was ready to go. I noticed I was also in a red nightgown that was revealing, but better than being naked, and Cerdic was in matching red boxers.

  I melted, realizing they’d found me something since they understood being naked on display for a few days was upsetting me.

  I started with a plate of pastries that I about inhaled and two glasses of hydrating sweet herbal tea that would also help my stomach. Then Branko brought me a bagel with what I liked on it, kneeling down when I ate it and rubbing his cut hand over my leg so I soaked up his blood.

  “That bad?” I checked.

  “You’ve been down on the tank,” he answered, not trying to make it a thing or lecture that it wasn’t the time for me to be like that. I appreciated him handling it that way as it wasn’t like I wanted to be unhealthy. I was just too stressed.

  After that, it was clear Cerdic couldn’t wait anymore. He moved me off the daybed and to the cushion that was on the ground. Right, it was harder to have my hand in contact with the ground if I was up higher. He kissed me, but I flinched when someone joined us, namely James.

  “Don’t react,” Cerdic breathed in my ear. “There have been some issues that Nora has been handling as your fill-in for the day, but this was her suggestion. We agree. Please trust us and we’ll explain later.”

  I nodded, getting what was going on without them even needing to tell me. The princesses or courts were trying to get closer with my knights when they figured the nobles were off the table. They would be in charge of the outposts and have a lot of power and sway with what we were building or fixing.

  “Undress, feed your princess, and then shift,” I told James. Heat filled his eyes as he nodded, carefully taking off the tux and setting it on the daybed. My fangs came out in anticipation. Cerdic lifted my nightgown off over my head and pushed his dick into me from behind, pulling me to almost sit on his lap.

  “You are so fucking beautiful,” James whispered as he knelt down. I pulled him closer so he was pressed against me and kissed him for everyone watching to see. I rubbed my breasts against him as Cerdic moved us. I gasped as he hit that perfect spot inside of me and kissed down James’s jaw to his neck. I bit him hard, knowing he liked that, and drank deeply, mentally smirking when he orgasmed.

  His grip on my hip tightened and he pressed his lips to my ear. “Someday, it will be me deep in you, making you come again and again. You will scream my name and let me finish inside of you like you do them.”

  I shivered. Sounded fun.

  I kept drinking until Cerdic gave me a warning squeeze that I was about to take too much. I was glad he had his head together because I didn’t, so thirsty and beat up that I couldn’t get a handle on much.

  James didn’t seem to mind as he orgasmed the whole time, looking completely sated. He gave me another kiss and shifted, licking my face before trotting off to leave Cerdic and me to our fun.

  And fun it was. He had me at a bit of an angle so my hand was touching the ground and keeping me balanced as the thrust into me, deeper and harder, again and again. Eddie came over and rubbed some of his blood on me. He might come from a powerful house, but he was a baby like me, so it didn’t do much more than James’s, but people were watching and saw we were that close.

  At least I thought that was the symbolism we were going for. Moon came and offered me his neck and then I was on complete fire, Cerdic carefully keeping me quiet when I would beg or say more than I should. I did my best to keep it just to moans, but again, juggling too many balls.

  They started an orgasm tornado in me and then Cerdic finished as well. That helped the fire, but the power was crackling inside of me… Which had been the point I’d realized. I’d not let it out the first time because I’d been too drained and tired. I hadn’t shown half of the show and people were probably talking about they bled on their trees as well.

  I moved my hands to the ground and let out my power as I did when I fixed things, made new stuff from energy beads, or how I used to charge things up, but now most preferred I used my power in other ways. It came out like a train, ready and wanting to build the tree and maybe show off a bit. The ground shook and I knew it wasn’t just in the courtyard from how strongly it came out.

  I was a bit lightheaded when it was done, but I knew it was the time to fake it, so I winked at Cerdic like it was no big and went for my nightgown. Kristof came over with a tray of food loaded from the crepes and egg buffets and cleaned me up with a towel since he could absorb blood from anything. They found one of those wedge pillows so I could sit up and eat as my hand touched the ground.

  “Sleep, my love,” Kristof murmured as he took my plate while leaning in and kissing my hair. It made me realize all of the pins had been taken out so it was hanging freely. They probably took them out so I didn’t get a headache laying on them.

  Sometimes they really were so sweet if they weren’t being stupid.

  I nodded, snuggling onto the other bed pillow I now had instead of the wedge pillow. It was starting to get fairly hot, but we were in the shade of the tree, so it wasn’t too bad. I saw a Darius bringing over the hose the courtyard had and setting it on the other side of the tree at a trickle so it was getting more than my blood as nutrients.

  It still completely freaked me out that my tree grew from my blood, but I didn’t think I was the only one who thought it weird. Which was strangely comforting.

  The next time I woke, I used the bathroom and then found Thomas Gagnon waiting for me with Cerdic. I swallowed loudly. Thomas was mated and I adored her. It felt really awkward to drink from him during something so intimate. I looked away and actually met her gaze, relieved when she nodded, letting me know it was okay and this was for show.

  Thomas didn’t get fully undressed, but only the top half of him. It was hard to remember he was a grandfather given he looked no more than thirty human years and was in great shape. I gave him a chaste kiss before Cerdic moved me to lie down, my head on Thomas’s lap. We kept the nightgown on—as if that mattered when Cerdic pushed into me—and I drank from Thomas’s wrist.

  And I drank a lot, stopping when Cerdic pinched my side in warning. I stayed like that though, and Thomas there with us, ignoring the awkward when Cerdic teased my clit with his blood on his fingers. I realized there was something else too, and glanced up to see Sisay rubbing his blood on my arm. I came hard, my body freaking out from the power an
d age.

  Cerdic followed me right over, and before Sisay even stopped giving me more blood, I let out my power into the ground. There were more eyes on us now, I could feel them through my power and attachment to the coven land. It was like an echo of what I’d felt that time when people were on my energy beads, but I knew it would grow with time somehow.

  I was pulled out of my wandering thoughts when something landed on my stomach. I flinched, but then blinked down at it, my eyes going wide when I realized what it was.

  “That’s not possible,” Cerdic whispered.

  “No, it’s not,” Sisay agreed as he reached for it.

  “Don’t,” I snapped, grabbing it first.

  “Sorry, I just—is that really a seed? The trees don’t give seeds,” he whispered.

  I nodded, studying it as I sat up. I put it in my hand with the cut, rubbing my blood on it. I let it dry, the seed soaking it right up, before handing it to Thomas. “Plant it where you want the center of the outpost to be, the center of what the town will become once we build it all up and better.”

  “Are you sure?” Cerdic checked, cursing under his breathe when I nodded. “This has never been done, Inez.”

  “What do you mean her tree gave seeds?” Nora demanded as she came towards us with several other princesses.

  Cerdic pulled out of me, and Kristof was there a second later with another tray of food and quickly cleaned me up.

  I held up my hand to stop the princesses. “You can see it but don’t touch it. Something inside of me is telling me only Thomas and his mate, just like no one could touch the seed for my tree.” I met Thomas’s gaze. “You need to plant it how I have, add your blood to mine and I get this feeling of new life. I’m not sure if that’s just the tree.”

  His eyes flashed shock but he nodded. “I will discuss it with my mate before we plant it.”

  “I’m not sure,” I told him again. “We have single knights heading areas and I can’t see Aether only blessing those with mates and wanting children. That seems unfair, especially when I got my seed before I knew any of this.” I stared at the seed again and used my power to study it, shaking my head. “I don’t think the new life will be yours. Is there someone who can’t have children that wants them?”

  “Yes, one of my daughters,” he whispered. “She can’t conceive no matter how many times she’s tried.”

  I nodded. “I think that’s Aether’s blessing that you’re doing as you should to help your clan and all her children. It’s just a feeling though.”

  He leaned in and kissed my cheek. “You are a miracle.”

  I flushed, thanking him and watching as the other princesses fawned over the seed, asking questions I didn’t have the answers to.

  “She needs to eat,” Kristof cut in before taking Thomas’s seat.

  I gave a happy squee when I saw what it was. Nick had used the wild boar everyone else was eating to make me something even better. At the bottom were hot fries, pulled pork, grilled onions, and all baked with cheese and barbeque sauce on it. I dug right in, drinking more iced tea as I did.

  “I cannot believe your tree gave you a seed,” Nora whispered as she snagged one of my fries. “Those are delicious.”

  “Nick said if you were stressed, he would make sure you had everything you loved so you couldn’t pass it up,” Kristof explained.

  “Thank him for me.” I glanced between them. “How is everything else going?”

  “Very well,” she answered quietly. “Your people are bringing the roasted boars five at a time off the terrace, and with gobs of sides, people are eating and drinking their fill. After they were offered swimsuits, you were right and most have been pulling the sticks out of their arses. The jealousy hasn’t been—”

  “What jealousy?” I asked. “Over Cerdic?”

  She chuckled softly. “I’m sure some, but no, what you have here, Inez. This is more than any of us have right now and we are older, established princesses with great covens and yet you, a baby with mostly shifters, have so much. It’s not bringing the best out of everyone.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I guess it’s true that age doesn’t mean maturity. What will being jealous do?” I rolled my eyes when Kristof snickered. “Jealous on this kind of thing. You like when I get jealous over you. You guys all do.”

  “We do,” he agreed.

  “Try with another of your knights to see if another seed comes,” one of the princesses cut in.

  “Not yet,” Kristof said firmly, giving her a withering look when she went to argue. “You have no idea how taxing this is on our princess. She is young. This whole event has spiraled out of what was planned. We will not risk her to sate your curiosity. It can wait.”

  “Maybe it’s the present,” Thomas muttered.

  “Present?” I asked him in between the last bites. I had inhaled that dish it was so good.

  He nodded. “My clan has a present for your wedding. I was just thinking maybe it’s not that we gave you a present, but what the present is.”

  I wasn’t sure what he meant, but when I was done eating, Cerdic lifted me up to show me. So a present that couldn’t be brought to me? Huh? We made a stop at the bathroom and I had juice in my hand seconds after I was done. Fine with me, I loved the blends Nick made, all of them ridiculously healthy and good.

  “This one should be made into a sorbet with chunks of the fruit,” I said, but then groaned. “With chocolate chunks too.”

  Nora took my glass and tried it, her eyes flashing surprise before she nodded. “Yes, this is rather lovely.”

  And she kept the glass. Brat. It was fine, someone got me another, and I could see how taxing dealing with all the crazy was, so she could swipe my juice.

  What she couldn’t swipe was my present. I gasped when I saw it, glancing at Thomas. “You found this?”

  “No, my niece and her mate are both sculptors; they met in a college program abroad,” he explained. “One of the coven hopefuls heard this and has the gift of manipulating minerals and stone. They reformed marble energy beads into new blocks of marble based on what they asked for. They have been working tirelessly on it since it was announced you would expand your court.”

  “It’s breathtaking,” I whispered as I moved closer to the flatbed trailer it was on.

  And it was. It was the bright white sort of marble with the gray veins that caught the light in a pretty way. So, that alone was pretty, but the sculpture itself was magnificent, even if it had come from a block of concrete. It was a large leopard lounging lazily with several barn owls doing the same on it. The leopard wasn’t trying to eat them and even nuzzling a baby owl on its paw.

  “I don’t think it’s because of the present, but I feel a draw to it like I did the artifacts I had to collect,” I muttered. I moved closer and touched it, flinching at what I felt. “It’s been blessed. I feel it like I did the other items.” I glanced at Kristof who was sensitive to it as well with his age. “Feel it.”

  He nodded and moved closer, not hiding his shock well when he touched. “She’s right, it’s been blessed and not with an energy I’ve felt in her other items from gods and goddesses.”

  “I bet just about anything it gives off light at night,” I said as I stepped back and moved around the flatbed. “This is wonderful, Thomas, really, thank you.”

  “I’m glad it pleases you, My Princess. Our clan is so grateful to you and your coven for accepting us, letting us be your family, and rebuilding a home together with your support.”

  I knew he said it formally because of all the ears, but I could also feel how much he meant it, my eyes tearing up at how much it touched me. I went over to him and hugged him before his mate.

  “We will plant the seed immediately,” his mate told me firmly. “If Aether wishes us blessed with another child when we thought we were done, we will gladly accept it. If she wishes to bless our daughter, that is more than we deserve. I would ask we borrow Darius and Moon, and maybe if Jacob is willing to help us scout the ri
ght spot to designate the center of the outpost.”

  I agreed, feeling it was the right thing to do and not just because they had the construction experience and more.

  Darius came over and handed me a large bunch of multicolored chrysanthemums. He leaned in and kissed my cheek. “Congratulations, My Princess. May you have all the happiness you deserve and a long life.”

  Which I guessed was what the flowers meant. “Thank you, they are gorgeous.” They were and even if we were having trouble, I couldn’t stop myself from smelling them. They were huge blossoms and lush, like they wanted to give me the message from him that he was sorry too.

  Darius, Moon, and Jacob agreed to check things out after they ate some wild hog before the next wave of food. I hadn’t realized at first, but Kristof had wrapped my hand so the dripping blood caught on the cotton bandage. Right, time to get back to the main event.

  I stopped by Thomas before I did, moving my arm to his hand. “If your niece and her mate are so inclined, I would love nothing more than a set of shifter pairing statues to go all around the coven. Over time, no more working tirelessly or killing themselves for a deadline. We’re going to appreciate life after the apocalypse, not fall right back into all the bad habits people talk about from before.”

  “I agree, yes, they would love that as they are artists down to their souls.”

  Good. I wanted people happy. We all had to make sacrifices and work hard doing things that weren’t all that fun sometimes, but surviving wouldn’t be worth it unless the life we had now was.

  The first of the gelato flavors were going around, and I opted for a plain scoop since there were toppings in it. I could flare up all the sundaes later, but right now, I wanted to enjoy just having it as the recipe Nick had come up with as everyone was so excited. Cerdic and Kristof did the same, and after we were done, I felt my eyes start to close again.

  “Sleep, we’re going to give you a nice massage as you do,” Cerdic murmured as he took my dish from me. It wasn’t hard to convince me then, and I was out moments after he poured oil on my legs.