I collapsed into a chair beside Belinda, my head resting on the table. My eyes watched her as she slipped a slice of roast beef between her beautiful lips. Her hand sought mine and she squeezed it.
Byron sat on the opposite side of the table. He dragged his chair as close to Ingrid as he could get without sitting directly in her lap. She rested her head on his shoulder. His gaze met mine, and the corners of his mouth turned up, ever so slightly.
A smile from Byron? Things really were going to be different.
Sir Thomas and his immortal guests took it upon themselves to round up the bird carcasses. They, of course, were immune to the virus the birds carried, and they relished the opportunity to feast on a little rare raven blood. If I looked over my shoulder, I could see a pile of black carcasses beside the gazebo, and a circle of vampires wearing tailcoats chatting nonchalantly about politics and golf while they tore the throats from each bird and sucked out their lifeblood. I didn’t look that way if I could help it. The entire scene put me off my dinner.
“This food is delicious,” Libby said, stabbing the platter of roasted vegetables.
“Thanks,” Belinda grinned, not letting go of my hand. “Wait until you try the cake. It’s some of my finest work. I can’t believe I pulled it off while hungover.”
“You were baking while hungover?” I grinned. “Who are you, and what have you done with Belinda Wu?”
She punched me playfully in the arm. “Don’t judge. It was all Alex and Bianca’s doing. They were the ones who insisted Libby hadn’t had a proper hen night, and who kept buying more shots.”
“What can I say?” Bianca leaned back in her chair and finished her champagne in one gulp. “I have ESAP – extra-sensory-alcohol-perception. I can empathically deduce when a night of riotous drinking is called for. It’s a rare talent.”
“It certainly is.” Elinor chimed in.
“It was the best hen night I could ever imagine.” Libby helped herself to a huge slice of cake. “And, despite everything, a wonderful wedding.”
“I’m so sorry about your wedding,” I said.
“Don’t be. Everything turned out for the best. No one has died, except that evil Mr Morchard. And—” she speared another potato and shoved it into her mouth, “—now I don’t have to share my cake with four hundred other people. It’s so much nicer just having an intimate celebration with friends.”
“You’re quite a remarkable woman, Libby.” I said. “I’m honoured to be your Bran.”
“I’m more interested in your friendship than your reverence, Cole.”
“You have it. But I can never be friends with your husband after what he did to my father.”
Libby shook her head. “Thomas didn’t mean to kill your dad, Cole.”
“Is that what he told you? It’s a lie. Mikael saw him do it.”
“What exactly did Mikael see?”
“He saw Gillespie standing with Lord Carnarvon. Instead of aiming for the clay bird, Gillespie yanked the gun up and shot my father from the sky.”
“That’s true, to a point. That’s exactly what happened. But what he didn’t see, what he couldn’t possibly have seen, was that Morchard arranged the whole thing.”
“That’s not possible.”
Libby frowned. “After everything we’ve seen today, are you sure about that?”
“Fair point.”
“According to Thomas, Morchard was becoming increasingly concerned your father was plotting something against him, possibly planning to go rogue. Worse, he was inciting the other Bran to follow him. Morchard feared a revolt – that if the Bran banded together, he would not be able to control them. So, he arranged with Lord Carnarvon for your father to have an accident, when he knew Thomas was visiting. Morchard and Lord Carnarvon wanted to get back at Thomas because he was blocking some legislation in the House of Lords that Morchard and Carnarvon wanted passed.
“What legislation?” Elinor leaned forward.
“It’s best if I get Thomas to explain.” Libby waved him over. Sir Thomas stood beside her, wrapping his arm around his new wife. He looked younger and happier than I’d ever seen him. His skin shone with a radiance that could have partially to do with the large amount of blood he’d just ingested, or with the fact he was in love. Elinor repeated her question.
“Morchard was trying to make it legal to breed Bran.” Sir Thomas said. “He and Carnarvon wanted to mate their respective Bran – Morchard’s males and Carnarvon’s females – and sell the offspring to the highest bidder. I – and several other members of the House of Lords – thought that tantamount to sex slavery.”
“I never heard anything about this.”
“Morchard would have gone to great lengths to keep this secret from his Bran, given the fact your father was stirring trouble.” Sir Thomas said. “He never gave up on the idea. He’s petitioned several times to instate this law, but each time it’s been beaten back. He thought if he had it on record that I killed a Bran in cold blood, my supporters in opposing his law would desert me. But as it turns out, that didn’t happen.”
“But Mikael was adamant he saw you lift the gun and shoot my father.”
“And that is probably exactly what he did see.” Morchard said. “It was only through observing your behaviour and probing your memories when you were bound to me, Cole, that I have been able to figure out how they did it. I believe Morchard sent your father to Carnarvon Hall with an urgent message. Meanwhile, he raced to the Carnarvon’s by car, so that he could be in the vicinity, where his influence over your father was strongest. Lord Carnarvon had his men release a clay pigeon on an unusually high arc, which I sighted with my gun, and just as I pulled the trigger, Morchard forced your father to fly in front of the clay. It was a horrible accident.”
“This is really true?” I demanded. Sir Thomas nodded. And I realised I believed him. Morchard had poisoned me against him, spending years telling me stories of Sir Thomas’s evil ways, when in fact he’d been an ally, trying to prevent Morchard being able to take advantage of Bran to make a fortune. I wondered if half of what Morchard said about Sir Thomas was even true. Certainly, in the weeks I’d known the old vampire, I hadn’t seen him do anything heinous. He was actually not that bad.
“I owe you an apology.” I extended my hand to Sir Thomas. He stared at it with distaste for a few moments, then reached out and returned my handshake. His fingers felt cold and sticky, no doubt from all the blood he’d been consuming.
“If you’ll excuse me,” Sir Thomas gave me a short bow. “I must return to the feast.”
“Those poor birds.” Alex glanced over my shoulder again as Sir Thomas walked off, and shuddered.
“They wouldn’t have had much of a life anyway,” I said. “They were prisoners of Morchard’s making. I know what that feels like.”
“But not anymore.”
I turned around, my breath catching in my throat. Libby grinned at me. Sir Thomas, overhearing, whirled around and stalked back towards us.
“Cole, I am releasing you from your bond,” Libby said. “You deserve the freedom that you so desire.”
I stared down at my finger. The weight of my ring fell away. I touched it with my fingers. It felt cool. It wiggled on my finger. I grabbed it between my thumb and index fingers, and pulled it off.
“Yes,” I whispered. I let go of the ring, and it dropped, bouncing on the cobbles and coming to land at Sir Thomas’s feet. I looked up at him, our eyes meeting. “Is this true? You do not oppose?”
“You kept my wife safe,” Sir Thomas said gruffly, hugging Libby to him. “I will not stand in the way of your freedom.”
“Thank you.”
“But do not think I am now some kind of friend to Bran.”
“Of course not.” I reached forward, and wrapped my arms around them both, embracing them in a big bear hug. “I wouldn’t dream of it.”
“I will dearly miss you,” Libby sniffed. “But I hope now that you have control over your own choices, you might c
hoose to visit me sometimes.”
“I would love to. I can’t wait to see how you decorate Gillespie’s castle.”
“We’d both love to,” Belinda appeared beside me. “I’ll even bring you another cake. But now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to walk alone with Cole for a while.”
“Of course.”
I held out my hand, and Belinda slipped her fingers into mine. Her touch felt so natural, so perfect.
“You’re free,” she said. “What are you going to do now?”
I rubbed my fingers over her knuckles. “I’m going to make love to you in that gazebo. I’m going to enjoy the way the moonlight plays across your breasts as your body writhes beneath me. I’m going to suckle your breasts and then lick you until you beg me for mercy.”
She blushed, turning her head away slightly. That red flush on her cheeks filled me with tremendous joy.
“I meant, with your life. Are you going to open that bird sanctuary you talked about?”
I nodded. “These birds lost their lives to a selfish, spiteful man and his delusions of grandeur. Too much damage has been caused by Victor Morchard and his ilk thinking he has ownership over other creatures. I am going to create a place where birds can go to recover and thrive, and I’m also going to make it known that Bran can come there also if they want to learn how to be free. Perhaps Ingrid would even consent to running some Bran meditation courses.”
“She wouldn’t get many takers,” Byron groaned, holding up his blackened finger. His ring was looking a little thinner, a little duller. At that rate, it would take him months to free himself. Ingrid punched him in the arm.
“Go away, Byron.” I pulled Belinda away from the horde, planting a line of kisses along her neck, my hands skimming her beautiful body. She moaned against me, her pleasure increasing my own. God, I had missed touching her.
“Cole, when we were apart, I saw you …” Her cheeks flushed with colour in that adorable way that turned my insides out.
“I saw you too. I was trying to stay away. But I … couldn’t.”
“I did more than just see you. I—” her cheeks flushed crimson.
“I know.” I grinned. “I wasn’t sure if it was a dream. It felt so real.”
“Libby says that according to her research, Bran have been capable of astral projection. Do you think that’s what you did?”
“Possibly, but I’m not really concerned about that right now.”
“Oh yes,” she nuzzled in close to me, her smile warming my whole body. “What are you thinking about?”
“I’m thinking about replaying one of those little encounters back at Raynard Hall tonight. What are you thinking about?”
“That you’re amazing, and that I love you, so much.”
I kissed her deeply, my fingers gathered in her hair. “That’s the best thought. Don’t think you ever have to keep a thought like that to yourself.”
“Shut up, and kiss me some more.”
“You wish is my command.” I covered her lips in mine.
26
Belinda
Back at Raynard Hall, we gave the birds a proper Bran funeral – Ryan and Eric built up a great pyre at the back of the garden, on the edge of the wild forest. I whipped up some delicious food, and Alex, Bianca and Elinor chose some of the finest wines from Ryan’s extensive cellar. We burned their bodies while toasting to the old gods. The smoke rose up in a great plume, swirling in the breeze and carrying with it the souls of the dead.
“I wonder what Odin would say,” Alex said, as she topped up my glass with red wine. “These are his servants, after all.”
“I’d like to think he understands,” I replied, taking a long swig. “His people may have used ravens as messengers, but they also revered them. What Morchard did to these creatures was nothing short of barbaric. We’re just giving them the honour they deserved.”
A hand snaked around my stomach. Cole’s woody scent invaded my nostrils. He rested his chin on my shoulder, his stubble brushing against my cheek. My stomach flipped. God, I couldn’t get enough of him.
“This is quite something,” he murmured in my ear, his voice sending a shiver of delight through my whole body.
“It was all your idea.”
“Yeah, but your friends made it happen.” I scooted over on the swing seat, and he collapsed beside me, wrapping his arm around my shoulders and pulling me in close. “They are quite something. But then, you’re kind, wonderful, and drop-dead gorgeous. It makes sense you’d be surrounded by amazing friends.”
“You’re just trying to butter me up so you can get under my skirt tonight.” I grinned, my cheeks flushing slightly at the comment. It seemed that being around Cole made me instantly sassier.
“This is true, but it actually wasn’t what I came to talk to you about.”
“Oh, yes?”
“Ryan has made me a most generous offer,” Cole stroked my hair. “He’s decided that since he didn’t have to spend that hundred grand bargaining for my life, he would donate it towards starting my bird sanctuary.”
“Cole, that’s amazing.”
“Yeah. I was pretty leery of accepting, given everything he’s already done for us, but he wasn’t going to take no for an answer. We’re going to do things properly – find the most appropriate site, order all the best equipment, become a real charity. We’ll get things up and running as soon as we’ve finished the repairs to Bewitching Bites.”
I grinned, excited to be able to tell him my news, too. “I don’t think you’ll have to worry about that. I’ve got it under control.”
“Why not?” Cole stared at me, his dark eyes wide with concern. “You’re not talking about quitting, are you? Because I’m here to help you, and we’re going to make Bewitching Bites great again.”
“No, I’m not quitting. Libby and Sir Thomas have decided to stay in Crookshollow for a while. Libby wants to do an internship at the bakery.” I grinned. “She’ll be my assistant, and she’ll help me with all the repairs. I’ll have an actual intelligent human to talk to and pass my knowledge on to.”
“And you’ll be able to take a few days off. Which is going to be good, since you’ll need to take a bit of time away from the bakery to plan your wedding.”
“Plan my …” I stared down at my hand. Cole had managed to stretch out my ring finger, and now, hovering over it, was the most amazing golden ring, aglow with glittering diamonds.
“How about it?” He whispered in my ear, his breath tickling my skin.
Cole wants to marry me. Cole wants to be my husband. My breath caught in my throat. I opened my mouth to say something, but no sound came out.
“Belinda?” Cole prompted. “You do realise what I’m asking you?”
“Yes.” I managed to choke out.
“Yes you realise, or yes you will be my wife?”
“Yes yes yes yes YES!” I threw my arms around him. He slipped the ring on my finger and smothered my lips in one of his hot kisses. Emotion swelled up within me, surprise, delight, and most of all, love. I loved him so much, I never wanted to let him go.
“What’s going on over there?” Elinor called out.
“Yeah, knock it off, you two. This is supposed to be a sombre occasion,” Bianca scolded, as she grabbed the wine bottle and took a long swig straight from the neck.
“What’s going on is that Belinda has agreed to marry me,” Cole grinned, lifting up my hand to show them the beautiful engagement band now encircling it.
“Omigod!” Elinor and Alex rushed over and jumped on us, wrapping their arms around me. “Congratulations!”
“Now there’s a ring I wouldn’t mind wearing,” Byron grinned. Ingrid hit him in the arm.
“Oooof!” The girls’ enthusiasm knocked the wind out of me. I struggled for air. The swing pitched backward, the hinges protesting the added weight with an ominous creak.
“Hey, ease off.” Cole picked up a squirming Elinor and plonked her back on the grass. “I’d like my girl to remain in one
piece.”
“So would I,” Alex grinned. “She’s got to be a bridesmaid at my wedding first.”
“A bridesmaid? Are you sure?” I exclaimed, my voice croaking as all the emotion overcame me. “But I won’t have time with all the catering—”
Alex shook her head. “No way. I’ll order in from McDonald’s if I have to, because you are standing up there beside me.”
I hugged her, tears spilling over my cheeks. “You guys are the best ever.”
“That’s because you deserve the best,” Elinor grinned. “You’re something quite special, Belinda.”
“Oh,” Cole nibbled on my ear. “You have no idea.”
I leaned back against the broad chest of my fiancé – my fiancé – and watched the flames of the pyre swirling up to the heavens. I had a glass of wine in my hand, an engagement ring on my finger, my best friends in the world beside me, and the hottest, most wonderful guy in the world laying a trail of kisses along my neck.
Not even a triple layer Heaven and Hell cake with whisky ganache could be sweeter than this moment.
THE END
Want more stories from Crookshollow? Check out Elinor and Eric’s gothic ghost romance in The Man in Black, a standalone novel from USA Today bestselling author Steffanie Holmes.
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Excerpt from The Man in Black
Love so fierce it transcends even death.
When Elinor Baxter arrives at the dilapidated Marshell House to settle the estate of her law firm's oldest client, she can't help but feel a little spooked. The creaking gothic mansion is a far cry from her life as an adventurous party girl back in London.
Reaper: A raven paranormal romance (Crookshollow ravens Book 2) Page 22