“Call the guards,” I said at last. “Don’t alarm the guests. Follow when you can.”
“Have a care, brother.” Vaughn slid into the crowd and vanished.
Careful to keep my stride even, my face smooth and free of emotion, I crossed the room. As the host, people wanted to chat. Family wanted to reminisce. But I murmured polite deflections my long suffering wife had taught me and eased from the party rooms into the tunnels leading to the stables.
Ahead of me the long hall ended in an arch carved with ursus, and I was left standing on the lip of an incline leading down into the cavernous stables. Over my head, the domed ceiling soared. The space was well lit and smelled of livestock and fresh hay. Rows of stalls held ursus in every color as well as other labor and feed animals. Opposite me was an incline matching this one, rising up toward the massive hatch leading outside the security of the nest and deep into the freezing northland winter.
A chill breeze whirled straw across the floor.
Maisy was right. The hatch had been opened.
A quick scan of the area showed no signs of life. No stable hands strolled through the aisles. No guards stood watch on the narrow walkway above the hatch or anywhere else I could see. Aware the ramp made me an easy target, I murmured a prayer to the two gods then eased down the incline until I stood on level ground and the soft noises of ursus grunting and snuffling shattered the eerie silence.
I spared a glance behind me, but Vaughan and his reinforcements were nowhere in sight.
Jaw clenched, I drew my sword. Clearing the aisles one by one, I approached the exit hatch.
Soft laughter froze me in place. Lourdes.
Tightening my grip on the hilt, I prowled past the last aisle and cut my eyes from left to right.
“Gods’ web,” I muttered.
A box sleigh like those used for hauling firewood and supplies into the nest sat angled to the left side of the exit ramp. A pair of snow white ursus hitched to the front, their thick fur concealing ornate harnesses. The entire scene was wrapped in shadows by someone familiar with the nest’s best hiding places. A clever person who knew this niche was a blind spot, impossible to detect until you stumbled upon it.
It smacked of Lourdes’s handiwork.
A cloaked figure glided forward with familiar grace and an even more familiar scent.
Dayflower perfume.
“Mana?” I lowered my weapon a fraction.
She tossed back her hood and grinned at me. “Hello, Rhys.”
I visually swept the area for signs of trouble. “Are you alone?”
A pale arm shot up from the bed of the sleigh and waved.
Mana subdued the flailing limb. “Not exactly.”
“Lourdes?” I sheathed my blade and jogged to Mana’s side. Nestled under a pile of blankets and furs, Lourdes glanced up at me, her blue eyes dancing, and wiggled the fingers of her captured hand.
“I see Maisy delivered our message,” she said by way of greeting.
“You sent her—?” The strain tensing my shoulders eased. “You set all this up.”
“I did indeed. You certainly wouldn’t have agreed to it. You barely let me out of bed these days.” She patted the spot beside her. “Come on. There’s plenty of room.”
“Our guests…” I rubbed my face. “We can’t leave them.”
“As my heir, Armand is filling in for us.” She patted her rounded belly. “Should anyone ask, we retired to our rooms. I’m resting—” her lips parted in a teasing grin, “—and you’re pacing tracks in the floor.”
Maisy knew. Armand knew. I narrowed my eyes at Mana. “Vaughn knew about this.”
“Your personal guards rode out and took up their positions while you and Lourdes were greeting guests. Vaughn should have joined them by now.” Mana tugged on leather gloves. “I will be your driver this fine afternoon. As Lourdes’s midwife, I assure you she is perfectly sound and this trip is perfectly safe. I have driven the route once already with Vaughn to test for thin ice. And,” she added with a wink, “should the little one decide to join us ahead of schedule, I brought all the supplies we need.”
“Rhys.” Lourdes scrunched up her face as she strained to reach my hand. “All I want for Solstice is one last sleigh ride with my husband.” I leaned closer, stretched out my arm, and she slid her icy fingers through mine. “This is our last chance to be alone together.” She addressed her stomach, “Tonight is the night. Isn’t it, darling?”
I gripped the edge of the sleigh with my other hand and leaned against it for support. “Tonight?” My gaze shot to Mana for confirmation. When the spirit walker gave a solemn nod, the air whooshed from my lungs, and I forgot how to breathe. Only the gentle caress of Lourdes’s thumb over the back of my hand anchored me, kept me standing when my knees threatened to buckle like a newborn foal’s.
“We’re losing the light.” Mana climbed onto the driver’s seat. “We should leave soon.”
With a tight nod, I climbed into the sleigh bed beside Lourdes and slid under the covers she had lifted. She tucked the blankets around me then leaned against my shoulder, looping her arm through mine and sighing with such contentment that I marveled at being the cause of her happiness.
This was the gift she wanted. Us. Together. Alone. As though the birth of one child or twelve could change how I felt about her. A child was a treasure, but a wife…my wife…
Lourdes was the heart beating in my chest.
With a snap of the reins, Mana shocked the ursus into motion. The sleigh bumped up the ramp and out into the waning sunlight. A burst of frigid air slapped our faces, and Lourdes’s cheeks turned rosy with the cold. Blonde hair whipped around her head, the ends lashing my throat. Her lips spread in a wide grin, and her cornflower eyes twinkled as the blades whooshed over the freshly fallen snow.
Fierce words clawed their way past my tight throat. “I love you.”
She peeked up at me. “I love you too.”
I curled my finger under her chin and tipped her head back. “The babe changes nothing.”
Lourdes laughed softly. “She changes everything.”
“Not this.” I lowered my head and claimed her sweet, soft lips. “Not us.”
Her pleased sigh blew warm breath over my chin. “Is that so?”
“You own my soul.” Our life threads were tied. “A child is a blessing, but you…” I took her mouth again, lingering this time, “…are a miracle to me.”
“Happy Solstice,” she said against my lips.
I stole another kiss that left me breathless. “Happy Solstice.”
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Click this link to claim a FREE copy of Dog with a Bone, the first book in her Black Dog urban fantasy series.
Half-bloods with Thierry’s skill set are given two options. They can join the conclave’s marshal program, or they can pack their bags. Turn down the job offer, and you’ve just shredded your residency pass for the mortal realm and booked yourself a one-way ticket to Faerie.
Texas is the only home Thierry has ever known, and she’s not going anywhere. Even if it means following in her notorious father’s footsteps as a peacekeeper. But pinning on the badge opens her eyes to the fact sometimes fae need protection too, and that sometimes humans are the real monsters.
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About the Author
Hailey Edwards writes about questionable applications of otherwise perfectly good magic, the transformative power of love, the family you choose for yourself, and blowing stuff up. Not necessarily all at once. That could get messy. She lives in Alabama with her husband, their daughter, and a herd of dachshunds.
www.HaileyEdwards.net
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Dog with a Bone #1
Dog Days of Summer #1.5
Heir of the Dog #2
Lie Down with Dogs #3
Old Dog, New Tricks #4
Black Dog Series Novellas
Stone-Cold Fox
Gemini Series
Dead in the Water #1
Head Above Water #2
Hell or High Water #3
Gemini Series Novellas
Fish Out of Water
Lorimar Pack Series
Promise the Moon #1
Wolf at the Door #2
Over the Moon #3
Araneae Nation
A Heart of Ice #.5
A Hint of Frost #1
A Feast of Souls #2
A Cast of Shadows #2.5
A Time of Dying #3
A Kiss of Venom #3.5
A Breath of Winter #4
A Veil of Secrets #5
Daughters of Askara
Everlong #1
Evermine #2
Eversworn #3
Wicked Kin
Soul Weaver #1
Araneae Nation: The Complete Collection Page 133