“Moira!” Charlotte rushed out in an attempt to catch her. “Lordy, she’s quick.”
“It’s the Cauld Ane in her,” Thane said. “Sydney, this is Niall and Charlotte’s daughter, the beautiful Moira Faith.”
“Hi Moira, it’s nice to meet you.”
“Hi,” she whispered, and dropped her head on Thane’s shoulder.
“Come in,” Grace said, and waved them inside.
Thane gave Moira a gentle hug and stepped back so Sydney could precede him into the house. Sydney was just as impressed by Grace and Max’s home as she had been with the castle. Their home was laid out over three stories, with a library, kitchen, parlor, great room, dining room, bedroom, and two full bathrooms on the first floor. Six large bedrooms, each with their own bathroom, were on the second floor, as well as a large common room and an additional bathroom.
The third floor was considered the family’s private quarters, with a gigantic master suite and four other bedrooms with private bathrooms. Elevators on each end of the home covered each story and the basement.
“It’s ridiculously big, isn’t it?” Grace murmured.
“I think it’s beautiful,” Sydney said.
“Thank you.” Grace grinned. “Max had a little emergency with one of the horses, so he and Niall will be back in a bit. Make yourselves at home. Can I get you some wine or pop?”
“I’d love a beer if you have one, please,” Thane said, and lowered Moira to the floor.
“Of course we have beer... we’re not animals.”
Thane laughed. “Thanks, lass.”
“I’m happy with water for now,” Sydney said.
“I’ll be right back.” Grace walked out of the room and Moira dragged Thane to the sofa.
“Book,” she demanded, and handed him Cinderella.
“Moira, honey, let’s give Uncle Thane a minute, huh?”
“She’s fine, Charlotte.” Thane pulled Moira onto his lap and Sydney sat next to them.
Thane got two lines into the book before Moira slid off his lap and made a run for Niall. “Daddy!”
“Ah, the fickleness of ladies,” Thane said, and chuckled as he rose to his feet. Sydney followed suit.
“Famous drummer beats movie star, apparently,” Sydney said.
Niall hugged Thane and then Sydney. Once Max had said hello, he went to help Grace. Charlotte sat beside Niall and Moira, but her phone rang and she sighed. “Sorry, I have to get this, it’s Pepper.”
“Don’t worry on our account,” Thane said, and wrapped an arm around Sydney, pulling her close.
Grace and Max walked in with drinks and then sat with Niall.
“How do you feel Sydney?” Grace asked.
“Great, actually.”
“It’s a little strange, huh?”
“Yeah, it is. My body feels different, but not so different I don’t still feel like me.”
Grace nodded. “Just wait until you find out you can lift three times your body weight.”
“Is that a thing?”
Thane jostled her gently. “Yeah, baby, it’s a thing.”
“I want to do it now!”
He chuckled. “How about we do it later?”
Sydney wrinkled her nose. “You’re no fun.”
Charlotte returned and flopped down beside Niall.
“Everything okay?” he asked.
She smiled. “Yep. I just need to go early tomorrow to help set up.”
“We were already going early.”
“I’m aware. But apparently Pepper forgot.” Charlotte sighed. “I’m giving her new-mother-brain-loss grace.”
Grace giggled. “You’d think it was her party with how stressed out she’s making herself.”
Charlotte groaned. “No doubt.”
“Well, we’re staying there, so we can help as well,” Sydney said.
“Oh, you will,” Charlotte decreed.
Sydney giggled. “Just put us to work. Apparently, I can now lift heavy things, so my damsel in distress gig is over.”
Thane kissed her temple. “You’ll always be my wee damsel, love.”
“I will?” she asked with a saccharin tone, clutching her hands to her chest. “You’re the bestest most awesomest mate in the whole wide world.”
“Damn straight.” Thane laughed and kissed her.
The rest of the day was spent in comfortable ribbing and conversation. By the time they had to leave to go back to the castle, Sydney felt like she had lifelong friends.
Thane took her to bed that night and she was able to fall asleep without his help. She couldn’t wait to find out what more her new body would do for her, but in the meantime, she was going to enjoy the hell out of what it was doing now.
* * *
Sydney’s alarm buzzed her awake at seven the next morning. She hit the snooze and rolled over to snuggle close to Thane again.
“It’s not morning, is it?” he groaned.
She smiled, kissing his chest. “Yep. ’Fraid so.”
“I can’t move,” he complained. “I think you broke me last night.”
Sydney laughed. “Just testing out my new limits. I know I don’t have any point of reference, but sex is awesome in my new vessel.” Thane chuckled just as her alarm buzzed again and she pulled away to turn it off, sliding off the bed. “Okay, mister movie star, time to get up. Come shower with me and I’ll fix whatever ails you.”
He jumped from the bed. “Don’t have to tell me twice.”
“You’re a quick study, honey.”
Thane laughed and smacked her bottom as he passed her. “Come on, baby. I’m dying to soap you up.”
She shivered as she followed him into the bathroom.
Once showered and dressed, they headed down to the great hall and Sydney laughed as Samantha stood in the middle of the room directing traffic while she cradled Phineas in her arms.
“Wow, you’re a pro,” Sydney said.
Samantha smiled. “Oh, you missed me blubbering in the corner an hour ago when Kade had to talk me down off the ledge.”
Sydney smiled sympathetically. “You could have canceled. No one would have faulted you.”
“A Moore... ah, I mean a Gunnach, never gives up.”
Samantha’s maiden name, Thane provided.
Thane laughed. “Well, what can we do? Put us to work.”
“Sydney, Grace and Charlotte are working on gift bags in the library, would you please help them with that?”
“Of course.”
Samantha smiled. “And Thane, Max is setting up the sound and video stuff. If you wouldn’t mind helping him with that, I’d appreciate it. He’s in the garden.”
“No problem.”
“Eat first, though, okay?” Samantha rocked the baby when he fussed. “Breakfast is set out in the kitchen.”
“Thanks, Sam,” Thane said.
“No, thank you,” she quipped.
Thane guided Sydney to the kitchen and then, once they ate, they split up to take care of their tasks.
* * *
Guests started trickling in at noon, dignitaries the first to arrive, and Sydney soon found out all of them were Cauld Ane. There would be humans in attendance, but they wouldn’t arrive until four, which gave their people a chance to speak unhindered for a few hours.
“There are so many people,” Sydney whispered as she grasped Thane’s shirt before he could get away from her.
He chuckled, facing her and pulling her against his chest. “You’re fine, love.”
“Don’t you dare leave me.”
“I’m not leaving you, baby, I’m going to talk to Niall.”
She threw her arms in the air. “That’s leaving me... to go and talk to Niall.”
He raised an eyebrow.
“What?” With a gasp, she squealed, “Thane,” as he pinned her arms and lifted her off her feet, carrying her over to where Niall stood with Charlotte.
Oh my word, I’m going to kill you.
He laughed, setting her down again
and kissing her soundly in front of everyone. Heat covered her neck and face and she stepped behind him in an effort to hide.
No one’s watching us, love.
I don’t believe you. She tugged on his shirt. I need a second, but murder is still on the table.
Is twerking off of it?
“Thane,” she whispered dropping her forehead to his back.
“It’s just us, love.”
She peeked over his shoulder and felt her blush again as Charlotte and Niall watched her with smiles. Sydney shook her head and stepped behind him.
“It’s a lot, huh?” Charlotte said.
“Sorry, I don’t mean to be rude.”
Charlotte giggled. “Don’t be sorry, seriously. Why do you think we’re hiding here in the corner? Niall would be out there yuckin’ it up with pretty much everyone here if it wasn’t for me.”
Niall grinned. “I’m happy to be wherever you are, love.”
Charlotte wrapped her arms around his bicep. “That’s because you’re a smart man.”
Thane wrapped an arm around Sydney’s waist and kissed her temple. “We can stay here for as long as you need.”
“I’m not an invalid, Thane. I just feel a little overwhelmed.”
“We are in a unique position where we can leave and hang out in the library if we’d like to,” Niall said.
Charlotte gasped. “We can?”
“Aye, lass. We’ve said hello to everyone we need to. We don’t have to come back out until four.”
“Then why are we still here?”
“We’re going right now,” Thane said.
Sydney laughed. “Someone else who’s proving to be smart.”
Thane took her hand and gave it a squeeze, then the couples headed into the library. Sydney giggled when she found Pepper, Max, Grace, and Payton there. Samantha breezed in a few minutes later, Phineas in her arms. “If I’d known the party was in here, I would have escaped hours ago.”
“I had to feed the baby,” Pepper said, baby Chelsea cradled against her.
“What a coincidence, Phineas needs to be fed as well.” Samantha sat in one of the overstuffed chairs and threw a blanket over her and Phineas to feed him.
See, love? You’re in great company.
Sydney grinned up at him. Yes, apparently I am.
The rest of the evening was part meeting strangers and part connecting with new friends, including spending more time with Thane’s family. Sydney couldn’t imagine a better evening, and Ainsley was ecstatic because she had been given permission to ride Max’s horses the next day.
Midnight came faster than expected and Thane insisted on taking Sydney to bed. She didn’t complain (much), as they made their way upstairs. And once he’d kissed every inch of her body, he made love to her and she realized how perfect their time at the castle had been.
In some ways, she didn’t want it to end.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
THE NEXT DAY, Thane walked into the king’s chapel and took his place in the Allen pew. His father was not there today like he normally would be for a council meeting, as Kade had only called together those who led high-profile lives.
This meant that all the members of Fallen Crown were in attendance, along with several other men and women who were known both locally, nationally, and internationally for different careers, the most surprising being Ewan McFadden, who had been voted Scotland’s sexiest botanist. Somewhat random and funny, but it now put him into a category where he could no longer hide. All-in-all, there were close to sixty people in the room.
Kade and Samantha sat with Connall and Brodie and their mates, and Samantha smiled at Thane, her expression one of overwhelmed resignation. Anyone who knew her understood how uncomfortable she was at official gatherings, but she always handled them with grace and humor.
Niall slid in beside him even though it wasn’t technically his family pew. “Hey.”
Thane shook his hand. “You’re a little late.”
Niall chuckled. “Moira was having a hard time letting her da out the door.”
“Not yer mate?”
“Sadly, no,” Niall said. “Charlotte was trying to pry Moira the spider monkey from my body. I left her with my screaming daughter who you would think was never going to see me again.”
Before Thane could comment, Kade walked to the middle of the dais. “Welcome everyone.” The din died down as the king spoke. “I’ve asked you here because we need to discuss our public profiles going forward. All of you are high-profile, and depending on how long you plan to be high-profile, humans will start to notice that we don’t age at the same rate as they do. About every fifty years, we face this dilemma and need to brainstorm how we want to handle it. Some of us may decide to go underground, out of the limelight; others may opt to cope another way.”
“I vote to kill off Max in some tragic but messy accident,” Connall said. “Fiery car crash should do it.”
“I’m too damn pretty to go out in a fiery car crash,” Max countered. “But I have a few ideas for you, brother. Guillotine is the immediate choice. I’ll even have one built at my home if that will help expedite things.”
The room erupted in laughs.
“We’ll forget the feud between Max and Con for the moment,” Kade said. “Especially considering that the fight has been going on for several hundred years and I see no end anytime soon.” He waited for the laughs to die down again and raised his hands. “This meeting is a short one, to introduce the topic for our next meeting in the spring, when I hope you’ll have some legitimate”—he glared at Connal and then at Max—“and effective ideas for how to handle this ongoing problem we have as Cauld Ane in a human world. In the spring we can discuss what your plans are and how we can support you. I’m sure I don’t have to remind you not to put anything in writing. Thank you for your time.”
The room stood en masse, bowed to Kane, and then filed out. Thane and Niall walked out together, while Max stayed behind to speak with Connall.
“I love it when these things are short,” Thane confessed.
“Aye, brother. Me as well.”
“How long are you staying?”
“We’re leaving day after tomorrow. What about you?”
“Same, but we’re heading back to London first.”
“Grace and Charlotte want to know if you and Sydney want to join us for dinner tonight,” Niall said, as he and Thane walked to the cars.
Do you want to have dinner with the MacMillan’s tonight?
Sounds fun. Are you finished?
Aye, lass. Be home soon.
“We’d love to,” Thane said.
“Perfect.” Niall grinned. “Six?”
“We’ll see you then,” Thane said, and climbed into the car. He drove back up to the castle and found Sydney in the great hall speaking with Samantha’s brother, Dalton.
Dalton Moore was ex-FBI, and he and his buddy Colton ran the human side of security for the royals. Dalton apparently owned several car dealerships back in Georgia, which, along with his salary from Kade, made him a wealthy man. With his model good looks and southern accent, Thane knew the women flocked to him.
Right now, he was smiling at Sydney in a way that irked Thane, and he walked quickly to her side, wrapping an arm around her waist and kissing her temple. “Hi.”
She grinned up at him. “Hi, honey. Have you met Dalton?”
“Aye.” He shook Dalton’s hand and forced a smile.
“I was telling Sydney that if you can’t get answers from the local cops, I can call a few contacts back in D.C. They’ll be able to get to the bottom of her mother’s accident.”
Sydney slid her hand into Thane’s back pocket. “Dalton says they can put pressure on the powers that be to tell them more than they’re telling us.”
“That’s a generous offer,” Thane said, carefully. “We’ll be sure to let you know if we run into issues.”
“Sounds good. I’m gonna go see my nephews for a bit, then head out. It was nice to me
et you, Sydney.”
“You too, Dalton.”
The American left and Sydney faced Thane. “Chill.”
“I’m sorry?”
She grinned and slid her hand to the back of his neck. “You went all squirrely with Dalton. You aren’t jealous, are you?”
Thane sighed. “Admittedly, a little.”
She giggled. “Silly man.”
“Aye, lass. I am.”
“Kiss me so I can make you feel better.”
He leaned down and touched his forehead to hers. “I’d rather take you back to bed.”
“Even better. We’ve got a few hours before we have to get ready for dinner, so let’s go slay that jealousy dragon.”
Thane laughed, kissed her quickly, and then took her hand and led her to bed.
* * *
“Did you ask what we could bring?” Sydney buckled her seat belt and set her purse on the car floor.
“We don’t need to bring anything, love.”
“Honey, we should at least bring a bottle of wine. It’s rude to show up empty handed.”
Thane turned to her and raised an eyebrow. “Niall is arguably my closest friend outside of you, and I highly doubt he will care if we don’t bring a bottle of cheap wine.”
“It’s a good thing we’re going to stop at the store and buy an expensive one, then, isn’t it?”
“We’re already late, Sydney.”
She sighed. “It’s rude, Thane.”
He shook his head and unbuckled his seat belt. “Give me a second.”
Thane jogged back into the castle, returning a few minutes later with two bottles of wine, one red, one white. He climbed back in the car and handed them to Sydney. “Okay?”
“You did not just go and steal wine from the king, did you?”
“No, lass, I borrowed them. I’ll be replacing them tomorrow. And you’d better be happy... the red’s going to cost me six hundred pounds to replace.”
Sydney gasped. “Go put it back.”
Thane turned the car toward the drawbridge with a smirk. “We don’t have time to put it back.”
“I’ll pay for it.”
“What?”
“I’ll pay for the wine.”
“Like hell you will,” he snapped.
Sydney rolled her eyes. “I insisted we have it. I’ll pay for it.”
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