Twice Turned
Page 27
The sheepish expression on his face made me want to ask him a multitude of questions. But I waited.
“I had the boys bring him and your things over once construction was done. I knew you’d want to see him right away and this is the first place I wanted to bring you.”
“The boys?” I asked, trying not to laugh as I pictured a construction crew of werewolves trying to wrangle my cat.
Vidar ran a hand along the top of the stones that made up one of the raised beds. “The ones that planted all these flowers for you. You remember them, don’t you?”
Emotion choked me up, so I just nodded in answer. It was a sensation I wasn’t used to. Both to hide the unexpected reaction, and because I couldn’t wait any longer, I scooped up Heimdallr and climbed the stairs. I hesitated with my hand on the doorknob—a beautiful bronze thing that looked like it belonged in a castle. The anticipation of seeing our dream house warred with the fear that it couldn’t possibly be everything I’d always imagined. Vidar’s hand settled over mine and we turned the knob together.
My breath caught. From the floor plan of the yawning great room leading into the kitchen, to the open loft overlooking it all, every detail we had dreamed up and talked about—and more—had been worked into the design. Light poured in through a wall of windows that reached the height of both floors of the house.
I must have squeezed too hard because Heimdallr jumped from my arms and sauntered toward the kitchen. He already seemed perfectly at home here and it was obvious why.
“This place is amazing!” I exclaimed.
Eyes wide, trying to take it all in at once, I grabbed Vidar’s hand. “Show me. I want to see everything!”
Oozing enthusiasm, he took me from room to room, pointing out all the traditional log cabin details and special touches we’d talked about. At the top of the stairs to the loft I stopped and stared in awe. A huge four poster bed that looked like four trees growing up from the floor and disappearing into the peaked roof dominated the large space. Across from it a gorgeous stone fireplace took up most of a wall. I couldn’t help but imagine all the things Vidar and I could do on such a bed.
“This wasn’t in our design,” I said a bit breathlessly.
He came up behind me and wrapped his arms around me. “Well, we never actually talked about the bedroom. I hope you like it.” The deep, sultry way he said “bedroom” made me tingle all over.
Again, my breath had been stolen so thoroughly that I couldn’t speak. Silence stretched out and I couldn’t break it. Vidar’s arms went stiff.
“It’s too much, too soon,” he said in a defeated tone.
I turned and faced him, arms slipping around his waist. “No, not at all. It’s perfect down to every detail, just like you.”
His shoulders relaxed and his smile began to return. Those hazel eyes gazing down at me with more love in them than I thought any person could contain, began to melt my heart. I had to get out the rest of what I needed to say before I lost my resolve.
“But there will be more condemned. I’ll always be the reaper.”
To my complete and utter shock, his eyes sparkled. “Oh I know. That’s why I put in a training room downstairs complete with a hidden weapon room, and a massive metal sculpture as tall as a tree in the backyard.”
I couldn’t contain my smile. “That wasn’t in our design, either.”
Tenderness smoothed out the laugh lines on Vidar’s face. My heart thudded faster. I’d never thought anyone could feel such tenderness for me, the reaper, not even Vidar. It had been too much to hope for.
“My designs are all about you, all on you. They always have been,” Vidar said, his voice that sexy, deeper octave it sometimes got.
I ran my hands down the hard, dark planes of his bare chest. “I love you, Vidar Balderson.”
“I love you too.”
And just like that, every dark thing I’d endured in my life was worth it.
My fingers slipped under the waistband of his cargo shorts. “What do you say we break that bed in?”
With a growl of desire that rumbled down to my center, he bent and scooped me up in his arms. There I found peace and happiness so powerful it was euphoric. Since it came with this gift, being the chosen one of the gods didn’t seem quite so bad.
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Who’s Who of the Packs:
Reinhard Pack: Alphas: Andre (Andres) and Gyda.
Draupnir Pack: Alphas: Bain, and Morene as his first verndari, standing in as the ruling female until he finds a mate.
Arnoddr Pack: Alphas: Isak and Iona as ruling female until he finds a mate.
New Characters:
Kali: A weretiger assassin born in Vietnam.
Evan McDougall: Scottish draugr who lives in Portland, Oregon.
Emelia McDougall: Scottish draugr who lives in Portland, Oregon. Evan’s younger sister.
Glossary
Aegir: Norse god of the seas.
Berserkr: Werebear.
Varúlfur: Werewolf.
Ráðið: Council.
Verða: Roughly translates to “becoming”.
Lögreglu: Police.
Verndari: Protector.
Kennari: Teacher.
Konunglegur: Royalty among Hemlock Hollow werewolves.
Uppskera: Reaper of shifters.
Leitar: Seeker of the near-mad.
Gungnir: The spear of Odin.
Draugr (draugar, plural): Norse for “again-walker”; vampire.
About the Author
Heather is an award-winning author of paranormal, steampunk, and historical. Becoming a published author has been a life-long goal that she has known she wanted since she was twelve. At that age, she wrote her first book and has been writing and working on her craft ever since. When she is not writing, she can be found on the slopes, the hiking trails, or paddle boarding. As a native Oregonian, she enjoys the outdoors nearly as much as the worlds she creates on the pages. No need to travel to the Great Northwest though, you can find her on her website and her many social networking sites. You can also find her the first Monday night of every month at 6:00 pm PT on the #WritersRoad chat on Twitter. She is the co-creator and moderator of the chat. Entertaining readers, protecting endangered species, and uncovering stories and points of view that haven’t been covered are her passions.
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