Figure of Speech (Halle Shifters) (22 page)

Epilogue

“Hey,” Chloe whispered, opening the hospital door as quietly as she could. She glanced around, hoping she wasn’t about to wake the newest member of the clan.

“Hey,” Tabby replied wearily. “She’s awake, it’s okay.”

Chloe’s shoulders sagged in relief. “Cool.” Chloe entered the hospital room, Jim right on her heels. “Can I see?”

Alex, sitting by his mate with the sappiest expression on his face, gestured them forward.

A tiny white bundle lay in Tabby’s arms. Chloe wanted to hold her new cousin so badly she was shaking with it. “Oh. Please?”

Jim wrapped his arms around Chloe. “Shh, little vixen. Give them a moment to hand her over.”

Tabby laughed. “Here, Chloe darlin’. Meet—” she darted a quick glance toward Alex, “—Wren Usagi Bunsun.”

Jim choked. “You named your baby ‘little bird’?”

“You two are
so
bad,” Chloe giggled, snuggling her nose against the baby’s forehead and taking in her scent. “Especially since she smells like Wolf.”

“What?” Jim sniffed the baby too, causing the baby to wrinkle her nose and turn her head. “Man, she does!”

Alex grinned. “What did you expect from a Bear named Bunny and a Wolf named Tabby?”

Tabby blushed. “I like the name Wren. It’s pretty.”

Chloe giggled harder. “And Usagi means bunny. You named your daughter after Sailor Moon.”

“And yourself,” Jim chuckled.

“You knew he was going to slip some
Sailor Moon
in there somewhere.” Tabby smiled when Chloe stroked the baby’s whisper-fine hair.

Chloe glanced at her cousin. “What would you have named a boy?”

Alex grinned. “Lobo.”

“No.” Chloe shook her head. “You are not naming my baby cousin Lobo, you nut.”

“Fenris?”

“No.”

Alex pouted. “Suppose Canis is out then?”

“Ugh.” Chloe rolled her eyes. “Can we muzzle him?”

Tabby just shook her head. “Can’t. Someone’s gotta help me feed the baby bird.”

“Damn.”

“Fine.” Alex crossed his arms over his chest. “How about Connor?”

He looked far too smug for this to be anything but some sort of trick. “Okay, Bunny. I’ll bite. What’s wrong with Connor?”

Alex shrugged. “I don’t know. You tell me?”

Chloe looked at Tabby, who shrugged. “I have no idea what he’s up to this time, but I like Connor.”

“So if we have a boy, Connor Shingo Bunsun it is!”

“Shingo?” Chloe groaned.

“Yeah, Usagi’s brother is named Shingo.” Alex sighed happily. “I’m so glad you guys agreed.”

“Damn it, Alex,” Tabby groaned. “Couldn’t you use, I dunno, Darien? That’s Tuxedo Mask, right?”

Alex stared at her, horrified. “That’s just
wrong
. Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask get
married
and have
kids
. I don’t want three-headed grandbabies, thank you.”

Tabby sagged against her pillow as Chloe laughed. “Fine. You get Shingo, I get Connor.”

“Done.” Alex held out his hands. “Now give me my baby girl back.”

“Need to tell her the evils of men in tuxedos?” Jim helped Chloe hand the baby over.

“Damn straight.” Alex’s whole face brightened as he stared lovingly down at his daughter. “No tuxedo-wearing, rose-wielding asshole is gonna get by Daddy. No he’s not, baby girl. You and me forever, right?”

“Ahem.” Tabby cleared her throat.

“What?” Alex barely looked up from the baby in his arms. He gasped. “Oh, you farted! That’s so
cute!
”

“And on that note…” Jim grabbed hold of her arm and started edging toward the door.

“Why is your butt so warm?” Alex frowned. “Is something wrong?”

Chloe grabbed hold of her mate and darted into the hallway. “Three…two…one…”

“Holy shit! What the hell is that?”

Jim collapsed against the wall, dragging Chloe down with him. “Think he meant that literally?”

Chloe nodded, laughing too hard to answer.

With their shifter hearing they could still hear Alex’s disgust. “Tabby, I think Wren’s ass is possessed.”

“Why’s that, sugar?” Tabby sounded calm, but Chloe could hear rustling, like Tabby was playing with her sheets…or changing a newborn’s diaper.

“Should it look like something from
The Exorcist
is living in there?”

“Alex, we were told about this.” Tabby’s tone was patient. “The black stuff, the…what did she call it? The poo cork? Is out now, and we’re going to see the poop rainbow for a while.”

“I’ll never look at Skittles the same way again,” Alex groaned.

Jim tugged on her hand and Chloe followed, silently laughing. “Sk-skittles.”

He bit his lip, holding it in until they were in the elevator. Then he let it out again, collapsing against the elevator wall. “Oh, jeez, that was bad. Poo cork?”

They were holding each other up when the elevator finally hit the first floor. There stood Eric Bunsun, Alex’s brother, a big-ass stuffed bear in his hands. “What’s gotten into you two?”

“Not a poo cork, that’s for sure,” Chloe gasped.

“Or rainbow candy,” Jim added.

“Okay,” Eric drawled. He pushed his glasses up his nose. “Can I go see my niece now?”

“Sure thing.” Chloe and Jim stepped off the elevator and headed for the hospital door.

“You still want one?”

“A Skittle?” Man, her mate must have gotten oxygen deprived if he thought she wanted rainbow candy after that.

“A baby.”

“Eventually. I think we need to get carried first, though.” She didn’t dare look at him. He hadn’t once mentioned the M-word, and she’d been living with him for a couple of weeks now.

“How does September sound?” He put his arm around her shoulders.

She began to tremble. Did he mean it?

“Yup, I mean it.” He stopped her and turned her around. “With everything crazy that’s going on, I’d like to keep it small. It’s safer that way.”

“Big party later?”

He nodded, the tension she hadn’t noticed before falling away from him. “Sounds good to me. How about you?”

“Yes.”

His eyes turned golden brown. “You mean it?”

She nodded.

“Thank fuck.” He picked her up and twirled her around. Then he plunked her down, his eyes wide and worried. “Rings?”

“Rings?”

“Can we wear them? You know, when we…” He lifted his lip. “Fur out?”

“Nope. But we can hare them when we aren’t.”

“Oh. Good.”

She poked his lip. “You can put that down now, big bad.”

He chuckled and put his arm around her. “I love you, you know?”

“I blow, Jim.” She patted his hand. “I blow.”

He blinked, staring at her in confusion, but no way was she telling him whether or not she’d misspoken intentionally.

She blinked up at him, trying to appear as innocent as her newborn cousin. “Can we go get some Red Butt now?”

“Naughty little vixen.” He nipped her earlobe. “I like the way you think.”

“Wait.”

He took off running toward the car.

“Damn it, I didn’t mean that one!”

Chloe chased after her Wolf, but as she always would in the future, this time she caught him.

About the Author

Dana Marie Bell wrote her first short story when she was thirteen years old. She’s now a
USA Today
bestselling author with Samhain Publishing and Carina Press. Dana has lived primarily in the Northeast with a brief stint on the U.S. Virgin Island of St. Croix. She lives with her soul mate and husband Dusty, their two maniacal children, two evil ice-cream-stealing cats and a bull terrier that thinks it’s a Pekingese. She’s been heard to describe herself as “vertically challenged” and “a lapsed brunette.” Dana also suffers from ankylosing spondylitis (a progressive inflammatory arthritis that primarily affects the spine), and can be seen walking with a cane or tooling around in her mobility scooter. Her condition was the inspiration for Belle’s hip injury in
Steel Beauty
.

You can learn more about Dana at:

www.danamariebell.com

danamariebell.blogspot.com

www.facebook.com/pages/Dana-Marie-Bells-Fan-Page/185916691436341

www.twitter/com/danamariebell

Look for these titles by Dana Marie Bell

Now Available:

Halle Pumas

The Wallflower

Sweet Dreams

Cat of a Different Color

Steel Beauty

Only In My Dreams

Halle Shifters

Bear Necessities

Cynful

Bear Naked

Figure of Speech

The Gray Court

Dare to Believe

Noble Blood

Artistic Vision

The Hob

Siren’s Song

Heart’s Desire

Shadow of the Wolf

Hecate’s Own

The Wizard King

Poconos Pack

Finding Forgiveness

Mr. Red Riding Hoode

True Destiny

Very Much Alive

Eye of the Beholder

Howl for Me

Morgan’s Fate

Not Broken

Coming Soon:

The Gray Court

Never More

A crescendo of evil could destroy their perfect harmony.

Siren’s Song

© 2014 Dana Marie Bell

The Gray Court, Book 5

Oberon is well and truly lost, with no memory of who he is, where he came from, or where he’s going. One woman makes his palms sweat and his heart race, a woman with turquoise eyes and a beautiful voice. Instinct tells him she’s the only one who can save him.

Cassie knows the truth—he is the High King, her truebond, the one man born to be hers and hers alone. Restoring his memory and keeping him out of the Black Court’s clutches is her mission, though success means losing him. Yet to give the world back its High King, she will make that sacrifice.

As soon as Oberon’s memory comes crashing back through his mind’s closed door, he makes one vow. Though beset by enemies, chased and attacked, he will return to his rightful place with his Queen by his side.

Except when he makes good on his vow, all hell breaks loose. And when Cassie’s life is threatened, the fae world will bow before the High King or pay the price in blood.

Warning: This title contains explicit sex, graphic language, fishy shenanigans and royal naughtiness.

Enjoy the following excerpt for
Siren’s Song:

Swimming so far out in the icy waters had chilled him far more than he wanted to admit, but he could barely see the lights of the houses dotting the shores. Here, they ran no risk of being seen. Even the sight of Cassie diving into the sea, skin glistening under the moonlight in that tiny little bathing suit, couldn’t keep him warm.

Cassie dove briefly, and when she came up for air she had dropped her Seeming. The turquoise of her irises had swallowed the white, her pupils wide in the dark night. He felt her tuck something into the waistband of his underwear and realized it must be the bottom half of her bathing suit, something she couldn’t wear with a tail. “We’re not going too deep, but the dark can be frightening for someone who isn’t used to it.”

“And unlike a siren I can’t use sonar to find my way around.”

“Don’t worry. Concentrate on me, and everything will be fine.” She took hold of his arms. “I’ll light up for you, I promise.”

His brows rose. “Excuse me?” That sounded vaguely intriguing, but he doubted she meant it the way it sounded.

Cassie rolled her eyes. “You’ll see.” She smiled reassuringly. “This will sound strange, but don’t bother doing that deep breath thing. I’ll take care of it once we’re under water.” She bit her lip, appearing more nervous about this than he was. “Ready?”

Not even close, but time was running out. Things had gone far too easily for them to remain safe. Oberon needed to be at full strength, his memories intact, before he dealt with Cassie’s issues and the matter of the traitor in his court. “Let’s go.”

With a swish of water, Cassie pulled him under.

And under.

The sensation of floating was pleasant, at least at first. Cassie’s grip on his arms reassured him that he wasn’t alone as the dark waters swirled overhead. The scales on her cheeks, neck, arms and fin began to give off a faint aqua glow, giving just enough light to see the eerie beauty of the woman who dragged him beneath the waves.

But soon the urge to breathe became almost overwhelming, the desire to move, to reach for the air causing him to fight Cassie’s grasp.

When his lungs burned and he thought he might pass out, Cassie did something he hadn’t been expecting.

She kissed him.

Surprised, he opened his mouth, desperate to take a deep breath, even if it meant stealing hers.

Except he didn’t breathe, not in the way he’d expected.

Sharp, searing pain ran down from his armpits almost to his waist. Something fluttered against his skin, tickling him.

The overwhelming urge to gulp in air faded.

Something inside him, some ability he hadn’t realized he had, took notice of what Cassie had done. He’d changed, his body transforming to accept the oxygen in the water. Gills had grown on his sides, close to his lungs, the water flowing over them and feeding the life-giving element straight into his bloodstream while removing the carbon dioxide that would kill him.

Oh. So that was how merfolk breathed. Now that his body understood what to do, he would no longer need Cassie to give him breath. He could transform himself whenever he wished.

What other abilities were lost with my memories?
Could he grow wings and fly? Burrow beneath the earth? Turn lead into gold?

He couldn’t wait to find out.

As Cassie started to pull away he reacted on instinct. She wasn’t about to end this kiss before he’d truly begun to enjoy it.

Oberon took hold of her, refusing to allow her to back away. Now that he wasn’t in pain, he was going to savor this. He’d fought his attraction to her, afraid she’d turn out just like Titannia.

She’d proven she wasn’t anything like his faithless ex. Hell, she’d gone bravely into the water, terrified though she’d been, just to help him. He doubted that Titannia would have done the same, even when things had been good between them.

Cassie jolted under his touch, her lips just a breath away from his own. They gazed at one another, Cassie’s expression shocked, her hands gripping his arms almost to the point of pain. Her fingernails had turned into short, sharp claws, but even in her surprise Cassie didn’t break his skin.

Shock turned to longing as Oberon brushed their lips together. He wrapped his arms tightly around her waist, gliding his hands down her sides toward where her hips should be. The feel of her skin gradually becoming cool, supple scales was surprisingly erotic. When she closed her eyes and relaxed against him, allowing him to take her, to be the one guiding them…

Was there any better sensation than a woman’s surrender? Her trust humbled him when little else did. He’d done nothing to earn this from her, yet she granted him the right to hold her, to protect her. He could sense it in the way she gave herself up to him, the way she wrapped herself around him and let him hold her weight. She let him guide them, the kiss slow and sweet as the desire between them built into a bonfire. Her taste filled his senses, burrowed into him until nothing else mattered. Not memories, not crowns, not even treacherous exes. There was nothing but the warm, willing sea nymph in his arms driving him out of his mind.

When he finally pulled his mouth from hers his only thought was how he could take her, make her his so that nothing could take her from his side.

Cassie licked her lips, her eyes still closed, her arms still wrapped tightly around his neck. They were so close he could see the tiny scales on the bridge of her nose, the way they branched out on her forehead like pearl dust. Her eyes finally opened.

They gazed at one another, and he found himself stunned at the sorrow that slowly drove the need from her expression. Cassie loosed her grip on his neck, carefully pulling free of his hold. He wanted desperately to ask her what was wrong, why she’d pulled away, but he had no breath to speak, no way to tell her the last thing he wanted was to be free from her. She caressed his cheek with a look that was remarkably like a good-bye.

Before he could do more than reach for her, Cassie began to sing, and any thought of holding her was driven from his mind as he was bowled over by the savage wave of his life.