She blushed. “Well, it felt fitting.”
“And where’s our Sabrina?” I asked, scanning the room.
“Probably bickering with Ezra again,” she said, rolling her eyes.
Rina and Ezra seemed to be locked in some sort of weird mortal combat. I wondered when the two of them would break the tension. She’d joked about me and Barrett when we first met, but I was pretty sure there was something going on between her and the blond vampire.
“What about you and the ghoul?” I asked, nudging her side.
She blushed. “Cassius? It’s not… We’re not…” She looked away. “Remember the guy I dated in college?”
I frowned. “I thought he was human.”
“Well, he was. Is. I think.” Wendy ran her fingers through the side of her hair. “But his older brother…”
Oh.Now I understood her reaction.“He’s your ex’sbrother? And you had no idea what he was?”
She shook her head. “You know how it is. Using our powers is forbidden outside of Pleasant Grove’s barriers. I didn’t…” Her eyes grew distant. “Whether it was a glamour, or something happened, I don’t know. But I haven’t seen him in years. Until I saw him at Willow’s house, I thought he wasdead.”
“Wends…” I squeezed her shoulder.
“It’s fine,” she insisted. “It’s all in the past.”
I gave her a small smile. “If you say so.” Though it sounded like there was a lot of unresolved feelings there. Whether they had to do with her ex-boyfriend—or his brooding, white haired older brother, I wasn’t sure.
Barrett came back to my side, sliding an orange mug into my hands. It smelled like one of Willow’s brews of apple cider, topped with… I sniffed the cup. “Whiskey?”
He hummed against my hair as I took a sip, letting the liquid warm me from the inside out. It made me feel loose and bubbly, and I couldn’t help the overwhelming feeling of happiness that came over me.I leaned my head against my mate’s shoulder as we visited with some of the other witches at the party.
I noticed Willow across the room—she was dressed like a candy corn princess, her puffy tulle skirt almost distracting from her belly, and I almost giggled, seeing Damien looking so grumpy yet besotted with his pregnant wife. I could almost picture Barrett and I like that, and his answering grumble of satisfaction in his chest told me everything I needed to know.
Spinning around, I wrapped my arms around his neck, staring up at his amber eyes, knowing his gaze said everything and nothing at the same time. Standing on my tiptoes—and grateful for the extra few inches my heeled boots gave me—I gave him a soft kiss. He caught my lower lip with his teeth, letting them rake against my skin before dropping another peck on my lips.
I love you,I told him, resting my forehead against his.
Barrett rubbed his nose over mine, shutting his eyes.I love you, mate.
“Look who came for a visit,” Willow announced excitedly as she waddled back into the room, distracting me from my mate.
Luna had a baby strapped to her chest—as did Zain, looking protective and yet smug with one hand resting on his wife’s back. “We thought the twins might as well have their first outing,” she said, rubbing slow circles on the baby’s bottom. Her blonde hair was braided down her back, and she was wearing a light lavender dress, a crescent moon shaped circlet resting on her forehead. She looked every bit the queen I knew she was—ethereal and almost glowing.
“Against my better wishes,” Zain muttered, looking down at the twin strapped to his chest. The blonde haired baby holding on to his finger, making cooing sounds.
“It’s not fair thatyougot to come for a visit without me,” Luna pouted. “And I was tired of being cooped up in the palace.”
Damien chuckled as Zain whispered something in his wife’s ear.
“That’s about to be you, you know,” Barrett said to Damien, who glared at my mate. “Wrapped around your wife’s finger.”
“I’m not sure you should be talking, B,” Ezra said dryly. “Eryne practically has you on a leash.”
I blushed, but Barrett sent me a heated glance.He’s not wrong,he murmured into my mind.You can gladly put a leash on me, Sugar.
“This is Orion,” Luna was saying, gesturing the dark haired baby she was wearing. “And that’s Raelynn. Rion and Rae for short.”
Zain wrapped his arm around his wife, and she leaned against him, like he was supporting her weight. Keeping them both afloat. Their little family made warmth burst through my chest.
“I have a surprise for you,” Barrett whispered in my ear awhile later, after we’d all had a chance to meet the twins and fawn all over them.
