by R. E. Butler
Callie and her mates went with them to the boarding house, where every adult was assembled in the backyard for the introduction. James and John were waiting in the kitchen when everyone came in. Owen introduced Hrixalda to their uncles.
“It’s nice to finally meet you,” James said, shaking her hand.
“Thank you,” she said. “You didn’t have to open your home to me after all that happened with the curse, so I appreciate it.”
“Why don’t we introduce you to the pride, and then we can all get to know each other,” John said.
“I’d love that.”
The goddess smiled at Ben and his family and then followed James and John into the backyard.
“I need to call my mom,” Hope said.
“Of course,” Ben said.
Hope pulled her phone from her pocket and toyed with it for a few moments. “I don’t know if I should tell her I almost died.”
“But you didn’t actually die,” Nathan said. “Why wouldn’t you tell her?”
“Because she didn’t really understand why I was so intent on breaking the curse, and if she found out that I almost skipped all the way to the afterlife, she’d probably want to kill me.”
Ben chuckled and tucked a lock of Hope’s silky hair behind her ear. “I think you should tell her. It would be better for her to hear it from you than learn about it from someone else and find out you hid things from her. Plus, you have really great news to share.”
“What great news?” Grant asked as he, Sam, and Aaron walked into the kitchen from the backyard.
“Should I?” Owen asked.
“Definitely,” Hope said. She leaned against Ben, and he put his arm around her and kissed her temple.
“Hope’s pregnant,” Owen said. “With twins.”
Their parents said nothing for a minute, and then all three broke into a cheer. Sam hugged Hope, then Ben and his brothers, and their fathers congratulated them on the good news.
“How far along?” Sam asked.
“A month,” Hope told her.
“Oh, I can’t believe I’ll be a grandma in eight months, this is so awesome!”
“How did you find out?” Aaron asked.
Nathan explained what had happened in the fae realm.
Sam shook her head. “That’s the most incredible thing I’ve ever heard. Your cat almost killed you to save the babies.”
“The goddess wasn’t kidding when she said she’d made the females to be protective of their young. I don’t think my cat really understood that protecting the babies meant I’d die; she just acted on instinct.” Hope sighed and leaned a little more against Ben.
“I think we should put our sweetheart to bed,” he said.
“Yeah, nearly dying will take a lot out of a person,” Hope said, her voice tinged with humor.
“We’ll let you tell the pride the wonderful news,” Aaron said. “Until then we’ll keep it to ourselves.”
“Thanks,” Ben said.
He slipped from Hope’s side and fixed a tray of light snacks and drinks. After saying goodbye to his parents, he followed his brothers and mate up the stairs to their bedroom.
Hope called her parents and told them what had happened on the trip to the fae realm, her near-death experience, the healing, and the news of the twins. Ben could hear that her parents were overjoyed about the babies, and grateful for all she’d done to try to help the females.
“I promise I won’t put myself in mortal danger like that again,” Hope said. “I love you guys so much. Give Faith a hug for me.”
He could hear her parents respond with love and excitement, promising to come for a visit. She ended the call and put her phone on the nightstand, stripping out of her clothes and yawning.
“I feel a little weird just leaving the pride to deal with Hrixalda, but I can hardly keep my eyes open.”
“It’s okay,” Owen said. He pulled the covers back for Hope. “She’s got plenty of people to talk to while you rest. Your body went through a lot of trauma from the creature’s poison, not to mention the stress leading up to actually confronting her in the first place.”
“I’m glad it’s over,” Hope said. She settled on the bed, looked at the tray and popped a few blueberries in her mouth. Then she declared that she wasn’t really hungry, just tired. “I wonder what will happen when she breaks the curse?”
“A lot of confused females,” Nathan said.
“We’ll talk to the King Pride about what’s going to happen. The females might try to come home to King and connect with their families; it’s really hard to say,” Ben said.
Hope snuggled down into the bed, and Ben stripped to his boxers and joined her. Owen settled on her other side, and Nathan left to check in with the goddess and pride for a few minutes before returning and joining them in bed. Hope fell asleep almost immediately, with one hand resting on her abdomen.
“I can’t believe we’re going to be dads in less than a year,” Nathan whispered.
“Our kids are going to grow up surrounded by love and family,” Owen said.
“I can’t imagine anything better,” Ben said. He closed his eyes, falling asleep as he thought about the little ones who were going to be coming into their lives. He was certain the time would fly, and before long they’d be holding their twins.
He couldn’t wait.
Chapter Sixteen
Hrixalda ducked and let out a little scream as an arrow seemed to speed right at her. Sam, who was seated next to her, patted her hand.
“It’s not real,” Sam whispered with a chuckle.
Hrixalda sat up and took off the 3D glasses, then looked up at the fuzzy screen. “It seemed like it.”
She put the glasses on and returned her attention to the movie, where a group of warrior females were battling males. It amused her that the females were wearing tight corsets and minuscule skirts while the males were in full battle armor. She would wager that a human male had decided on the outfits for the actors.
Not that it mattered, however. The females were – as Callie’s daughter Sophie said – kicking butt and taking names.
Whatever that meant.
Hrixalda had never seen a movie before. At first it had seemed awful. The sounds were too loud. The room too dark. The images on the screen were imposing. But then someone handed her a paper tub of something buttery and heavenly.
‘Popcorn,’ Sam had called it.
It was Hrixalda’s new favorite thing.
With the popcorn firmly in her lap, she’d settled into the comfortable seat to watch the three-dimensional movie come to life. They were having a girls’ day, which had started with ‘manis and pedis’ at a local spa and something called ‘iced lattes,’ which had tasted like candy. Then lunch at a place called Cheri’s, where a boisterous human female brought Hrixalda her house specialty: loaf made of meat, with whipped root vegetables. The whole plate had been smothered in a delicious brown sauce. She’d liked it so much she hugged Cheri, who gave her a dessert called apple dumplings, which had topped her list of favorite foods.
Until the popcorn, of course.
After the movie, the girls’ day was going to continue with a trip to a mall and then a cookout at the large home where the pride lived.
It had been a spectacular day.
She’d been with the pride for four days now. It had been strange being among mortals in the human realm. She still had her powers, but she hadn’t needed to use any, aside from helping one of the young lions heal a cut from a fall off something called a bicycle.
The pride had really opened their arms and hearts to her, and she was humbled by their genuine affection. The house was filled to the brim with lions of all ages, from the newest additions to the older males and females who led the pride. There was so much love here.
Hrixalda didn’t have a close relationship with her parents. She and her brother were closer, but she’d always looked on him as more of an annoyance than anything. Now, though, she wanted a better relationship w
ith him.
As much as the pride had shared their lives with her, she’d shared with them. They hadn’t even known that gods and goddesses were real until the panther clan told them the truth of her people’s realm. It had been her pleasure to tell them about the creation of their kind and other shifters. Now that she’d visited with the lions, she wanted to spend time with other shifters, too.
If they’d have her.
When the movie was finished and the popcorn tub empty and licked clean, she sat in the passenger seat of a big vehicle, listening to the happy chatter of the pride females. By the time they returned to the pride house, she’d come away from the mall with stars in her eyes and arms full of bags.
Then they sat around a bonfire in the backyard while the males cooked and talked about their day. The sweetest thing for Hrixalda was when Melody’s youngest daughter climbed into her lap and fell asleep, listening to the pride share stories of their youth. As the little girl snuggled in her arms, she realized how sweet the people she’d created were, all the way to the center of their being. She was fortunate to have the time to spend with them.
* * *
Hope was sad to say goodbye to Hrixalda. The goddess had spent the last seven days with the pride at the boarding house, as well as with those who lived on Rhett and Lisa’s farm, getting to know them and their children. The pride had accepted her immediately, which Hope had known would be the case. The lions were nothing if not forgiving.
Hrixalda walked around the front yard, hugging every female and child, and shaking the hands of the males. The last ones she spoke to were Hope and Treasure, who stood together under one of the large trees.
The goddess was wearing casual, modern clothes: fashionably ripped jeggings, a flannel shirt over a dark pink tank, and ankle boots. Her golden hair was in a messy bun on top of her head, and her whole demeanor had changed. She no longer looked like a goddess waiting to be worshipped. She looked like a beautiful female who’d just been given the gift of friendship.
Hrixalda approached Hope and Treasure with a smile on her face, her cheeks wet with tears from saying goodbye.
She hugged Hope tightly, rocking back and forth a little. Then she pushed her gently to arm’s length and gave a bright smile. “I can’t thank you enough for what you did. You could’ve given up and let the other females flounder under the curse, but you didn’t. You called me on my behavior and forced me to really look at myself. I didn’t like what I saw, and I’m grateful for the path of personal growth you’ve set me on.”
Hope smiled. Her cat was purring in her mind, grateful for the goddess in more ways than one. “Thank you for saving my life.”
“You already thanked me,” she said. “And it was my duty and honor.”
She turned to Treasure and hugged her. “I know you protected yourself from the dragons with the spell to close yourself off from the realm, but I wanted to offer to let you back in the fae realm. I can make it so the dragons will never know you’re there, and the fae won’t be able to tell that you’re anything but fully fae.”
Treasure’s eyes widened, and she glanced at Hope. She shrugged at her bestie.
“It’s your life, T.”
“That’s helpful,” Treasure said with a roll of her eyes. Brian and Kevin joined them and offered words of encouragement, letting her know they supported her one way or the other. After a few moments, she shook her head. “You know what? I’m happy here. My mates are here, my family is here. There isn’t anything in the fae realm for me anymore. So thank you for the offer, but I’ll politically decline.”
Hrixalda tilted her head. “You’ll what now?”
Kevin smiled indulgently at his mate. “She means she’ll ‘politely’ decline.”
“That’s what I said.”
Hope stifled a chuckle, then looked at the goddess. “What’s going to happen now?”
“I’m going to break the curse, and then go to the females and explain what happened.”
“Can you find them?” Owen asked. “We’re not even sure where they all are.”
Hope nodded, chewing her bottom lip. That had crossed her mind as well, because the pride only knew the location of the females in Canada and Ohio. She didn’t know for sure, but she felt like there were probably small pockets of them in other places, too, who had just stayed under the radar. Because they had no emotional attachment to anyone, they’d never felt the need to let the males know where they were.
Hrixalda tapped her temple. “I can find them. Don’t worry.”
Hope hugged her again, her cat letting out a happy sigh. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Thank you for coming for me.” She stepped back, her gaze dropping to Hope’s abdomen. “Take good care of yourselves and those babies.” She pulled a small tan-colored pouch from her pocket and gave it to Hope.
She pulled the strings to open it and lifted out a gold bracelet stamped with symbols she didn’t recognize. Nathan fixed it on her right wrist, and she moved her hand back and forth, watching as the surface of the bracelet shone in the sunlight. “It’s lovely, thank you.”
Hrixalda covered the bracelet with both hands and spoke a few soft words. The bracelet warmed against her skin, and her cat let out a curious murmur. “The bracelet has been imbued with good luck. I wish you a long and happy life with your mates and children. You’re the way it should be: females and males finding each other, mating, and starting a family. Be well, Hope.”
Hope’s eyes stung with tears as she listened to the goddess break the curse. The sky darkened and lightning crackled, the ground trembling like an earthquake was rocking its core. Then the sun broke through the ominous clouds and a rainbow stretched across the sky. The earth stilled, and birds sang in the trees.
Hope dropped her gaze from the brilliant blue sky and noticed that the goddess was gone.
“That was the most amazing thing,” Sam said, brushing tears from her cheeks.
“I can feel it in my heart that the females are released from the curse,” Melody said. “They owe you a debt, Hope.”
“No,” Hope said, shaking her head. “It was the right thing to do, and I’m glad I was able to be part of it.”
James clapped his hands. “I think this calls for a celebration. Let’s have a party tonight – lots of great food, music, and a full-pride hunt.”
The pride members cheered, and Hope hugged her mates, leaning on Ben. “Sounds like fun.”
“It sure does,” he said.
“Even if I can’t shift because of the babies,” she said, “I can hang out with Treasure and the kids, and the others who don’t shift.”
“I can stay with you,” Ben offered.
“No, you should go hunt with your brothers and the pride. I’ll be fine. And waiting for you all when you’re finished.” She wiggled her brows, and all three of her mates purred simultaneously, which made her grin.
The pride dispersed after being assigned jobs to do for the party by James, John, and Rue. Hope and her mates headed to their home to check on the progress. According to the foreman, they were on track to be in the house before Thanksgiving. Hope stood in what would be the kitchen and looked around, envisioning the counters and appliances, and the specially made cabinet doors from Treasure, which would feature pretty designs made with her dragon-fire.
They walked past the workers, to the bedrooms.
“I think this one for the babies,” Owen said. Of the four bedrooms, two were at the back of the house, facing the road, the master faced the fields, and the final room faced Treasure’s home. She looked out the opening where the window would be and smiled at the view of Treasure’s house.
“I can see it,” Nathan said, walking to one of the walls. “Two cribs here, a couple of rocking chairs, a dresser.”
She loved seeing their eyes light up when they talked about the twins. “Why do we need more than one rocking chair?”
“You don’t think we’re just going to let you do all the work, do you?” Ben asked, arch
ing a brow.
“I hadn’t actually thought much into the future aside from them being born. It still feels really new and weird.” She placed her hand on her belly with a smile.
“You’ve got three willing husbands,” Owen pointed out. “We can’t wait for the babies, and we’ll be right there with you for everything.”
She let her mates envelop her in a three-way hug. She could hear their cats purring, and her cat purred in return. “I’m so lucky. I love you all.”
“We’re the lucky ones,” Nathan said, kissing her cheek. “You’re the best thing that ever happened to us.”
“Hear, hear,” Ben said.
Although she wanted to stand in their embrace forever, they had work to do. She had papers to grade, and they had lawns to tend to and a party to get ready for. It was hard to believe that a week ago she’d traveled to another realm to find a goddess, nearly died, and discovered she was pregnant. Her life had taken so many twists and turns, but she wouldn’t trade for anything what she had in her life right now: three sexy mates, two babies on the way, and all the love in the world.
* * *
Excitement filled Hope as she got ready for her date with Ben. She and her mates went out as a group often, but she cherished their individual dates, too, when she got a chance to spend time alone with one of her mates. When she’d mentioned it would be a good night for a private date, Ben had offered to take her out and plan something fun. She didn’t know what they were doing, but he’d told her to dress casually. She finished tying her canvas shoes and straightened, looking at herself in the mirror. She’d chosen a short olive-colored skirt and paired it with a black tee and a denim jacket. After twisting half her hair into a bun, she curled the rest and put on a bit of mascara and lip gloss.
