“Good point,” Jen said. “For some reason, she’s finally latching on correctly, and it no longer makes me want to cut off my girls. But we’ll hold off on any more boob biters.”
Peri gave herself a mental pat on the back as she saw her magic had worked. Their memories of the traumatic events had been removed and replaced with vague blanks, which would naturally be filled in with normal activities. Jen didn’t remember Kimily’s consultation, and since Thia was nursing better, the new mother just assumed Thia had learned it on her own. Some might think it cruel or wrong of her to take away their memories without their knowledge or consent, and maybe it was, but Peri felt as though she was doing them a kindness to not have the guilt, fear, and painful memories of Thia being stolen. She didn’t want Jen’s first week as a mother tainted by something that could have been prevented if she’d not brought Kimily to their home. She would never tell them what she’d done, and the only other person who would know the truth was Alina.
“I need to speak with you before you retire,” Peri told the alpha female.
Alina gave her a knowing look and nodded. She walked over to Decebel and leaned down, pressing a kiss to Thia’s forehead, and Peri admired the strong woman for keeping her emotions in check. It wouldn’t make sense to the others if Alina burst into tears over the joy of Thia being back home safe and sound.
Peri looked at Jen and smiled. “You need to get some much-needed sleep. You’re getting dark bags under your eyes.” Her comment would ensure Jen did indeed get the rest she needed because the girl was too vain to have bags under her eyes.
“Thanks, Peri, you’re so good for my self-esteem,” Jen said dryly.
“I’m your friend, Jen. It’s not my job to be good for your self-esteem. It’s my job to make sure you don’t turn into an ugly, overweight, bitter woman with man issues.”
“What?” Jen asked as she frowned.
“Forget it. I was confusing reality with a book I’m reading. Alina, I’ll meet you in a bit.”
Alina was pouring a glass of milk when Peri appeared in the dark kitchen. “Get everything settled?” the alpha female asked as she turned to look at the high fae.
“They’re all where they’re supposed to be, and their brains aren’t mush, so that’s something,” Peri said as she leaned against the counter.
“Why did you take their memories?” Alina asked.
“The biggest reason was simply selfish. I did not want to listen to Jen whine for the next two hundred years about how we let her baby get turned blue or how her best friends kidnapped her only to have their mates kidnap her from them. That crap was already old the minute Thia was safe.”
Alina laughed. “She does have a tendency to become a dog with a bone. But I imagine you have a better reason than that.”
Peri’s face sobered as she continued. “I took their memories because I didn’t want there to be any guilt or hard feelings. Thia’s safe and healthy. Sally and Jacque would have let the whole thing fester inside until it made them sick, and Decebel would have refused to trust anyone for the rest of his existence. Jen would forever live with the memories of her first week as a mother as being crazy and then scared to death because her three-day-old infant was kidnapped. Sometimes the memories of an experience cause more harm than the actual experience. I could prevent all of that, so I did.”
“Why didn’t you remove it from my memory?”
“We’ve been friends for a very long time, Alina. We’ve been through so many joyous and difficult things. You know the fae rarely form close bonds, even with one another. You and Vasile are the closest thing I’ve had to family and even more so now that I’m practically your sister-in-law. I knew I could count on you to remind me I can’t just take away memories because people get on my nerves. I’m humble enough to know I need someone to hold me accountable. If no one knew when I altered things like this, I might begin to use my power without thought or consequences. And you have the amazing ability to see past faults and mistakes to a person’s heart. I knew you would be able to remember without passing judgement on anyone.”
Alina nodded. “I’m honored you have chosen me as your confidant in this, Perizada. And I agree this ordeal is better left forgotten.”
Peri nodded. “Goodnight, Alpha. Good luck keeping your wolves in line.”
Alina smiled. “And good luck to you, Peri, with your own wolf. He’s related to my husband, so I can honestly say I’m going to enjoy watching your mating dance.”
“And to think, I was beginning to like you.” Peri grumbled. “Now I have to add you to the turd list.”
Alina stood a while longer in the dark kitchen after Peri had flashed from the room. Lucian was going to give the high fae a run for her money when it came to stubbornness. Peri had met her match, and she didn’t even realize it yet.
Chapter Thirteen
“It’s important to remember that whatever difficult thing you might be dealing with, it won’t last forever. It might last longer than you think you can handle, but it will eventually pass. In the midst of that difficulty, it’s so hard to see that truth. That’s why it’s vital that we have people around us who love us. A pack, if you will, that will remind you this too shall pass.” ~ Jen
Postpartum Day Eleven.
Jen stared up at the ceiling as she lay reclined on the couch in the library. Sally and Jacque were both plopped down in their own spots reading something mindless.
“This was supposed to be a girls’ night, you nerds.” Jen huffed. “Not a stick-your-nose-in-a-book-and-live-vicariously-through-characters night.”
“Here’s a novel idea, pun intended. Pick up a book and read it. Then you’ll be a part of our nerdom,” Jacque said as she turned the page in her book.
“I’ve read all the books in here.”
“No,” Sally said shaking her head. “You’ve read all the romance books. There’s a ton of other books that you haven’t even glanced at.”
“Not true,” Jen argued. “I had to have glanced at them in order to check and see if they were romance books.”
“You don’t need to read any of those books anyway. When you do, you get all hot and bothered. Then, you’re all over your mate like a rabbit in heat, and that does not need to happen right now. We don’t need another baby popping out of you any time in the near future,” Jacque said. “You’re finally back to normal and out of your baby funk.”
“News flash, Red. It doesn’t take a romance novel to get me all hot, bothered, and rabbit-like when Dec is around.”
“Can we please refrain from talking about your love life and rabbits?” Sally asked.
“I’ll only stop talking about it if you two put down your books and pay attention to me,” Jen said, smiling innocently at her two best friends.
Sally and Jacque grumbled at the same time as they closed their books.
“Now what?” Jacque asked.
“Now we brush each other’s hair and paint each other’s toenails.”
“We’ve never done those things on girls’ night before,” Sally pointed out.
“There’s a first time for everything, Sally dear,” Jen said.
“How about we don’t but say we did and then drink hot chocolate,” Jacque suggested.
“We could go to the bar,” Jen offered. “Didn’t you say Costin was working tonight?”
Sally nodded. “He is.”
“Perfect!” Jen smiled. “That means we have a chaperone so nobody—Fane and Decebel—can complain that we weren’t protected. I need to get my shimmy on. It’s been too long since I’ve done a good striptease.”
Jacque laughed. “You really must be past the postpartum depression if you’re ready to start stripping again.”
“I’m totally over it. It’s weird. I woke up this morning, and it was like a fog had been lifted off my brain. Everything I had been feeling just seems ridiculous now,” Jen admitted.
“Well, if we’re doing this, let’s go,” Sally said as she stood up. “Besides, we
haven’t seen Jen’s boobs in a non-dairy way in a long time.”
Jacque whooped. “We can totally taunt Decebel with the fact that we saw the girls without a kid attached to them.”
Jen got up and went to the door as she shook her head at her two best friends. “And you guys call me the freak? It should totally wig me out that y’all are excited about me strip dancing.”
“We’re only excited because we’ll get an even better show when your mate finds out,” Sally said.
“We need to remember the popcorn, Sal,” Jacque said as they followed Jen from the room and out the front door. “Watching them yell at each other is just better when there’s buttery goodness involved.”
“Agreed,” Sally said, giving Jacque a high five.
“Would you two quit acting like dumb butts and get your game faces on,” Jen said, glancing at them over her shoulder.
“We’re going to a bar, not a freaking football game,” Jacque pointed out.
“There will be a limited amount of time to play once Costin texts my mate, and we know he will. So we need a plan,” said Jen.
“You mean we need a plan to get you up on a table and shaking your butt as quickly as possible?” Sally asked.
“Exactly,” Jen said, clapping her hands together. “We get in, we dance, we get out.”
“She’s doing the special ops thing again. She really must be feeling better,” Jacque said.
“What song do you want to start with?” Sally asked. “I’ll have it pulled up on my phone so I can hook it up to the speakers as soon as we walk in.”
“That’s what I like to see, someone taking initiative. You see that, Jacque,” Jen said. “You need to have that same attitude. Sally is totally making you look like a dud friend.”
“And by the look on my face, I’m sure you can tell I’m torn up about it, really I am,” Jacque said dryly.
“You’re killing me, Red. Absolutely killing me.”
They walked into the bar, and Sally went straight to the other side of the counter where the speaker cable was located.
Jen hopped up onto the bar, her wolf feeling frisky and ready to play after having to endure her human’s depression for the past two weeks. She looked around the room and smiled when she saw how many people were there. It was a busy night for dimple boy.
As soon as the music started, Jen’s body latched on to the beat and began moving of its own accord. She grinned to herself as a hip-hop artist began singing about single ladies because she knew the song was going to irritate the crap out of her mate when he arrived. And he would be arriving soon, of that she had no doubt. He’d probably drop Thia off with Alina, though, so she had a little time.
Sally and Jacque both took a seat at one of the only empty tables about twenty feet from the bar and smiled up at her. Sally’s eyes widened when Costin jumped up on the bar a few feet down from Jen and started to dance, too. And holy batman could he dance.
“If I’d known you could move your body like that I might have picked you over Decebel,” Jen shouted so he could hear her across the distance and over the music.
Costin flashed his dimples at her as he pulled his shirt over his head and then swung it around like a lasso and looked at his mate with big dimples showing and gave Sally a wink. Jen laughed and then removed her own shirt. She had a tank on underneath which made the whole place groan when they realized they weren’t actually going to see the goods. She and Costin swung their shirts like helicopter blades as they each danced on opposite sides of the bar.
Jen kicked off her boots next, and Costin let fly his shoes, as well. Sally’s face was as red as a tomato as she watched her mate
“I think you’re going to have to close early tonight, Dimples,” Jen hollered. “Your mate is looking like she wants to help remove the rest of your clothing.”
Costin looked over at Sally and blew her a kiss. “Definitely closing early,” he hollered back.
Jen was just getting ready to pull her shirt back over her head when the door to the bar slammed open hard enough to cause a loud bang. All eyes shifted from Costin and Jen to the pissed-off werewolf staring daggers at her.
Jeez, it felt good to Jen to be back to her old self and no longer wallowing in the swamp of after-pregnancy depression.
As her mate stalked toward her, his nostrils flared, and his jaw clenched tightly. She winked at him as she shook her hips provocatively, earning a cheer from the male patrons.
“Stop shaking your body like that, Jennifer. I don’t want to have to kill every male in here,” he growled into her mind.
“Feeling a little grumpy, B?”
He didn’t answer. As he reached for her, she tried to back away from him, but he was too fast. He wrapped his arm around her calves and threw her over his shoulder. The men were booing, and Sally and Jacque were laughing. Traitors.
“I leave you alone for one night and this is what happens,” Decebel said through their bond as he carried her out the door.
“Do not blame it on me that I went out for a night on the bar. You are the one who wanted some quiet time. Going on and on about how sacred and precious any amount of quiet time had become to you,” Jen reminded him.
“Just because I say I want some quiet time doesn’t mean I don’t want you with me, baby. We can have quiet time together.” He plopped her down on the ground beside their car.
“That’s called sleeping, Decebel. I wasn’t in the mood to sleep tonight.” Jen growled as he opened the door to the vehicle and sat her inside.
Decebel leaned over her and buckled her seat belt. Then he pressed a kiss to her forehead. “We will go home and you will dance for me, seeing as you want to take your clothes off so badly. Then I will wear you out so that you can sleep.”
“What about your so-called sacred silence?” she asked, narrowing her eyes at him.
A wicked smile quirked up one side of Decebel’s lips. “Did I forget to mention that I’m going to gag you before you start dancing?”
“It should be disturbing that you just turned me on,” she muttered as he pushed her door closed.
When he climbed into the driver’s seat, he just shrugged. “A little kink with our loving isn’t going to hurt anyone.”
Jen bit her bottom lip as she smiled at her mate. “It had better, at least a little.”
Decebel growled. “Not going to lie, Jennifer. It’s good to have you back. Alina and Vasile are babysitting Thia. So, I have you to myself for the rest of the night.”
“Sounds promising,” she cooed. “Throw in some handcuffs with your gag, and I’ll make all your dreams come true.”
“You’ve already done that, baby. How about we just make new dreams tonight,” Decebel said as he glanced at her from the corner of his eye.
Jen took a deep breath and let it out as she considered how difficult the past week and a half had been. Nothing she’d read in the books had prepared her for having a newborn and dealing with the hormonal imbalances that would come after giving birth. She reached over and took Decebel’s hand, needing to touch the man who had stuck with her through all her ups and downs. They’d survived so much together, and they would survive much more before their lives were done.
In the dark of their bedroom late that night, in the silence that wrapped them up, she and her mate whispered their new dreams for the life they wanted to give their daughter. After, of course, they broke in a new pair of handcuffs and gag. Priorities people. Priorities.
The End
Acknowledgments
As usual, there are so many people to thank when it comes to the journey of writing a novel. It takes more than just an author to achieve such an endeavor. First and foremost I thank my Lord and Savior. He is the ultimate creator, the ultimate being with incredible imagination and I am daily in awe of the world he fashioned together for me to live in. Thank you to my husband, my love and my best friend all rolled into one. I couldn’t do this without him. Thank you to Jessica for your unending humor and willingness to de
lve into the scary place that is my mind. Thank you for your friendship. Thank you to Candace, after all these years you are still a huge part of my writing process and I love you. Thank you to Jamie, you are a source of encouragement and joy. God brought you into my life and has continued to use you as a positive influence. You have also made me a better writer and for that I am so very thankful. Thank you to my readers. Without you all I’d still be a nurse while writing part time but because of your support and faithfulness to my books I get to do what I love full time and I am incredibly grateful. There really is no way for me to show my thanks.
About the Author
Quinn Loftis is a multi-award winning author of 20 novels, including the USA Today Bestseller, Fate and Fury. Once upon a time, she was a nurse, but God had other things in store for her. In 2011 Quinn published her first novel, Prince of Wolves, and the rest, as they say, is history. She gives all glory to God for her success because He is the one who made her. She is blessed to be married to her best friend for over 17 years and they have three boys, two dogs, and a cat that wants to take over the world.
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Quinn’s Bookshelf
More Titles by Quinn Loftis
www.quinnloftisbooks.com
The Grey Wolves Series:
Prince of Wolves
Blood Rites
Just One Drop
Out of the Dark
Beyond the Veil
Fate and Fury
Sacrifice of Love
Luna of Mine
Piercing Silence (Novella)
Den of Sorrows