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“Don’t forget me,” Smoky whispered behind me.
“How could I, my dragon lord? Tear me down, make me whole again.”
And then, Smoky let out a groan as he, too, started to come. His ecstasy merged with my own, our passion reacting like a creature, sentient and vibrating. It exploded in a brilliant blast of light as we shared one incredible, shattering orgasm. With one last cry, I tumbled over the edge, sobbing uncontrollably, dragging both of them into that dark void where we had been bound together forever, three souls into one, connected on all levels, for all time.
We were up with the sun—figuratively speaking since the day was overcast and gray, like most Seattle days. I grabbed a quick shower while the boys dressed, Morio in black jeans and a green tank, Smoky in his usual white jeans and pale gray tee. As I toweled off and glanced out the window, the grass sparkled with dew and a light mist traveled along the ground. I hunted through my closet and found a burgundy velvet bustier and a spidersilk calf-length black skirt. Spidersilk was warmer than any Earthside weave and with a light capelet thrown over my shoulders, I’d be plenty warm.
We clattered down the stairs and into the kitchen. Delilah and Iris looked up from the table. Iris was reading the newspaper and Delilah was making notes on a steno pad. Menolly was, of course, asleep in her lair. A stack of pancakes sat on a plate, along with bacon and a bowl of mixed berries.
I headed over to the cupboard to grab three plates and stopped by Maggie’s playpen. She was sitting next to it, beating on one of the big stainless steel pots with a wooden spoon. As she looked up and laughed, her sharp little teeth gleamed. Her wings had grown about an inch over the past month and she wasn’t having such a hard time walking now, but she still tumbled over if the slightest thing threw her off balance. As she saw me, she dropped the spoon, unsteadily pushing to her feet.
“Camey! Camey!” She toddled toward me, arms out, eyes bright. I swept her up and nuzzled my face in her soft fur. A woodland gargoyle, she would age slower than we would. She had years of babyhood ahead of her still.
“Hey, pumpkin,” I whispered. “How’s my girl? How’s Maggie today?”
“’Kay,” she lisped, then looking over my shoulder, she said, “Moky! Orio!”
Smoky plucked her out of my arms and gave her a soft noogie on the head while Morio chucked her under the chin. They handed her to Delilah as we sat down at the table. I managed to snag a few pancakes and some bacon before the guys emptied the plates.
“Where are the demon twins this morning?” I asked, looking around for Rozurial and Vanzir. Iris had given them the nickname and it stuck. They hated it, but we teased them with it every chance we got.
“Out. They’re talking to Carter,” Iris said. “He’s been trying to pinpoint any sightings of Stacia for us.”
I stopped in mid-bite. The last thing I wanted to think about was the demon general sent to replace Karvanak. We’d had enough trouble getting rid of him. And Stacia—also known as the Bonecrusher—was somebody I really didn’t want to tangle with. We had to at some point but I was dreading the day.
Morio placed his hand on my shoulder as Smoky handed me the jug of maple syrup. “Eat,” the dragon said. “You need your strength.”
I glanced up at him, his silver hair tendriling around him like a cloud of smoke. “Yeah, I know,” I said with a smile I didn’t really feel. “Henry’s watching the store today. After breakfast Morio and I’d better head over to Harold’s place and clear out the goshanti devil. Smoky, Delilah, want to come with?”
Smoky shook his head. “If you need me, I’ll be there, of course, but I have some pressing business,” he said, looking a little distant. In fact, now that I thought about it, he’d been relatively quiet ever since we’d woken up.
“We can take care of it without you.” Morio glanced at the calendar. “The full moon is only a day or so away. We need to take care of this before then or the goshanti will use the power of it to lure more women into her trap. The devils can do that.”
“Not only that, but I’ll be useless when the Moon Mother rides high.” Every full moon both Delilah and I were off and running—she in her tabby form, and I, with the Moon Mother’s Hunt. The morning after wasn’t pretty for either of us. I glanced over at Delilah. “What about you?”
She looked up from her notes. “Sure thing. I haven’t got any appointments this morning. Say, remember that tomorrow’s the primary.”
“Will we know if Nerissa wins her council seat?”
“Nope, not till November,” she said.
“That’s right.” I nodded. “It’s not like we can vote. But for Menolly’s sake—and the Supe Community Council’s—I hope she wins by a landslide.”
Nerissa was Menolly’s girlfriend. As in lover. She was also one of the Rainier Puma Pride members. And Nerissa was running for city council, fully out of the closet as both a Were and bisexual.
“If she takes the election it could mean great strides for the Earthside Supes toward being accepted by the general populace.” Iris placed Maggie in her playpen for a nap and handed her a stuffed penguin. Maggie cuddled it and curled up under her blanket. Iris began to clear the table and load the dishwasher.
“Yeah, but you know that the Freedoms Angels and their Earthborn Brethren are going to stage a protest outside the polling places—” I stopped as the doorbell rang. “I’ll get it.”
I peeked out the door. Oh, hell. Morgaine, the Queen of Shadow and Dusk, was standing outside the door. She was the last person I felt like seeing. Person was a misnomer, actually. Morgaine was one of the three Earthside Fae Queens and she was bad news. She was also one of our long-lost ancestors—half-Fae, half-human like ourselves.
Long story short: I’d been responsible for helping the Earthside Courts of Fae rise again and while it had been part of my destiny, I wasn’t so sure it had been a good thing. But what was done was done. Instead of just the Seelie and Unseelie courts, there were now three—the Court of the Three Queens.
I opened the door and knelt into a deep curtsy. “Your Majesty, you honor us with—”
“Cut the crap, Camille, and let me in.” She pushed past me and sniffed the air. “Dallying in the kitchen as usual, I suspect?” Without being invited, she swept down the hall and into the kitchen. I heard Iris let out a quick retort before she caught herself and shut up.
As I hurried in behind Morgaine, I saw that Smoky was glaring at her. That he didn’t like the Fae Queen was an understatement. Morio stood tense and on guard. Delilah had dropped into an awkward curtsy, and Iris was looking put out, as if her territory had been invaded. And it had, when I thought about it. The kitchen now belonged to Iris.
