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“Happy?” I offered softly.
“Happy,” he agreed. His fingers slid into my hair, which was much thicker, softer, and shinier now that I wasn’t on death’s doorstep any longer.
I captured his hand, lifted it to my lips, and proceeded to kiss each of his fingertips before pressing my lips to the center of his palm and then lifting it to rest over my heart. “I love you, Laith,” I whispered. “You saved my life, in so many ways.”
“Yet you managed to save mine in even more,” my mate murmured back, pressing his lips to my temple before he slowly repeated the ceremony I had just performed. He claimed me, the same way I had claimed him, and it was fucking perfect.
“Tell me more of this restaurant idea,” Laith said, when our bodies were resting against one another and our palms still pressed to each other’s chests.
My lips curved upward in a smile.
Not long ago, I had been dying.
And now, I had never felt more alive.
Epilogue
Laith—years later
Espen stirredthe vegetables while Namir mixed a bottle for his newest baby, and Jesh scrubbed dirty dishes left behind by ravenous little fingers. Though the tiny curly-haired vixen in my youngest brother’s arms was gorgeous, my attention was fixed on the open window before me.
Vena, Akari, Diora, and Lavee were in my female’s garden. While Diora and Lavee were dancing with the many children the two of them had created, Akari was helping her son pull the weeds Vena had saved for him over the last few days. He loved gardening, and since Akari wasn’t yet ready to have another child, he was her sole focus.
My Lemay and I still didn’t feel ready to welcome a kid of our own, but I imagined the day would eventually come. Fae lived forever, after all.
“Staring at your female again, brother?” Namir grinned at me. “Or are we only seeing an illusion of you, while the two of you are really locked in your bedroom, enjoying naked time?”
Espen snorted, and Jesh grinned just as broadly as Namir did.
I had come clean about my magic some time after mine and Vena’s place in the city had felt settled. She had wanted me to, and I had wondered whether or not the admission would feel like a weight off of my shoulders.
It did, and though things had been rough at first, I was grateful to have trusted my female.
The woman was pretty much always right, so I probably should’ve trusted her sooner, but that was in the past.
And now, things were good. Better than good.
Life was peaceful and happy, which my mate liked to remind me was the ultimate combination. And I was glad for every fucking minute of it.
“This time, unfortunately, we’re here,” I drawled.
My gaze lifted back to the garden, and I frowned when I noticed that Vena was no longer within my line of sight.
Then a pair of slim, strong arms wrapped around me from behind, and squeezed.
I turned and captured her lips in my own. When I pulled away, she was smiling at me, her expression so fucking happy that it made my shoulders relax.
Seeing her that way always made things better.
Happiness was fucking stunning on my female; even more stunning than the rest of her emotions.
“Hey, Eiven. The nieces and nephews want you to put on a show again.” She tipped her head toward the window, a smile still playing on her lips.
“Better get moving then,” I murmured, taking her mouth in mine a second time.
“Still at it like the newly-mated,” Jesh grumbled.
“As if you and Lav aren’t just as bad,” my mate tossed back, her fingers smoothing over my chest before she flashed me one last smile and strode out of the kitchen.
I dried my hands on a towel and abandoned the half-cut vegetables on my countertop.
The food could wait.
My mate and family would always come first.
Fate had been kind to me even when I didn’t deserve it, and that, I would never forget.
