Besides, even if the witch hadn’t burned up with Uldred in the fire, they now knew how to enchant the entrance to any den, the same way they did the temples, and they would simply disappear. No human would ever know they were there. Only wulver eyes would be able to see them, and only when they wanted to be seen.
They were quiet for a moment and then Bridget laughed. “Wolf packs. Raghnall loves his word play.”
“Aye, t’old codger.” Griff grunted, not sounding anywhere near as amused as she was.
Griff had talked overlong about the lost wolf packs, had set out to find them, had asked the old mage about them, when all along, it was wolf pax. It wasn’t even wolf pact, if you traced the line far back enough. Raghnall had gleefully told them that there had been many translations of the prophecy over the years since the Latin translation that brought together the rest during the Roman reign of Constantine.
Raghnall had relayed that even the “wolf pact” they lived under was once known as the Wolf Pax, which translated to the Wolf Peace. Translation and time turned it from a time of peace to a treaty to prevent war. A subtle difference, mayhaps, but a big one.
The lost packs Griff had been looking for was really “the wolf pax.” The peace the wulvers would live under, once the prophecy was fulfilled.
“D’ye wanna be more involved in plannin’ t’wedding, then?” Griff asked. “Is that what keeps y’up a’nigh’?”
“Nay.” Bridget snorted. “I’m more interested in trainin’ than wearin’ a dress. Besides, it brings all t’women together and gives ’em somethin’ else t’do besides cook.”
“Aleesa and Kirstin seem t’be gettin’ along well,” Griff said softly, treading carefully.
She knew it might seem like a sore spot, her adopted mother reuniting with her blood-born daughter, but Bridget didn’t begrudge them any of the time they spent, the things they now shared together. She was happy for them both. And that Kirstin’s son, Rory, was back to his old wulver self, all healed—at least, physically. And Aleesa was getting to know her grandson, and her son-in-law, The MacFalon, as well as her daughter.
“Aye, I’m glad,” she said, truthfully. “Aleesa’s been so busy teachin’ Sibyl how t’be temple priestess, she’s spreadin’ herself thin. But I think she loves havin’ everyone around, after being alone s’long.”
“I’m still reelin’ over that.” Griff sighed.
Bridget put a hand over his on her hip. “I know y’are… but doesn’t it seem fittin’, somehow, that Raife and Sibyl will stay here in the temple as the new guardian and priestess?”
“I s’pose.” Griff sounded doubtful.
“They were both called t’do it,” she reminded him. Griff had come a long way when it came to believing in things like magic and prophecies and one true mates—but the idea of being “called” into service in the temple was still a stretch for him. “And we can come visit. We will, all t’time.”
“Aye,” he agreed. “And I’m ready t’lead the pack. I think it’s one of the real reasons they decided t’stay here. So there’d be no conflict…”
“They love ye,” she reminded him. “And they know tis time.”
“When does Raghnall get back?” he wondered aloud, changing the subject.
“Before t’weddin’, I hope.” She smiled to herself. “He’ll be the closest thing to a grandfather t’bairn’ll have. At least on m’side.”
She smiled, remembering that day when Raghnall had sat her down, while Griff slept off the poison, and told her how he’d found her, abandoned, at the door of the temple on the Isle of the Dragon. It had been the one time Aleesa and Alaric had met Raghnall—when he brought her to them to raise. He said he knew she was part of the prophecy, somehow. That she was fated to be trained as the temple guardian and priestess on Skara Brae.
Bridget still didn’t know who her parents were—but Aleesa and Alaric were wulver, like she was now. They loved her, had raised her—and she didn’t mind anymore that she didn’t know her parentage. Besides, when she’d asked Raghnall about them before he left on his journey to meet up with the Dragon and the Lady, he’d smiled and said, cryptically, “There is always more to the story, m’dear.”
So mayhaps, someday, she would know.
“The… what?” Griff sat up on his elbow, staring down at her. “What did y’say?”
“Hm?” Bridget turned her head to look at him, feeling warm and sleepy from her milk.
“Did ye say… bairn?”
Bridget stopped breathing. “Did I?”
“Are ye wit’ chil’, lass?” Griff’s eyes glowed red in the firelight. She loved when they did that.
“Aye,” she breathed, biting her lip. “I was goin’ t’wait after t’wedding to announce it but…”
“When were ye gonna tell me?” he growled, turning her toward him and putting a hand over her lower belly. It was slightly swollen, but she’d made the excuse that she was getting fat on all the cooking the wulver women did, and Griff hadn’t questioned her.
“Now.” She grinned, watching him pull the covers back and dip his head so he could kiss her navel.
“Asher,” he murmured, flicking his tongue over her skin. “Or Ardis, if tis a girl.”
“We could call him Arthur,” she suggested with a smile. “If tis a human boy.”
“But yer wulver now,” he reminded her. “T’will surely be a wulver.”
“I do’na know.” She shrugged. “Everythin’ has changed—but ye got me pregnant before I was wulver, y’ken?”
He chuckled. “Well, I s’pose it makes life interestin’. Donal and Kirstin are human parents who have a wulver child. We could be wulver parents who raise a human one.”
“But Kirstin can change again,” she reminded him. “All t’wulver women can change as they wish now.”
That had been the part of the prophecy no one had understood, or translated, or seen coming. The cure for the wulver woman’s curse had always lain with the dragon and the lady, with Asher and Ardis and their marriage. Somehow, Bridgit’s transformation from human to wulver had completed a circle that had changed every wulver woman’s curse of having to change, without warning, during her moon time, or during birth.
No wulver woman was a slave to her cycles anymore.
Darrow’s wife, Laina, whose cycles had long since stopped, but whose daughters’ were just beginning them, had wept like a child in his arms when they’d discovered this fact.
“Thank God fer that,” Griff agreed, resting his cheek on her belly and looking up at her, his eyes a soft, glowing red in the firelight. “I’m really goin’ t’be a father?”
“Aye.” Her fingers tangled in his long, dark hair. “Are ye happy ’bout it?”
“Ye make me t’happiest wulver alive, lass.” His hand moved up to cup her breast. “I ne’er would’ve b’lieved I could be s’happy in this or a thousand lifetimes.”
“So are ye ready to tell me ye b’lieve in magic?” she teased. “In destiny? In prophecies? In one true mates…?”
“Do’na rub it in.” He laughed, rolling his eyes. “Ye know I b’lieve… in us.”
“Aye.” She opened her arms and he went to her. It seemed that everything had worked the way it was supposed to after all. The prophecy was large, and they had played their parts, but according to the wulver—and human—women who read the text, it was still unfolding. Mayhaps it always would be, as Raghnall said, because everything was a circle that came around again.
But for now, all was as it should be.
At least, Bridget thought with a smile as Griff kissed his way over the swollen mound of her belly where little Ardis or Asher slept, dreamless…
Until the story continued…
The End
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THE BLOOD OF ANGELS
By Selena Kitt
Sam has an unusual interest in humans, and considering she's a fairy of fate whose profession it is to determine their futures, it's no wonder! But it isn't just karma she's curious about. Sam has what her fairy-pal, Alex, thinks is an inordinate and rather wanton interest in certain biological aspects of human behavior—most notably, s-e-x!
When Sam's job leads her into the path of a handsome man who rocks her world, Sam's interest becomes obsession. Alex reminds her fairies get one Christmas wish. Will Sam consider using hers to become human just to experience one night of bliss?
But things aren’t always what they seem. Zeph says he isn’t like most… humans… and when Sam discovers who, and what, he really is, she’s forced to make a choice that will transform her existence. Forever.
ABOUT SELENA KITT
Selena Kitt is a NEW YORK TIMES bestselling and award-winning author of erotic and romance fiction. She is one of the highest selling erotic writers in the business with over a million books sold!
Her writing embodies everything from the spicy to the scandalous, but watch out-this kitty also has sharp claws and her stories often include intriguing edges and twists that take readers to new, thought-provoking depths.
When she’s not pawing away at her keyboard, Selena runs an innovative publishing company (excessica.com) and bookstore (excitica.com), as well as two erotica and erotic romance promotion companies (excitesteam.com and excitespice.com).
Her books EcoErotica (2009), The Real Mother Goose (2010) and Heidi and the Kaiser (2011) were all Epic Award Finalists. Her only gay male romance, Second Chance, won the Epic Award in Erotica in 2011. Her story, Connections, was one of the runners-up for the 2006 Rauxa Prize, given annually to an erotic short story of “exceptional literary quality.”
She can be reached on her website at www.selenakitt.com
SELENA KITT’S OTHER WORKS
NOVELS
A Baumgartner Reunion
Babysitting the Baumgartners
Baumgartner Generations: Henry
Baumgartner Generations: Janie
Baumgartners Empty Nest
Bluebeard’s Wife
Forbidden Fruit
Hussy
Highland Wolf Pact
Highland Wolf Pact: Compromising Positions
Highland Wolf Pact: Blood Reign
Heidi and the Kaiser
Letters to the Baumgartners
Naughty Bits (Revised)
The Baumgartners Plus One
The Blood of Angels
The Kiss of Angels
The Real Mother Goose
The Song of Orpheus
The Surrender of Persephone
The Sybian Club
Under Mr. Nolan’s Bed (Revised)
Unfolding
Yank
SELENA KITT BOX SETS
The Baumgartner Box Set 1
The Baumgartner Box Set 2
Nolan Trilogy Box Set
Myths Behaving Badly Box Set
Menage Box Set
Taboo: The Collection Box Set
UNDER MR. NOLAN’S BED TRILOGY
Temptation
Confession
Grace
SHORT NOVELS
Blind Date
Taken (FREEBIE)
ANTHOLOGIES
Back to the Garden (Revised)
Baumgartner Shorts
Confessions
EcoErotica
Modern Wicked Fairy Tales: The Complete Collection
Quickies
Shivers
Tickled Pink
STORIES
A Baumgartner Christmas
A Baumgartner Valentine
A Modern Wicked Fairy Tale: Alice
A Modern Wicked Fairy Tale: Beauty
A Modern Wicked Fairy Tale: Bluebeard
A Modern Wicked Fairy Tale: Briar Rose
A Modern Wicked Fairy Tale: Goldilocks
A Modern Wicked Fairy Tale: Gretel
A Modern Wicked Fairy Tale: Pinocchio
A Modern Wicked Fairy Tale: Rapunzel
A Modern Wicked Fairy Tale: Red
A Modern Wicked Fairy Tale: Wendy
A Twisted Bard’s Tale (FREEBIE)
Advent Calendar
Backroads Cop
Behind in School
Camping Brats
Can’t Walk Away
Connections (FREEBIE)
Gingerbread Man
Girls Only: College Days
Girls Only: Girl Scout Trip
Girls Only: First Time
Girls Only: Moms’ Night Out
Girls Only: New Year’s Resolution
Girls Only: Pajama Party
Girls Only: Pool Party
Girls Only: Stay
Girls Only: Sybian Sorority
Girls Only: The Hairdresser
Heavenly Brats
His Shaved MILF
Little Brats:Anna
Little Brats: Becca
Little Brats: Clara
Little Brats: Christa
Little Brats: Darla
Little Brats: Eva
Little Brats: Fiona
Little Brats: Georgia
Little Brats: Hanna
Little Brats: India
Little Brats: Jenna
Little Brats: Kayla
Little Brats: Leila
Little Brats: Maya
Little Brats: Nina
Little Brats: Olivia
Little Brats: Paula
Little Brats: Qesa
Little Brats: Raina
Little Brats: Sara
Little Brats: Tina
Magical Moments
The Man of the House
Meet the Baumgartners
One Second Chance
Power Exchange
Power Play: Bailey and the Professor
Power Play: Donnie and the Maid
Power Play: Emily and the Priest
Power Play: Ivy and the Cop
Power Play: Jodie and the Billionaire
Power Play: Katie and the Dom
Power Play: Kelsey and the Executive
Pumpkin Eater
Sibling Lust: In the Barn (FREEBIE)
Stepbrother First Times: Baby Kisses
Stepbrother First Times: Baby Love
Stepbrother First Times: Baby’s Big Night
Stepbrother First Times: This Time, Baby
Stepbrother First Times: Welcome Home, Baby
Stepbrother Studs: Aaron
Stepbrother Studs: Brian
Stepbrother Studs: Cameron
Stepbrother Studs: Daren
Stepbrother Studs: Dustin
Stepbrother Studs: Evan
Stepbrother Studs: Finn
Stepbrother Studs: Gavin
Stepbrother Studs: Hayden
Stepbrother Studs: Ian
Stepbrother Studs: Jason
Stepbrother Studs: Kevin
Stepbrother Studs: Mason
Stepbrother Studs: Quinn
Stepbrother Studs: Ryan
Stepbrother Studs: Sean
Stepbrother Studs: Tristan
The Cougar and Her Cub
The Dirty Show
The Laundry Chute
The Nudist and His Princess
The Preacher and His Naughty Brat
The Ride
The Velvet Choker
Traveling Brats
AUDIO
A Baumgartner Reunion
A Different Angle
Advent Calendar
Alice
(Modern Wicked Fairy Tales)
Babysitting the Baumgartners
Back to the Garden (Revised)
Baumgartner Generations: Henry
Baumgartner Generations: Janie
Baumgartner Shorts
Beauty (Modern Wicked Fairy Tales)
Blind Date
Blood of Angels
Bluebeard’s Wife
Briar Rose (Modern Wicked Fairy Tales)
Confessions
EcoErotica
Forbidden Fruit
Gretel (Modern Wicked Fairy Tales)
Goldilocks (Modern Wicked Fairy Tales)
Heidi and the Kaiser
Highland Wolf Pact
Hunting Season (with Blake Crouch)
Hussy
Kiss of Angels
Letters to the Baumgartners
Little Brats: Anna
Little Brats: Becca
Little Brats: Christa
Little Brats: Clara
Little Brats: Darla
Little Brats: Tina
Modern Wicked Fairy Tales
Naughty Bits (Revised)
Power Play: Emily and the Priest
Power Play: Ivy and the Cop
Power Play: Katie and the Dom
Power Play: Kelsey and the Executive
Pumpkin Eater
Quickies
Rapunzel (Modern Wicked Fairy Tales)
Red (Modern Wicked Fairy Tales)
Second Chance
Shivers
Sibling Lust: Under the Stars
Starving Artist
Taboo: The Collection
Taken
The Baumgartners Plus One
The Flintstone Experiment
The Real Mother Goose
The Song of Orpheus
The Surrender of Persephone
The Sybian Club
The Velvet Choker
Under Mr. Nolan’s Bed (Revised)
Unfolding
Wendy (Modern Wicked Fairy Tales)
Yank
Audio Box Set (Under Mr. Nolan’s Bed)
Temptation
Confession
Grace
COMING SOON FROM SELENA KITT
Coming Clean
Modern Wicked Fairy Tales: Peter and the Wolf
Modern Wicked Fairy Tales: The Frog Prince
Modern Wicked Fairy Tales: Aladdin
Modern Wicked Fairy Tales: Pied Piper