Page 69 of Tears of Revenge

“How about you share a secret? Then maybe I’ll reward you.” He didn’t wait for an answer. “I want to know if you kept anything that belonged to her.”

Troy nodded, so he reached into the bag and tossed him a few fries, which Troy inhaled.

“Where do you keep them?”

“Storage unit,” he croaked.

This time the prick got a single chicken nugget. “Does anyone know?”

“No.”

That got him a whole burger. “I want to know everything about it.”

After Troy had told them where it was and how to access it, he stood and dropped the bag in front of Troy.

“Pace yourself. Not sure when we’ll be able to find the time to return. Ava is quite attached to us, you know?”

Then he slammed the door shut and locked the bolts. Though Lysander didn’t say anything, Marcus could tell that he wasn’t amused.

Once they returned home, they found Avalon in Varos’s room, nose scrunched and focusing hard on his puzzle. He couldn’t help but laugh as he walked around the table and stood behind her. “I’ve lost another to this madness.”

“It’s actually quite relaxing.”

“I would call it frustrating, but let’s just agree to disagree.”

“Did you two have fun?”

“I think Lysander enjoyed himself more than I did.”

Avalon rested against his chest. “But I’m sure you enjoyed yourself more with Lysander than you would’ve puzzling.”

“Which is why I need to get you out into the garden again. These flowers won’t plant themselves.” He kissed her cheek, then tugged her to her feet. “When was the last time you fed?”

“Not sure.”

After a quick stop in the kitchen to get her a drink, he watched as she fed and inspected her new flowers. Lysander had found some to compliment the others, along with more rose bushes in various colours. While she spent the majority of the afternoon in the sun with Lysander—he seemed to have the greenest thumb—he and Varos sat back and watched. Other than the occasional opinion they were asked for, they were happy to let her have her quality time with Lysander.

Truthfully they hadn’t seen Lysander this happy in years. He was always stressed about one thing or another and often kept to himself. Yes, the three of them were close, but seeing him with Avalon was heartwarming. The beast lurking within wasn’t his fault, but that didn’t stop Lysander from being so hard on himself. Hiding away with that secret had taken a toll on the big bad wolf with a soft heart.

Once the last plant had found it’s spot, Avalon glanced down at herself. “I think I’m going to take a bath,” she giggled, trying and failing to wipe away some of the dirt covering her. “I think I’ve taken more in the last few days, than I have in my entire lifetime, but they’re more fun now that my skin won’t wrinkle.”

“I’m coming with,” Marcus announced, leaping to his feet. Then he paused, considering how that sounded. “Only if you’d like the company.”

Avalon sucked in her inner cheek, working it with her teeth. “Okay, but only because you asked so sweetly.”

Before he followed her to her bathroom, he stopped to warm another glass of blood. By the time he stepped into her bedroom, lavender-scented steam billowed out of the bathroom. While she rinsed off in the shower, he pulled a stool over to set her glass down. He stripped, then stepped into the shower with her, wrapping his arms around her and pressing a gentle kiss to her cheek. She leaned into him, smooth skin against his as the water prickled on his skin.

“You looked happy today,” he admonished

“I was.” She turned, nuzzling into his neck. “I still am.”

He marvelled into her touch for a moment longer and then kissed her hair. “Ready to soak?”

She nodded and he led her to the bath, letting her settle in the water between his legs. With her leaning against him and wrapped in his arms he relaxed and let his head rest against the rim of the tub. “I didn’t mean to be so demanding earlier.”

“But you corrected yourself. That makes me feel safe around you. Not only that you backtracked, but you let me know that the choice was mine and you wouldn’t have been upset if I told you no.”

His fingers traced lazy circles around her belly button as her words wrapped him in a cosy feeling. She felt safe with them, something she’d probably craved for a long time. “Please tell us if that ever changes.”

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