Page 50 of Cursed Wolfsbane

My chest aches as I think about how much Mama always dreamed of traveling more. She went to Paris once when she was a teen and wanted to take me some day. It feels wrong to be here without her.

I don’t have time to dwell on it because Saint leads us out of the portal room once the Wyldharts step through. The Wyldharts stalk through the cream and gold lobby on silent feet, and Saint strides purposely toward the reception desk.

Me on the other hand? I sound like a herd of rampaging chihuahuas with the squeaks my boots make on the super expensive marble floor. I can feel a blush creeping up my face, but I tip my chin up and pretend I’m not embarrassed as all get-out.

Along with a fountain, lush floral arrangements, and more cream and gold marble, the lobby has a large neoclassical mural behind the reception desk. It depicts a deity for each of the elements. Neptune for water, Ceres for earth, Vulcan for fire, Jupiter for air, Sol for the sun, and Luna for the moon. Since mages typically have an affinity for an element, mage establishments love having elemental art. This hotel is no different.

“Bonsoir, Monsieur McAlister,” the stately man at the desk greets Saint. The man looks like he’s in his fifties or sixties. He has a head of dark hair, a handlebar mustache, and friendly light brown eyes. With his three-piece suit complete with a pocket watch, he fits right in at this obviously super fancy hotel.

“Bonsoir, Monsieur Alfred,” Saint responds warmly. I’m a bit jealous of Saint’s perfect French accent. Even after years of learning French, I’m hopeless at speaking it. I can read French way better than I can speak it. While I know that’s due to my APD, it’s still frustrating. It’s hard to accept that there are certain things that I won’t ever be good at, no matter how much work I put in. My magic feels like one of those things right now, but I’m not going to give up.

Alfred types away at his computer for a moment before looking back up at Saint. “The penthouse is ready for you and your friends, Monsieur. If you need anything, ring the front desk and we will be happy to assist you.”

Saint flashes him a big smile, which the man returns. “Merci, Alfred. Au revoir.” With that, Saint leads us across the marble foyer to a bank of elevators. Even the elevator doors are gold colored. I admire the intricate crown molding topping every wall in the lobby as we wait.

“Find anything interesting up there, pretty girl?” Bastian teases. I give him a small smile and shake my head. His brows scrunch in concern as he takes in my probably worried, stressed,and exhausted expression. Before he has a chance to comment on it, the elevator dings and the doors whoosh open.

It’s tight with the five of us in the elevator. Malachi is gigantic, and Bastian and Xander aren’t much smaller. While Saint isn’t as built as the Wyldharts, he’s still a tall, muscular dude. But we all manage to make it work for the short ride up to the penthouse. Saint sure is going all out on this trip if he booked us the penthouse. I probably don’t even want to know how much it costs.

The elevator deposits us to a hallway with royal blue damask-patterned carpet, gold foil paisley wallpaper, and a single door to the left. When we reach the door, Saint swipes his keycard and shoves it open.

While normally I’d notice the architectural features of the room first, I’m immediately drawn to the huge window in the living area overlooking Paris. The Eiffel Tower is so close it feels like I can almost touch it. I can also see the golden dome of the church of Les Invalides, the roof of Hotel de Ville, and a sea of Haussmann buildings, their facades so similar it’s hard to tell them apart.

“Pretty spectacular view, isn’t it?” Saint walks over to stand next to me. I’m unable to tear my gaze away from the skyline to look at him, so I give him a distracted nod. “That’s why I booked us this suite. It has the best views of the entire hotel.”

“Good thinking, man,” Bastian calls from somewhere else in the room. Based on how far away he sounds, the suite has to be massive.

When I can finally stop ogling the city beneath us, I survey what will be our room for the next few days. Saint booked it for a week, but I’m hoping we’ll wrap this up sooner than that. Polished cream marble floors meet light gold walls with off-white furniture scattered throughout the massive space. Breaking up the monotony of cream and gold are fresh flowersand lively green shrubs, mint and white floral curtains, and muted teal throw pillows on the two sofas in the living room.

“Where are the bedrooms?” I ask Saint. We need to head to the library soon, so I want to set my stuff down and get ready to go.

“There’s only one, and it’s through the door behind you.” Saint nods behind me.

“One bedroom?” I squeak. You’d think for a place as fancy as this, there’d be more than one bed.

“Yep,” Saint confirms.

“What are you worried about, baby girl?” Malachi rumbles from behind me. It feels like all the tension drains out of my muscles when he molds his front to my back. He settles one large hand on each of my hips. “We’ve slept in the same bed before.”

“Yeah, but not with Saint.” I’ve never slept in bed with Saint before, and it seems weird to do it for the first time with three other people. But I do sleep a ton better when I have my mates with me.

“We don’t have a problem with the mage. But if you’re uncomfortable, the four of us can sleep out here,” Malachi offers.

“I’m not uncomfortable. I just don’t want anyone else to be,” I explain.

“I’m fine with sharing a bed with your wolves, little shadow. I always knew you’d have more mates in addition to me. I’m happy sharing the room with you or sleeping out here. It’s your choice.” It makes my chest fill with warmth that Saint leaves the choice up to me, just like Malachi. I haven’t really gotten to choose much in my life for a while, so it makes my insides all mushy when my mates let me decide things.

For some reason, it surprises me that neither Saint nor the Wyldharts are pressuring me to choose between them. I wouldn’t be able to if they did, but I expected my old and new life to clash.

I’ve seen how much Malachi dislikes mages, so I thought there’d be more posturing, but all my mates get along pretty well, other than when Bastian and Saint beat each other up. That was just a miscommunication, though. A little friendly dust-up between them. Just a love tap, if you will.

Trying to get my thoughts back on track, I know I’d prefer for us to all sleep in the same bed. It really doesn’t matter if it’s kind of weird or not what everyone else does. All that matters is that it works for us. “Okay. We’ll all share.”

I start walking toward the bedroom when Xander calls out, “We need to leave in ten.”

“Got it,” I holler over my shoulder as I enter the bedroom. Closing the door behind me, I slump against it and close my eyes. I get one minute to be tired and done with all life throws at me and unsure of myself. Then I’ll buck the hell up and do what needs to be done, like I always do.

CHAPTER 23

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