Page 9 of Frostbite, Lovebite

In the kitchen, he was ushered over to the bar, where just seconds later a cup of hot chocolate was set in front of him. Even better than coffee. "Thank you."

"So tell us everything. Ronan called and explained, but it's good to have the whole of the tale from the source."

So he told them, starting with the eviction notice he'd been too ashamed to mention before, all the way up to every single place that had thrown him out. Recounting it just brought all the hurt back, the sting and humiliation of betrayal. He'd spent literally his entire life training to protect or protecting these people. His grandfather haddiedto give him the magic to do that. Yet they couldn't have even passed him a note to explain what was going on. Just left him high and dry.

"Tidy sum of money," Phil said, looking at him slyly. "More than enough to put a good down payment on a cottage style home on Crane Street."

"I can't—" Match stopped, because that wasn't true. Hecouldafford it. Whatever the mortgage payment wound up being, he'd be able to afford that too, because knowing Benny he'd be hired back before the week was out, if not the day. "Yeah, yeah let's do that."

Rick took away the hot chocolate stuff and got out the cocktail stuff instead.

"It is nine-thirty in the morning," Phil said, looking at him in exasperate amusement.

"Snow day, darling," Rick replied breezily. "That's basically the same as airport rules."

Rolling his eyes, Phil took his drink and wandered off. "I have some phone calls to make around town."

"I am going to get started on buying your house," Rick said. "We'll go inspect it while the others continue to torment Wright."

Then they were both gone, leaving Match alone with his cocktail in the kitchen, flustered and bemused, but cautiously hopeful.

With nothing else to do for the moment, stuck in the dreadedwaitperiod of everything, he went out to the porch, fired up the woodstove, and cuddled up under blankets to read a book on his phone and enjoy his morning cocktail. It was probably the laziest, most decadent morning he'd ever had.

All with a trio of jack frosts running around, but for the moment there was nothing he could do. For once in his damned life he wasn't going to worry himself to death over it anyway. Benny had his back, and their group would never let people get harmed in the meantime.

He'd just finished the cocktail when Rick came and found him. "Time for a showing!"

So off they went, with barely enough time for him to put his coat and shoes back on, walking only a couple of blocks downand over to the cottage. Rick got the key out of the mailbox, which was a really dumb place to keep it, and inside they went.

The house wasbeautiful. He'd already been enchanted from the outside, but inside was even better. The house was divided by a hallway, but the front half held the living room and kitchen/dining, with wide, open archways that gave the whole thing an open plan vibe. The back half of the house was two bedrooms and, at the very end of the hall, almost capping it, was a laundry slash mudroom and a bathroom that was larger and nicer than he'd been expecting.

The bedrooms were mirrors of each, with a large closest built into one corner and a pair of large windows overlooking their respective side of the house, and surprisingly pretty and not-obnoxious ceiling fans with good light. One would be perfect for his bedroom, the other for his workshop. He could put plants all over the house—the floor, the walls, the ceiling, the windowsills.

In the back there was more than enough room for his veggie garden, herb garden, there was already a good-sized shed, a little deck area that could hold more potted plants, the fences would be able to support trellises… and even with all of that, there'd be more than enough room to build a pixie house, and he could even build it off the mudroom with its own door so he could easily reach it in all kinds of weather.

Match wanted tocry.

"So yes?" Rick asked.

"Yes!" Match said. "I can't believe I can have it."

"Give me your bank info and leave the rest to me, dear boy. You'll need to sign papers but I'll handle the rest."

"I don't know much about house buying but I know it's a lot harder than that."

Rick scoffed. "Not when you have me and my connections and my husband guilt tripping the entire town into doing whatever necessary to make their witch happy again."

"Well, far be it for me to argue with getting to do things the easy way for once. Thank you."

Rick hugged him. "You make Ronan happier than I've ever seen him. Keep it that way and I'll give you the moon my boy."

"My house isn't that big." He frowned. "Do you think it's too small?"

"For if someday you wanted your Paladin to attend you fulltime?" Rick asked with a grin. "No, His Highness will be just fine so long as he had somewhere to park his precious car."

Match's mouth twitched before succumbing to a grin of its own. "No peasant on-street parking for the princess, I know."

"See, you understand. All set."

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