Page 25 of Charmed and Dangerous

Her heart still ached because her father had not shown for the mating, despite Saul going to the house and having private words with him. She could have told him it wouldn’t matter. Her father lived in his mind and his lab. Nothing else mattered. And she was fine with it. Mostly. She had a new family and her great aunt to fill her heart now.

Now, she was held in the arms of her mate and she felt the mating bond deep inside and she knew nothing could tear them apart. He would never ignore her or neglect her like she saw growing up. Saul was a part of her, and she was secure in his love.

Someone tapped on the back of her leg and she paused, looking down at the most adorable bear cub in human form, wearing the cutest suit ever. Brady looked very serious as he peered up at her.

“May I cut in?” He asked with a deadly serious look on his face.

Ever since she saved him from the poison berries, Brady had developed a bit of a crush on Maeve, going so far as to ask her to wait for him and not mate his uncle. He relented on that point eventually, but he still followed Maeve everywhere.

Maeve’s heart ached at the thought of having a tiny cub of her own someday. Saul’s hands tightened on her arms for a moment, then relaxed. “Are you trying to steal my mate, cub?”

Brady grinned. “Yup.”

Saul threw his head back and laughed out loud, causing several people to turn and look at them. “Good luck, little cub.”

He gave a small bow and Maeve took Brady’s hands and let him lead her in a dance for the rest of the song. The little cub’s tongue stuck out he side of his mouth as he concentrated on the steps carefully. When the music ended, he tilted his face up to her and pursed his lips for a kiss. She stifled a laugh and brushedhis lips with hers. Brady blushed and ran off to his friends, all of whom laughed with him.

Saul pulled her against him, her back to his front, claiming her again. “Do I have something to be worried about?”

Maeve laid her head against his chest. “He’s seriously adorable, but I think you have a few assets in your favor.”

Saul turned her to face him, a smirk on his face. “Really? Only a few?”

She shrugged. “You are an excellent cook. I like your baking, too.”

He laughed again and hugged her, kissing her deeply and far too graphically for a family gathering. When he finally let her go, she was blushing and gasping for air. “Okay, maybe a couple other things, too.”

His smile faded, and he narrowed his eyes, looking over her head past the crowd. “Does your aunt know my uncle Grigori?”

“I don’t think so. Why?” Maeve stood on tiptoes to try to see over the much larger bodies of the bear clan around them.

Saul drew her through the crowd a bit so that she could see her aunt and an older man, who must have been his uncle Grigori, talking by a tree. Her aunt had an imperious look on her face while the older man was pleading with her, holding her hand and stroking it like a lover might.

“Oh my goddess. He’s her lover! Aunt Geillis told me about a grizzly lover she had before she came to take care of me. Could it be your uncle?”

Saul shrugged. “He’s never mated. Said he found his mate, but she left him years ago.” Then he chuckled as his uncle led her aunt through the trees. “I think we have our answer.”

Maeve laughed. “Unbelievable. Should we go after them?”

“I have a better idea. Do you want to see my cabin?”

She elbowed him in the stomach. “I’ve seen your cabin. Plenty of times.”

He waggled his eyebrows. “But not this new chair. Perfect for reading.”

She arched an eyebrow. “Just reading?”

“You’ll have to be the judge of that,” he said innocently.

“Maybe I should check out your cabin. For research purposes.”

He took her hand and lead her through the trees to his own cabin. “I couldn’t agree more, mate.”

Epilogue

Wolfe Bloodgoode sat in his darkened house, fighting the pull of the moon and his own wolf. A battle he’d been fighting all weekend since that blasted BrewFest on Saturday. He hadn’t exactly wanted to be a tester for the potions, especially when every witch and warlock in the Grimm Mawr area was battling for supremacy. Corners had been known to be cut, and rules bent, even broken, in the pursuit of victory.

And with the BrewFest coming on a full moon weekend, he should have known better than to agreed to be on panel. He had been battling his wolf for months. The longer he went without his true mate, the more frayed his control was. Now the thrice damned Duprees tempted fate and threw a love potion into the mix.

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