Page 88 of A Luna's Dynasty
He waved a dismissive hand, but his eyes were soft, touched. "I understood it all. Magic made you forget. It was necessary to stop you from realizing who you really were. I’m happy you remember me now and all the shenanigans we used to get into.”
“I remember when you peed in the lake and a kelpie came out and scolded you.” Lita giggled as Caspian’s face grew red.
“I didn’t know anyone was there or that it was anyone’s home.” Caspian cleared his throat and ladled a small amount of juice into a cup. “Okay, who’s tasting this first?”
The group took small turns tasting the surprisingly good concoction as the sweet smell of cookies baking filled the room.
Lita grinned, her mood shifting back to playful as she leaned toward Caspian. "You do know there’s a horde of women in the pack who adore you, right? I bet they're missing you right now."
He played along, puffing his chest in mock arrogance. "I can’t help it if I’m irresistible."
Grayson snorted, grabbing a tray of cookies from the oven. "Please. Your attractant scent is not as good as these cookies.”
“Should we ask the ladies which they would rather sample?” Caspian smirked, then grimaced as Grayson raised his fairy barrier. “Hey! That’s foul play.”
“Whoops. Gotta get a handle on that.” Grayson chuckled as he began setting cookies on the tray, making sure to sample the last cookie for himself.
“Hey now.”
“What? I have to test for poison. Can’t let anything happen to the princess.”
“Grayson, we made the cookies together.”
“Never can be too careful.” He grinned as the cookie crumbled from his mouth. The banter wrapped around Lita like a warm blanket, its familiarity and affection a gift. They loaded the finished snacks onto trays, and the clatter of bowls and spoons faded into the comfortable symphony of laughter and togetherness.
Asher walked back to the pack house, each step heavy with Felicia's parting words. "Everything is going to be okay," she'd insisted, tears threatening to spill. Their final conversation was a brutal farewell; he made it clear she owed her release to Lita's mercy and warned she would never return to Black Ice Pack territory unless she accepted Lita as his mate and luna. His explicit threat to kill her if she harmed Lita was a vow. He apologized for never loving her, admitting pity was all he felt. Felicia seemed to crumble, a defiant "I love you," escaping her lips.
The words lingered in his mind, both unsettling and persistent, as he watched her taxi disappear down the street. He hadn't expected the severing of ties to leave such a haunting presence, yet an unease settled within him, entwined with a suspicion that Felicia's chapter wasn't truly closed. Her determination had always been fierce, and her parting words seemed to carry a menacing edge rather than a sense of finality. Maybe in time she would come to her senses.
He slowed his pace as he neared the pack house, the warm glow of its windows a stark contrast to the chill her words had left behind. Laughter reached him before anything else, and the familiar sounds of his pack soothed some of the tension he carried. They were his family, and Lita was his future.
Asher was grateful to find Caden and Garrett carrying a stack of pizza boxes, a welcome distraction from his lingering thoughts. "Good timing," Caden called, holding the door wide. "Hope you worked up an appetite. Feels like I've been starving all day."
Garrett, never one to miss a chance for humor, clapped Asher on the shoulder as they entered. "Had to fend for ourselves against a wild pack of women. But we did everything we could to get the pizza back here safely."
Asher smirked, letting their camaraderie lighten his mood. "So glad you survived." The moment he stepped into the room, his eyes immediately sought Lita.
She was there, in the kitchen, and everything else slipped away. He moved toward her with purpose, closing the distance in a few swift strides. The noise, the doubt, the shadow of Felicia's presence, they vanished the moment he reached her, pulling her into an embrace that spoke every word he didn't have time to say.
"You smell delicious," he growled into her ear, the relief of having her close washing over him.
Lita twisted to face him, her surprise melting into a bright smile. "You made it," she said, breathless from the force of his hug.
"You were worried I wouldn’t?"
She shook her head, that golden hair catching the light and holding his gaze. "No," she admitted. "Just worried you'd snack somewhere else and be too full for my cookies."
He chuckled, low and sure. "For cookies, maybe. For you? Never."
Lita tried to act nonchalant, shrugging as if it didn’t matter, but the blush on her cheeks gave her away. She gestured toward the massive spread, trying to redirect the conversation, her embarrassment clearly showing on her face.
The noise of everyone gathering, the sounds of the pizza boxes being opened and drinks poured all faded into the background as he wrapped her tighter in his arms.
She gave him a playful push. "You're not going to let me out of your sight, are you?"
"Never," he repeated, savoring the simple truth of it. "I’ve got you."
He could feel her body relax against his, the ease and comfort of the moment countering the tension that had followed himhome. Asher breathed it in, letting go of the doubts. No matter what, if he had to, he would deal with Felicia personally.
