Page 16 of Halloween With the Siren
Tilly lifts one shoulder in a small shrug, her eyes soft and her smile solicitous. “We thought you could do with some food and a friendly visit.”
“And a debrief,” Maisie adds with a suggestive inflection as she hooks her arm through mine and leads me into the cottage.
“And that,” Tilly concedes, before quickly adding, “If you want.”
Bumping Maisie with my shoulder, I say, “Ah, you just want to know how good the fucking was.”
Maisie turns to me, her eyes wide and burning with excitement and a thousand questions. “Was it good? Would you do it again?”
I lean over the sink and wring some salt water from my hair. “How about you guys get the food ready while I get showered and changed, then I’ll tell you all about them?”
“Them,” Maisie swoons, both hands clasped to her chest. “Living the dream, aren’t you, Marisol?”
I laugh, a deep belly laugh for the first time since returning home. “Like you’re not getting enough dick while living with an actual incubus.”
“Too true,” Maisie admits, unwrapping fresh bread and placing it next to the soup Tilly brought. “No complaints in my department. But not all of us can have an incubus, so I guess you need multiple partners.”
Tilly pauses, one hand frozen midway from her basket as she arches a sassy brow. “Or an orc.”
“Yeah?” Maisie asks, practically foaming at the mouth for more information. “Bodin keeping you happy?”
“Like you can’t imagine,” she sighs out, teeth sinking into her bottom lip as her eyes glaze over.
Maisie and Tilly banter back and forth, and I slink away for a quick shower, a slight pang in my chest at the easy love and companionship my friends have found in their romantic relationships. It’s not like I need a partner. I’ve never needed anyone. Life has been good to me.
But…
The small taste of what could be, the feeling of being part of a pack, of being cared for and made a priority, it’s not something I can easily forget. Maybe I just need more time to adjust. Maybe once I get back into my normal routine I won’t be thinking about them so much.
After my shower, I join the girls for some lunch in the kitchen, a formidable spread of hearty foods and breads laid out on the table.
“You guys have been busy,” I say, dishing some lentil and bacon soup into my bowl.
Tilly plates some garden harvest bread and pushes it toward me. “We thought you might need to get your strength back after… you know.”
I nod my thanks at her then duck my head to hide the blush warming my cheeks. “I actually ate fairly well when I was lucid enough to ask for food.”
Reaching for my hand, Tilly’s voice gentles, her tenderheartedness seeping through her words. “Just to be transparent, I had gotten in touch with Lauren a couple of times throughout the week to check on you. They reported that one of your heat partners gave them a daily breakdown of the food you had consumed, water intake, and general health status.”
“They did?” I ask, my chest tightening at the sweet gesture. I know updates aren’t part of the requirements at Nesting Grounds, so hearing this is a bit of a surprise. Lauren had discussed the privacy and security systems with me beforehand and had shown me where the panic buttons were hidden around the entire nest. My personal preference was not to be disturbed unless I called for help. Yet, the pack went above and beyond what was required of them.
Tilly’s smile is understanding, reading something in my expression I didn’t intentionally mean to broadcast. “Yeah. Lauren told me that the alpha in the pack wanted your friendsand family to rest assured that you were being cared for. He requested that if anyone called that we be updated, within certain parameters, of course. Apparently he made it very clear that nothing can be shared that would betray your confidence or trust in them. He sounded very protective of you.”
Silas. This has Silas written all over it.
Fuck. My heart is in so much trouble with Pack Morgan. I think they’ve each slowly buried themselves under my skin and carved their names into my heart. I don’t want to think of ever having a heat by myself again, or with anyone but them.
“He sounds nice,” Maisie says, her tone soft. She places one hand on my shoulder, and the combined support from my friends makes my walls crumble.
Eyes stinging, I look up as I exhale my words, “They all were.”
“Want to tell us about them?” Maisie asks ever so gently.
Looking between my two friends, I swallow, then whisper, “I don’t know how much to say or where to start.” Neither of them responds. They simply sit with me, waiting patiently for me to find the words. “The one who would’ve done the updates is Silas. He’s a panther shifter and one of the most observant creatures I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting. He’s thoughtful and dominant, ruggedly handsome, and a fishing boat captain.”
Maisie hums with appreciation. “Now that’s a package. And the others?”
“Killian is a wolf shifter and also Silas’s partner. He’s a big, muscly grump who’s actually a giant softy with a voice like velvet. He also happens to be a professor at Cape Easton University, teaching marine ecosystem-based management.”
