Page 86 of Bound

A crowd had formed in the waiting room. Dallas was swathed from head to toe in blue surgical scrubs and a head covering, and had a facemask draped around his neck. He gestured excitedly, a grin threatening to split his face in two.

“—eight pounds, six ounces. She’s the prettiest little thing I’ve ever seen with dark hair and a scowl just like her mama’s. Who already smacked me once for saying that.”

Everyone laughed.

“I’d better get back in there. Pretty sure I’m falling behind on diaper changing duty or… something. I just had to tell you guys the news and say thanks for being here.” Dallas looked away, rubbing his bottom lip. “Shoot. Y’all don’t know what this means to me, having all of you here. Ethan and Hayden even called a little while ago from back over at the ranch.”

I grabbed him in a fierce hug. “I’m so proud of you, Dally. Does she have a name yet?”

Dallas nodded, swiping away a tear. I’d never seen my brother so filled with joy. “Yeah. We named her Luna… Luna Sofia Caldwell.”

Epilogue

West

TWO MONTHS LATER, ON A CLEAR NOVEMBER DAY just before sunset with high wispy clouds feathering across the late autumn sky, we gathered out at the ranch to make things official. Twinkling white fairy lights festooned the wooden arbor over the patio. Tables draped in cream covered cloths had been brought in for the catering feast that was being prepared. At the center of each table, bright bouquets of sunflowers stood in glass vases trimmed with fat blue satin bows, orange and white pumpkins with fanciful curled stems completing each centerpiece.

Hovering on the edge of all the excitement, like hewasn’t the one getting mated today, Topher leaned against the side of the house talking quietly with Kieran. Weeks of physical therapy had done the oldest Greer brother good. The bones of his face no longer looked as if they’d been cut with shards of glass. The broken leg the orthopedic surgeon in Dallas had to rebreak and set correctly had healed once the high doses of silver he’d absorbed while in captivity had a chance to work their way out of his system.

“Last chance to back out.” I slid my fingers into Topher’s. In a slim cut charcoal gray suit with a midnight blue button down and dark red tie, he looked delicious enough to eat.

“You know,” Kieran mused, “Lacey and Hayden gave me a sneak preview of your cake. Not that I’m saying you should get mated just for cake, but—”

“There are worse reasons.” Topher leaned in, catching my lips in a quick kiss. When we broke apart, he traced the tattoo of his initials that were now inked onto my third finger. “Also, you’re my forever.”

We’d gotten the ink done the night before, then driven out at sunrise to the lake where everything had started. As the sun broke through the clouds over Bluff Point, we clasped hands overlooking the water, and I vowed to always protect him, here in the place we had first been bound.

Kieran blinked, frowning off towards the western horizon. Topher clapped him on the back. “Yup. Another one just jumped in.”

“It’s a weird feeling to get used to.” Kieran rubbed his eyes. “But I’m glad it looks like they’ll be able to put my skills to work.”

Within a week of arriving at the Tracer compound in Dallas, Kieran had felt two vampires being dragged into a room several floors away for interrogation. The current theory was that his abilities had developed similarly to Topher’s, but been suppressed by the high silver content in the prison walls. Kieran still had a long way to go towards his recovery, but River said as soon as he was ready, there would be a place for him in the next Tracer trainee class.

“You know there’s no way Brody is going to be able to keep a straight face through the ceremony,” Naomi said dryly, sipping from her glass of sparkling cider.

Beside her, Vlad raised an eyebrow, and I noticed him none to subtly checking out the shimmery red dress she’d paired with peep toe heels. “Not quite modern enough to accept vampires at his traditional shifter ceremony? Do we really need to all sit down and watch Twilight together again?”

“Please, God, no. I am a total geek for those books, but that movie night where you quoted all of Bella’s lines in that super cheesy voice was only survivable because August makes a wicked margarita.”

Smothering a cough, Rowan elbowed her brother. “Told you.”

“Traitor.”

“Besides,” Naomi continued. “I was referring to that.” She pointed to where River and Ellie stood beneath the wedding arch that August had constructed along the classic elvish architectural lines of Rivendell, interwoven with branches, twigs, and white lilies.

Dressed in a dark suit, River held the first and far more menacing of the ringbearers in a black towel. Despite having been plied with several baby carrots, Dean seemed determined to draw blood. Ellie, nearly a foot shorter in the ballet flats that matched her swirly pale green dress, stroked Castiel’s soft pink ears while he made chirping noises.

“Oww.”

Ellie elbowed him. “You know you’re not going to be able to do that during the ceremony, right?”

“He keeps biting me.”

“They say animals can sense evil.”

“Or maybe I’m just delicious.”

“Evil. Definitely evil.”