"I do love you, Jack. Just, it's not the way I think you love me. You are a beautiful person and gorgeous man, anyone would fall in love with you. But I think I was already half crazy about Brigitte's father, I just didn't know it. I've changed a lot since I came here with you and Erin. Somehow, I had convinced myself that he couldn't matter to us anymore. I was confused and I was wrong. Forgive me if I ever led you on."

"No. It was me. I was reaching for the moon without a chance in h.e.l.l of reaching it."

"Jack, if Ahmose had not come for me, or if I had never met him at all, if I had met you first, I could have loved you like that, if that's any small comfort."

"It's small comfort, but the best I guess I'll get. Okay, but, if you need me, anything, anything at all, you call me, all right? Bridget, I'll come and get you, anywhere in the world, you understand?"

"I do," she said, and surged forward to hug Jack tightly. She didn't want to let go, because she thought that this might be the last time she would ever see him.

When she pulled away, he smiled painfully.

"Be happy. Take care of our baby. I won't forget you or her," he told her.

Mal was aware that Jack knew it too. This would be the last time.

"Be happy, too, Jack. Find a gorgeous girl and have those kids. You deserve that life."

"I do deserve it. I've found it. But it's not my destiny. Oh, well, if wishes were horses... I love you, little artist."

"Never forget that I love you too. So does Brigitte."

He nodded. "I guess I'll go. Tell Erin, I'll see her around the island."

Standing, Jack walked to his car, stopped before it, his eyes forward, then she saw him get in and back down the long lane. G.o.d, that was painful. Another good man, shot down out of Cupid's sight.

Mal sat there a few more minutes before she stood and started back into the house. Her eyes lifted to the doorway and saw Erin standing there.

"He's gone," she whispered.

"I know. But the big man that you are in love with is downstairs with your sweet baby girl. He's good with her."

Mal looked into Erin's eyes. "Neither of us have used that word. We really don't know each other."

"Sometimes love is another word for destiny, for two people who meet and just need to be together without knowing any other thing about them. Love is faith and attraction that cannot be denied. You have that. Both of you do. This, then, my dearest friend, is love. The declarations, they will come."

"Oh, Erin," Mal said and wrapped her arms around her. "Will you come with us? Please? I don't want to do without you, too."

"I will come. Ahmose has already asked me. He knew you would want me there, and I'm ready to go back."

"Then, I guess we're going to Africa."

Kai hated these puddle-jumpers, but it was the only way to get to his daughter and granddaughter. The plane landed like a toy plane might and Kai got out as fast as he could and headed to the other side of the island. He didn't need directions, he'd spent some pretty incredible nights here with Erin back in the day.

Their relationship had burned hot, so hot that it had burned him in the process. Erin was the kind of woman that demanded all of you, and she was magnificent, she deserved it, he knew that. But he had still been heartbroken and felt so guilty when he was with her.

Because he'd been happy. And he shouldn't have been so happy without Brigitte. How could he go on after watching Brigitte bravely finish her life decades before she should have?

And then there was the fact that he could have saved her. My G.o.d, if he had just known about vampires back then, he could have saved her.

Being with Erin had become a constant reminder that Brigitte could have still been here with him. Eventually, he'd spent so much time drunk, he knew it was all his fault, but Erin had had enough. She'd told him that she wanted to convert him. h.e.l.l, he hadn't been able to handle being with a vampire, because of the guilt, he sure the h.e.l.l couldn't handle being one!

He'd left her, regretfully, but for his and her own good. He had a daughter that he'd neglected and needed to fix things with anyway.

So now he was on his way back to their tropical hangout. Only this time it was for the right reason.

He pulled up to the house, the darkness cut only by the Tiki torches all around the deck. He remembered that and smiled.

As he climbed the few stairs, he saw Mal's head raise and she ran to him.

"Pop!"

Their hug was long.

After she pulled away, she led him over to the chair she'd just left. "Her name is Brigitte," she said, and lifted the baby from a rough-built cradle with a satin blanket wrapped around her.

Tears welled immediately, not only because she was so beautiful, but because his wife would have been over-the-moon crazy about her. Life wasn't fair, was it?

"She's an angel, babygirl," was all Kai could get out, and that was graveled.

Erin came over and sat on the arm of his chair.

"h.e.l.lo, Pop," she said. "Look what your daughter made for you."

"She was always good at show and tell," he joked as he watched the baby open clear blue eyes and look into his. He felt something then, something odd, and amazing, as if she was speaking to him.

He lifted his head and looked at Mal.

"She's very, very special, Pop. What you feel, she's sending it to you. She wants you to be happy and she knows you haven't been."

Kai glanced up as the biggest man he'd ever seen came from Erin's house. His eyes went to Mal.

"That's Ahmose. He's her father, and Pop, before you explode, I'm going back with him to Africa. We're together, Pop, and I'm happy, so please, be nice to him."

Standing, with Brigitte gurgling happily in his arms, Kai looked at the big man who walked up to him.

Ahmose bowed to Kai. "I am Ahmose, sir, and please, before you consider anything at all in this odd situation, know that my daughter and your daughter will have the best lives possible with me. I will protect them and cherish them forever. They will have long, healthy, and happy lives. Sir, there is nothing more a father would hope for...for his children, am I right?"

Kai looked at Ahmose's hand, presented to him in friendship, then at the baby in his arms who made it clear that she needed this man, to his daughter, who seemed to glow.

He put his hand into Ahmose's.

"I trust that you will keep that promise."

"With my last breath."

"All right, then, you have my blessing."

The rest of the night went very well, with a lot of wine, steaks, and laughs.

Kai was surprised to find that the huge vampire had a wicked sense of humor and a strong sense of play. Those traits were the most important in a marriage, when paired with integrity, respect, and honor. He realized quickly that Ahmose seemed to have all of those qualities, too, and he knew that his daughter was where she should be.

He'd always regretted that she'd followed him into police work. It was dangerous, and with her uncle's criminal network, Kai had been afraid of the conflict that had potential to explode in her face. And it had.

So now, not only did he never need to watch his daughter get sick and die, he knew that she would live a very long time, with powerful people who knew how to make a life.

He looked at Erin. She needed someone as joyous and beautiful as she was to share her life with. He'd never been the right man.

The next morning, after a night in Erin's bed, for the last time, he'd kissed her and thanked her for all that she had brought to his life.

"Thank you, most of all, for what you've done for Mal."

"I love her, Kai. She's kind of become the daughter that I could never have had. So thank you for sharing her with me."

He hugged both Mal and Brigitte, with a promise to visit them in Africa, and flew home to L.A.

Arriving after midnight local time, he started back to his c.r.a.ppy apartment, then, halfway there, he turned around.

When he found the building he was looking for, he took the stairs two at a time to the fourth floor and knocked on the solid wood door with a big 8 on it.

"What the h.e.l.l?" a soft voice inside whispered, then several locks clicked and the chain dropped.

Bev stood there, a hastily donned robe over a tee shirt, her hair wild and s.e.xy.

"May I come in?" Kai asked.

Bev hesitated, then, quietly, but decisively, said, "Yes."

Chapter 20.

Ahmose carried his new baby into the garden, Mal behind him, arm in arm with Erin. He looked back at her, and she smiled up at him.

She looked sh.e.l.l-shocked again, like she had when they came through the veil of first blood magics that surrounded the village and hid it from the rest of the world. Ahmose had held Mal's hand, and Erin held her other hand so that she could pa.s.s through, too.

"It's beautiful," Mal finally said as they entered the first series of gardens. Then a moment later, said, "Quiet."

"You're used to L.A. This will be a substantial adjustment. The waterfalls can be noisy, but they're also very soothing," Erin rea.s.sured her.

Handing the baby to Erin, Ahmose pulled Mal to him.

"You will fall in love with my village, with its wonderful people, and they will fall in love with you. They have been ready to receive you for centuries. We will enter the main gardens in a few moments, and they're waiting there for us. As I told you on the flight, just relax, don't let anything overwhelm you, these are the most generous people on this planet and they will be family to you in no time at all."

He pulled her forward, and another hundred yards ahead, she began to hear music and see lights. They came around a stand of flowering shrubs into a fairyland of twinkling lights, flowers, and elegant statues. Smiling faces met her first gaze, and it was exactly what Ahmose had warned her...at first, overwhelming. She wanted to stay behind him, but he took her hand and pulled her forward.

"My friends and family, I would like to introduce you to a very special woman who will join our family tonight. This is Mal, and she is my mate."

Mal looked up at him. He hadn't used that word before. It was so archaic, so possessive, so primal, so natural. It made her feel like she belonged.

Ahmose looked down at Mal, whose eyes shone as she looked up at him. He hadn't wavered on his decision that Mal was the one, but this moment, he knew beyond any doubt that she was always the one meant to be here, in his heart, his mind, his body...the one that belonged to him as much as he belonged to her.

His eyes dropped to their baby, held safely with love in Erin's arms. With Mal's eyes, the baby caught his. Even though the child was merely days old, he felt her reaching for him yet again, felt her joy that she was finally with her mother and father, where she needed to be.

The enormity of the moment struck him so hard, he barely breathed. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Starla approaching with Jacob and their children.

Mal looked up at Ahmose, who was so quiet after being so present for her since they entered this village.

"Are you all right?" she asked, mirroring his concern for her as they'd pa.s.sed through the magics. Was he changing his mind? Had he decided that perhaps this coa.r.s.e L.A. cop didn't really belong here with these gentle people? She hoped with every fiber of her being that it wasn't so, because now, as she scanned the faces waiting in joy for them, she was really where she belonged. Suddenly, she just knew, it all was right, this was where she would raise her little girl and make love to this big man for, amazingly, centuries. Please, let him know that this is right, she begged the universe.

A stunning brunette woman approached from the right, coming down a hill on a path that was lit, all the way to the top, with the same twinkling lights surrounding them now. She held a bundle in her arms, and to her left, another big, handsome man held a little boy up on his shoulders. A perfect family. Was this what Ahmose had wanted? Was this the woman he'd told her that he'd once thought he was destined to be with? She was really lovely, and Mal felt certain that she was no match for her.

Glancing back at Ahmose, Mal noticed his eyes move to the perfect little family. She knew immediately that this was the family he'd built and that these were his children. She steeled herself for the meeting with Ahmose's Starla, which had worried her since he had told her about the lovely mother of his other children.

Starla watched Ahmose leading the new arrivals through the throngs. Everyone was present to say h.e.l.lo to the woman that they thought might be their leader's mate. She herself was more curious than they, since this woman would be an intimate part of her life.

Taller than Starla by several inches, Mal was certainly a lovely woman. Although Starla was thrilled that Ahmose may have found his mate, she was still protective of him, and as such, cautious about Mal. This had all just happened so quickly, and oddly. Was the universe, was destiny, that capricious? Maybe. Still, she would be careful in her a.s.sessment since Mal would also be parenting her children along with Ahmose.

She looked up at Jacob. The man was a rock, steady, unconcerned, ready to accept Mal completely with no more worry than he would a new puppy. It was a gift, Starla realized, and turned back to face Mal. She put a smile on her face.

Ahmose gave Starla a quick hug, the same for Jacob, kissed Shani on the forehead, and picked up Eras to hug him. Then he handed the boy back to Jacob and lifted his head, a gentle hand around Mal's shoulder.

"My family, I would like to present you with the woman who has finally brought this man to his knees, the woman I have sought for centuries, the one the universe has always intended. Destiny may have taken its time bringing us together, but it has been worth every drop of pain. This is Mahalo, which means h.e.l.lo in her father's native language. I think it is appropriate. Please welcome Mal and our daughter, Brigitte, into our home."

Mal was stunned into silence. Her eyes went to his face, and she knew he meant it. Okay, then. This was real.

Starla handed Shani to Ahmose and walked up to Mal to greet her. With a soft smile, she pulled Mal into her arms. Sparks of electricity pa.s.sed through both women and seemed as if it held them together. They couldn't pull apart and they didn't want to, as each woman held the other closer and tighter. When they finally did manage to pull back, everyone was watching them.

Jacob whistled. "That was intense."

Starla nodded, her hand still touching Mal's. "Shoazan magics. I'm learning to recognize them. I know you felt the connection too, Mal, although I think it startled you."

After a long drawn out breath, Mal nodded. "That was intense and it was unexpected. It's because we can both have children with a vampire?"

"It is. I'm learning a lot about out nature, Mal, and I think that Shoazan magic is stronger than anyone ever imagined. We will be together for a long time, so perhaps we'll figure it all out. Welcome, my sister."

"Thank you. I look forward to getting to know you better." Mal looked at all of the beautiful faces around her. "Everyone, I look forward to meeting you. Please forgive me if I don't remember you at first, but I'll get there."

"Mal! Mal!"

Mal's head shot up. Luka?

He was running from the other side of the garden, followed by a beautiful Asian woman who was quick, but not running.

When he got to them, Luka grabbed Mal and swung her up into his arms to hold her tightly.