Chapter 11.

They stood outside Crimson's home, and he looked like an angel dropped from heaven. Brilliant white-feathered wings rose from his back like silken shields, and his bare upper body was lean and muscular. Scars dotted his skin in places along his arms and chest, and when she had asked about them, he said they were from when he trained as a youth.

"Go ahead, you can touch them," he said, placing his hands on his hips.

She walked around and stood at his back. The tops of the wings reached above his ears and stretched out several feet on either side of his body.

"Can you fly?" She placed her hands on the area where the wings jutted from his shoulders.

"Yes. Only warrior fae have feathered wings and can fly. Civilian fae have wings that are made of thin membranes and can be quite colorful."

Stroking her hands up, she felt the b.u.mpy texture of the skin covering the bones, and then she ran the backs of her hands down the feathers, marveling at their soft texture.

"They're beautiful, Crimson," she said.

"When we come home, I'll take you for a ride if you'd like." She moved around to face him, smiling at his enthusiasm. "You're not afraid of heights, are you?"

"As long as you don't drop me, no."

He sobered quickly. "I would never."

Rolling her eyes, she said, "I was just teasing. I trust you. It's strange because I've never really trusted anyone as quickly as I do you. But I know, deep down, that you're a male of honor and that I can trust you."

"It's our truemate connection. When we mate, the connection will grow even stronger."

The night before, when she'd laid out her life for him, ashamed to hear herself say all of the things she'd done in her misguided efforts to find a mate, she'd expected he would be unhappy with her behavior. But he had been surprisingly understanding. And then he wanted to just sleep instead of having s.e.x. Before meeting him, the old her would have believed that she'd done or said something to turn him off. But now she knew that he was simply taking his time and not rushing forward into the mating. She'd never had a male be so considerate. In her wildest fantasies, she'd never thought she would find such a perfect mate.

She went up on her toes, and he bent his head and kissed her. Hand in hand, they walked back through the gra.s.s to an area that he said was his "fairy ring," formed with rocks. Only he could use it, he explained, because it was his private ring. No one from the Mortal Realm could come through it without him, and no one from the Fae Realm could use it either.

He settled on his knees, and she stood next to him, watching in fascination as he placed his hands in the air and closed his eyes. The air in front of him began to shimmer and grow slowly opaque, and then it cleared, and she was staring into the woods in her pack's territory. The portal lengthened and widened until it was the size of a door, and he lowered his hands and stood.

"Does that make you tired?" she asked, taking his offered hand.

"No. When my wings are out, my fae powers are stronger. It would take a great deal of effort to exhaust me." He smiled down at her. "Don't be nervous. It won't hurt to go through the portal."

"I trust you," she said.

He grinned and squeezed her hand. He stepped through the portal and pulled her with him. It felt like she was stepping into cold, thick air as she left the Fae Realm and entered the woods in her pack's territory.

They walked to the full moon meeting place where she'd left her clothes before she shifted with her packmates. She kept on Crimson's tunic but pulled on her panties and shorts, slipping her feet into her flip-flops and carrying her top and the shoes he let her use. Taking his hand, she said, "We should check in with my alphas, and then go back to my home."

He didn't say anything as they walked the hundred yards to Jason and Cades' home. When the house came into view, she saw Jason sitting on the deck with his daughter, Lyric, in his lap and his cell in one hand. His eyes widened, and he put the phone in his pocket before standing and gathering his daughter close. He called for Cades and said, "Lindy! The pack's been worried sick! Are you all right?"

Cadence came out of the house. "Lindy!" She walked quickly to them, gathering Lindy in a hug. "Are you okay?"

Lindy was overwhelmed by their concern. "It's a bit of a long story."

Cades nodded, looking at Crimson. "Then come inside. I was just getting breakfast on the table."

Once inside, Lindy introduced Crimson to her alphas. Jason put Lyric in her booster seat as Cades motioned her and Crimson to the table to sit down. Within minutes, she and Jason joined them.

Jason put his elbows on the table and folded his hands. "What happened?"

Lindy had always known that Jason was a good alpha, but seeing him concerned for her welfare made her see him in a whole new light. He could have just sent her on her way, but instead, he and his mate opened up their home and were genuinely interested in what had happened.

She told them what she remembered of getting caught in the trap, and then Crimson filled in the rest. When the meal was over, Jason leaned back in his chair and said, "It's a good thing you spelled for Lindy when you did."

Crimson took her hand under the table and rested it on his thigh. "I'm grateful for that."

Jason said, "One of our wolves is mated to a she-fairy. They're actually in the Fae Realm looking for you, Lindy."

Her surprise must have shown on her face because Cades smiled softly. "You're part of the pack, Lindy, and you were injured and then taken. Of course we care."

Emotion welled up in Lindy, and she almost started to cry, but she managed to stave off the tears. "Thank you. I need to get home and call Faith and McKenna."

"I'll send Teller over to Logan's home," Jason said, reaching into his pocket for his phone.

At her confused look, Jason said, "There's a sprite that lives in Jenna's garden, and she can find Jenna in the Fae Realm and tell her that you're home."

Cades walked her and Crimson out the front door to where Lindy's car was parked. "Are you staying in the pack, or are you going to live in the Fae Realm?" Cades asked.

Lindy pulled her car keys from her pocket. "I don't know what's going to happen."

Crimson said, "If it's all right with you, Cadence, Lindy is going to come back with me to my realm for a week, and then we'll come back here for a while. That way we can both make an informed decision on where we'll be living permanently."

Cades smiled in relief. "Oh, okay, that sounds fine. Let me know if you need anything."

Lindy promised that she would keep her alphas in the loop and sat down behind the wheel. Crimson shut her door and then walked around the front, opening the pa.s.senger door and sitting down.

As she drove away from her alpha's home, she said, "A week?"

"You have to make an informed decision, ch.e.l.le."

She glanced at him. He was watching out the window. "What if I want to live here?"

He met her eyes with a smile. "Then we will." He reached for her hand again and kissed the top. "I'm just asking you to be open-minded."

She was sure that she could live in a cardboard box in an alley and she'd be happy to be with him. In some ways, that thought was frightening to her because she'd never cared about someone so quickly. But knowing that he was her truemate eased her fears. Even if she didn't really know him yet, her soul knew him and her wolf trusted him, and that was enough to chase the cloudy thoughts away.

When she reached her small home, she immediately called Faith, who promised to get McKenna and come straight over to see for themselves that she was okay and hear what had happened. She couldn't have prevented them from coming over with a ten-foot-high electric fence around her place, so she gave Crimson a tour of her home and opened up the fridge to make lunch.

"I'll cook for you, ch.e.l.le," he offered, looking over her shoulder at the contents on the shelves.

"You took good care of me when I was at your home. Let me do the same for you, here."

He seemed to consider it for a moment and then said, "When we've decided where we'll live permanently, promise me that we'll share the household responsibilities and that you'll let me spoil you whenever I feel like it."

She grinned and began pulling items from the refrigerator. "I promise."

He kissed her neck. "I might feel like it all the time."

Chuckling, she turned from the fridge and closed the door. "I promise to let you all the time."

"Good." He grinned, and her pulse sped up. He had the s.e.xiest smile.

By the time she had sliced chicken b.r.e.a.s.t.s and sauteed them in a pan, McKenna, Drake, and Faith had arrived. After hugging her, both women demanded to know what had happened.

Faith looked at Crimson accusingly. "You! You're the one who stole my best friend!"

Lindy stepped in front of Crimson and put her hands up. "He saved my life, Faith. You know he did. You saw the trap and how injured I was. If Crimson hadn't shown up when he did, I could have died or been lame the rest of my life."

"I'm sorry that I couldn't stop to tell you what I was doing, but I knew I had to get Lindy to safety as quickly as possible," Crimson said, wrapping his arms around Lindy and resting his chin on top of her head. She rubbed her palms along his arms.

McKenna said, "So you guys are mated now? When did that happen?"

Lindy said, "Not officially yet, but yes, we're mates." Wolves didn't consider themselves fully, officially mated until they had s.e.x and marked each other with their fangs. Just the thought of sinking her fangs into Crimson's neck made her teeth tingle in antic.i.p.ation.

McKenna nodded and then tossed her long, black hair over her shoulder. "Are you making fajitas? I'm starving."

Faith's mouth, previously in a scowl, pulled up at the corners. "Fajitas? Me, too!"

While Lindy cut and roasted vegetables, Faith set the table for five, and McKenna grilled Crimson on the Fae Realm and his plans. Drake watched from his seat at the table with an amused expression. Lindy listened with a smile as McKenna proved what a good, protective friend she was and Crimson answered each question honestly and sincerely.

As Lindy put down the platter of chicken and vegetables, Crimson said, "I swear on my life that I will go to my grave to see Lindy safe and happy. You have nothing to fear from me when it comes to her, except that my overprotective wolf won't tolerate her being in danger."

Lindy sat down next to him at her small table, and her friends sat across from them. McKenna and Faith seemed to have changed their tune when it came to Crimson. He had really won them over. And it probably helped that he was s.e.xy as h.e.l.l and as sweet as candy.

After she showed Crimson how to make a fajita, they spent the meal discussing the trap she'd been caught by and what was happening with the pack. None of the local farmers who owned land b.u.t.ting up to the pack's territory would claim the traps. So far, two traps had been found. The first one had been just at the edge of the territory, but the one that had caught her was fairly deep into their territory. One trap was possibly an accident. Maybe the person who placed it didn't realize how close to pack territory it was. But two of the same kind of trap showing up within weeks of each other was deliberate.

While Faith and McKenna did the dishes, Lindy boxed up the leftovers for Faith and Mac to take home with them. "Do you have to leave?" Faith asked over her shoulder.

"I'm spending a week in the Fae Realm to see what it's like, and then we'll be back here."

McKenna dried a plate and put it away. Then she turned her back to the counter and crossed her arms over her chest. "You might move there, though."

Lindy shrugged. Hours earlier she'd been incensed that Crimson wanted her to live with him in the other realm permanently. But the more time she spent with him, the more she realized she didn't really care where they lived as long as they were together. If he wanted to live in the other realm, she knew she wouldn't fight it. She would be sad to leave this life behind, especially since she had just begun to enjoy herself with the pack again, but Crimson was her mate. Wherever he was - no matter the realm - was going to be home for her.

They finished the dishes in silence, and then Faith hugged Lindy as they stood at the front door. "When you come back, we're going to make sure Crimson has such a good time here with the pack that he won't want to live anywhere else."

McKenna echoed the statement. "You're my sister in the pack and my best friend. I don't know what I'd do without you."

Lindy felt her eyes sting at their declarations as she waved goodbye and shut the door, leaning her head against the cool wood. Crimson's hands settled on her shoulders, and he ma.s.saged them lightly. "You have wonderful friends, ch.e.l.le."

"What does that word mean?" She turned in his arms and rubbed her cheek against his chest.

"Sweetheart."

The silence settled around them. She felt as if there were a thousand things she needed to say to him, but her mouth wouldn't open. If she'd been able to speak, she might have told him she didn't want to live in his realm and be away from her best friends and her pack, but she might also have been as likely to tell him she would be happy to live in his realm because she could make a home with him anywhere. But she didn't say anything as she stood in his arms, drinking in the darkly sweet scent of him and feeling the strength of his arms. She didn't have to make a decision now. They had a week to spend in his realm. Maybe she'd love it. Maybe she'd hate it. Whatever came at the end of the week, nothing was set in stone, and as long as they were together, they could figure out all the complicated stuff later.

"Want help packing a bag?" he asked after several quiet minutes.

"Sure."

She led him back to the bedroom, and he retrieved a medium-sized rolling suitcase from the top shelf of the closet. He put it on the bed and unzipped it. After a discussion on the similarities of the two realms' weather patterns, she packed tops and shorts and two sundresses.

"Just how many shoes do you need, ch.e.l.le?" he asked with an amused smile as she tucked tennis shoes and two pairs of sandals into the bag.

"I like to be prepared," she said as she walked into the bathroom and grabbed her toiletry bag from under the cabinet and began to fill it with makeup.

"It's just a week," he said.

Men.

She came out of the bathroom zipping up the small bag and tossed it into the open suitcase. "What do female fairies wear?"

He zipped up the case. "Dresses or long tops and skirts. I think you might call it old-fashioned."

She'd been wearing miniskirts and skin-baring tops since she was sixteen. She liked the idea of old-fashioned clothing.

He went into the backyard, and she followed him a few minutes later after contacting her boss, Stella, to let her know she'd be taking a week off work and making sure the house was locked. She found him arranging rocks from the flowerbed into a crude circle in front of a three-foot dogwood tree.

His shirt was off, and his wings were out. He brushed his hand free of dirt and said, "Come on, ch.e.l.le, we need to get going."

She joined him and watched as he opened the portal with his power. Through the portal she could see his house. "In a hurry?"

"To get you home so we can pick up where we left off last night in the hot springs."

Her cheeks heated with a blush as she remembered the very s.e.xy bath he'd been giving her. Laughing, he stood, took her hand, and pulled her through the portal.

He carried her over the threshold of the house then retrieved the suitcase from where it had dropped to the ground. In the bedroom, he willed a light on in the closet and said, "Make yourself at home. I'll get us something to drink."

The closet was spectacular. It was carved from the same dark stone as the rest of the house. Drawers and shelves were built into one long wall with tops and pants hanging from wooden bars. She opened her bag and hung up her dresses and tops then folded her shorts neatly on one of the empty shelves. Her clothes looked strange next to his. Black leather trousers hung next to rustic tunics and vests. Her floral sundresses seemed completely out of place, as if they were from another time. After putting her undergarments in an empty drawer and her shoes on a low shelf, she unpacked her toiletries into a drawer in the bathroom and put her empty suitcase against the wall in the closet, out of the way.

Crimson came back into the bedroom with two gla.s.ses of peach-tinted liquid and handed one to her.

"To the next week." He tapped the rim of his gla.s.s against hers.

She took a sip and made a pleased sound. It tasted like apricots. "This is good. What's it called?"

"Frioa juice. It's my favorite."

"It might become mine, too."