Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 54305 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 272(@200wpm)___ 217(@250wpm)___ 181(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 54305 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 272(@200wpm)___ 217(@250wpm)___ 181(@300wpm)
He walked slowly into the colorful forest, tapping a balloon here or there. They were so happy and fun as they bobbed and swayed.
In the center of the room, he found a large display of cupcakes, each differently decorated. Some had bats or little wolves drawn on them. Others had holes where fangs might have punctured them and a strawberry gel poured out. Beside them were two wrapped boxes.
“Here! Sit! Open your gifts!” River ordered, ushering him to the center of the sofa.
River immediately sat on one side of Bel while Wyatt settled on the other. His arm rested along the back so that he was holding both of them. Not an easy task since River was struggling to sit still. River placed the smaller of the two boxes in his lap and grinned. “Open it.”
With slightly trembling fingers, Bel tore away the pretty balloon-covered paper and opened the box to find a collection of twenty new bow ties. They ranged from elegant to silly. His instant favorite might have been the ones with the tiny wolves on them. His lovers knew him so very well.
“They’re beautiful!” He quickly kissed both of his mates, perfectly content to sit and inspect his new ties. There was no doubt in his mind that Wyatt and River had selected each one of these ties for him. But River was too impatient for bow tie inspection.
“Okay, now open the other one,” River prodded. “It’s not exactly sexy, but we think you’ll like it.”
The box looked too big and awkward to hold in his lap, so he got up and kneeled beside the table before ripping off the wrapping. A gasp of surprise was caught in his throat. They couldn’t have. But they did!
As Rafe would put it, they got him science shit. It was perfect. It was something he would have happily bought himself for his work.
“You got me a new centrifuge!” Bel cried out, tossing the paper in the air so that he could get at the giant box. “How-how did you know?”
“When we were working in the lab last week, you complained that your current centrifuge didn’t have the kind of RPMs you needed, and that it was slowing with age,” Wyatt easily replied.
River kneeled on the floor beside him. “Do you like it? Wyatt explained that it spins shit.” River twirled one finger in the air as he spoke, but his eyes were unsure. “That it’s used for separating things. He said this is a good one. It even heats and cools stuff, which your old one doesn’t do.”
Bel grabbed River and pulled him into his lap. “It’s perfect. Amazing. I love it! But not half as much as I love you.”
“We love you too, Bel. Happy birthday,” River murmured against his lips.
They kissed several times before Bel got up and crossed to where Wyatt still lounged on the sofa. He crawled into the larger man’s lap and kissed him, no longer caring about the tears slipping silently down his cheeks. He couldn’t hold them back any longer.
“Why the tears?” Wyatt asked, wiping away one streak with his thumb.
“Happy tears. Very, very happy tears,” Bel answered as he pressed his face into Wyatt’s neck.
River’s warm body pressed to his side, and he was in his puppy pile of cuddles where he belonged.
Maybe it was silly to get choked up over a birthday celebration when he was the ripe old age of two hundred and five, but his mates had made him feel special. He and his brothers had left birthdays behind for that very reason. They’d stopped feeling special. They stopped feeling like they should be celebrated.
But River and Wyatt were changing so many things in his life. When he was with them, he always felt cherished and loved. He felt like they were truly happy he was alive and in their lives. After so many years of pain and torment, he’d never thought this possible.
Now he treasured every moment he had with them. This was only the start of the celebrations they were going to have in their lives together.
Winter’s Bad Morning
Winter woke to a loud bang.
No, a boom.
A deep, earth-shaking boom. Like an explosion.
He instantly reached across the bed for his mate to find Fox’s side of the bed empty and the sheets cool to the touch. Where was his mate? Had he caused that explosion with his magic?
Winter was out of their bed in a flash, his heart pounding. He paused only long enough to pull on a pair of jeans from the floor and snatch up his cell phone.
It took less than a minute to confirm that Fox was not in the house. He tried calling his mate’s cell as he searched, but there was no answer. Panic rose in Winter with every step. Where was his mate? Fox was still human and so very fragile. If something happened to him and Winter couldn’t reach him in time, he’d die. Winter would lose him forever.