The Company of Fiends (Tempting Monsters 2)

"Private performances," Nireas said, waggling his eyebrows.

Constantine turned and smiled at Hunter. "Show her."

Hunter nodded and sighed. "I do, little one. Follow me."

It was as good a way to take a tour of the house as any, our slow procession through a fully stocked library, a bright and airy dining room, a darkly feminine sitting room. There were gaps in the interior, places for us to fill the space with our own touches and belongings, and even rooms I could imagine redecorating as the lady of the house, but the estate came more than well provided for as it was.

None of it mattered—or no, it mattered less than our destination.

My eyes were wide, lips parted, as we reached an amply furnished study that looked over the back of the estate and its wild gardens. And the woods.

"Oh, Hunter," I whispered as he opened the broad doors to the stone patio.

"Fifty acres, little one," Hunter said gently.

Fifty acres in the Forest of Dean. A house with rooms to host friends. The loves of my life at my side.

The trees sang with birdsong and patient greetings, warm words of welcome. I walked out over the stone patio with blind eyes, the world blurring behind tears.

"She likes it," Ronan chuckled.

"I love it. Oh, it's—" I pressed my lips together, blinked my eyes clear, afraid to say the word, as if this home might be snatched out of my grasp before I had the chance to claim it.

"Ours," Hunter said, and I spun to face him. He was nervous, which was rare for Hunter now, but I remembered the old signs, his eyes narrowed and shoulders rising. "It's ours. I can sell it again if you've any objections, but I thought we might lose our chance if I didn't—"

"Perfect! Hunter, it's perfect," I said, throwing myself into his chest, pressing kisses into his beard, against the tusk at the corner of his mouth. "I love you. This is perfect. Thank you."

Hunter's rambles went silent, and he wrapped his arms around me.

"Oh, but what does everyone else think?" I asked, remembering that I was one of six.

Nireas laughed at the question, and Jude shook his head at me.

"It's perfect," Constantine said with a nod, not that any of them were likely to object now.

Good, I decided, selfishly pleased and equally assured that they didn't mind.

"When can we move in?" I asked, turning in Hunter's arms, leaning back against his chest.

"It's ours now. Withes and the others will do their best for us tonight, and we'll find enough staff for the house with no trouble," Hunter said. "As long as you are happy, this is our home now."

Happy. I snorted. I was happy with a kiss on the cheek, let alone a country house in the Forest of Dean.

With fifty acres.

Fifty acres of woods.

"Look at her. We'll be lucky to get her back inside by dinnertime," Nireas said.

My lips curved, and a wonderful idea brewed. This was our homecoming. Why not celebrate it? "You'll have to catch me," I said.

"Catch you?" Constantine repeated.

Hunter understood, his arms loosening and allowing me to slip free. I kicked my slippers off on the stone and ran down the stairs into the tidy, brief lawn of grass.

"Catch me," I said again, grinning over my shoulder, arching an eyebrow in invitation. "Hunt me, gentlemen. Winner may have his prize."

"Quick, don't give her a head start," Jude warned.

But it was too late. I was running, laughing, bolting into the trees already. A growl sounded behind me, and my heart raced as I darted through the woods. My home now. My home with my men.

"Hurry and catch me," I called to them, laughing.

Hurry and hide me, I whispered to the trees.

I reached for the buttons of my blouse. I would leave it and my skirt behind in the woods and lose the rest in the trees as my men gave chase, hunting the nymph they loved, their monstrous girl.

The End