Page 127 of Labor of Love

A soft smile crossed Elden’s lips when he caught Laney watching him on his way to the window to pull the drapes closed. They looked heavy and thick, the kind that kept sunlight from steaming into a room in the middle of the day.

“As much as I’d like to bask in that, the sun will be rising soon and I don’t sleep well when the room is bright,” Eldon explained.

Smiling, Laney sunk down into the soft mattress when Marcus laid him in the middle of a massive bed while Truett climbed in on the other side of him. “Neither do I. I’ve always preferred the nighttime to the day.”

“Sunlight always makes me tired, but the stubborn light has a way of peering beneath eyelids and blankets,” Elden grumbled as he finished closing all the drapes.

It was sad, seeing the glow of his wings go out, but when Elden crawled up on the bed behind him and snuggled up close, the somber little twinge he’d felt evaporated. They sighed together when Elden settled his hand over Laney’s belly as Marcus crossed the room to turn out the lights. The bed barely dipped when the gargoyle climbed in, bringing warm and a wall of smooth, solid security. Together, Truett and Marcus drew the blankets up over them before Marcus’s hand covered Laney’s where it rested on Truett’s hip.

“Blessed be the wild ones, for we are the children of the moon,” Elden whispered, as a sense of peace and rightness wrapped around them as securely as the soft, fluffy blankets on the bed.

“If I’d known this was what waited for me at the end of the road, I wouldn’t have cursed every step I took out in therain,” Laney murmured as he snuggled into the most wonderful embrace he’d ever experienced.

“I don’t think I could ever come home to a more wonderful gift than the one I received tonight,” Elden admitted. “I don’t know why the goddess chose to bless us this way and bring us everything we’ve been dreaming of in one fell swoop, but all I can think about, as I lay here holding you, is little wings flitting down the hall and laughter.”

“I can’t remember the last time anyone flew down the hall or chased someone for refilling the sugar dish with salt,” Truett said, his soft chuckles rolling through Laney, who snuggled closer to him.

“It was one time, one, and over sixty years ago,” Margus grumbled. “You’d think you’d let me live it down by now.”

“Never.”

“Are you sure you’re ready for forever with these two?” Elden asked as he wiggled up tight behind him.

“More than ready,” Laney said. “It will be every fantasy come true.”

“Now I am very curious to know what was in those fantasies of yours,” Marcus growled, warm breath sending a shiver along Laney’s neck.

“We’ll have to take our time and explore them,” Truett suggested.

“I know I have several of my own I’d like to explore too,” Elden said, each word punctuated by a kiss along Laney’s shoulder. “A lifetime of them I can’t wait to share with you.”

A lifetime.

Home.

Laney let his eyes flutter closed with images of tender moments in the kitchen like the one he’d already experienced, a laughing little one perched on a gargoyle’s shoulders, squealingand rocking along to whatever song was on the radio, thriving in a home filled with music and love.

That’s all he’d ever wanted, for himself, and for the little one from the moment he’d learned of their existence.

Love and family.

Joy and adventure.

A life without fear of rejection.

Somehow, by some long and tangled road, he’d gotten to where he’d always wanted to be and found magic on the other end.

In the forest.

In the village.

And in the manor, with the three amazing mates the fates had gifted him.

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