Page 10 of Cold Curses
“I was working up the nerve to ask you out.”
“Oh, I’m sure.”
“The point,” Gabriel said, drawing our attention back, “is that you two have been part of each other’s lives nearly since the beginning. I’m glad you’ve decided to commit to each other, and be there for each other for as long as you may live.”
The words might have been serious and hinted at Connor’s mortality, but there was no grief in his tone. Just earnest practicality. Shifters were like that.
“It won’t be easy,” he continued. “Every family in this room has had its share of shit.”
“Hear! Hear!” someone called out.
“You’ll have your own variety, being who and what you are.” He looked at Tonya. “Commitment will give you a confidant, a partner, a shoulder, and a hand.”
“And an alibi!” Jeff said, and there was another round of laughter.
“When the need arises,” Gabriel agreed, then settled his gaze on us again. Magic swirled in his eyes, like a galaxy’s worth of knowledge. “The beginning and the end is you. The beginning and the end is love.”
We’d need that love, because the world outside was deadly. We had broken wards, demons, and a vulnerable human population. We’d need every bit of strength we could muster.
* * *
There were more hugs, more meat loaf, and a spread of handmade pies that would have impressed even Claudia. Then Connor’s parents pulled us into a quiet corner, looked us over.
“We wanted to ask about wedding plans,” Connor’s dad said, “but you both look beat to shit.”
“Demons,” I said.
“Apex challenges,” Connor said.
“Do you at least have a date in mind?” his mom asked.
I knew she meant well, and given the spark in her eyes, she was probably excited to think about wedding plans for her only son. But…demons.
“Not until things are stabilized magically,” Connor said. “We don’t want to start ‘us’ until the city is safer.” He reached out, embraced her. “But thank you for asking, and thank you for dinner.”
“You’re welcome,” she said.
“No fight tomorrow night, right?” his dad asked.
“Not among shifters,” Connor said. “But demons? Who knows.”
* * *
“That was really nice,” I said when we were walking back to the vehicle.
He squeezed our joined hands. “It was,” he said, and pulled me against him, held me for a moment in the darkness and the relative quiet. “I guess we have to actually get married now.”
“I guess. I’ll call my other lovers, Todd and Keith, and let them know.”
He flicked my ear, which just made me snort.
“I’m pretty sure one husband will be sufficient,” I said. “Probably.”
His grin went wicked. “We could pop into the backyard hammock and test my sufficiency.”
“You’d wake the neighbors.”
“No, Lis,” he said, and his smile was slow and sexy and full of magic and promise. “You’dwake the neighbors.”
