With a final thrust and a drawn-out groan, Race came.
Chapter Six.
Race woke wrapped around Mara.
Her naked body fit perfectly in the curve of his and she was still sound asleep.
So what had- He heard Arin babbling in the next room. Quietly. Like yesterday afternoon.
The moon had already set but the room was still dark so it had to be at least 2:00 or 3:00 a.m.
Was the baby hungry? Should he wake Mara?
Or should he check it out first?
He looked back at Mara.
He"d let her sleep for a while. If the baby needed her, he"d bring Arin back.
Besides, he knew how to change a diaper. Just because he didn"t like it didn"t mean he hadn"t taken care of a few kids in his day.
Sliding out of bed without disturbing her was easy. She must"ve been exhausted.
Or he"d worn her out.
He tried not to let that go to his head. He didn"t have much of a reputation with women mainly because he hadn"t had much time for them. And he"d never found one who could tolerate him for more than a couple dates. He wasn"t the easiest guy to get along with. He didn"t talk much and when he did, they didn"t like what he had to say.
Mara seemed to like him.
Good thing, because he wanted to keep her. Primitive but truthful.
And since Arin was part of the deal, he"d better get used to changing diapers.
The second bedroom was only a few feet from Mara"s and Arin was still babbling away when he entered.
"Hey, little man. You"re awfully chatty for the middle of the night. What-"
s.h.i.t. The bear was back. Standing outside the window, staring in at Arin. The animal wasn"t making a sound, just watching Arin. And not in an "I"m going to eat you" way.
Tinia"s teat. The baby talked to animals. This was totally f.u.c.ked up. And yeah, a little cool.
The baby gurgled and turned his head toward Race. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the bear back away from the window and amble off into the woods.
"Okay, little man, one of these days we"re gonna have a serious chat about that bear. But not tonight. You have a big day tomorrow so you need to get some sleep."
Race didn"t really think Arin understood him, but the baby smiled and made noises for a minute or so as Race walked him around the room. Finally he must have worn himself out because he shut his eyes and his mouth and went limp in Race"s arms.
It still made him shake his head. He typically made people nervous but Mara had told him she felt safe with him. And Arin...well, obviously he did too.
After he changed the kid"s diaper and set him back in the crib, where he looked way too small, Race caught Mara"s scent behind him. She stood in the doorway, watching him, covered from head to toe in flannel pajamas.
Because she was so small, the man"s design hung on her. She had the pants and sleeves rolled up and her short hair looked as if she"d been running her fingers through it for days.
He didn"t think she"d look any s.e.xier in red lingerie and black stockings.
She watched him with an almost disbelieving look in her eyes, which she quickly blinked away when he frowned.
She must not have seen the bear and, since he didn"t want to upset her, he didn"t tell her. It"d probably come back to bite him in the a.s.s later. That stuff typically did.
"Did I wake you?"
She shook her head as she made her way to the crib and looked in at Arin. She ran her hand over his head before she stepped away.
Mara looked up at Race, her lips curved into a smile that made his heart pound as she slid her fingers through his and tugged him along with her back to bed.
Race had tried to answer all Mara"s questions before they left the next morning, knowing it"d be tough to hold a conversation in the car.
The trepidation had returned to her eyes and she constantly looked over her shoulder to check on Arin, strapped into a baby seat in the backseat of Race"s Ford Explorer.
He didn"t know what to say to make her relax so he didn"t try. Instead he turned on the radio, telling her to pick a station.
It took her almost five minutes until she settled on a station playing Broadway music.
Served him right for letting her choose, he figured.
But the music seemed to calm her. And apparently put Arin to sleep.
He"d already told her there"d been a change in plans. They weren"t going to Sal"s place in Reading. They were heading for a set of coordinates Race had determined were somewhere in the woodlands north of Hamburg.
Interesting.
And the closer they got to the coordinates, the more his curiosity was piqued. Mara also seemed to lose some of her trepidation and looked around with more interest than concern.
When the road they were on began to veer away from the coordinates, he had to make a choice.
"I think I saw a cutout back there," he said as he put the truck in reverse and backed up until he got to what he thought- The cutout looked almost like a natural break in the trees, especially if you weren"t looking for a way onto the mountain. And who would? There were easier trail entrances only a few miles away.
But this was definitely the way they needed to go. He knew it.
"Hang on. This could get a little b.u.mpy."
As they turned onto the dirt track leading into what looked like solid forest, Race realized there was definitely something magical going on. For one thing, the ride was much smoother than he"d expected. Even though it looked like rocky, untamed wilderness, the truck barely dipped and swayed.
A hundred yards into the forest, a definite track emerged and Race knew they were on the right trail. He stole a glance at Mara, who stared wide-eyed out the front window.
They drove almost a mile before he realized that what he was seeing ahead weren"t just abnormally large trees.
They were houses, one-story log houses cl.u.s.tered around a central clearing.
They looked like fairy houses. Honest-to-G.o.d fairyland houses. With the covering of snow, the scene looked like something out of a movie.
And when Sal, in all his goat-legged glory, stepped out of one of the houses and waved to him, he felt Mara practically vibrate with shock.
And in the backseat, Arin started to babble.
"Mara, look at me."
She didn"t turn right away. It took her several seconds but when she finally did, she began to sign, so slowly he actually understood most of it.
"He"s exactly what you think he is. He"s salbinelli."
Her hands moved again.
"Obviously they"re not extinct." He smiled. "There"s actually another one living here."
"Hey, it"s freaking cold out here, people," Sal yelled from the doorway, making them both turn to look at him. "Get a move on."
Typical Sal. Blunt and to the point. And maybe more than Mara could handle right now.
Mara grabbed his arm in a tight grip. If she wanted to leave, they were out of there.
But when he looked at her again, she wore a grin a mile wide.
"All right then. Let"s get inside before Sal comes out again. He doesn"t like getting his hooves cold."
She shook her head when he said hooves and he hid a smile at her obvious astonishment. d.a.m.n, he liked when she smiled. He felt as if the world brightened around him.
Yep, he"d definitely gone sappy. If his brother could see him now, Lark would fall on the ground laughing. And Race wouldn"t care one d.a.m.n bit.
Mara made him happy. And now that they"d moved their relationship to the next level, he wasn"t going to let her get away.
h.e.l.l, he was occasionally a wolf. If she tried to get away, he"d track her down.
"I"ll get the kid. Be careful getting out over there."
There was more snow here, at least six inches. Mara didn"t seem to notice as she plowed through it to reach his side. With the baby in his portable carrier, they hurried to the cabin, barely taking time to knock the snow off their feet before Mara pushed through the door.
She stopped just inside, forcing him to crowd her and get her to move in a few more feet so he could close the door behind him.
When he looked up he realized why she"d stopped.
"h.e.l.lo, Race." A tall, dark-haired man with a wide smile and distinct Etruscan features walked toward them, his hand held out. Imposing was a good word for him and Race instinctively stepped in front of Mara. She didn"t handle meeting new men easily.
A split second later, he realized who this man was and bowed.
"Selvans. Greetings."
Apparently his mother"s insistence that he learn some manners as a kid had stuck. At least enough to know what to do when he met an Etruscan G.o.d.
"Nice to meet you, son."
Straightening, Race found himself looking into bright-green eyes. He took the G.o.d"s hand automatically and shook.
Then that startling gaze transferred over his shoulder.
"h.e.l.lo, Mara." His voice had softened and behind him, Mara shifted, moving to his side to take the G.o.d of the Woods" hand.
"And this," Selvans" gaze dropped to the baby, who stared up at him without making a sound, "must be Arin. Nice to meet you too, little man."
When Selvans held his hand out to the baby, Arin grabbed for it like babies did. Which made Selvans draw in a deep breath and his mouth curve in a bittersweet smile.
"Yes, I see. So the signs are correct. I had wondered..."
Selvans seemed to be speaking to himself, though he could be talking to the baby. h.e.l.l, Arin could talk to animals. Why not G.o.ds?
Selvans straightened and smiled at Mara again. "Well now, who"d like some hot chocolate? Sal makes a mean cocoa. I"m going to have mine with a shot of peppermint schnapps. Then we have some things to discuss."
Mara began to sign but Selvans held up one hand with a wry smile. "I"m sorry I don"t understand sign language. But one of the things on the agenda today is breaking the rest of that spell. As a matter of fact, let"s see if we can get that taken care of right away. Mara, I"d like you to meet Scarlata."
A woman Race hadn"t noticed came forward from the other side of the room, where Race realized another man stood as well. He couldn"t believe he hadn"t seen them, especially the gorgeous redhead. Then again, meeting a G.o.d and worrying about Mara consumed most of his concentration.
He"d have to watch that. Couldn"t afford to get sloppy.
"Nice to meet you, Mara." The woman"s voice held a trace of an Italian accent, husky and deep. "I understand the streghe weren"t able to break the spell on your vocal cords. I believe I can do something about that, if you"ll let me."
Race watched as Mara took a moment before nodding then turned to Race and lifted her hands.
"Oh c.r.a.p," he interrupted as he set the baby on the floor. "I forgot I had this."
Reaching for the baby bag, he pulled out the whiteboard Dorian had left on the porch this morning. He swore Dorian could read minds.
As Mara gave him that smile that made his blood heat, she took it from him then began to write.
What makes you think you can break this spell?
Scarlata grinned. "Because I"ve got a few secrets up my sleeves that even the streghe don"t. And with Selvans and a few of my other friends, I think we have just a little more magic than even the streghe."
What are you?