Bite the Bullet (Bitten Book 5) Page 21

  A glass of champagne appeared on the table in front of me and I looked over to find Asher standing to my left.

  “Thanks, babe.” I leaned over and kissed his cheek as he settled into the chair next to mine.

  “What were you looking at?”

  “Just admiring the work that Conner had done in here. I can’t believe he had it done in eight weeks.”

  Asher chuckled. “A man in love can accomplish a lot when he puts his mind to it.”

  Ricki lowered herself into the chair to my right with a sigh. “I swear, Calder is driving me nuts.”

  I looked over at her. “Why?”

  “He won’t let me do anything for myself,” she complained. “I was just at the buffet and he literally took the plate out of my hand because he said I shouldn’t have to get my own food.”

  Though she was only five months pregnant, Ricki looked much further along. I was hesitant to ask her about it, but Asher explained that shifters had a much shorter gestation period than humans. Something about a faster metabolic rate.

  “Ummm, are you gonna take my head off if I tell you I think that’s kinda sweet?” I asked, sipping my champagne.

  Ricki stared at my glass longingly. “No, but I might bite off your hand for that champagne.”

  “Ricki,” I drawled.

  “I know, I know,” she sighed in response. “No booze until this pup is born.”

  I couldn’t help myself. I grinned at her. “It’ll be worth it. I promise.”

  She smiled back at me, massaging her belly. “I know. I’m just cranky because I either have to pee constantly or I can’t breathe.”

  Calder approached the table carrying two loaded plates. I was pretty sure Conner and Donna decided on a buffet dinner at the reception instead of a sit down just for Ricki and the other werewolves in attendance. Those shifters could pack the food away.

  When Calder set the plate in front of Ricki, she frowned at it. “Where’s my sushi?”

  He sat next to her. “You can’t have sushi. The doctor said no raw fish.”

  Ricki growled low in her throat. “I can’t have sashimi, but Donna told me that everything on the buffet was cooked so it wouldn’t be an issue.”

  My eyes widened. This was a side of Ricki I wasn’t familiar with. Apparently, pregnant werewolves took their food very seriously.

  Calder smiled serenely at her. “I’ll go get you some.” Then he was gone.

  She turned to me. “See what I mean?”

  I leaned toward her. “I think it’s sweet, hon.”

  “I know,” she sighed. “It really is. I swear, every time I wake up in the middle of the night, he’s got his hand on my belly.”

  “Then why are you being so mean to him?” I asked.

  “Considering how uncomfortable I am already and that I have at least another four to six weeks of this, I’m getting my revenge on him for knocking me up.”

  I had to laugh. “Okay, that actually makes a twisted kind of sense.”

  Ricki grinned back at me. “I know.”

  “Dance with me,” Asher whispered in my ear.

  I told Ricki I’d see her later, got to my feet, and let Asher lead me onto the dance floor. Conner had Donna locked in an embrace at the front of the dance floor, but she didn’t seem to mind it one bit.

  As Asher pulled me into his arms, I smiled up at him. “I feel like I haven’t had a chance to talk to you all night.”

  “I feel the same,” he murmured, resting our joined hands over his heart.

  “It was a beautiful wedding, wasn’t it?”

  He looked down at me, a grin playing at the corners of his mouth. “Is that a hint?”

  I shook my head. “Oh, no. If we don’t elope, I want the smallest wedding we can plan. Outdoors, just our closest friends, and then a picnic, dancing, and games afterwards. I’d want to keep it simple.”

  “Are you proposing to me?”

  I gaped up at him. “What?”

  “You’re asking me to marry you, aren’t you?” he asked.

  “What? No! Absolutely not.”

  “That’s too bad,” he said, his mouth to my ear. “Because my answer would have been yes.”

  I pinched him discreetly. “I may be independent and modern in a lot of ways, but if we’re going to get officially engaged, you have to do the asking,” I muttered beneath my breath.

  Asher spun me out and then back into his arms. “Understood.”

  “Good.” I turned my head and rested it against his chest, closing my eyes.

  The last two months had been like nothing I’d expected.

  Contrary to what Asher suggested the night of the final battle, we didn’t move into his house right away.

  Instead we stayed with Conner and Donna through Christmas. We helped with the clean up that was left behind after the battle.

  By the time that was done, it was two days before Christmas and Donna insisted we at least decorate a tree in the living room and spend the holiday with them.

  Asher, in his usual perceptive manner, recognized that my friends and I all needed that time together, so he didn’t say a word.

  The five of us and our mates spent a beautiful Christmas together. We ate delicious food, which had been cooked by Conner and, to my surprise, Asher. Apparently, owning a restaurant together meant you learned a few things about cooking.

  We drank cocoa and watched holiday movies. It felt just like old times. Though we tried to remain cheerful, we were all shell-shocked. Too much had happened in such a short period of time. The adjustment period wasn’t over.

  None of us had seen or heard from Rhys. Kerry tried to find him using spells and scrying in a mirror, but nothing worked. It was as if he’d vanished off the face of the earth.

  As for me, I had nightmares about that night. Dreams about what could have happened instead of what did. Dreams in which everyone I loved died while Cornelius forced me to watch.

  What I didn’t realize when I woke up from these nightmares, was that I was sharing them with Asher. Usually, I tried to turn over and go back to sleep, making an effort not to wake him. I knew from experience that they would eventually pass, and that there was little I could do to change that.

  Finally, one night after a particularly bad one, he rolled into me and wrapped his arms around me. “I need you,” he whispered.

  I clung to him, pressing my lips against his bare shoulder. “I need you too.”

  “Are you having dreams?” he asked.

  I nodded.

  “Me too.”

  “Do you want to talk about it?” I murmured.

  When he told me what he saw, I went rigid. “That was my dream. Everything you described was exactly what I was dreaming.”

  After that night, any time I had a bad dream, we would cuddle together, talking or just lying in silence, until we fell back to sleep.

  Once Christmas was over, Asher moved me into his absolutely breathtaking Craftsman-style home. While it was gorgeous, it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting.

  Considering Asher’s style, I thought he would have an ultra-modern, sprawling complex.

  My surprise at his home must have shown on my face or he felt it through our connection, because he asked, “Not what you expected?”

  I walked through the foyer and into the living room, shaking my head. “Not exactly.”

  He followed me as I moved from the living area to the dining room. “You don’t like it?”

  I turned to face him, standing in the middle of his dining room, which was filled with warm toned woods and amazing natural light. “I love it. It’s gorgeous. It’s the kind of home I’ve always dreamed of owning.”

  “But?”

  I grinned at him. “I thought you’d have a house full of glass and concrete in the middle of the city somewhere. Not a turn of the century home in one of the oldest neighborhoods in the area.”

  Asher smiled back at me. “I love this place. And I love concrete and glass too. I have a house in Aspen th
at resembles what you’ve described.”

  “A house in Aspen?”

  He chuckled. “Rather than have one massive estate here, I like having homes in different places.”

  “How many different places?”

  “Right now I have five. You’ve seen the one here and you’ll see the one in Aspen soon. I also have houses in the Bahamas, Greece, and, of course, France.”

  “Five homes? Are they all as beautiful as this one?”

  He nodded. “In their own way, yes. Would you like to see them?”

  After so much time trapped inside, traveling the world sounded incredibly appealing.

  “Yes, the sooner the better,” I answered. “But let’s start with this one.”

  Not only was the house incredible, but Asher’s tour ended with amazing sex in his king sized bed.

  Between the New Year and Donna’s wedding, Asher took me to Aspen. We skied, cuddled in front of the fire, and just spent some quiet time together. It felt like heaven.

  Somehow the tranquility of our surroundings worked its way into my mind and the nightmares began to recede. If I did have one, I found it much easier to let it go and find sleep once again.

  My mate gave me that. He gave me peace.

  Asher interrupted my reminiscing, bringing me back to the dance floor at Donna and Conner’s wedding.

  “Did you fall asleep on me?” he muttered, amusement ripe in his voice.

  “No,” I replied. “I’m just thinking about everything that’s happened the past few weeks. It seems strange to me that we’ve been together for almost three months, but I can’t imagine my life without you anymore.”

  “Now who’s the sweet talker?” he asked.

  I smiled. “Well, I learned from the master.”

  I looked around the ballroom as Asher moved me around the dance floor. Ricki and Calder were huddled together, eating and laughing, at our table. Donna and Conner were still kissing and whispering to each other, in their own little world.

  I spied Lex and Ivie sneaking out of the room and laughed quietly. I had a feeling they were intent on a quickie in the bathroom.

  Kerry and Finn were dancing a few feet from us, just holding each other and swaying to the music.

  In less than a year, my friends and I had completely transformed our lives. I learned things about them all, and myself, that I wouldn’t have thought possible.

  I realized that each of us had inner strengths we hadn’t recognized or tapped before.

  I learned that one of my best friends was the most powerful witch in North America.

  Donna and I became vampires. I knew it wouldn’t be long before Lex talked Ivie into the Claiming ceremony and turned her.

  Ricki not only changed into a werewolf, but she was mated to the pack alpha. She had opened herself up to the possibilities and discovered she was a badass along the way.

  Not only had we found ourselves, but we were blessed with mates that valued us for our virtues and our flaws. Mates who treasured us above all else.

  Of everything I’d discovered over the last few months, I’d come to realize that everything we experienced led us to true love.

  I had seen the future, but even if I hadn’t, I would have had faith that life would be nothing short of extraordinary from this day forward.

  The End

  This concludes the Bitten series. Thank you for taking this journey with me!

  The Blood and Bone series will continue the stories of several characters from these books. Book 1 will be available in late 2016.

  Acknowledgements

  Shannon, thank you for letting me save you for last and not giving me too much shit for it. I really enjoyed writing your story and getting daily texts from you for six weeks. You should do that texting thing more often.

  Tania, thank you for editing for me. I know that I drive you crazy, but I appreciate that you keep it to yourself most of the time. And, yes, you can be a pain in the ass too, but I love you anyway.

  I could not have written this books without the help of my fantastic, supercalifragilistic beta readers. Thanks for your quick replies and your honest feedback….at least I hope it was honest. Christine, Catherine, Kathy, and Michele, you were incredibly helpful and constructive in the advice you gave me.

  There are so many bloggers and readers who read my books and help me spread the word about them. I appreciate it more than you could ever know. You make this strange, wonderful, and sometimes frustrating job worthwhile.

  Last but not least, a huge thank you to my hubby and baby girl. Because of your help and willingness to entertain yourselves, I’m able to meet the crazy deadlines. You are the two most important people in my life and I’m so blessed to have you.

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  About C.C.

  A native Texan, C.C. grew up either reading or playing the piano. Years later, she’s still not grown up and doing the same things. Since the voices in her head never shut up, C.C. decided to share their crazy stories and started writing books.

  Now that she has a baby girl at home, C.C.’s non-writing time is usually spent cleaning up poopy diapers or feeding the poop machine. Sometimes she teaches piano, cooks, or spends time bugging her hubby and two beagles.

  Titles by C.C. Wood

  Novellas:

  Girl Next Door Series:

  Friends with Benefits

  Frenemies

  Drive Me Crazy

  Girl Next Door-The Complete Series

  Kiss Series:

  A Kiss for Christmas

  Kiss Me

  Novels:

  Seasons of Sorrow

  NSFW Series:

  In Love With Lucy

  Earning Yancy

  Westfall Brothers Series:

  Texas with a Twist

  Wicked Games Series:

  All or Nothing

  Paranormal Romance:

  Bitten Series:

  Bite Me

  Once Bitten, Twice Shy

  Bewitched, Bothered, and Bitten

  One Little Bite

  Love Bites

  Bite the Bullet