Chapter Twenty-One

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Amalie's heart sank. Was he saying goodbye already? She didn't want her time with him to end. She put on a brave face to cover her dismay and sipped at the bubbly wine. It was delicious, and she tried hard to just enjoy the moment under the stars with a great wine, a beautiful night, and the most intriguing man she'd ever met. Would ever meet. She had a feeling that, after knowing Billy, she would never be the same.

He sat down across from her, and they just sipped champagne and enjoyed the quiet of the night on the water for a little while. Absently, she erected a simple ward to keep their words private.

"Nobody can hear us, now," she said as she lowered her hand. "Just in case we want to talk about our recent adventures."

"Good idea. Thanks," he said, but didn't take her up on it, just sat and seemed to enjoy the quiet night. The lapping of the little wavelets against the shore established an almost hypnotic rhythm that lulled her into forgetting her worries for the moment.

"Gavin said his mother was a mage," Billy said, out of the blue, a few minutes later. "‘ Like ours ,' he'd said, though I'm sure he didn't mean that his mother was a Rollins. Just a magic user. But his mother taught him, and he seemed to have more of the mage gift than me or my brothers. At least, as far as we know. None of us ever explored that part of our heritage."

She wondered if maybe the brothers had more magic than they realized, but that was something for later consideration. She felt it only fair to point out that Gavin's revelation had deeper implications.

"So, that means at least one magic user was accepted by the Kinkaid Clan as a mate of one of its lions," she offered softly. "Maybe the Clan isn't as opposed to magic as you thought."

"Just opposed to a Rollins joining the fold," Billy said, then made a rude gesture as he looked away to stare out over the dark water.

"Maybe," Amalie allowed. "Or maybe your folks were rebels to begin with. You did say your mother was labeled a rogue by her own family."

Billy looked thoughtful. "Well, Dad always did get a little stubborn when anyone opposed his ideas."

"So, maybe they both thumbed their noses at their families and broke away to be on their own," she offered.

"Yeah, that's probably exactly what they did. And wouldn't it be funny if they'd lived to see these times and us working alongside Clan Kinkaids? Dad would've…" He trailed off, not really sure what his father would have thought about their recent activities.

His dad had been a fair-minded man, even if he did hold a deep resentment against the Clan of his birth. Billy thought his father might have approved of Billy's burgeoning friendship with Gavin. When a man saves your life, you don't turn away his friendship. Dad would have agreed with that.

And Gavin wasn't such a bad guy. He was a little younger than Billy, and his lion couldn't help but see him as a sort of younger brother. Kind of like a version of Colt, though more distantly related. If the lion approved, who was Billy to argue?

Everything he'd seen of Gavin, including their time in the fey realm and his insatiable curiosity about everything he saw there, had impressed Billy. The fact that Gavin, young as he was, had opened talks with Amalie's father on behalf of his Clan was downright impressive. Gavin had seen an opportunity and hadn't passed it up.

Billy wasn't so sure he would've been half as on top of things when he was Gavin's age. Maybe there was something to growing up in a supportive Clan, though Billy would never know for sure. His chance for that was long gone.

"So, have you changed your mind even a little bit about the Kinkaids?" Amalie asked gently after the silence had stretched a bit longer than he had intended.

"Don't ever tell Rich, but yeah." Billy marveled at his own words. "Not the entire Clan, per se, but Gavin impressed the hell out of me. And I like the way Lester took him under his wing, even though it's pretty clear Gavin wasn't ever under Lester's command before. They seem to have this bond. A bit like the bond between me and my brothers, but somehow…bigger. I don't really understand it, and I probably never will. But being part of the Clan seems to connect them, even though they've never worked together before. Part of that is familiar," he allowed. "It's the bond of brothers-in-arms. Being in the service, you tend to form these connections with guys who've served in the same areas, or the same branches, or just shared certain experiences with you. Human, shifter, it doesn't matter. We're all brothers under the skin. It seems there's some aspect of that kind of thing with those Kinkaids I've met recently who are part of the Clan."

"I guess I can understand that," Amalie replied, her heart going out to this man that she had come to love in such a short amount of time.

Billy was so well put together in so many ways, but there was this raw open wound surrounding his family that showed at times like this. It made her want to help him. Help them , in whatever way she could. She just wasn't sure how.

It seemed so obvious to her that the brothers should probably just reconcile with the Clan. Whatever had happened in the past with their parents and the elders of the Kinkaid Clan was over and done. The brothers had a chance to start fresh, if only they would take it.

Of course, she couldn't force them to do anything. The decision and effort had to come from them. If anything, she was surprised Billy's friendship with Gavin had progressed so quickly. She was also surprised that Billy acknowledged it. Her lion lover wasn't quite as stubborn as she'd believed. It might take them some time, but she hoped they'd all get there in the end.

For now, all she could do was support him and listen to him, and enjoy this beautiful night on the water, under the stars. He reached out to refill their champagne glasses then sat back and was still for a while. Apparently, the subject was closed, for now. She could live with that.

Amalie thought about her current situation. She'd been on the go for so many hours that she hadn't really had time to sit still and think about things. There were a lot of loose ends she had to take care of before she could settle back to life on Long Island among the coven.

"I'd like to go back to Ohio briefly and pack up my stuff," Amalie said, thinking aloud.

"Do you think that's safe?" Billy asked. She liked that he wasn't saying no to her idea right off the bat.

"For a quick port in and out, I think it would be safe enough. I could always port right out if something's amiss there. But I can call my next-door neighbor, I suppose, and ask if she's seen anything odd. She's a nosy old lady who keeps tabs on everything. I bet she's speculating all sorts of things with your truck parked in my driveway all this time." Amalie giggled a bit.

"And we can check the alarm system remotely," Billy put in.

"We can?" That was news to her. The alarm had been old when she'd moved in and didn't hook up to the wifi, but it had been good enough to warn her if someone tried to break in and that was all she'd really needed.

"I meant to show you this before, but events overtook us." Billy reached for his smartphone and brought up a view of her house that amazed her. It was from the backyard—probably the guest house he'd slept in—and it showed her the entire garden and the back of the house.

"Is this in real time?" she asked, flipping through the various camera angles. These were all new cams that they had installed together for the most part.

"Yep," he nodded. "I checked when we got back, and nothing has disturbed the alarm since we left except a curious squirrel who posed for a selfie in front of the camera we stuck in that old oak tree." He chuckled, touching the screen until he brought up a photo of a very curious squirrel face looking directly into the camera. She laughed out loud when he showed it to her.

"That's great. So I can port in and pack up my stuff tomorrow."

"You could, but I'd like to go along with you if possible. And, forgive me for asking, but word is, around shifter circles, that fey don't much like to use magic to poof from place to place in our realm because it causes some kind of ruckus among those sensitive to magic. Would you be drawing attention to yourself by using portals?" He looked genuinely concerned, and her heart warmed.

"My kind of magic is a little different from what other fey might use to get around," she told him. "The true beauty of being a Portal Master is that nobody can detect my portals. They are part of the fabric of the realms and not the same kind of magic as what other fey might employ to move from place to place."

"Really?" He looked both surprised and pleased.

"And I can take as many people with me as I want with no additional strain. My portals are like doorways. Once open, anybody can go through until I close them. The other sort of traveling takes power from the mage themselves, and unless they are super strong, they can't move more than a couple of people, and the recovery time is significant if they overstretch." She smiled a bit smugly. "I'm not subject to those limitations. I could move an army through one of my portals, and it wouldn't impact me at all."

"That's good, because if it comes down to it, you might just have to do that," he reminded her, his smile disappearing.

She nodded, her mood darkening a bit. "Yeah, I realize that now. Good thing I know I can do it. I'm ready to use my powers for the side of Light wherever and whenever they need me."

"And that's just one thing I love about you," Billy murmured, moving close.

Wait. Did he just use the L word?

"When do you want to port back to Ohio? I'd like to go with you. Maybe take down some of the surveillance gear," he offered.

"After we put in all that work putting it up." She sighed. He'd glossed over his use of the L word, but she was still a bit rattled by it. Had he meant it the way it had sounded? Oh, man . A little part of her hoped against hope that he did!

"Even if you owned the place, the location is blown. It wouldn't really work as a safe house, and living there would just invite attack," he reasoned.

"Yeah, I know. Even though I only lived there a short time, I'm going to miss the place. I have more than a few loose ends to tie up, including quitting my job and finalizing things with the landlord."

"I'll help where I can," he offered immediately. "If you'll allow me, that is." He smiled, and she felt her insides melt.

"I'd be glad of the help, and of your company. If you don't mind, we can load up your truck with my stuff then drive to someplace secluded, and I'll port us, truck and all, back here."

"You can do that?" He looked incredulous for a moment then shook his head. "Yeah, of course you can. You just told me you could march an army through one of your portals, so I guess a pickup truck won't be a problem."

She shrugged, liking the admiration in his eyes. "I could use the practice. I haven't done any big portals since my father pronounced me fully trained and I left home to come live here with Gran."

"Speaking of living here…" He seemed hesitant, and she wondered what he was getting at. She waited to see what he wanted to say. "You know, my brother and Meg are going to stay here and live in her house for the time being, but I know there are at least two other houses in the development for sale at the moment. I was thinking…"

Oh, boy . Was he going to move here too? Did he want their relationship to continue? She tried not to get her hopes up too high, but it was nearly impossible.

"I was thinking…" he repeated, moving closer to her on the bench seat along one side of the boat. He put his arm around her shoulders, and they turned to face each other. "Amalie, I don't ever want you to port out of my life. My lion—and my human side—agree. You're my mate, and I will never love another. Only you."

Amalie was floored by his declaration. Struck almost totally speechless. Her mind scrambled. He wasn't just staying in the area. He was saying they were mates? Sweet Mother of All!

"You love me?" she squeaked out. That was really the only thing that mattered. Her heart leapt in anticipation and hope as he nodded solemnly.

"I do love you, Amalie. I want you to be my mate. That's like asking you to be my wife, only with no possible end date. Mates are for life. Forever." He moved closer and put his lips on hers in a chaste, yet molten kiss that reminded her of their time together, brief as it had been. Everything in her jumped in joy as he drew back.

"Um… Yes. I love you too, Billy. I honestly didn't think it could happen so fast, but I know my heart, and you're in it so deep, you'll never be loosed." She blushed a bit as she put her heart on her sleeve, but he'd just done the same, so she didn't feel silly.

This time, she'd fallen for a man who would never hurt her in any way. She knew that deep down in her soul. This time, her love was returned, and it wasn't some flight of fantasy. It was real, and it was deep and true.

Forever. That's what he'd said, and the word reverberated deep down in her being.