Epilogue One Year Later

T here was a lion on the loose in Clew Bay.

Elliott was romping—Aoife couldn't think of a better word—down the coast of a small island off the coast of Mayo, chasing birds that were about a sixteenth of his size and occasionally stumbling over his own feet as sand or rock moved beneath them. Aoife, sitting on green patch up above, grinned down at him, laughing when he pounced, laughing harder when he accidentally put a huge paw down on a seagull's tail.

They both squealed, although a lion's squeal was a pretty deep roar. Elliott leaped away and the gull threw itself into the air, circling above him to shriek with outrage. Aoife threw a small bun as far as she could and the gull, distracted, dove for it while Elliott pounced his way back up to the greenery where she'd laid out their picnic lunch. He shifted to human to say, "My heroine," with total sincerity, and Aoife laughed again.

"I can't let seagulls beat up my man, now, can I? This was a good idea," she added. "I never thought ‘rent an island for a weekend' would be on my bucket list, but this is grand altogether."

"I've already written Kanvas three texts and an email of appreciation," Elliott promised. "Who could afford this without the grants she's given Anavee?"

"And the subsequent pay rise," Aoife said with a grin. "I may have texted her two or three times myself."

"Oh good, it's not just me. But the last one, she told me to turn off my phone and enjoy my weekend."

"She has no idea how much , though," Aoife said happily. "I don't think even I've ever seen you get to be a lion this much."

"Not having to worry about neighbors is amazing," Elliott admitted. "I could get used to this. I mean, look at that view." He gestured, and Aoife, sighing contentedly, leaned on him to do just that.

The bay glimmered gold and blue with an oncoming sunset, wind rippling the waters at speed. They'd tucked themselves into a leeward patch on the little island's rocky stretch, and could see the bay, the distant Croagh Patrick—a holy mountain on the mainland—and hundreds of miles of both glorious green coastline, and the ocean stretching out to infinity.

There were four cabins on this island, all of them beautifully decorated, and only one—Elliott and Aoife's—was occupied over the weekend. They had the whole island to themselves, and all the freedom that entailed. Elliott reached past her to grab a handful of cheese, ham, and crackers, ate it in a few bites, and then with obvious glee, shifted to a lion again right beside her.

It had been a year, and Aoife was almost used to having a two hundred kilo predator flopped down beside her like an exceptionally large housecat. It still gave her a thrill, though, and she hoped it would never stop. She reached over and scruffed her hands into his mane, making him stretch his legs out and kittybread the air, huge paws flexing and curling in complete happiness. "Yeah, look at you," she said fondly. "You grand auld beast you."

Elliott, without anything resembling dignity at all, squirmed around on his spine, paws now folding over like a hopeful cat's. Aoife laughed and reached over to rub his belly, setting off a deep rumbling vocalization that passed for a purr in a big cat. "This is the life," she told him. "Rubbing a big cat's belly and picnicking at sunset on an island all our own."

He shifted back to say, "My belly is always yours to rub," and since she was in fact still rubbing it, Aoife giggled.

"Stop that. Choose a shape. It's hard to get snuggly when you keep switching back and forth, and I'm starting to get cold."

"Oh, well." Elliott stole a kiss, then shifted to lion form again, moving around to lie on his belly so Aoife could throw an arm over his shoulders and nestle close, her head pillowed on his thick mane. He smelled warm and wild and salt-air-swept, his coat glowing golden as the sun fell toward the horizon.

"Okay," she murmured contentedly, "this might be even better than belly rubs. My lion. I love you, my lion."

Elliott turned his head toward her, rumbling again, and Aoife, safe and content, knew she'd found her happily ever after.