Epilogue

EPILOGUE

CHRISTMAS – ONE YEAR LATER

P enny had forgotten about it, when she'd lost the fairy dress on the night of her first shift a year earlier. She'd returned the gown to Karina, the owner of the Looking Glass costume shop, and had been startled to get a call the next day asking if she wanted to come pick up her property. Only then had she remembered sitting down at the drums that night, hitting the cymbals and sending something flying off it and into her hand. She'd barely looked at it, just shoved it in the dress's pocket, and forgotten about it entirely until Karina called.

She'd been holding onto it since, waiting for the right moment. And there weren't a lot of right moments, honestly, not with the Sixty Pix on the road promoting their new album and themselves, not with Ashley busy expanding the pub's beer garden, not with a hundred family members underfoot all the time. But it was Christmas again, and Penny was determined to make it work somehow.

Mostly by lurking around the pub, hoping Ashley would have a minute to spare. She never did, not with the success of last year's parties to build on. The pub had been booked out for the holidays since March, and Ashley's triumph meant Ashley had to work that much more. Fortunately Penny didn't mind just sitting on a bar stool, beaming when her mate came scurrying through, and generally watching the crowds. But still, she was beginning to think the chance would never arise.

Bill appeared abruptly, energetic and bright-eyed. "Gwen has grabbed Ashley for a minute outside. Go before she slithers away."

Our mate does not slither! She… The partridge went silent immediately, trying to figure out a more delicate word for 'lumbers.' Because bears certainly didn't trip lightly on their toes, dancing through the daisies like…well, possibly like partridges. The partridge was many things, but not clumsy. Lithe and quick, maybe, which also weren't words for a bear. It was still thinking about how to defend Ashley from slither-hood when Penny made it through the throngs and out to the porch where Gwen was chatting with Ash, who was looking guiltily toward the doors and clearly trying to make an escape.

She lit up when Penny came out, though. "I know you're only here a couple of days, and I'm so sorry it's so crazy busy. It's worse than last year, even without an accidental charity event on the premises." She sounded completely thrilled at that.

Penny, smiling, wrapped her arms around Ashley's waist. "Yes. We fly out in two days for a gig, so I'm going to steal you away for a few minutes because I'm afraid I'll never see you alone if I don't."

"Oh, but I can't," Ashley said unhappily. "The pub?—"

"Bill has the pub," Gwen told her. "You can take half an hour with the love of your life and just get off your feet and enjoy yourselves."

Ashley said, "But," as Penny took her hand and dragged her away from the pub.

Gwen yelled, "At least half an hour! More is better!" and went inside.

"You coordinated this, didn't you?" Ashley asked without any real accusation. She was relaxing even if she thought she should be on for the pub 24/7. "You all think I need a break."

"We're all right, too," Penny said. "But since I have to leave in two days and your head would explode if I tried to take you away from the pub during the holidays, I'm going to put off insisting we take two weeks at a hot springs until January." Instead, she brought Ashley to her van, which was one of the least romantic spots she could imagine, but at least it was immediately available. She'd had the engine going on and off all afternoon, keeping it warm, and they both climbed into the back to collapse in a bean bag Penny had thrown in there.

Ashley, despite her protests, groaned as she sank into the beans and let some more tension go. "I could just shift into a bear and sleep here for the rest of the winter," she suggested, not meaning it but sounding like she wished she did. "New pub rule: bean bag lunches. Just a quick nap to perk you up. Hey, where you going?" She made a lazy grab at Penny as she slid off the bean bag, then sat up, amused, as Penny hit the metal floor. "What are you doing?" Then her eyes widened as Penny got herself arranged correctly, down on one knee. "Oh my God, what are you doing?"

"Proposing," Penny said, feeling a little silly. "Obviously."

"Obviously! But oh my God!" Ashley clapped both hands to her face, eyes wide over them. "Really?"

"Yes, really! I have a ring and everything!" Penny dug the ring out of her pocket, which took far more effort than it had the hundred times she'd practiced, and finally managed to get it out and wrench the box top open.

It really was a lovely ring. Gold, inset with flecks of silver and then a trio of diamonds. More of a wedding band than an engagement ring, maybe, but it would do.

Ashley's jaw fell open. "Oh my gosh, Pen. Where did you get that?"

"It's the last of the five golden rings from last year's treasure hunt," Penny whispered. "It was on the cymbal. It flew off when I hit it the first time, and then I had to fix the screw so the cymbals would work, and then I turned into a partridge and forgot all about it. And then I've been saving it since then. I told you I'd find it for you, remember?" She took a deep breath, surprised at how nervous she was.

It's fine, her partridge crooned, reassuring for the first and Penny hoped not last time in its life. She's our mate. Everything will be wonderful.

Ashley breathed, " Penny, " and Penny thought maybe things would be okay, in fact.

"Will you marry me, Ashley?"

"Of course I will." Ashley threw herself forward, nearly knocking them both backward, then corrected and hauled Penny backward into her lap to kiss her. "Yes, of course I will! Yes! Want to get married tomorrow? On Christmas?"

Penny laughed between kisses, surprised. "Do you think we could find somebody to perform the ceremony?"

Ashley, gleefully, said, "Yes!" and then, dryly, "And then my mother would kill us, because she'll want a whole big shindig. And the rest of the family will want to come. And the Sixty Pix should be there. All of them, not just Gwen."

"Next summer, then." Penny grinned and kissed her mate again. "A little time to plan, but not enough time to go completely overboard."

"I've seen what you can do on a single day's notice," Ashley said. "You can totally go overboard in six months."

"Not if I'm on tour half of it!"

"I bet that wouldn't stop you."

Penny laughed again and nestled close. "You're probably right, but I'll try. Big, small, whatever you want. I'm going to spend the rest of my life as the partridge in your bear tree."

Ashley, sounding genuinely shocked, said, "Penny!" but before she could get any farther, burst into laughter. "I'm not sure I want to marry you anymore, if you're going to say things like that!"

"Yes, you do." Penny stole a kiss, and Ashley ducked her head to rub her nose against Penny's.

"Yeah, I do," she murmured. "C'mon, babe. Let's go tell everybody we're gonna live happily ever after."

"Uh-uh. You've got at least," Penny checked her phone, "seventeen minutes of break time left, and I'm not giving you up for a single one of them."

"In that case." Ashley's voice dropped into that delicious low-pitched purr she had. "I bet I can think of some wonderful things to do for seventeen minutes."

Build a nest ? the partridge said hopefully,

Penny giggled. Yeah. Yeah, that's exactly it . Aloud, she said, "Read me a phone book?"

"Yes," Ashley said dryly. "Yes, that's exactly what I'm planning. No, wait," she said with a sudden laugh. "No, I have something better to read to you. I was looking for good stuff. Here. Here." She grabbed for her phone, opened a book, and cleared her throat. "You want the back of book blurb first?"

"Yeah," Penny said warily, which was difficult when she was already laughing. "I think so. I gotta know what I'm getting into."

"All right. All right. Here we go." Ashley cleared her throat again, then put on a radio-announcer movie-trailer kind of voice that sent a shiver right through Penny's bones. "' The dastardly Corpus Corporation has long known there are shifters among us. What they have never been able to do is command the power that lets a human and a beast share a soul... until now! "

Penny said, "Oh my God ," and sat up. "What is this?"

"I have no idea. I mean, it's a shifter romance. It's a thing, apparently? Somebody out there is cashing in—I hope—on us existing, and this has got to make it less likely that anyone would believe that we do, right? Just listen. ' Derek Montague is everything a woman could want—handsome, wealthy, a brave protector who has done his time as a Navy SEAL…but his secret wish has always been to be more. When he's offered a chance to participate in a dangerous new experiment, Derek can't resist the opportunity that could make him able to swim freely in the depths of the sea... the chance to be what no one has been before...the chance to become... SHARK-MAN! '"

Penny shrieked. "Oh my God. Keep going!"

"I will, if you'll stop interrupting!" Ashley went back to her movie-trailer voice. "' Gorgeous scientist Candice Mallus knows the work she does to develop a new line of corporate-sponsored shifters is borderline unethical— but that's why she will only accept volunteers for the perilous transformations she's trying to trigger. Mixing animal DNA with a man's was sure to have some unintended consequences, but she never expected love to be one of them. But from the moment Candy lays eyes on Derek, she knows there's something special about him..... more than the successful graft that turns him into the first shifter ever created by humanity.

But Derek's metamorphosis awakens a savage strength within him, and an undeniable rage at the very corporation that has given what he has always desired. Will his new power destroy the hopes of a generation...or can scientific beauty soothe the sharkish beast? '"

Penny clapped her hands over her face. "Yes. Yes, you need to read me this entire book immediately. Right now, please."

"I can't," Ashley said cheerfully. "I have to go back to work in nine minutes. But as soon as we get home tonight…"

"I bet you anything Bill will cover the rest of your shift. I'm kidnapping you home right now."

"You can't?—"

Penny already had her own phone out, texting Bill, and a moment later held it up in triumph as he responded with take her away, I've got the pub for tonight . "I'm driving. You're reading. It'll be a night to remember."

Ashley put her phone down, took Penny's away, and snuggled her up close. "I'm sure it will be," she murmured, "but it's the lifetime that I'm looking forward to. I love you, Pen."

Warmth and joy spilled through Penny, followed by a giggle. "I love you, too. My life would be un bear able without you."

"Oh my God. No, never mind, this isn't going to work." Ashley made a show of trying to crawl away, but Penny grabbed her and pulled her back for a kiss.

"Yeah, it is. We're tweethearts , nothing to be done about it now."

Ashley shouted a protesting laugh, but fell into the kiss, and Penny knew they were going to live happily e bear after.

Please join the CE Murphy (er, Murphy Lawless) mailing list for a chapter of THE SEDUCTION OF SHARK-MAN, and turn the page for a teaser from the upcoming RENAISSANCE BEAR!

Also, let me invite you to a Choose Your Own Paranormal Adventure: if you'd like to read more about Maggie, Conri and their friends, please check out the Gladiator Shifter romances !

If you want to read the entire Torben Family Saga (So Far), please begin with the Virtue Shifters book HOLD MY BEAR , and continue with KOALAFIED FOR LOVE .

Or, if you're just in the mood for a series of ongoing small-town shifter romances, please read the Virtue Shifters series !