Epilogue

EPILOGUE

O ne week later...

Kari glanced at the ring on her finger and smiled as she held her hand out in front of her. She was lying face down on the bed, flipping through one of her new drawing books, but when the ring caught the light, it made her pause.

And it filled her with so much happiness that she thought she might burst.

A month ago, she'd had nothing and no one, and now she had everything.

A clan, a family, friends, and a mate.

She also had the means to do whatever she wanted, and though she wasn't exactly sure what that would be yet, there was no rush. Evander had also given her the freedom to choose, and right now, she was just taking things slow.

Her brother had answered most of her questions about shifter life, but she'd still opted to meet with Zane and Leo, and she was glad she had. Dragons and Assassins were different than regular shifters, and she liked getting knowledge from those that were closer to her kind.

The meetings had not only fostered friendship between herself and some of the bears and wolves, but they had opened up a possible new venture with her art.

One day, she'd been sketching in the donut shop while waiting for Zane, and a tourist had noticed the drawing she'd made of the sheriff's office across the street. Then they'd gone one step further and offered to pay her for it. She'd been shocked into silence, but Erica, Zane's mate, had stepped in and helped her determine a price. Then the woman then went one step further and offered her a tiny corner if she wanted to display any other drawings.

Bastian's mate, Holly, had offered her the same kindness if she did some Christmas themed houses, either made up or from town, and she was seriously considering both offers.

She was also learning to drive.

Evander had taken her to meet his parents earlier that day, and after his mom had stuffed them full of pie and cookies, his dad had offered to teach her how to drive. She'd hit a trash can while leaving the driveway from the house, but she'd otherwise done good, and he'd offered to take her out again next week.

It had been nerve-wracking to get behind the wheel at first, but Evander's parents were patient and kind, and she really wanted to get her driver's license. Evander would take her anywhere she wanted to go, she knew that, but she wanted to be able to do some things by herself, even if she decided to never act on it.

Of course, some things he wouldn't let her do alone, or without an escort, and that was fine, too.

When she'd wanted to visit the lingerie store, they'd done something similar to what he'd done with the Queen while the other woman had shopped, but instead of keeping everything a secret, she'd showed him all of her purchases when they got home.

Well, almost all of them. He hadn't seen the dark purple lace bra and panties she now wore under her clothes—they had been a surprise—but she would show him soon, and she couldn't wait. The deep, dark color matched the border around her mate mark, and looked pretty against her skin-tone, but it was more than that. She also felt closer to him while wearing his color, and keeping the secret had kept her wet and ready for him, especially on the drive back home.

Unfortunately, he'd had to go and deliver a pie to the King—and some cookies to Anton, although she doubted he was giving the other man room service—and it seemed like he'd been gone forever.

She glanced at the doorway, and suddenly, he was there.

"Sorry that took so long," he said, joining her on the bed. "Are you sleepy?"

He was lying on his side, rubbing his hand up and down her back, and even if she was sleepy, which she definitely wasn't, his touch would have snapped her right out of it.

"No," she said, turning to face him. "Just waiting for you."

She pressed her palm to his chest, and wrapped her leg around him. He held her close, and the steady beat of his heart filled her with a peace she never knew existed.

"I brought food. Eron left some sandwiches in the fridge, and there was an unclaimed cinnamon roll so I snatched it."

She laughed and leaned up to kiss his chin. His mom had filled them with baked goods, and even sent a few home with them, but nothing topped one of Eron's cinnamon rolls. If they couldn't finish it tonight, then they would put it in their mini fridge and save it for tomorrow.

"Also, I told Alric that you need anoffice, and he's fine with you setting up in the room next to mine, so you need to start looking at furniture and thinking about if you want to paint the walls. We can take a look at it tomorrow so you can get an idea of about how big it is."

She pulled back to look at him, and her confusion must have been written all over her face because he burst out laughing.

"You're an artist, sweetheart. You just sold your first of many sketches, and you'll need a space to work. Or... at least a place to store all of your art supplies."

She laughed, too, and then kissed him through the giggles.

She didn't have that many art supplies, yet, but he was giving her her own personal space. She didn't need it, but it was just another thing that she'd always wanted. Not a tiny room that she had to sleep in alone, but a space for her art, or whatever else she wanted, where she could come and go as she pleased.

It was the best gift, and yet, Evander was so much more.

He was everything—had given her everything—and it was all because she'd decided to trust the dragon.

The End