“Immediately? No. But Carlton is absolutely gorgeous. Holt Lodge, the place Sebastian and Dakota bought and renovated, is stunning. When we get the opportunity, we’ll visit, and you can see it for yourself. It’s a far cry from Atlanta. Hell, it’s even smaller than Troy. I think there’s less than a thousand residents. But again, that’s something we can think about later. We’ll focus on being mates and getting you acclimated to Atlanta for now.”
“I’m on board with that. I’m also amenable to moving later. I’d follow you anywhere.”
Tabitha ran her fingers through his beard. “Sweet talker. How about you follow me inside and we unpack?”
Monday morning, they drove to the office together. Anthony was on a case, so he wasn’t there, but Mason was waiting on them. “Grab your coffee, then come find me.”
When they had their java in hand, Tabitha and Major went into Mason’s office and sat in front of his desk. “I have a proposition for you. I’ve already spokento Anthony about this, and he’s in agreement. Willow and I are looking to move as soon as the school year is over. That means I’ll need someone to manage this office. With Anthony being Sebastian’s second-in-command, he doesn’t want the job. I was going to offer it to Tabitha, but now that you’re mated, I’d like for both of you to oversee this location. I understand you’ll want to do jobs in New York too, but I trust you can do that while maintaining control of the caseload here. Willow and I need to decide where we’re moving to and find a place to live once we choose a city, so I’d like to hand off control sooner rather than later. You don’t have to give me an answer now, but I’d appreciate it if you talk it over and let me know soon.”
Major tapped the handle of his chair faintly.“Sounds good, but let’s discuss it tonight.”
Tabitha answered for both of them. “Thank you for the offer, Mason. We’ll discuss it tonight and let you know tomorrow.”
“Excellent. Now for your jobs.” Mason handed out their assignments. Tabby’s case was one she hated but could do with her eyes closed. Steele Securities did plenty of investigating cheating spouses, and this was one of those cases. Major would be guarding a visiting dignitary, so while she was driving around Atlanta taking photographs, he would stand around looking fucking hot in a suit while exuding a don’t-fuck-with-me vibe.
Major had to go back to the house to change clothes, and Tabitha drove him so she could swap her Audi for her nondescript sedan. That night when they returned home, they discussed taking over the Atlanta branch, but not before Tabitha divested Major of his suit and hadher way with him. They were lying in bed sated when she asked what he thought of Mason’s offer.
“I think I’d like you bossing me around.”
Tabitha rolled over so she was splayed across his chest. “You don’t want to run the office with me?”
“Sure, but I’m still calling you boss.”
“If we do this, that means we won’t get that vacation anytime soon.”
Major pushed Tabitha’s hair off her shoulder and twisted a strand between his fingers. “True, but if we are in charge, that means we get to schedule our own vacations.”
The next morning, they told Mason they accepted, and he made an announcement to the rest of the staff. Tabitha’s current assignment only took two days, so she hung around doing admin work with Mason while Major met with the dignitary every day until the man flew home Thursday evening.
Cailín was on her own job, and she called Tabitha Thursday, frantic she wouldn’t be finished in time to get the house ready for the party. Tabitha told her not to worry, that she and Major could handle it if Cailín couldn’t. Friday afternoon, Cailín showed up with her car loaded down with supplies, and the three of them made quick work of getting the living room set up for a ton of people.
“It just sucks, you know?” Cailín, who was sipping a beer now that the house was decorated, was bemoaning the fact that her mate was probably in a different realm. Evyndral, where Elle was from, was home to dragons as well as dark and light fae. It was only accessible by portal, and few had the capability to open one. “If it’s Rhoan, I don’t have a snowball’s chance inhell since he’s the dragon prince, and if it’s Thran, well, he hates me.”
“He doesn’t hate you.”
“You didn’t see the way he looked at me,” Cailín whined.
“That might be because you were sniffing him like a weirdo. Subtle, thy name is not Cailín O’Jenkins.”
Cailín snorted at Tabitha’s smooshing her two last names together. “I’m going to be single forever. Rhoan won’t move to Earth because of the throne, and Thran won’t move to Earth because he’s Rhoan’s guardian.”
“Then you’ll have to move to Evyndral.”
Cailín gasped. “And leave my family?”
“You expect them to leave theirs. If they won’t move here, then yeah. If you want your mate badly enough, you’ll portal hop.”
Cailín chugged the rest of her beer and let out a long belch. “Fucking hell. I’m going to die an old cat lady.”
“You don’t have a cat.”
“I’ll get one. Hell, maybe I’ll get a whole litter so they won’t be lonely while I’m at work.”
Tabitha grabbed another beer and popped the top, sliding it across the counter. “Don’t be so dramatic. If it’s meant to be, your mate will show up when you least expect it.”
“Whatever. Hey, Major?”
Major was on the deck cleaning the table, but he could hear their conversation. “Yes, Cailín?”
