“I called roadside assistance,” Robert said. “They took forty minutes to arrive, during which time Bridget threatened to hex three separate drivers who honked at us.”
“They were being rude,” Bridget said primly.
“One of them was an ambulance.”
“He could have gone around.”
Ant felt his mouth curve into a smile.This is exactly what we needed.He and Bridget used to go out for meals quite often before he’d met Viktor, but now…he could see many future dinners ahead of them and found he really liked the idea.
Viktor caught his expression and leaned closer. “You okay?” he murmured, quiet enough that the others wouldn’t hear.
“Yes,” Ant said, and he meant it.
His mate’s hand squeezed his again.Good. That’s all I need to know.
Across the table, Bridget launched into another story – something involving a disastrous client meeting and a pot ofcold coffee - while Robert listened with a half-smile on his face. Able had, apparently, given up on subtlety and simply rested his chin on Ant’s knee, fixing him with soulful eyes that suggested starvation was imminent despite the multiple treats he’d already received.
This is what matters,Ant thought, scratching absently behind his dog’s ears.Not the cases we solve or the criminals we catch, but this, right here. Home.
Epilogue
Viktor dried the last plate and set it in the cabinet while Ant wiped down the counters. Bridget and Robert had left twenty minutes ago, taking their debate about pizza toppings with them, and the house had settled into the kind of quiet that Viktor had learned to appreciate. Not the silence of an empty building or the tense stillness before violence, but the comfortable hush of home.
Able dozed in his bed by the window, belly full of illicit steak scraps, occasionally twitching as he dreamed.
“That was nice,” Ant said, rinsing the cloth in the sink.
“Yeah.” Viktor hung the dish towel on its hook. “Your sister’s scary when she gets going.”
“She’s the only person I know who’s threatened to sue the Justiciary.”
“Exactly.” Viktor grinned. “Remind me never to piss her off.”
“You won’t.” Ant turned to face him, gray eyes serious. “You’re too important to her now. She considers you family.”
Family.He’d spent centuries without one, moving through the world like a ghost, and now he had a neurodivergent mage who took everything literally, a terrifying lawyer sister-in-law, and a very spoiled German shepherd.
Not a bad deal,he thought, reaching out to tuck a strand of blond hair behind Ant’s ear.
Ant leaned into the touch for a moment, then stepped back and surveyed the kitchen, checking for any spare dishes. “Everything’s clean. We should…”
The dish towel on the counter suddenly floated upward.
Ant blinked. “What?”
Viktor, who’d slipped into invisibility the moment Ant looked away, carefully moved the towel through the air in a lazy circle.
“Viktor.”
The towel drifted higher.
“I can sense your presence through our bond, you realize.” But Ant’s voice sounded amused. “You’re standing approximately two feet to my left.”
Viktor shifted right and dangled the towel directly over Ant’s head.
“Now you’re behind me.”
Damn.Viktor dropped the towel onto Ant’s shoulder and reappeared, grinning. “Can’t blame me for trying.”
