Kissed by Krista Street
Epilogue
Six months later
~ AVERY ~
I pulled a batch of cookies out of the industrial-sized oven, their sugary and floury scent rising around me and filling the bakery with doughy goodness.
I’d been working at the bakery for several months while waiting for my new recruit training program to start. It was crazy to think that even though baking wasn’t my dream job, I was ridiculously content.
Wyatt had been the one to suggest that I take a job at the supernatural marketplace, working at a bakery during the day while he tended to SF business. I had to admit, it was an excellent idea. I’d never enjoyed a part-time job so much. Because not only was I allowed to constantly bake all of the recipes that swirled around inside my head, but I was also paid for it.
Eyeing the light golden color of the cookies, I was about to set them on the counter when the bell jingled on the door behind me.
My grip slipped, and the pan of cookies began to fall.
In a flash, I called upon the remnant of Verasellee’s power that always hummed inside me.
The falling pan continued toward the floor, but slower, as if in slow motion.
I snatched it from the air and righted it on the counter before anything could hit the floor. A well of satisfaction grew in me. None of the cookies had been compromised.
Satisfied, I let time resume its normal pace as I regarded the cooked sweets.
The bell silenced, and I whirled around to greet my newest customer.
My eyes widened.
A woman with blue-black hair, startling cobalt eyes, and snowy translucent skin made me back up so fast, I nearly knocked the pan off the counter again.
Marnee ran a hand through her hair, her expression unsure. She wore jeans and a pink blouse, her skin healthy-looking with a subtle glow. “Um, hi, Avery.”
My hand reached toward the pan. A part of me wanted to throw a cookie at her face, and the other part wanted to turn my back on her, but instead, I took a deep breath and said evenly, “Hi.”
“I’m sorry to startle you like this.”
My hand stopped its slow progression toward the pan. It would be a shame to waste the cookies after all.
The siren took another deep breath and slammed her hands into her pockets. “I’m returning to the SF to face whatever repercussions await me given my actions at Shrouding Estate.” Her nose scrunched up. “I feel like such a bitch for how I treated you. It wasn’t fair or right, and the fact that I drugged you and Nicholas is completely reprehensible. I’ll accept whatever punishment the SF divvies out, but first, I wanted to see you in person so I could tell you how sorry I am.”
My lips parted, my jaw coming unhinged.
“I don’t expect you to forgive me, but I’d like you to know that I wasn’t in my right mind when I did those things. I’d been away from the sea for too long, and it’d affected me. I know that’s not an excuse, but I wanted you to know that.”
I opened and closed my mouth like a fish, then finally found my voice. “You nearly got Nicholas killed. Wyatt attacked him because he was on top of me, and I nearly—” My lips thinned. “We both did things neither of us wanted to do but were forced to because of the drug you gave us.”
She grimaced. “I know. I heard. All I can do is say that I’m sorry. I never would have done anything like that if I’d been thinking clearly.”
“Have you been in the sea this entire time?”
She nodded. “I returned to land a few days ago in the fae realm, then came here. I knew the SF would have a warrant out for my arrest, and that I couldn’t outrun them.” She shrugged. “And I don’t want to be on the run. I know I messed up. Like I said earlier, I’ll accept the punishment that’s coming my way.”
I cocked my head. “What do you think will happen to you?”
“I’m not sure. I already reached out to Major Fieldstone and General McCloy. They said that if I turned myself in, the punishment wouldn’t be as harsh, but as I was an SF member who left my squad and purposefully put civilians in harm’s way, my behavior can’t go unpunished.”
I took a deep breath, the scent of cookies filling the air. Because so much time had passed since everything that had happened at Shrouding Estate, I didn’t think I would ever see Marnee again. But the fact that she’d come here first to see me and apologize before accepting her punishment spoke volumes about the kind of person she really was. It wasn’t her fault that her mind had become warped from being gone too long from the sea.
Tension left my shoulders, and I grabbed a small bag. “Would you like some cookies? They’re fresh from the oven.”
Marnee shrugged. “Um, sure. I’ve heard that you’re quite the baker.”
I dropped half a dozen into the small sack and handed it to her. She took it, but my hand lingered before letting go. “Thank you for coming to see me. That means a lot to me. It really does.”
She opened the bag and peeked inside before closing it. “It’s the right thing to do, and I wanted you to know that I’m ashamed of how I acted.”
Any lingering anger or hurt I’d had over the way she’d treated me at Bavar’s estate melted as rapidly as chocolate chips in the oven. “Thank you. All’s forgiven.”
She gave me a warm smile, then dipped her eyes to the mark on my neck. Her smile turned wistful. “He’s a good man. You’re lucky to have him.”
I fingered the crescent moon shape near my collarbone, then felt inside for the bond that tethered me to Wyatt. He was working, currently in his third week with his newest batch of new recruits, so the emotions that strummed through our connection were the usual: determination and patience.
I dropped my hand. “Yeah, I am lucky.”
She shook herself then scrunched the top of the cookie bag closed before turning toward the door. When she reached it, she paused and looked over her shoulder at me. “He’s lucky to have you too. I can see that you’re a worthy mate for him.”
Before I could respond, she pushed through the door, the bell jingling above. For a moment, I just stood there, my mind reeling from what she’d said while also wondering what would become of her. I hoped her punishment wouldn’t be too severe. After an apology like that, I now saw that her actions at Bavar’s estate were truly because of her salt-deprived state.
Taking a deep breath, I began transferring the cookies onto a cooling rack when the bell on the door jingled again.
A flash of orange hair, a jeweled dagger strapped to a waist, and a delightful fairy grin greeted me when I turned to welcome my newest customer.
“Ah, I thought I smelled something that could only be created by the hands of Ms. Meyers.” Bavar sauntered toward the counter, already appraising all of my baked goods on display in the cabinet.
I glanced out the window but didn’t see any signs of the siren. “Did you see Marnee? She was just here.”
The SF commander had his hands clasped behind his back as he avidly perused the display of baked goods. “I did. She’s on her way to headquarters now.”
“Does that mean she won’t be arrested?”
He raised his head, his expression contemplative. “No, she won’t be arrested. She contacted me and Wes yesterday, letting us know that she was returning and would accept whatever punishment was deemed necessary.”
I twisted my hands as his eyes lit up when he spotted my toasted hazelnut pastries filled with cream. “Ooh, I do love those little morsels. I’ll take a dozen of those.”
I sighed. “Bavar!”
He startled, a lock of orange hair falling across his forehead. “Yes?”
“How can you be thinking about food at a time like this? What if Marnee goes to jail?”
His eyes softened. “She won’t go to jail.”
“She won’t?”
“No, she wasn’t in her normal frame of mind when she committed those atrocious acts. And she’s now had six months at sea and has returned of her own accord. The woman I spoke to yesterday is the Marnee I know and remember. She will go before a committee and undergo a rigorous mental exam, but I have no doubt that she will pass it.”
“So nothing will happen to her?”
“I didn’t say that. I simply said she wouldn’t go to jail.” He smiled when he caught my expression. “She will most likely be required to fulfill community duty for six months and will then undergo another mental examination before she’s allowed to serve in the SF again, but I’m certain she’ll do the service without hesitation. And as long as Marnee continues her soaks in the sea on a more regular basis, I have no doubt she’ll be a valued SF member once again.”
My death grip on the spatula eased. “I’m glad to hear it.”
“Now, back to these delicious concoctions of yours . . .” Bavar leaned over the glass cabinet again and began pointing out which items he wanted boxed up. The fairy wasn’t frugal in his spending, much to the delight of Mary, the bakery’s owner.
I wiped the flour from my hands and began to place a selection of donuts, cookies, tarts, and cakes into a box when Bavar tapped on the cabinet. “Better add a dozen of those. Squad Three shall be here any minute as we decided to take our lunch break in the marketplace today. I’m sure all of them will enjoy whatever that tasty morsel is.”
“That morsel happens to be my white chocolate truffle infused with raspberry. You may want to buy more than a dozen. Charlotte tends to inhale those.”
His eyes glinted mischievously. “My, my, haven’t you become quite the sales lady, but alas, you have twisted my arm. Make it two dozen.”
I laughed and grabbed another piece of wax paper.
As soon as I finished boxing up Bavar’s order, the door opened again, and the entirety of Squad Three poured into the bakery. Charlotte grinned when she saw me, Nick at her side. They were holding hands, as was the norm now.
As I’d come to learn after all of the chaos had died down following Lord Godasara’s demise, Nick was confirmed as the “animal” Charlotte had slept with following the celebratory party after our new recruit graduation, when Wyatt and I had rushed to the Bulgarian libraries to find a cure for me.
She’d told me, in rather vivid details, why Nick was so good in bed. And apparently, he was enough of an animal that she was happy to keep him around.
So, for the first time in her life, Charlotte Morris was in a monogamous relationship. Eliza and I still loved to tease her about it to no end.
Charlotte sauntered up to the counter. “Hey, babe, what did you make this time?”
I grabbed the spatula and dished one of the hot cookies I’d just taken out of the oven onto a napkin. “Just a new recipe I thought I’d try. Mary was nice enough to let me put them on display.”
My boss had come to trust me and my recipes. She’d also gone so far as to offer me a permanent position, which I’d turned down. As much as I loved baking, the Supernatural Ambassador Institute was still calling me.
Besides, considering Wyatt and I both loved to travel, it seemed like the perfect solution for us once he finished training Elijah. Thankfully, the Supernatural Ambassador Institute had been incredibly understanding about everything that had happened to me. They were happy to hold my position until the time was right for me to join them.
Because of that, I wouldn’t leave until after Wyatt finished training Elijah. Six months ago, that wouldn’t have been an option, but since I’d—you know—saved the fae lands, I’d been cut a break once or twice, which also meant there would be no issues about my relationship with Wyatt once I started the new recruit program for the second time.
And luckily, that understanding had also extended to the fae lands’ king and queen, Bavar’s uncle and aunt. When it was confirmed to them that Squad Three and I had stopped Lord Godasara from wreaking havoc on their realm that would have undoubtedly collapsed their crown, they’d turned a blind eye to all of the laws we’d broken when I’d made Reese and Nick conduct the unlinking ritual.
“Are we still going out tonight with Eliza?” Charlotte asked as she bit into her cookie.
I scooped more cookies onto napkins for the rest of the squad. “Wouldn’t miss it. See you and Eliza at six?”
“You can count on it, babe.” She winked as Terry and Bishop snatched their cookies while Nick slung an arm around her shoulder. “I live for girls’ night.”
∞ ∞ ∞
That night as I was getting ready, I stood in front of the mirror, curling my freshly washed and dried hair.
Wyatt’s products still sat neatly on his side of the sink. One thing I definitely knew about him now was that he was actually neat and tidy. It wasn’t just SF training that had made him that way.
I arched my neck, reaching for another long lock of hair behind my back, when my gaze landed on the crescent moon mark on my skin.
The bathroom door opened just as I twirled another group of strands around the curling iron.
Wyatt stood in the doorway. His nostrils flared as his gaze raked up and down my body.
I was wearing a dress that I’d purchased in the fae lands. It was a shimmery bright purple, cinched in at the waist and stopping mid-thigh, with a square-cut neckline. My cleavage was on display, which I had a feeling Wyatt loved and hated at the same time.
Sure enough, he came up behind me, his hands snaking around my waist as he dipped down to kiss my neck. I shivered, heat pooling between my thighs.
The man could still get me hot with just a kiss.
“Do you have any idea how gorgeous you look?” he whispered when his head dipped again. He kissed his mark, his tongue licking it softly.
I shuddered, and my eyes rolled back. He knew how much I loved that. The claiming mark that he’d imprinted on me for the second time had become an erogenous zone. He knew damned well what those little flicks from his tongue did to me. Already my folds had slickened as a deep curling need rooted in my belly.
His nostrils flared, “You smell good enough to eat, Little Flower.”
I clamped my legs together, as more liquid heat pooled between my thighs. “You’re insufferable,” I scolded, but a laugh still bubbled out.
He chuckled, the sound deep, and another shiver raced through my body to my toes. His hands drifted lower, to just below the dress’s hem. His fingers trailed up my thighs, going higher and higher, and I wisely set the curling iron down.
“Are you wearing anything underneath this?” A low rumble filled his chest when his fingers met my bare ass.
“I thought you liked it when I didn’t wear panties,” I said innocently.
He growled. “Yeah, when it’s just me you’re with.” His hands kneaded my hips before dipping down between my thighs. A soft swirl against my clit had me bucking under his touch.
He dipped his head again, his tongue finding his erogenous mark. “But if any of the guys tonight so much as get a peek of what’s under this, you do realize that I’ll murder them. All of them.”
“Then I suppose you’ll have to put some panties on me before I leave.” I spun in his arms so that I faced him. I bit back a smile. I’d left my panties off on purpose. He always came home around this time, and I’d been hoping for a quickie before I left.
His hands traveled under the dress again until he grabbed my ass in both hands. My breasts pressed against his chest as my breaths quickened.
Glowing gold formed in his eyes as he hoisted me on the bathroom counter, my legs spreading automatically. “Were you really going to go out tonight without anything on underneath this incredibly tantalizing slip of fabric?”
I muffled a laugh when a territorial growl rose up in him. “No, I wasn’t, and you know you have nothing to worry about. I’m one hundred percent yours. Always.”
His hands went to his fly. In a blurred movement, his cargos had slid to the floor, his length hard and ready. It bobbed in the air when he shifted closer. “I may know that, but I’m still a jealous motherfucker. I don’t like anybody to see or smell what’s mine.”
“Then you better fuck me now so I don’t smell aroused when I go out tonight.” I tipped my head back as I encircled his length with my hand, guiding him toward my center.
He groaned when his tip brushed against my moist heat. “Always so wet. Have I ever told you how much I love you?” He pushed into me, and I moaned in pleasure as he sank his shaft deep inside me.
“Only every day.” I gasped as he began to move.
“Well, it’s true.” He pulled out, almost all of the way, then thrust back inside me again.
Gods, it was heaven when he did that.
I wrapped my legs around his waist, as he pumped into me again and again, his tempo rising with each thrust. Already, my climax was building. The man set me on fire.
He leaned down to nip at his mark. “I live for you, my love. Only you. Always and forever.”
I arched against the back of the bathroom counter, my toes curling when a streak of pleasure bolted through me. Pulling him down again to my neck, I forced his mouth on the crescent moon.
He chuckled, nipped it again, and then began slapping into me hard and fast, his mouth latched onto his mark.
I moaned in ecstasy as the waves continued to build. Already I was on the verge of coming, my channel clamping around his shaft, the waves climbing higher and intensifying. From the harsh pants coming from my mate, I knew that he was close too.
It was crazy how much we craved one another, our need for each other only growing more and more each day.
He pulled back to look me in the eye, his irises like twin glowing stars.
A moment of sheer love pelted me. Gods, this man. He was my soul, my heart, my fire. He made me feel complete.
He thrust again, and I knew with his next pump I would come undone.
“I love you, my mate, my love,” I said, pulling him down as a climax threatened to shatter my soul. “Now, kiss me.”
His lips locked onto mine just as my release tore through my body. He swallowed my scream, his roar following, as our souls entwined throughout eternity and our mating bond burned bright.
∞ The End ∞
Hello, dear reader. Krista Street here.
So, another series is done, which is always such a bittersweet feeling as an author. Do you love Avery and Wyatt as much as I do? I sure hope so, because as is with every book I write, their characters feel so real to me, and I hope I was able to make you feel right along with them.
Also, before you go, I just wanted to say thank you for going on Avery and Wyatt’s journey. Writing is such a fun career, but I wouldn’t be able to do it without you, so thank you for reading my books.
♥ As always, if you have a minute to leave a review on Amazon, please consider doing so. Authors rely heavily on readers reviewing their work. Even one sentence helps a lot. Thank you so much if you do! ♥
∞ ∞ ∞
Last (but not least!), are you interested in a bonus chapter about Avery and Wyatt?
Sign up for my new release text messages, and I’ll send you a FREE bonus chapter!
Simply text the word AVERY to 888-403-4316 on your mobile phone.
Message and data rates may apply, I’ll only text you when I release a new book, and you can opt out at any time. Visit my website to learn more.
Or, if you live outside of North America, join my newsletter to get the free bonus chapter, click here!
Last, if you’re looking for more books to read, turn the page to check out my other series. If you’re not interested, no worries! But if you love the Supernatural World I’ve created, then check out my complete Supernatural Community series or my standalone, Beast of Shadows.
Thank you again for all of your support and love for this series! ♥
Krista Street
