Chapter 23 Zera #3
Zera pondered her options for a moment before she started plucking bottles from the shelves, moving about the familiar bar with fluid familiarity.
She palmed the mixer and prepped the ingredients in no time at all.
It was a recipe she’d been thinking up for a while now, and this seemed as good a time as any to test it out.
As the liquid swirled and mixed within the shaker, Maverick observed her every move with a look of intense interest. His eyes didn’t even leave hers when she set a glass in front of him and poured the pink liquid into it.
A sugary citrus aroma filled the space between them as she slid the drink over to him.
She matched the mischievous glint in his eyes with one of her own.
“I call it the Pink Pixie.” She shuddered when his fingers grazed hers as he took the glass.
Her gaze lowered to his lips as he lifted the glass and took a slow, sensual sip.
He took his time savoring the taste before he set the glass down.
“Well?” She arched her brow.
“Well, it’s a little tart,” he purred, leaning over the bar to trail his fingers along her neck, “but sweet—just like you.”
His touch electrified her skin, sending a rush of warmth through her veins. Zera’s breath hitched as she felt the intensity of his gaze locking on hers. The air crackled with an unspoken tension, a magnetic pull drawing them closer.
“But I do wonder,” he said, breaking the spell for a moment, “why is it called the Pink Pixie when it’s the same shade of lavender as your eyes?”
A smile broadened across Zera’s face. “Because, you smart-ass faeboy, it’s not just lavender. Take a closer look.”
He frowned, but his smirk remained as he lifted the glass up into the light. There it was, the magic of the vodka that Pixie Hollow was famous for, called Lumicitrus. Under the light, it transformed the lavender shades of the other liquors into a delicate pink.
“I named it for Quinn and me,” she said, waving her fingers at the bar menu and watching as her pixie dust printed the drink at the top of the list. “A couple of pixies in a den of wolves.” She winked. “And it’s the last cocktail I will be adding to the bar menu.”
“I’m sure it’ll be a huge success,” Maverick murmured, and their eyes locked once again.
Maverick rose and set the drink down, closing the remaining distance between them. With a seductive gleam in his piercing, storm-filled eyes, he brushed a stray lock of hair from Zera’s face. “Perhaps we should celebrate our success in… other ways now?”
A delicious shiver ran down Zera’s spine at his suggestive tone.
Her breath caught in her throat as she met his smoldering gaze.
He didn’t give her a second to respond before his lips captured hers in a heated kiss, sending a surge of desire coursing through her veins.
Zera melted into the kiss, her hands finding their way to Maverick’s strong chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart under her touch.
His scent was a heady mix of citrus and earth and something uniquely his own.
She let him see through the bond all the things she wanted to do, and his answering rumble of approval resonated in her mind.
He broke off the kiss to meet her gaze. The intensity of their mate bond and the raw longing in his eyes sent every nerve in her body tightening in anticipation.
Her lips parted, and she wished his lips, which hovered just above hers, would return.
But instead, he brushed her cheek with the backs of his fingers before sliding them behind her neck while his lips tugged at her earlobe.
A shuddering gasp escaped her as she arched into him as he made deathly slow work of trailing kisses from the soft skin below her earlobe down her neck.
Who’s your faeboy? Maverick smirked down the bond, taunting her.
Her heart stuttered. You are.
Yes, I am. He nipped at her lobe again. Now, why don’t you shimmer us home so I can show you just how good a faeboy I am?
Zera’s eyes shuttered for a moment before she pulled back, breathless.
“I… I haven’t really mastered shimmering yet,” she admitted, chewing her lip nervously.
Teleporting from place to place with pixie dust was possible, according to what she had learned in an elective course on rare faen species that included pixies.
Since then, she’d started working on it and had been able to teleport herself to town from their home.
Yet she’d never attempted to shimmer someone else.
Maverick lined his lips against the shell of her ear, his hot breath sending tingles down her spine. “I believe in you, Zera. Take me home.”
The low timbre of his voice made it difficult to focus, but she cleared her mind and reached deep within herself to that wellspring of magic shimmering down her spine.
She visualized their bedroom—the giant king-sized bed with its plush comforter, the bay windows framing the majestic vista of Havenwood Forest. Focusing all her energy, she felt the familiar warmth of her pixie dust swirling around them, and she opened her eyes.
Iridescent sparkles of purple whipped around them on a phantom wind and swept them up as if they were weightless.
The tavern vanished around them, and they rematerialized right on top of their bed, tumbling amid the cotton sheets in a fit of breathless laughter.
Zera landed half on top of Maverick, and their bodies entangled.
She pushed herself up slightly, scanning his face with poorly concealed awe.
“I did it,” she breathed out in disbelief. She’d actually shimmered them both successfully and, as far as she could tell and feel, with all of their limbs.
Maverick’s hands slid sensually up her sides, sending tingles where his fingers touched. “I never doubted you for a second, my mate.” His voice had dropped an octave and was thick with pure masculine desire.
Zera felt the heat of their connection intensify tenfold as she drank in the sculpted lines of his face and the sharp angles of his jaw.
Strands of sun filtered through the windows and painted golden hues across his chiseled features.
In that moment, the world around them fell away until there was only the two of them—two destined souls bound by a love deeper than either of them could have ever imagined.
Maverick’s fingers tangled in her hair as he guided her lips to meet his once again in a searing kiss.
Their mate bond ignited into an all-consuming blaze, setting every nerve ending alight with indescribable ecstasy.
Zera gasped against his mouth. She had never experienced anything even remotely close to this level of intimacy and raw passion.
As if he’d read her thoughts, Maverick rasped through the bond, This is only the beginning, my love. He growled wolfishly with unconcealed hunger and devotion as he lowered her gently onto the soft comforter. She tugged at his shirt, not wanting anything between their naked bodies.
She made to unbutton his shirt when she heard a peal of childish giggles outside their bedroom door.
“Cole! Where are you going?” Jade’s voice filtered in.
Maverick and Zera turned their heads as a tiny blur of brown curls came barreling through the half-open door. Cole crawled at full speed to the bed, his round face alight with mischief and his big lavender eyes sparkling with innocence.
Zera shot Maverick an apologetic look laced with longing. Through their bond, his affectionate amusement washed over her in reassuring waves before Maverick hopped out of bed and scooped Cole up to join them.
“Hey, little guy,” Maverick said as he swung Cole in the air, eliciting a burst of giggles and squeals.
Zera couldn’t help but smile at the sight of her son’s joy and Maverick’s effortless way with him.
“Oh, sorry!” Jade said, poking her head into the room. “I didn’t know you all were back. You want me to take him?”
She arched a brow at Zera with a knowing look.
“It’s okay, Jade,” Zera said with a wave. “Go be with Sloane. I’ve got him.”
Her half sister hesitated but then waved her goodbye.
“Thank you!” Zera called after her before Cole nosedived toward her with open arms. “Hey, baby!” She caught him with a laugh, hugging his tiny body close as she nuzzled her face into his soft curls. His sweet, powdery scent filled her senses.
“You’re okay with just hanging out and playing with us?” she asked, gazing up into Maverick’s piercing, stormy eyes that smoldered in response.
“I’m more than okay with that plan,” he whispered, his voice low and husky as he wrapped his muscular arms around them both. Cole giggled and clapped his hands, clearly enjoying the attention from both his mother and Maverick.
Zera leaned into his solid warmth, her heart overflowing with love for her new little family. This was everything she’d ever wanted and more—a profound bond, unconditional love, and a life full of laughter.
As Cole babbled happily between them, Zera met Maverick’s tender gaze once more. She knew then that no matter what challenges lay ahead, they would face them together, united by an unbreakable connection that would only grow richer with each passing day in their forever after.
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A hunter with a midlife crisis, forced to play consort in a deadly game. She will have her revenge.