"My mother died while she was dreaming. I know Dad told you she… she got sick, but really she just… dropped onto her knees one morning and never stood back up. She was stuck in her dream. I know she was. It was shortly after we returned from visiting your family, ten years ago or so. Tell me, did yo
TroyI was in deep.Totally and completely in over my head.And as I watched Horace approach, his gnarled figure limping through the garden as though he were simply out on a stroll, I tensed, my shoulders tight and rigid as I straightened up to my full height and leaned the rake I was holding agains
"He can wait. He's not going anywhere, obviously," I snorted, looking up at Romero's tower for a moment before flashing Horace a beaming, although fake, smile. "See ya!""Get back here, you insolent boy—"I was already leagues ahead of him, walking briskly through the garden and out onto the pathway
And I would be bringing Maeve with me.I bought a train ticket and waited on the platform, glancing over my shoulder every once and a while to be sure Maeve hadn't followed me.The Persephone was supposed to dock today, and I had at least a six-hour journey to the port by train. I could have shifted
GemmaI slipped from Ernest's bed, quiet as a mouse. He rolled onto his side and wrapped his arms around his pillow, barely waking as he moved and quickly fell back to sleep, his eyelashes fluttering against his cheeks.I reached down and gathered my clothes, clutching them to my naked chest as I se
"Why were you there? Tell me the truth!" I bellowed, which caused him to wince and tilt his head toward the door."Keep your voice down, okay?" He stepped closer to me, his hands outstretched in surrender, "Like I said before, I needed to get word to my ship—""What are you talking about--""I'm try
Ernest"Ernest? Ernest, hey… wake up. I'm so sorry—"I opened my eyes, Gemma's voice filling the dark, empty space around me. I blinked, somewhat startled, although pleasantly surprised to hear her so nearby.She always left after we had sex. Always. And I had never been man enough to stop her.I wa
Troy had been blind to it all, a pawn, and a man desperate to free the only living relative he had left in the world.Romero, his grandfather.He would have done it too, he told me, if his mate wasn't the same woman caught in the crosshairs of the entire scheme.Maeve.I believed him. I didn't have
The entire family had gathered in the dining room and was chatting amiably over a very impressive spread that had been laid out by the kitchen–two prime rib roasts, a honeyed ham, and three roast ducks were the centerpieces of the table, all of which were being enjoyed liberally by everyone.George
RowanMom ran her fingers across Selene's head, admiring her fine white hair. She looked every ounce the doting grandmother instead of a ball of uncertainty, like Maeve. Maeve was pacing back and forth near the fall wall of my bedroom, her arms folded across her chest and her head bent as she tried
Kacidra joined in the conversation. "Maeve is right, Rowan. We need to know what's happening with you and Hanna, or else we'll never be able to help."Rosalie's voice was calm and supportive as she asked, "Is it Hanna that's troubling you, son? Is she doing all right?My first instinct was to tell t
Gemma and Ernest had flown down with my parents and their son George, who was just two months older than Maeve's sons.A moment later, the library door opened and more of our family members poured in, as if they were fully aware of the thoughts I'd just had and I'd summoned them. I pushed aside my n
RowanThe castle was abuzz with its usual day-to-day activities. Servants and maids passed me in the hallway carrying baskets of laundry and trays of tea. I could hear the clattering of cookware as I left my office and walked toward the grand staircase off the foyer, seeing the door to the servants'
"Who? What happens?""There's so much more out there," Mara said dreamily. "So, so much more.""Maeve!" Troy called from down the beach.I turned to look at him, and when I turned back to Mara, she had taken off. "Wait!" I called after her, but she had already made it out of earshot, her footsteps l
Best of all, Troy was happy. He was at peace and at home. But there was still much work to be done.We were spending several weeks jumping from island to island, taking stock of the wellbeing of the inhabitants, and making a list of what was needed. Most of the islands were in need of medicine, inf
Maeve–Four Months LaterSuntra was not what I was expecting. I had become accustomed to the seemingly endless white-sand beaches of Avondale, where the sand grit was so fine it felt like powdered sugar as you walked barefoot in the surf. Suntra's sand was coarse and golden and dappled with tidepool
I straightened up a bit, shifting Oliver's weight in my arms as I narrowed my eyes back at him, sizing him up. A man roughly my father's age came bounding out of their house, waving at me apologetically as he leaned to whisper harshly in the ear of the man I assumed was his father.Whatever his son