LOGINFINALLY! Mal has claimed Claire as his forever! What do we think of their claiming?
Caramel brown liquid flowed from the decanter into the two glasses on the bookshelf. Jack took a deep breath, refusing to meet Mal’s gaze. He handed Mal a glass, then drank the entire contents of the second. “I know that you two are…um.. Jeez, Mal. This is very difficult to talk about. She’s my daughter, damn it.”Mal looked down at his glass and swirled the amber liquid before he spoke. “How long have we known each other, Jack?” He lifted his eyes to stare back at his best friend. “Decades. I am calm and deliberate. Correct?”Jack nodded in agreement.“When have you ever seen me truly smile? When have I ever stayed in one place for more than a few months? I’m crazy in love with your daughter, Jack.” He waited for Jack to say something, to say anything. But silence filled the space between them.Jack walked around his desk to stand in front of the window that overlooked the backyard. His eyes fell on the tattered swing that hung from a low tree branch. He smiled to himself.Malachy wa
The fresh smell of coffee made Claire stir in her bed. Still a little groggy, she rolled over to a set of muscular arms that wrapped around her. She snuggled even closer and nuzzled into his neck. “You’ll be the perfect man if you have food and coffee on the nightstand for me,” she joked.Mal sighed deeply and leaned away from her to grab a steaming mug and bowl. “Lucky for you, I am pretty perfect,” he teased. “Here. Sit up. Be careful, it’s still pretty hot.” He helped Claire sit up and relax against the headboard before he handed her the coffee.She greedily wrapped her hands around the ceramic mug, held it to her lips and inhaled the fumes deeply with closed eyes. “Ah. I didn’t think I could love you more. Thank you.” She gently kissed his lips and sipped her black coffee with closed eyes. “Have we heard anything from Opal Moon?” Eager eyes searched his as she took a bite out of the oatmeal, waiting for Mal to respond. He couldn’t help thinking how incredible she was. So much hap
Her mind was reeling. Tonight was turning out to test her mental abilities. She closed her eyes and put her fingers to her temples, attempting to rub out the headache she felt creeping up. Claire felt dizzy as she slowly swayed.“Whoa now. Here, sit back down and take another drink.” Mal ushered her back to the bed and gave her a glass of water. With unsteady hands, she drank its entire contents. “I know it’s a lot to comprehend right now…”“Yeah. No shit.”Her response made him smirk, which he couldn’t hide. “Love. Take a few deep breaths.” After a few moments, she composed herself, then her weary eyes met his. “So I’m not human?”Mal sat beside her and pulled her to his side. “Oh, you’re still human, just a different breed. It’s been a long time since the Hunters have been in our thoughts. We believed them to be damn near extinct decades ago. We used them as horror stories to scare the young. But I honestly can’t think of any other explanation.”She shot up and took a few confident
Her mind went blank. “What the fuck are you talking about, Mal?” Se quickly pulled her hand away and stood up. She needed space away from him. The hurt was evident on his face that he didn’t want her to walk away, but she couldn’t think with him touching her.She stared straight into his eyes. “I need you to be very clear here, Mal. Your next words better not be ‘I killed your parents.’”Mal chuckled slightly, then placed her hands in his. “I did not kill your parents, Love. Rogue vampires did — that much of it is true.”She let out a deep sigh, waiting for him. “Well, that’s good.” Urging him to continue, she crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow.“I should start from the beginning, but please sit back down.” He patted the spot on the bed she had vacated. His eyes pleading, “Please, Claire.”She nodded her head, wrapped the blanket over her shoulders, and calmly took her seat. Her fingers fiddled with a loose thread for a few seconds before Mal’s hands held hers, stopp
Everything was the same: same black leather couch, same wooden coffee table, same… everything. Taking a few hesitant steps further into the room, her hands grazed over the bar top, feeling each nick and crack on the surface. Her fingers found the watermark left on it when she was eight from her sweet tea. Jack complained about each time he washed the top, and she giggled remembering her father’s hysterics.She continued to pace around, making her way to the kitchen and dining room. So many memories swamped her brain. So many meals, conversations, and laughs happened in this room. She put a hand on her chest, trying to stabilize herself a bit. After a few deep breaths, she let go, and a few tears fell.It felt good to be home.She wandered aimlessly around the house, touching everything she could. Family photos still lined the hallway to Jack’s office and bedroom. Poking her head into the office, Claire inhaled deeply and found it still smelled like his cigars. She smiled and stepped aw
Mal straightened where he stood. “What’s going on?”Deacon glanced at the bed where Claire clutched the bedspread to her chest, but Malachy stepped into his view, bringing his focus back to the task at hand. “Someone attacked us. Fuckers desecrated an abandoned building on the outskirts of the territory. I have my best warriors and trackers searching the area, but you need to get her out of here. Don’t tell me where, just go!”“What happened?” Claire wrapped herself in the blanket and stood to walk to Mal’s side. His arms instinctively pulled her closer. “Deacon. Tell me what happened.”Mal was proud of the commanding voice his little love projected to the alpha.Deacon didn’t hesitate as he kept his eye contact with her, which Mal respected given her current state. “Someone set fire to a building…but they left a message with the fire. ‘deCeiT’ was in flames.” Deacon lifted his phone screen to Claire’s face. Sure enough, a building was on fire with the word ‘deceit’ in flames on the ro







