Page 12 of Finding Embers and Stars (Twin Flames Duet #1)
Chapter twelve
P iper walks into the room after getting her tattoo just as I'm waking up from creating my dream home in Florida. We eagerly switched places after she got to design her dream house and I got my tattoo. I’m still wrapping my mind around the idea of magically designing my new house when she hands me my phone.
“Mama Rose called. They’re okay and made better time than expected. They will be here tomorrow. I already gave them the address of the new house and told them we would explain it all when they get here. I told her you were in the middle of something and would text her when you were free.”
Sage
Mama are you and Papa, ok?
Mama Rose
Yes, love, we are fine
Just wanted to check in on our girls
Sage
We are ok Mama
Pip said she gave you directions
You’ll be here tomorrow?
Mama Rose
Yes around lunch time
Sage
Ok drive safe We love you both. XOXO
Mama Rose
We love you both too XOXO
“They will be here around lunchtime tomorrow. Are you all done with Zeke? Lemme see, lemme see!!”
Piper rolls her eyes at me but turns around and lifts her shirt. Going from her left lower flank and up towards her right shoulder is a raven in flight. It’s absolutely stunning.
I reach up and run my fingertips over the runes on the wings. “Pip, that's me. You got me tattooed on you?”
She turns around and pulls me in for a hug. “Of course I did. You're my soulmate, Sagey. No matter how many mates we have or anything else going on, you will always be my soulmate. Plus, you got my wolf tattooed on you, so why are you so shocked I got your raven on me?”
I shrug. Somehow, the thought that she would do this for me never crossed my mind. I squeeze her again before stepping back. There are no words to voice what I’m feeling.
I look over at Rory. “Now what happens?”
He just raises his eyebrow at me. A wicked grin on his face, as if he has a secret. “Now you go live your life. Follow your dreams and don't forget about us.”
I walk over to give him a hug. “That would be impossible. You have changed our lives so much. You will never be rid of us. Just think of us as annoying little sisters you never wished you had.”
I grin as he lets out a loud bark of laughter. “That I can do. Come on ladies, let’s go say goodbye and get you on your way home. The house is filled with enough food for several weeks, but if you need anything, we’re only a phone call away.”
We walk into the conference room to say our goodbyes. Each member of this amazing family stands up and gives us hugs. As soon as the men step back, we’re surrounded by the ladies in a giant group hug.
Maggie squeezes me tight. “You’re only a few minutes away from our cabin and we started a new group chat for all of us. Anytime you need anything, you let us know.”
Shasta is squeezing Piper. “And be prepared for weird but funny memes from Rhoda. My Grams has an odd sense of humor.”
This gets a laugh out of Rhoda. “Turn into an elephant one damn time and all of a sudden I'm a weirdo.”
I lean around Maggie to look at Rhoda. “This is a story I need to hear. Give us a few days to settle in and then everyone is invited to our house for dinner!”
Linking my arms with Piper, we head out the door to my car. I get in the driver's seat as she sets the GPS. Soon we are on our way to our new home. Goddess, that's so weird to say. We were homeless this morning and now we have not just one, but two freaking houses.
Usually I'm the hyper one, bouncing in my seat, but Piper can’t seem to sit still. “Do you have ants in your pants or something?” I ask her. “You haven't stopped wiggling since I pulled away from the shelter.”
She grins at me. “I’m so excited for you to see the house. Now that we’ve left the shelter, Atlas really wants a few minutes with you in private. I told him I would shift when we get home as long as he promises not to block me again. I really didn't like not knowing what was happening.”
I shiver at the thought. “Yeah, I can’t blame you. I would be pissed to be left in the dark like that. If you want to show me our writing cave and our rooms, the rest can wait until tomorrow.” Chuckling, I take the next turn and follow the GPS directions. “If I'm being honest, I really need a long soak in a hot bath and about ten hours of uninterrupted sleep.”
Piper hums in agreement. “Just give Atlas a few minutes before you take a bath, so he calms down. If not, he will keep me up all damn night.”
I glance over to see her eyes flashing between her deep blue and Atlas’s bright blue. “Well, you can tell him I don't take kindly to threats of keeping my bestie awake and if he wants to play those games, he can see me from a damn distance.”
I watch Piper’s eyes lose focus for a minute, then she blinks and is back to herself. Reaching over, she links her fingers with mine.
“He said he’s sorry for acting like that. He's been on edge all day with men that are not your mates touching you. The only thing that stopped him from forcing a shift was the fact that every single one of them was mated.”
I sigh. “Yeah, I know. This is going to take some getting used to for all of us. We will figure it out, but he needs to extend the same understanding to us as we will to him.”
As I round a corner, I come to a dead stop in the middle of the driveway. The house is lit up and welcoming. The turrets on either side of the front door give the house a magical fairytale-like appearance.
“Piper, it's stunning. I can’t believe this is ours.” I pull the car up in the driveway and park. Grabbing my purse, I slowly walk up the front steps, taking in all the details of the house.
Piper opens the door and walks in ahead of me. She ignores the cozy living room and massive kitchen and heads right up the stairs to the third floor.
I walk into what must be our writing cave and I'm floored. It is almost exactly the same as the one I did for our Florida house. Letting out a childish squeal, I take a running leap into the most comfortable looking chair I’ve ever seen. These are going to be the best reading chairs ever!
Piper is bent over laughing at me. In between gasping for air, she explains that she did the very same thing when she first saw the chair downstairs.
Once she has herself under control, I tell her to shift so I can give Atlas some snuggles. She shifts to her wolf form quickly and much more smoothly than her last shift. Atlas jumps up on the chair and curls his body around me.
If wolves could purr, I'm pretty sure he would be. We lie together for a little while before he gets down and shifts back to Piper. “He said thank you for letting him lie with you and to go get some sleep.”
We head to the second floor to our bedrooms. Piper points mine out and gives me a hug goodnight. I head into my room and take it all in. I have a reading nest in my turret, a huge bed, and as I walk into the bathroom, I could cry. The biggest tub I have ever seen sits right next to the shower. I start the tub to fill and go back into my room. Grasping my necklace, I activate the magic to place my trunk on the floor. I pull out bubble bath, shampoo, pjs, and my robe then head back to the bathroom.
There is something soothing about soaking in a tub of scalding hot water. Piper and I have always chuckled over our complete difference of opinions of baths versus showers. I know without looking that she will have asked Rory for a big shower with multiple waterspouts.
After indulging in my bath, I crawl into my new bed and relax beneath the soft blankets. If this is all a dream, I pray I never wake up.
The sunlight shining through my bedroom window gradually pulls me from sleep. As my eyes blink open, I’m greeted by the view of my new bedroom. Ecstatic that yesterday wasn’t a dream, I bounce out of bed to go searching for Piper.
Today is the first day of the rest of our lives.
Choosing to ignore the rooms I haven't seen yet, I head downstairs, finding Piper in the kitchen staring out the window. It was dark when we got home last night but now in the light of day, I can see how beautiful our view is.
She hands me a cup of coffee as I come and stand next to her. I smile up at her, leaning my head on her shoulder.
“I was terrified that I would wake up back in Alaska. Father screaming and threatening me. I’m still not entirely convinced this is real.”
I wrap my arm around her. “Never again will you have to deal with him alone.”
She nods, looping her arm through mine, and drags me to the front door. “Mama Rose and Papa Rhett made better time than they thought. The text I got said they should be here in a minute.”
She smiles down at me, just as excited to see them as I am. We sit on the front steps waiting for their car to pull up.
Humming thoughtfully, I glance at her from the corner of my eye. “I think our first book needs to be called Tails and Tentacles. After all, the rest of our dreams came true. Maybe if we write about it, one of our mates will be a kraken or a demon.”
Piper throws back her head and laughs. “I wouldn't mind a little prehensile tail action.”
I’m about to respond when a car pulls into the driveway. We both fly down the steps just as my parents stop the car and run to us.
They envelope us in the biggest hug, nearly squeezing the life from us. “I’m so happy to finally have you both in my arms again. We will be discussing this five mates business, but your mom said not today.” Papa Rhett rolls his eyes at us, earning chuckles all around.
Mama Rose playfully slaps his chest. “No Rhett, today is for celebrating. Our girls are safe and free. Let’s go inside and talk about what’s next.”
I still can’t quite wrap my head around the idea that we are leading my parents up the steps of our house. Once we’re inside and we all have a seat, Piper and I look at each other.
So much passes between us. Our excitement, our fears, the drive we both have to make this surprise chance at life work for us.
“To start, we're going to become best-selling authors. When the time is right, we’re going to save the shifters from the cruelty they’re enduring.” I take a deep breath and look straight at my parents. “I’m a Chosen of Mother Universe, Piper will be the next Supreme Alpha, and Atlas was sent to be our guide.”