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T he weather was unseasonably warm, and Elle was taking advantage of it.

Since Anthony wanted to be near his mate, he sat beside her on the glider he had moved back to the deck.

They enjoyed their coffee while Daphne pounced on bugs and leaves in the yard.

She had grown quite a bit in the two weeks since they got her.

The whir of a saw came from the barn as Nekoma worked on a commissioned set of patio furniture for Connor and Alyssa.

A phone rang inside, and Anthony went to retrieve it so Elle didn’t have to move. Seeing it was Yari, he answered it.

“Hello, Yari.”

“Hey, Tony. Is Elle around?”

“She’s right here. Hang on.” Tony walked back outside and held it out. “It’s Yari.”

Since he could hear the conversation, she didn’t bother putting it on speaker. “Hey, Sis. What’s up?”

“I have a surprise for you, so I need to know when you and Tony can take a trip.”

“A trip? To Norway?”

“No. Evyndral.”

“What?” Elle set her coffee down, then grabbed Anthony’s arm. “Why?”

“The dragons want to honor you for your part in the battle.”

“You’re joking. And Tony can come with me?”

“I’m not joking, and yes. You will have to glamour him, of course, but he’s expected to be there.”

“I don’t know what to say.” Elle climbed onto Anthony’s lap. He checked her well-being through the bond, and she was both excited as well as nervous.

“Say you’ll be there. I need to know when so Rhoan can relay the date to his parents. They’ll want to prepare a feast.”

“Wow. That’s not necessary. Let me talk to Tony about his work schedule and I’ll call you back.”

“Sounds good, but don’t take too long. We don’t want to keep the King waiting.”

“Give us a few minutes.”

“You got it.” Yari disconnected, and Elle held the phone between her hands.

“You okay?” Anthony asked.

“Yes. Whew. This is...” A bright smile lit her face. “I never expected this, you know? And now I get to show you Evyndral. You do want to go, right?”

“Are you kidding? How often do beings from Earth get the opportunity to visit another realm? That’ll be a story for the grandkids.”

Elle laughed. “Grandkids? We don’t even have children. Speaking of, we never talked about having them. Is that something you want.”

“Definitely, but maybe not right away. And we probably should have had this conversation before we ever had sex. I haven’t used a condom.”

Elle turned her head and pulled her ear forward. “See that marking?”

“Yeah, it looks like a rune.”

“Oh, I know what those are. Solara taught me. It’s not a rune, but it is a sigil that keeps me from getting pregnant. I can remove it whenever we’re ready for children.”

“Now that’s convenient. I bet you could sell the shit out of those at Solaralun.”

“You think so?”

“Absolutely. Talk to the twins about it. As far as going to Evyndral, I should be finished with my current case in the next few days. I’m sure Mason would take me off the schedule long enough to go see the King.

Let me call him to make sure.” Anthony gently moved Elle back to the glider, then went inside for his phone.

While it was ringing, he refilled his travel mug and added caramel creamer.

“Tony? What’s up?”

“The dragons want to honor Elle for her part in the battle. After I wrap up my current case, can I have a couple of days off to go to Evyndral?”

“Damn, man. Of course. How exciting is that?”

“Right? It’s like I told Elle, it’s not everyday someone from Earth gets to travel to another realm.”

“Papa! Help!” Madison, Mason’s youngest yelled.

“Maddy, I’m on the phone.”

“Who is it?”

“Tony. If you—”

“Hi, Uncle Tony.” Madison loved him for some reason. He’d never thought he would be good with kids since he wasn’t around them that often. With his parents moving to New York, Anthony hadn’t spent a lot of time with Andy.

“Hey, Munchkin. What’s up?”

Madison sighed. “Momma’s making me go shopping with her and Gigi. I don’t wanna.”

Anthony grinned. Where Gigi was girly like Willow, Maddy was all about playing outside, getting as dirty as possible, then hosing off before going back in the house.

Mason chuckled. “Let me finish talking to Tony, then we’ll go discuss this with your momma like adults.”

Madison huffed. “Fine. Bye, Uncle Tony.”

“Later, Munchkin.”

“That girl,” Mason said wistfully. “How can two kids be so different?”

“Because they’re their own beings. It would be boring otherwise.”

“You’re right. Anyway, Barrett and Silas are free to cover anything new that comes up. Their buddy, Warren reached out. He’s ready to relocate from NOLA, so I offered him a part-time gig for now.”

“I’m sorry,” Anthony muttered.

“For what? Tony, you’re one of my best, and because of that, word has gotten around. We’re getting more calls every day. I would never say this to the others, but that’s thanks to you and Tabitha. If you need time to spend with your mate, you’ll get it. You deserve it.”

“Oh. Well, thank you.” Anthony didn’t know what to do with the praise. He just did the jobs he was tasked with.

“You’ll be finished Wednesday? Right?”

“I should be.”

“Then take Thursday through Sunday for your trip. Man, I still can’t believe you’re going to meet the dragons. Do you think you could take pictures?”

Anthony barked out a laugh. “Uh, no. They don’t have any type of technology there. And since only the royals are aware of Earth, Elle has to glamour me so it looks like I have pointy ears. If you want to see a dragon, maybe talk to Brent and ask him to take a picture of his mate.”

“Like that wouldn’t be awkward. Shit. I need to go play referee. Madison is getting wound up with her momma.”

“Go ahead. And thanks Mason.”

“See you tomorrow. Madison Pearl Steele—” And with that, his boss was gone.

Anthony grabbed his coffee and rejoined his mate on the glider. “I have Thursday through Sunday off. We might not need that much time, but we have it.”

Elle smacked a kiss to Anthony’s cheek. “Awesome. Let me call Yari back.”

While his fae called her sister, Anthony watched Daphne.

So far, when they let her outside, she didn’t try to run off.

Nekoma warned them about birds of prey, so they never let the kitten play without someone close by.

Speaking of Elle’s brother, he exited the barn and strode their way.

He was carrying a package in his hands, and when he stepped onto the deck, he held it out to Anthony.

“What’s this?” Anthony placed his mug on the table and took the package. He carefully pulled the paper back to find neatly folded clothes. He lifted the material to find a blue hooded tunic, which matched the one Elle wore when they went after Grevolus.

Nekoma rubbed the back of his neck. “I wasn’t sure this day would ever come, but I wanted you to have something appropriate should you ever visit Evyndral.”

“How did you know?” Anthony was in awe of the craftsmanship, especially considering Nekoma made all the clothes by hand. He offered to buy a sewing machine, but Nekoma turned him down.

“Know what?”

Anthony nodded his head toward Elle. “Yari called earlier saying King Titus wants to honor Elle for her help during the battle. They’re making the arrangements now.”

Nekoma’s eyes widened. “They should honor her. And no, I wasn’t aware.”

“Amazing coincidence then.” Anthony stood so he could remove the pants.

They were soft leather, but where Elle’s were the same blue as her top, his were gray.

Also included was a gray vest with blue embroidery stitched across the chest. Anthony never would have imagined wearing something like it, but he couldn’t wait to try it on.

“While you and Elledan were in West Virginia, I asked Luna to gather one of your shirts and jeans so I would have your measurements. I apologize if that was too intrusive. If the lúcs doesn’t fit, I can adjust it.”

Anthony assumed Nekoma was referring to the vest since he was holding it up to his chest. He slid it on over his head, and the fit was perfect. “Thank you so much, Nekoma. I appreciate this.”

“It is a small gift of gratitude for you allowing me to live in your home where I can be close to Elledan.”

“I don’t need gifts because you’re family.”

“Yes, you are, and Koma! This is gorgeous.” Elle traced a fingertip across the stitching. “Now all you need are boots.”

Anthony removed the vest and folded it neatly, placing it with the pants and tunic. “I don’t know of any shops around here that sell the type you’re referring to.”

“No, but remember that one store we went into when we were shopping with Trinity? I bet if we asked her, she would grab you a pair, and Yari could bring them when she comes for us.”

Anthony tapped her nose. “I bet you’re right. Why don’t you call her and ask? I wear a size twelve.”

Elle didn’t need a reason to call her new friend. They talked on the phone several times a week, but she grinned anyway before tapping the screen of her phone.

A gronk sounded, and Nekoma jumped off the deck, landing a few feet from a large raven that had its wings spread. Anthony searched for Daphne but didn’t see her anywhere.

“What is it, my friend?”

Gronk, gronk.

Nekoma looked up, and Anthony followed his gaze.

There in the tree was a falcon. Anthony removed his shirt and called forth his wings before launching toward the raptor.

It took flight, and Anthony followed, yelling, “Stay away from my cat!” When the falcon had gone far enough, Anthony returned to the deck.

Nekoma was holding Daphne, and Elle was staring at Anthony like she wanted to get him naked.

His wings did it for his mate. He fluttered them around her before retracting them.