Page 19 of Kiss of Steele (The Royal Occult Bureau #9)

EPILOGUE

THREE MONTHS LATER

IT TOOK TWO months for the baby lamiae to grow into adulthood.

I’d taken them with me, both because I wanted to protect them and because it annoyed Mother. Also, the bureau had still to decide how to deal with the lamiae, but I wouldn’t let anyone hurt them. Hence their presence in my room.

Three months had passed since the last time I’d seen Rennie, and my heart had never stopped aching. I missed him so much that the lamiae kept turning into him. So now I had six Rennies in my bedroom—mama lamia and her babies. But the original was the only one that mattered.

I’d begged, argued, and yelled at Mother, but she didn’t care. She kept saying she was doing the right thing for me and my future. There was no future without Rennie. That was why I was going to leave my house and live my life. Now that the lamiae were adults and didn’t need me anymore, I was ready to go. A part of me wished that Mother would see reason. I’d given her plenty of time to think about her horrible attitude. Enough was enough. I was going to claim my man, and to hell with it.

I had no reason to stay at my parents’ house. I would leave, find Rennie, and elope.

The door to my bedroom was flung open, and Mother strode inside the room. The lamiae disappeared, turning into tiny globes of light that could barely be spotted.

Her hair was dishevelled, and her eyes were wide. “Monia!”

I stood up. “Is something the matter? Is Father all right?”

“I have realised I made a mistake,” she said, stepping closer. Her cheeks were flushed.

“I beg your pardon.”

“I’ve made a mistake,” she repeated.

“Are you drunk?”

“How dare you?” Anger caused her expression to return to normal. She was less wild, her steely gaze on me. “I’m simply trying to admit my mistakes. The fear of losing you made me blind.” A tear glistened in the corner of her eye. “But I’ve realised the fear of making you unhappy was greater. You have my blessing, child. You can marry your Rennie.”

My mouth dropped open. “Oh, Mother.”

She wrung her hands. “I hope you’ll forgive me. I thought I was protecting you.”

“Of course, I forgive you.” I swallowed the lump in my throat. “What made you change your mind?”

Her gaze darted around. “Well, a few things. A few thoughts.”

The explanation was rather vague. But I didn’t care. I hugged her, and she hugged me back, kissing my forehead. “Don’t elope, darling. I want you to have a proper wedding, with the banns of marriage, a silk dress, and lots of flowers. A beautiful wedding like the one I had.”

“Of course. I’d be delighted.”

“Good.” She kissed my forehead again before smiling, but not at me. She was staring at a point behind me. “I’ll leave you alone then.” She chuckled when she said ‘alone.’

What in the name of Hades had just happened?

With a series of popping sounds, the lamiae turned into my personal team of Rennies, wearing identical suits and smirks.

“I knew it would work,” Rennie One said, sliding an arm around my waist.

“What have you done?” I asked none of them in particular.

Rennie Two lifted a shoulder. “We showed your mother a few of her most intimate fears until she understood she was going to lose you if you weren’t happy.”

Rennie Three took my face and kissed my lips. “Why don’t we celebrate your imminent engagement with some wild fumbles?”

That was another good thing about the lamiae imitating Rennie. They used exactly the words I wanted to hear because I doubted my Rennie would have said something like that. Rennie Three kissed me hard and slipped his tongue between my lips.

I withdrew and shook my head. “Uh-uh. You know the rules. No lovemaking. I want only the real Rennie.”

“Just a kiss.” He followed me, and his lips were on mine again, demanding and dominant.

I put a hand on his chest. “We shouldn’t?—”

His hand grabbed my breast and kneaded it, brushing his thumb over my nipple until I moaned. Dash it, it felt so good. But it wasn’t the real Rennie.

“I mean it.” I gazed around. The other Rennies were smiling around me, all seven of them... seven? Yes, there were seven. Since when did I have seven Rennies in my bedroom? “Lawrence?” The breath was punched out of me.

“The one and only.” He wrapped my arms around my waist, beaming.

“But, how?”

“You didn’t think I would let you go without a fight, did you? Mother lamia and I became friends, well, more or less. It slipped out of your bedroom at night to see me. It helped me train its puppies to show your mother how wrong her attitude was. I know how important your family is to you. I wanted your mother to admit she was wrong on her own. It took a while, but here I am.”

“How did you enter my bedroom without me noticing?”

He arched a brow. “Seriously? I’m an occult agent.”

I had other questions, but confound it, we had time to talk in the future. I took his face and brought it down for a burning kiss, making him feel all the passion and desire I felt. He kissed me back, caressing my body with his big hands.

“I’ve missed you so much,” he whispered, kissing my neck. “And I’ll show you just how much.”

As the lamiae did their dissolving trick and went somewhere else, he laid me on the bed and started undoing my shirt. “I’m going to feast on you until you come, screaming my name.”

I grinned. Lord, what a splendid plan.

THE END