Page 34 of Witches and Wine (The Mythical Mates of Arcane Cove #1)
Three months later…
“Thanks, man, you can set those over there,” I said to the delivery man proudly displaying the UMPS logo on his navy blue shirt—the United Magical Package Service delivering more ambrosia wine from Olympus.
Bacchus numbers had sky-rocketed since Chelsea and I became mates. I’d like to have thought it was the extra pulse of magical energy floating through the Cove from our bond, but I knew the biggest reason currently stood on stage with his annoyingly brightened white smile.
Apollo became a headliner every Saturday fucking night, and everyone came in droves to sing along with his songs, rock out, and throw articles of clothing at him.
Chelsea had also worked her PR magic without any aid from me or her witchcraft, securing an additional three acts—a dancing violinist, aerial dancers, and a magic act.
That’s right. A mythie performing human sleight of hand tricks as a spectacle here . My mate was a godsdamned genius.
Tambie tapped my elbow and pointed at the bar. Herb gruffly sat on a stool hunched over a tumbler of whiskey, and the sight made me blanch. Bacchus had never been Herb’s scene. In fact, I couldn’t recall a time ever seeing him here. He’d always been more of a Finneas’ Pub type.
“I’ll see what’s going on,” I said to Tambie, patting her shoulder.
Tambie frowned and scraped a nail over one of her antlers. “I sure hope it’s not another murder. I still think about that poor pixie, and I didn’t even know her.”
Chelsea and I had offered our help countless times in investigating who killed the witch pixie, especially since she’d been a former sister in Chelsea’s new coven.
The sheriff, as stubborn and crotchety as ever, told us all forms of “go to hell” and to let him do his damn job.
Three months later, the trail toward her killer only went colder.
Moving behind the bar, I leaned on one palm and pointed at the sheriff’s empty glass. “Can I freshen you up there, Herb?”
“Damn straight you can and make it something stronger, would ya?” Herb slid the glass closer.
Grabbing a fresh bottle of ambrosia wine, I swirled my magic around it, altering its contents to taste like bourbon while maintaining the wine’s potency, and poured him a double. “Considering I’ve never seen you in here, you’ll understand why I’m curious as to your patronage tonight?”
Herb let out a gruff sigh and snatched the newly filled glass, immediately shoving his nose into it to guzzle. “You’re right. This place is obnoxious, loud as all get out, and everyone shows far too much skin for my taste.”
Chuckling, I propped an elbow on the bar. “Gee, Herb. Tell me how you really feel about my establishment.”
“Sorry, Dion. The truth is, this was the only place I hadn’t thought to look for a suspect.
” Herb paused to lick whiskey droplets that collected on his thick mustache.
“I just can’t wrap my head around it. Whoever it was, murdered that poor female in cold blood, left zero evidence, and then seemingly disappeared. ”
“You make it sound like they had plans to do it again. Maybe this was something personal, and they skipped town?” I scanned the club for anyone who might be nervously watching us.
Herb scratched his scalp. “That’s the thing. This pixie wouldn’t have harmed a fly, went out of her way to help people, and from how most folks described her, she had the type of personality that lit up a damned room.”
Nodding, I tapped my finger on the bar top. “You know what I want to say to all of this, right?”
The sheriff swiped the tumbler into his grasp, lifting it and pointing at me. “I’ll ask for help when I’m good and ready for it, boy. In the meantime, I’m going to mingle .”
He’d said the word mingle as if it was difficult to push from his throat before sliding off the stool. Hermes and Bruce were quick to scoop him up, waving me off like taking the crotchety porcupine under their wings was no big deal.
Smiling and shaking my head, I made eye contact with Tambie and gave her a thumbs up to indicate there wasn’t additional bad news.
A tingle zipped down my spine, an invisible tether tugging at my bond with Chelsea.
She needed me. A devilish grin played on my lips, and I ported straight to my apartment, which was now ours .
Chelsea stood at the window with one hand raised skyward, her moonlight glow damn near lustrous from the full moon tonight. She’d had her back to me but slowly turned when she sensed my presence. The expression she gave me wasn’t what I had expected. She looked— surprised ?
“Chels? Did you not call on me?” I raised a brow, my nose picking up several other female scents overlapping each other.
“Babe, I didn’t think it’d work that quickly,” Chelsea admitted, a light burp following.
Scanning the surroundings, I noted several empty bottles of ambrosia wine and Riley chasing a grey cat . A mouse squeaked, zooming toward my feet, and I lifted a boot so the tiny creature didn’t run into me. “Oh, light of my life. What the Tartarus is going on?”
“Sorry,” Amara’s voice chirped. She scurried from the hallway, chasing after the mouse, scooping it into her palms once she caught it.
Elani, Chelsea’s sister, emerged next from the hallway, holding my saved rum bottle from the eighteenth century when I’d had a very brief career on a pirate crew. “I looked all over, Chels, but this was all I could—” Elani froze when she spotted me, and her pale pink wings drooped.
“Dion,” Chelsea started, clutching something in her fist and slipping an arm around my waist. “This was a surprise I didn’t know was happening. They all showed up unannounced, and I couldn’t rightly turn them away.”
“Hey, Dion,” Elani added, smiling brightly, bits of her copper appearing in her dark brown hair when the ceiling lights hit it at the right angles. “Long time, no see.”
With Chelsea draped over my shoulders, I extended a hand for the prized bottle Elani held. “Nice to see you too, sis. But what is this surprise? It isn’t her birthday.”
Amara moved closer, stroking her mouse familiar with a single finger. “We thought we’d throw you both a mated party, but Elani couldn’t make it out to the Cove until recently.”
“We were getting ready to bless your bond with favor when Bacchus closed so you could be here too,” Brigid answered, appearing with several items cradled in her arms and a wooden bowl. A bat perched on her shoulder, its veiny black wings folded back.
Chelsea kissed my cheek and opened her hand, revealing the small white crystal resting on her palm. “I was letting the moon charge it.”
“Well then, do your thing, ladies. Don’t let me get in the way.
” Pinching Chelsea’s chin between two fingers, I pulled her lips to mine, kissing her.
“And next time you need more booze for any occasion, just ask me, sweetheart.” I arched a brow at Elani, who averted her gaze, whistling and pretending she had no idea I referenced the rum bottle she’d pilfered from my stash.
Moving to the kitchen, I set the bottles upright, sending spirals of burgundy magic around them, filling each to the brim and, not bothering to cork them.
Chelsea’s emerald eyes locked onto me as she formed a triangle with her coven sisters, Elani joining me in the kitchen to watch from afar.
Tears filled Elani’s eyes as she peered at her big sister in her magical element, reciting spells, her glowing white magic entangling with the other witches’ yellow and green magic.
“I know it’s too late to reverse any of it, Lani, but are you okay with this?” I asked, filling my wine glass.
Elani looked at me perplexed. “Okay with what? You being my sister’s fated mate?”
“Yeah,” I whispered, uncomfortably rubbing the back of my neck.
Elani laughed and patted my arm, snatching one of the bottles and not bothering with a glass, drank from it.
“Dion, I’ve been rooting for you both to get your heads out of your asses since the day Chelsea started texting me about how much she couldn’t stand you when you all first met but also how much she could not stop thinking about you. ”
“You knew from the start, didn’t you?” I asked, smiling.
“I’m a love-goddess. Of course, I knew. But I’m duty-bound to let you figure it out for yourself.” Elani winked and raised the bottle to cheers.
The witches finished their spellbinding, Chelsea trotting to us with Riley curled around her neck. “What are you two talking about?”
Elani hugged her sister. “How much partying we plan to do tonight in your honor.”
“Those are mighty bold words to say to the frenzy god, sis,” Chelsea replied, laughing nervously and giving me a concerned look over Elani’s shoulder.
Still grinning like a damned lovesick fool, I held a palm out to her, reassuring her that I’ll make sure Elani was able to get home to her love-god husband and kid.
When they requested a party in my and my mate’s honor, I couldn’t help but pull out all the stops.
Music blasted late into the night; the sound drowned from nearby neighbors with my magic.
There was dancing, singing, and a crazy game of Pictionary that I purposely made every drawing of mine look like a dick.
With the moon favoring my beautiful witch, it honored us with a cloudless sky for the duration of the night, ensuring its glow never faltered.
And by Olympus, the drinking . At one point, I started pouring Elani’s drinks with zero alcohol, and she still whooped and hollered like nothing had changed.
Brigid and Amara pulled Elani to the side, enlightening her about all things witchy and how female bloodlines pass down the magic through their daughters.
I took the opportunity to yank my mate into the hallway, pinning her against the wall and pressing a hand above her head. “Hey,” I teased.
“Hey, you,” Chelsea answered, fiddling her fingers over the top of my pants. She grinned at something behind me.
It was nearly pitch black in the hallway, but her claiming tattooed mark glowed from underneath my white T-shirt, illuminating it as if it were daylight.
Letting out a satisfied growling purr, I turned back to Chelsea, kissing her.
“Glowing bright to let all others know I’m yours .
” I trailed my lips to my bite scar displayed proudly above her collarbone and kissed her there.
The scar had gotten lighter since I’d first given it to her and became a piece of art that formed a perfect circle.
“I see a lot of low-cut tops in my future,” Chelsea mused, her petite fingers touching my abs through my shirt. “Because I’m obsessed with how I feel showing everyone who my mate is.”
Sliding my tongue over my mark gracing her skin, I let out an appreciating snarl. “All thanks to the Cove, Red.”
The doorbell rang, followed by several loud thuds from someone knocking. My body instinctually went into protective mode, and I tensed. “Were you all expecting anyone else?”
“No. Not that I’m aware of,” Chelsea answered, the skin on her forehead cinching in concern.
“I’ll get it,” I yelled to the drunken witches and goddess in the living room. Storming for the door with Chelsea following, I pressed my eye to the peephole.
A laugh poured out of me at the sight of Harmony Makos standing with a hand on her hip, annoyance plain in her expression. She rolled her eyes and knocked again.
“Dion, who is it?” Chelsea asked.
Still chuckling, I whipped open the door. “Hey, Harm.”
“ Hey ?” Harm’s gaze flicked between my face and the mark on Chelsea’s neck. “That’s all you have to say to me, Dino, is hey ?”
It’d been too long since I heard the nickname Dino, given to me by Harm herself, when she’d repeatedly gotten my name wrong and never bothered to correct herself. The smile had yet to fall from my lips.
“Harm?” Chelsea squeaked, moving past me to tackle her best friend in the hallway.
Harm hugged Chelsea but pushed her back by her shoulders, holding her captive.
“Chels, I go off on godly war duties for a few months, and I come back to forty-two texts and an invitation to a mated party? Mated. To Dionysus, might I add? And you’re a witch ?
” Harm spoke erratically, but the happiness radiating in her eyes was more than obvious.
“We’ve got so, so much to talk about, friend,” Chelsea answered, tears filling her eyes as she pulled Harm in for another hug.
Elani moved beside me with her arms folded before proceeding to brush imaginary dust from her shoulders.
“This your doing?” I asked, soaking in the sight of my mate happy and content.
“Yup. Eros put me up to it. Something about taking a photo of your face when you realized Harm knows you are ferally mated to her best friend now,” Elani added.
“Harm? Harm would never—” I paused when Harmony tossed me a seething glare, pointing at me.
“Dino, we also need to talk.”
“Oh, shit.” My face fell blank, and Elani lifted her phone, a camera shutter sound going off.
“That’s the one,” Elani beamed.
Aside from a punch in the shoulder and a long-winded speech on how she’d figure out a way to end my immortal life if I hurt Chelsea, Harmony spent most of her time catching up with us and joining in on the festivities.
We partied until the sun rose, leaving my mate especially tired once the moon’s power wasn’t as strong.
Chelsea fell asleep with her head resting in my lap while Elani took one of my shoulders and Harm the other.
If you’d told me a year ago three beautiful women would surround me and I had plans to do unspeakable acts in the bedroom with only one of them later, I’d have laughed into oblivion.
Now, with the women I called family through fate’s design that brought us all together, I nestled into the couch, my protective nature satiated with them in my arms. And the beast, for the first time in eons, could finally feel peace .
STAY TUNED FOR BOOK 2 IN
THE MYTHICAL MATES OF ARCANE COVE SERIES!