Total pages in book: 254
Estimated words: 240032 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1200(@200wpm)___ 960(@250wpm)___ 800(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 240032 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1200(@200wpm)___ 960(@250wpm)___ 800(@300wpm)
With one exception.
And it was enough that when Spencer sensed something out in the woods that shouldn’t be there, he now called Henri to let him know, which was exactly what had happened tonight. I’d tagged along, and the two of us had run into the sasquatch, who wanted to scope out what he’d sensed. It had turned out to be a new donsey of gnomes visiting from northwest Canada.
Word had gotten around that our gnomes had, over the last three years, had six baby gnomes—an astronomical amount in such a short period of time, they’d admitted. And they had come to visit to see what their secret was since our donsey—group of gnomes—wouldn’t admit anything incriminating through their communication system. Henri had made it real clear to them, years ago, that they needed to stop telling other people about me.
My friends the gnomes had kept their word and kept my secret as much as they could.
But every so often, a whisper got around, and a magical being showed up looking for… me.
I’d become some people’s best friends, and there were others who made sure to stay fifty feet away from me at all times, and I was all right with that.
A warm, familiar hand brushed mine, and I widened my fingers to slip them through Henri’s as he bumped me with his elbow. Going out to check on intruders had turned into one of our favorite things to do together—when he wasn’t on rotation to be on call, that was. Just last month a basilisk, this reptile-looking creature, had found its way onto the ranch. But the dummy made a very poor choice—he said he didn’t like the way I smelled and then threatened me—and Henri had tossed him into a river with more force than usual.
It had been epic.
And the second we’d gotten home and had a minute to ourselves, I’d showed Henri just how much I’d loved his gesture by pushing him against the wall in our room and taking full advantage of our soundproofed walls.
Just thinking about that night had me sighing.
But the hairy giant following along with us at that moment grunted, then suddenly did a sharp left and walked away without a word, like usual.
Like I said, we weren’t friends, but we tolerated each other.
And the man I more than tolerated squeezed my hand in his, winking at me when I tipped my head up toward him.
I beamed.
We’d talk about it at home.
“What do you think the elders are going to say about these gnomes?” I asked the adult love of my life.
Henri made a slight face. “Ema will probably pitch a fit that they need to meet them, and then she and Franklin will get into it. It’s our gnomes these new ones will need to worry about. These mines around here have been theirs for a couple of centuries.” His fingertips toyed with the bare skin at my wrist. “You’re probably going to need to talk to them about it.”
It wasn’t an official title or anything, but I was known as the Gnome Liaison, at least to Henri and my uncle.
I thought it was because they were grateful for their children that they came whenever I called for them. And maybe a little because they appreciated the treats I offered them whenever we met. We didn’t see them often, but traces of their existence could be found every once in a while. Just a month ago, the most beautiful amethyst geode had been left on our front porch. A few months before that, a silver bracelet that happened to fit me perfectly had sat on our mat.
They were very generous with me.
And if it came down to a gnome fight, my money was on our gnomes, and so was my loyalty.
“I’ll see if I can get their attention tomorrow, as long as they don’t get into gang fights tonight,” I told him, angling my face up again. Looking at him was one of my favorite things in the whole world. “I was hoping for some one-on-one time with my favorite mate.”
A rough thumb stroked the inside of my palm, those amber eyes I knew so well now flaring. “Your only one. The rest are meeting the bottom of the river.”
I grinned, and my favorite mate dipped his head down to rub his cheek against my neck and the side of my face, marking me with his scent, like he loved doing. And I loved getting. When his lips skimmed my throat, I shivered.
And not for the first time, I thanked Matti for what he’d done, bringing us here. For giving me the opportunity to know Henri. I loved him, down to my bones and to the magic that lived mostly quietly in my body; I was sure it had to be embedded into my DNA by this point.