Eva and Tamara said good night. Lorcan walked them to the door, but when they went through it he stayed with Damian. I figured they'd been assigned to escort us to the bungalows. Queen Patsy wasn't taking any chances.

While my parents sat down and played blocks with the twins, I drew Ralph aside.

"You claimed me, in front of my parents and the Broken Heart mafia."

Ralph smiled. "I'm not usually so He-Man, I promise. We're bound, Libby." Panic flashed in his blue eyes.

"It's too late to get cold feet," I said. I took his hands. "I don't care what Ash says. Nothing is ever written in stone. If you want to find a way out of this - "

"No." He kissed me. "I'm all in, Libby."

I'd told him that yesterday, and I meant it, too. It was scary-crazy, but I had no intention of changing my mind.

Ralph looked down at me and I saw love shining in his eyes. How was it possible to fall in love that fast?

We'd skipped all the regular courting rituals and dove right into forever marriage. Screw it. I didn't know much about those rituals and I'd never been the type of girl to follow society's mores. Who said I couldn't fall in love with a vampire, marry him, and raise two beautiful boys with him?

I looked down at my parents. Dad held Stephen as they stacked blocks into a tower. Mom helped Michael push over the house they'd just built together. It was like they were already a family.

"We know what we know," said Mom. How was it that the woman always knew what to say? "I met your father in Reno, Nevada, at a UFO convention. I married him the next day."

"What?" I stared at her, openmouthed. "You never told me that."

"I listen to my heart, Liberty. It has never steered me wrong."

And that was why Mom's faith in the paranormal, in the goodwill of people, and in love was so damned unshakable. It didn't matter if my dragon half or my human half had chosen Ralph as my mate. My heart was still mine and it said: Ralph's the One. Go for it.

Mom made shooing motions. "Go on. We'll take the boys to our bungalow when we're done playing."

I leaned down and kissed Mom on the cheek. Then I kneeled and gave Dad a hug. He pulled back, tears in his eyes. "We love you, Liberty. And we're happy for you."

"Thanks, Dad."

I felt teary yet again, so I stood up and let Ralph lead me away.

"You have the greatest parents," he said. "I mean, wow. "

"Yeah," I said, grinning. "Wow."

Lorcan walked us to the bungalow. I had no plans to leave Ralph's side, much less Broken Heart, but I guess the man had his orders.

"Congratulations," he said. "And good luck."

We said good-bye. I was getting nervous now. We were going to bond- bond. All the way. My belly squeezed as anticipation wriggled through me.

The bungalow reminded me of Ralph's destroyed home. It was cozy, or would've been had it not been drenched in white and missing the personal touches that made a house a home. Ralph kissed me, and everything in my world felt absolutely perfect.

"Why the smile?" Ralph asked. "Something make you happy?"

"Yeah," I said. "You do."

Ralph took me into the bathroom and undressed me slowly. I returned the favor. He did nothing more than hold me under the warm water. We washed ourselves from hair to pinkie toes. As the water went cold, our bodies went hot. It was probably wise to stay in the shower, considering we wouldn't light the tiles on fire. At least, I didn't think we would.

"I've already claimed you," he said. "Now we just have to do the word-giving, and the . . . you know."

He waggled his brows.

"What's the word-giving?"

"Something like . . . 'I love you, Libby. I promise to honor, respect, and protect you to the best of my ability.'"

"You forgot to say that you'll obey me," I said, feeling all gooshy. He grinned. "I think we'll both skip that one." He brushed my hair away from my face. "Your turn."

"I love you, Ralph. I don't know what the future holds for us and our rather perse family, but I look forward to the journey." I put his palm over my tattoo. "My heart beats for you."

"And mine would beat for you," he said softly. "If it could still beat."

I laughed, and then he dragged me close and kissed me. Whoa. He sucked my tongue into his mouth, flicking, swirling. I groaned and he swallowed the sound.

I rubbed against his pectorals. My nipples hardened as his chest hair abraded the sensitive peaks. My hands were everywhere on him, touching, stroking. My ability to think faded and I felt immersed in his smell, his taste, his touch. I dragged my lips across his throat, tasting his collarbone before swiping the muscled contours of his chest.

Desire pulsed in every part of my body. Ralph slipped one finger inside and smiled. "You are so wet."

"Duh. You are so hot."

He rewarded my compliment by rubbing my clit.

He nipped my earlobe. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

He cupped my buttocks and lifted me. I wrapped my legs around his waist and held onto his shoulders. Oh, yes. He pushed his cock against my wet heat.

I panted and moaned. Ralph slid his cock between my slick folds, making sure he bumped my clit with every stroke.

He bent his head and sucked one of my nipples into his mouth. He laved the tight bud, scraping his teeth across the tip.

Ralph paid lascivious attention to my other nipple.

"Please," I begged. "Please!"

He rubbed his cock harder and faster until my pleasure built higher and higher. And then . . . boom! I imploded. Or at least it felt like I had.

Ralph positioned his cock at my entrance, pushing just inside it. Breathing hard, my limbs quivering, I looked at him. He put his mouth against my neck. My skin tingled where his lips brushed.

At the same time his fangs pierced my flesh, he drove his cock inside me. My maidenhead tore. I don't care what they say in romance novels: It fucking hurts.

Ralph drank my blood, gripping my buttocks as he made slow thrusts inside me. The penetration felt strange, but soon pleasure built again.

Ralph stopped drinking and pressed his forehead against my shoulder. He thrust harder and deeper and all I could do was hang on.

Another orgasm claimed me. Then Ralph groaned and came, his thighs trembling as his seed filled me. I was officially married to Ralph.

I was a stepmother, too. I hadn't thought about motherhood before, but I liked the idea. A lot. Me . . . a mom.

Dragon, vampire, human . . . it didn't matter. I felt our bonding all the way to my soul. I woke before Ralph did. I snapped on the lamp and turned to look at him. His chest didn't rise or fall. His skin looked waxy. Still, he was a very cute dead man. He'd tugged on pajama bottoms last night, but had forgone the shirt at my request.

I felt naughty feeling him up while he was still resting, but that nudge of guilt didn't stop me from running my palm along his muscled contours. I traced the tattoo. That was weird. A third line had appeared in between the two slanted ones. It was as long and thin as the other two, but a vibrant red. I looked down at mine and saw that I had the same red line. What did that mean? Maybe only that we had done the mattress mambo as dragon mates.

I kissed his cheek, then got out of bed. I took a shower and got dressed. Maybe I'd ask Lorcan to magic up some new duds. I went to the kitchen and made myself some coffee. As it perked, I looked out the window. It was already dusk, but I could still see the fresh snow on the ground. I checked on Ralph, who remained dead to the world. I chuckled. I didn't think I'd ever get tired of making vampire puns.

I sat on the couch and turned on the television. It was a rerun of The Princess Bride. Oh, I loved this movie.

A few minutes later, I heard the bedroom door open and Ralph shuffled into the living room. He looked at me, grinning. My heart skipped a beat.

Ralph snuggled with me on the couch and we finished watching the movie. Ralph kissed my neck, which made me forget about everything except what I wanted him to kiss next. I took off my sweater and Ralph unsnapped my bra. His eyes were drawn to my tattoo. He traced the red line. "What does it mean?"

"I don't know. Maybe it's a gold star for being so good in bed."

He rewarded me for that comment. Things got really good. So good my heart started knocking hard against my chest. Thump. Thump. Thump.

Ralph looked up from nuzzling my breasts; his eyes were glazed. I imagine his delirious expression matched my own.

"Do you hear that, Libby?"

"Yes," I breathed, drawing him down again. "It's my heart. It's trying to beat out of my chest."

Thump. Thump. Thump.

He looked up again and frowned. "No. I think it's the door."

We both sat up. I groaned in frustration.

"You better put on your clothes."

I resnapped my bra and put on the sweater. Ralph used his fingers to comb through his hair, then went to answer the door.

"Libby," called Ralph. "It's your parents."

I went to the front door and peeked over Ralph's shoulder. Mom, Dad, and the twins crowded onto the front porch. My libido cried, "Unfair!" But I was still happy to see my family. While Ralph took a quick shower and got dressed, I settled with my parents and the twins in the living room. Mom and Dad hugged me and then I hugged the twins. My parents had brought bags of toys with them, and the boys sat on the living room floor and played contentedly.

"Can I get you anything?" asked Ralph from the doorway. His hair was still damp and he was, unfortunately, fully clothed. I thought about what was under those clothes, and my pulse stuttered. Ralph's blue eyes found mine and he raised one eyebrow. Ah. He heard my heart race and had figured out what I was thinking.

Ralph's cell phone rang. Surprised, he took it out of his pocket and looked at the display.

"We contacted Brady," said Mom. "He stopped jamming the cell phone tower. He agrees that he shouldn't come in until we've spoken to Queen Patsy."

"And that's who's calling," said Ralph. My gaze followed him as he walked out of the living room. Hm-mmm. Look at that ass. I caught myself ogling and straightened. Ralph reappeared in the entry way.

"We're meeting in the rec room. Tamara's coming to watch the boys."

"Okay," I said, suddenly anxious. "What's going on?"

Ralph tucked the phone back into his pocket. His worried gaze connected to mine. "Ash found Synd's lair."

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