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Aher ar, crying Then one by one, the others stepped forward, Ferals with their ratulations Melisande’s h the ritual roo to the sly to her curves

He sed as he watched her,woman was his Goddess, he loved her

Olivia enfolded Melisande in a big hug "Welco placed a kiss on Melisande’s cheek, then shook his head with a grin "No offense, sister, but you are the last female I ever expected to do that to"

Olivia rolled her eyes

Melisande reached up and kissed Jag’s cheek in return "No offense taken, Jag I’lad we’re friends"

"Me, too" His voice trailed off as he cocked his head "I’el na to call you"

Melisande laughed "You could call rinned "Hell no, I’ll co from the safety of Lyon’s aro of her since they’d arrived back at Feral House, and Fox couldn’t blame him one bit His heart utterly stolen by another, he didn’t kno the male had survived the abduction of histo the Shaer until she was able to undo the da he believed would help was bringing a good Feral into his or her animal And while three new Ferals currently resided in the prison beneath the house, no one illing to stake her life on any of the three being the best of his line, not even Castin Because if they guessed wrong, if Kara brought one more evil Feral into his animal, she would die The Shaman was quite certain of that

Fox hated that Castin now languished in the prison along with Rikkert and a third newly marked Feral who’d arrived while they were stuck in the labyrinth Though his gut had been silent on the issue, his instincts told him that Castin was an honorable male But his certainty was far from one hundred percent And while he detested that Castin’s life ht be on the line, there was far too ht well depend on the decisions they made about the new Ferals All they could do was hope they found a way to tell the good Ferals froar bent to give Melisande a kiss on the cheek Her eyes widened with surprise As he pulled back, she watched hiivenabout what she’d done to his and Ariana’s o The poison had forced Ariana to sever the ar And while, thanks to Melisande’s ar had thought Ariana dead, and had htful "If you were then as you are noould you have tried to sabotage ourbond?"

Melisande didn’t answer ih "I was so filled with bitterness, Kougar My hatred for the shifters knew no bounds, and I genuinely believed Ariana would rue the day she wed you I honestly believed I was saving her that pain by keeping theThat way she’d be able to walk away from you, unharmed" She shook her head "I will always do what I think must be done to protect her and the rest ofwith love as she aze "And to protect my mate, his brothers, and their wives"

Slowly, she turned back to Kougar "But I no longer see the world through bitterness and hatred alone My compassion has returned, and my wisdom, I would like to think So, no, I would not do it all over again I have seen, for a while now, the truth I was too blind to see then--that you’re perfect together You’re stronger, we’re all stronger, for the love you two share"

Kougar nodded once, slowly "I forgive you, Melisande I regret those years as I regret what you endured at the hands of the shifters The past cannot be undone But the future is ours" He turned to Fox, extending his arm "You did a hell of a job, Fox A hell of a job Both of you"

Fox nodded his thanks Ever since their return, the others had been treating hiood to contribute, especially so that mattered so much in so many ways It was his ani him the flashbacks that told him what he needed to know to find Kara And it was Melisande, of course, who’d saved the cake in the dining room, Hawke came to stand behind Melisande, a hand on her shoulder

"They’re back," he said

Melisande nodded, then turned to Fox, trepidation in those beautiful eyes of hers

He took her hand "Are you ready for this?"