Mark of Love (Love Mark #3) - Linda Kage Page 0,179
Olivander lurched back, gaping at the animal. “What is happening?”
Chuckling, Indigo hugged Holly back and petted her flashy coat. “Vander, this is my, uh, special friend. You can call her Holly.”
Holly glanced at the prince and waved a paw.
“Um. Hi?” Olivander hesitantly waved back.
“What’re you doing here?” Indy asked. “I would’ve thought you and your friend would be living happily ever after, doing whatever it is you guys do by now.”
The raven on the roof cawed, letting us know he was living happily ever after with Holly. The panda ducked her head shyly, as if embarrassed about her contentment, but then she held up something in her paw that no one had realized she’d been carrying.
It was a third amulet.
Indigo’s mouth dropped open. “You…” His stunned gaze landed on Holly. “You’ve been looking for another stone? For me?”
Holly nodded her bear-ish head.
“Thank you, friend.” He inclined his head with respect.
Holly rubbed her paw over his hair as if petting him goodbye, and then she turned back into a pink and purple raven, taking to the air before she flew off, with her unicorn companion following behind her.
“Okay.” Olivander lifted his hands. “I’m not even going to ask. Things just keep getting weirder and weirder the longer I’m around you, Indy.”
Indigo lifted the third amulet and showed it to Melaina. “Are you sure you don’t want to go to Earth permanently?”
She looked tempted a moment. Then she took the third amulet and sighed. “I want to,” she admitted. “You have no idea how much. But…” She shook her head. “The children. They need—”
“I promise to find your grandchildren,” Olivander spoke up. “I’ll work with Lowden officials and make sure they’re helped and treated fairly.”
“You…” She exhaled roughly. “You would take on that mission for me?”
“I would.” The prince seemed completely intimidated by her, but he nodded and held out a hand. “I promise on my life to help them any way I can, madam.”
“Ooh, a life promise, huh?” Her eyebrows lifted in interest and she stepped closer and batted her lashes coyly. “That sounds so passionate. Hey, Quilla,” she asked over her shoulder as she continued to smile up at the other man. “How soon did you say we had to leave? I feel the need to thank this beautiful boy properly. I’ve never had myself a prince before. And a prince from High Cliff at that? Mmm, yes. The taboo factor alone would make the sex spicy hot.”
“Pardon me?” Olivander sputtered in horror, lurching away from her. “I assure you, I don’t need anything for such a serv—My lady! Please.” He dodged her seeking hands. “I am a mated man.”
“Sweetling,” Melaina told him with a reassuring coo. “That’s not a problem at all. Your other half can join in too. I’m not so closed-minded as to leave your loved ones out of all the fun.”
His mouth fell open as he gaped at her, not knowing how to reply.
Finally, Indigo sighed. “That’s going to be a no, Melaina, sorry. But I need to leave some instructions with Olivander before we go.”
Sniffing out her disgust, she muttered, “Fine. You know how to ruin everything. You know that? Everything!” Then she flounced away, heading toward the cottage. “I’m going to go pack my things. Don’t leave without me.”
As she disappeared inside, the prince spun to us, gushing, “Thank you.”
“I owed you one.” Glancing at me, Indigo took my hand and squeezed. “I owed you a big one,” he told the prince as he kept looking at me.
Leaning up on my toes, I pressed my mouth to his and kissed him. Nothing, I decided, nothing could be as perfect as this moment. I’d survived hell and made it through, all the way through to my true love waiting at the other end. No matter what happened next, how rough our adjustments to the new us would be, or how settling into Earth might go, I knew I could handle it. And not just because I had Indigo at my side to journey through it all with, but because he’d equipped me with the tools I needed to make it on my own if I needed to.
“You look ready to do this,” he murmured on a grin as he pressed his brow to mine.
Smiling, I answered, “I’m more than ready.”
Epilogue
Olivander
Head still spinning from everything Indigo and his mate, Quilla, had told me in the last twenty-four hours, I blinked at the odd item he’s just placed into my hands.