Her mom was absolutely no help, giggling like a damn school girl. Sally shot a glare at her, and Cindy Morgan simply shrugged and mouthed, ‘I like him.’
“Any more talk about sex, maidens, or the like, and I will physically throw myself from the vehicle.”
“Dramatic much, Sally mine,” he murmured in her mind.
“Maidenhead, Costin? Really?”
“Don’t be embarrassed, sweet thing. It’s not a secret that yours is definitely not intact.”
“I’m going to smother you in your sleep. Just letting you know ahead of time so you aren’t surprised.”
He laughed out loud, and her dad looked sideways at him. “Sorry, I just thought of a good joke.”
“Oh, I love a good joke. Please, share,” her dad said, sounding very much like the nerd he was.
The rest of the car ride was spent with her dad and Costin trading corny jokes. Costin’s were usually bar jokes, and her dad’s were nerd jokes. Costin found them hilarious.
Her mom leaned over with a sly smile. “He’s gorgeous, has a great personality, and he’s ambitious. What’s wrong with him? No male is that perfect,” her mom whispered.
Sally grinned. “Well…” she began.
“Sally,” Costin’s voice was warning.
“He’s bossy. He’s possessive. He’s a tad clingy. He says inappropriate things just to see me blush…”
“She adores all of those qualities, Mrs. Morgan,” Costin interrupted. “Just yesterday she was telling me how she loved it when I ordered—”
Sally jumped forward and slammed her hand over his mouth. “If you ever want to go there again, do not finish that sentence. So help me, Costin, I will go all Jen on your dimpled ass.”
“My ass isn’t dimpled, beautiful.”
“Not the point, my love.”
“You two are just too cute,” her mom said with a beaming smile.
Well, at least her parents didn’t want to pack him up and send him back. That was something, right?
Cindy Morgan watched as Costin helped her daughter from the car. She watched how his eyes lit up when they landed on Sally and how his hands were almost always touching her in some way. It all made sense now that the spell had been lifted. When the girls originally left for Romania, Alina Lupei had used some sort of pack magic on them to convince their parents all was normal. Then, months later, a woman named Peri came to them and used magic on them again. Four months ago, the magic Peri had used to distort their beliefs in regard to the location of their daughter and what she was up to, broke. With a little bit of digging into the few history books she still had from her own kind, Cindy got the answers she needed. She and Chris realized that there was a lot Sally was keeping from them, but she was a grown woman and could make her own choices. Cindy couldn’t help but regret not telling Sally the truth. Then she wouldn’t have had to run off to Romania with a bunch of werewolves without telling her parents what was going on.
From the look of things, Sally had a werewolf mate, which meant she could only be one of two things: a healer or a wolf, and since Cindy knew her daughter wasn’t a wolf, then Sally had been chosen to be a gypsy healer. It was an incredible honor but, at the same time, a huge burden as well. She could admit part of her wished that Sally hadn’t found herself a part of the supernatural community, but, then, the odds were against her. Their family was steeped in supernatural ties, and it was only a matter of time before one in Cindy’s family line was chosen.
“Mom?” Sally’s voice caught her attention. “You okay?”
Cindy smiled. “I am. And it looks like you are quite okay as well.”
Her daughter smiled, but there was a light missing from her eyes. Cindy saw past the mask Sally had been trying to wear to the sadness that was attempting to overwhelm her. She wouldn’t ask her any questions in front of her mate, but soon enough, Cindy was going to find out what had happened four months ago that broke the spell and put that haunted look in her daughter’s eyes. She didn’t think it was Costin. He was completely head over heels for Sally. But if for some unimaginable reason it was the werewolf who’d hurt Sally, Cindy wouldn’t hesitate to make wolf stew and give it as a treat at the local animal shelter.
Costin liked his mate’s parents immediately. Though he’d already talked to Cindy Morgan on the phone just before Sally and he had gotten bonded and married, he hadn’t been able to get a feel for what she was like. Now, being in front of her and watching how she interacted with Sally, he could tell Mrs. Morgan was not nearly as clueless as she was attempting to appear. He saw the keen intelligence in her eyes and the interest that piqued them every time she looked at him and Sally. And she looked at them a lot. Part of him wanted to grab his mate’s tempting backside just to see how her mom would react.
“Don’t you dare. There will be no grabbing of the backside.” Sally growled into his mind.
“What about your breasts? Can I grab your breasts to see how she reacts?”
“Sure.”
“Really?” He was so shocked he didn’t even realize he was speaking out loud and not through the bond.
Sally turned just as she reached the foot of the stairs that lead to the second floor. “No, not really, you butthead.”
Costin threw back his head and laughed as he carried their bags and followed his mate up the stairs.
“I’m sure y’all are tired, Costin.”
Mrs. Morgan’s voice brought him to a halt just as he reached the top step. He turned to look down at her.
“We’re going to call it a night,” she continued. “If you two need anything, don’t hesitate to ask.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Morgan,” he said. “I look forward to visiting more with you and Mr. Morgan.”
She gave him a small wave and turned, heading in the opposite direction. He realized that meant the master bedroom was downstairs, while his mate’s old room was upstairs. A grin spread across his face as he turned to follow Sally’s scent down the hall.
“You can wipe that grin right off your face, Costin Miklos. There will be no hanky panky in my parents’ house.” Sally had her arms folded in front of her chest and a frown firmly in place when he entered her room.
“So let me get this straight,” he said as he set down their bags. Costin stretched his arms above his head, trying to get his tired muscles to relax. “There will be no grabbing of backsides or breasts and no hanky panky?”
“Exactly. My parents live here, Costin. They could, like, I don’t know, walk in or something.”
Costin took a step toward his irritated mate. “Sally mine, you do remember that we’re married, right?”
She rolled her eyes at him. “Of course, I remember.”
He took another step toward her. “And that means we are allowed to, neigh, we are expected to participate in lots of hanky panky. Your parents aren’t going to scold you for having a boy in your room, beautiful.” He took one final step and then cupped her face in his hands. He leaned down, his lips barely touching hers as he whispered, “Hey.”
She breathed out a laugh. All the irritation seemed to melt out of her at his touch. “Hey, yourself.”
“You okay?”