they swore the same to her.
After the ceremony, when they danced and ate and shared their happy day with his family, the nest, and the pride, she realized that she had completely fallen in love with both men. Her feelings had grown stronger for them every day. She’d never felt so cared for. They were similar in some ways – protective and kind and sweet – but vastly different in others. Jes was all business, a leader who put the people in his care over his own welfare. Chance was not interested in leadership, but instead happy to stay in the background and support his dad and Jes as they forged ahead and began the new alliance. She had told them on their mating night that she had never loved anyone as much as she loved them, and they had told her that they loved her, too.
She was now Queen of the falcon nest. Jes was King. The falcons called Danika My Lady or Queen Danika . Chance’s official title was Ornithla , which loosely translated into the mate of the Queen, but the falcons called him Sire , the same that they did for Jes. And when they were introduced to outsiders, Jes and Chance were both called King, and she was their shared Queen.
During the last two weeks, Jes’ people had slowly accepted her. No one left the nest because he mated a non-falcon and shared her with another male from a different species of weres. No one challenged him for leadership of the nest. She was thrilled for that. It had been difficult enough watching Jes fight Mato. She didn’t want him to have to fight his own people on her behalf.
Jes asked her to handle any issues that the female falcons had, and she found herself having lunch once a week with all thirty females who ranged in age from seventeen to four hundred. Many of the females were unmated, some widowed, and just one was younger than eighteen.
The females had questions about the alliance, curiosity about Danika’s shifting abilities, and general needs that she was able to address. Working every day with several of the females to hone her flying abilities, she could now control her wings well, and had taken to flying the entire five-mile span of the falcon’s territory every day. Jes had surprised her by converting the room next to his office into an office for her, and Chance had picked out the elegant, light wood furniture that included a large floral rug, desk, and a lavender colored couch with matching overstuffed chairs.
Jes knocked on the open door, leaning against the door jam. “How are things going, little bird?”
She looked up from the book she had been reading, which was the first of fifty volumes of falcon history, and smiled. Putting a thin ribbon in the book to mark her place, she closed it and said, “Great. I’m learning a ton. Did you know that the falcon kings used to keep real falcons in aviaries in their homes? They thought it was good luck to surround themselves with natural birds.”
He chuckled and settled down in the seat across from the desk. “I didn’t know that.”
She touched the scrolled leather cover of the book and said, “Didn’t you have to read through these when you were a kid?”
He arched a brow. “I skimmed one or two.”
She chuckled and stood, coming around the desk and sitting on his lap. Kissing him, she stroked her thumb over his cheek and looked into his eyes. “Business or pleasure?”
His hands tightened on her waist reflexively and his eyes darkened. “I would love to say pleasure, little bird, but I’m afraid that it’s business. I’ve made arrangements for us to visit the Wiccan coven, and we need to leave in an hour.”
“Long enough for some pleasure,” she whispered, kissing him once more and teasing the seam of his lips with her tongue. He groaned deeply but pulled away from the kiss.
“Sorry, sweet love, but I have to return a call before we leave.”
She pretended to pout, and he laughed. She didn’t mind that he was working.
After the ceremony, when they danced and ate and shared their happy day with his family, the nest, and the pride, she realized that she had completely fallen in love with both men. Her feelings had grown stronger for them every day. She’d never felt so cared for. They were similar in some ways – protective and kind and sweet – but vastly different in others. Jes was all business, a leader who put the people in his care over his own welfare. Chance was not interested in leadership, but instead happy to stay in the background and support his dad and Jes as they forged ahead and began the new alliance. She had told them on their mating night that she had never loved anyone as much as she loved them, and they had told her that they loved her, too.
She was now Queen of the falcon nest. Jes was King. The falcons called Danika My Lady or Queen Danika . Chance’s official title was Ornithla , which loosely translated into the mate of the Queen, but the falcons called him Sire , the same that they did for Jes. And when they were introduced to outsiders, Jes and Chance were both called King, and she was their shared Queen.
During the last two weeks, Jes’ people had slowly accepted her. No one left the nest because he mated a non-falcon and shared her with another male from a different species of weres. No one challenged him for leadership of the nest. She was thrilled for that. It had been difficult enough watching Jes fight Mato. She didn’t want him to have to fight his own people on her behalf.
Jes asked her to handle any issues that the female falcons had, and she found herself having lunch once a week with all thirty females who ranged in age from seventeen to four hundred. Many of the females were unmated, some widowed, and just one was younger than eighteen.
The females had questions about the alliance, curiosity about Danika’s shifting abilities, and general needs that she was able to address. Working every day with several of the females to hone her flying abilities, she could now control her wings well, and had taken to flying the entire five-mile span of the falcon’s territory every day. Jes had surprised her by converting the room next to his office into an office for her, and Chance had picked out the elegant, light wood furniture that included a large floral rug, desk, and a lavender colored couch with matching overstuffed chairs.
Jes knocked on the open door, leaning against the door jam. “How are things going, little bird?”
She looked up from the book she had been reading, which was the first of fifty volumes of falcon history, and smiled. Putting a thin ribbon in the book to mark her place, she closed it and said, “Great. I’m learning a ton. Did you know that the falcon kings used to keep real falcons in aviaries in their homes? They thought it was good luck to surround themselves with natural birds.”
He chuckled and settled down in the seat across from the desk. “I didn’t know that.”
She touched the scrolled leather cover of the book and said, “Didn’t you have to read through these when you were a kid?”
He arched a brow. “I skimmed one or two.”
She chuckled and stood, coming around the desk and sitting on his lap. Kissing him, she stroked her thumb over his cheek and looked into his eyes. “Business or pleasure?”
His hands tightened on her waist reflexively and his eyes darkened. “I would love to say pleasure, little bird, but I’m afraid that it’s business. I’ve made arrangements for us to visit the Wiccan coven, and we need to leave in an hour.”
“Long enough for some pleasure,” she whispered, kissing him once more and teasing the seam of his lips with her tongue. He groaned deeply but pulled away from the kiss.
“Sorry, sweet love, but I have to return a call before we leave.”
She pretended to pout, and he laughed. She didn’t mind that he was working.
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