Chapter 99 - Their Cursed

Cullen

Calder and I called in a favor to the Winter Fae Prince when Remi agreed to go away with us. He obliged our request and lent us his favorite cabin in their enchanted forest. All Fae territories had woods like this. They cultivated plants with magical properties that naturally created breathtaking and romantic atmospheres.

A thin layer of snow covered the ground, with various plants breaking through the cold blanket. The trees had flowers scattered over their bark that glowed in the setting sun. The creek running near the cabin flowed gently. The cabin emitted a warm light, and there was smoke already softly billowing from the chimney. We parked in front of the cabin and piled out of the car. Remi looked around in wonder while Calder and I watched her.

“Please try to stay out of sight unless there is a threat,” Calder linked both the warriors and me. He was probably thinking of Remi’s reaction when we left the packhouse. They pulled our bags from the back of the car, setting them on the doorstep of the cabin before leaving us. There was a secondary dwelling not far from here where they would be staying while they weren’t patrolling.

Remi strolled around the small garden that was still growing beautifully despite the snow dusting the flowers. I basked in the excitement and glee I could feel from her. The cabin door swung open, and we all turned our attention to the man ducking his head under the door frame to step outside.

Fae were generally tall creatures, and Adair was no different. Because of all her studying, Remi wasn’t at all surprised by the man in front of us; she came back over to me with a slight smile on her face.

“You made it,” Adair said. “I hope the journey was pleasant.”

“Always,” Calder said, walking forward to greet him. They bowed to each other before Adair reached forward to shake Calder’s hand. I grabbed Remi’s hand, intertwining our fingers.

“This must be the wonderful mate I had the pleasure of hearing about,” Adair said, looking over at us.

“Yes. Adair, this is our mate Remi,” he said, introducing her. “Remi, this is Adair Wynter. He is the Crown Prince of the Winter Fae.”

“It is such a pleasure,” Adair said, coming towards us.

“Likewise,” Remi said with a beautiful smile. When Adair stopped in front of us, Remi bowed respectfully. Pride swelled inside me; she couldn’t be a more perfect Luna. To my displeasure, Adair grasped her free hand and placed a soft kiss on the back of it. A low growl slipped out of me, but Adair just chuckled.

“I forget how possessive you wolves can be,” he smiled, looking at me. I just rolled my eyes as I bowed to him. “Well, I will be leaving now. I just wanted to personally make sure everything was in place for my favorite wolf twins.” He turned and walked straight into the woods, leaving us alone.

“So, this is the Winter Fae territory?” Remi asked, looking up at me.

“Yes,” I confirmed. “Adair is a close friend. He helped establish the treaty between our pack and the Nomadic Fae before the Summit. This is his vacation home of sorts.”

“It’s incredible,” she said in awe, looking back to the view around us.

“And it’s just us for the next few days,” I murmured into her ear as I pulled her close to me. A slight tremor ran through her. I could feel a flush of desire through our bond.

“Stop. We agreed to let her come back to us,” Calder linked me irritated.

I sighed resignedly. He was right, but that still didn’t extinguish my desire for Remi; she lit up my body without even trying. “Let’s go inside. It gets colder here than at home,” Calder said, dragging her attention to him.

Remi

I wasn’t sure what to expect when the twins asked me if I wanted to go away for a few days. I agreed, knowing we would be away from the packhouse with all of our troubles and responsibilities. The Winter Fae territory was breathtakingly beautiful. Words would not do it justice.

The cabin that the prince had let us borrow was cozy. It had one bedroom and bathroom with a living room and kitchen area. It was roomier inside than it looked from the outside. However, it was not surprising that the ceilings were enchanted to be much taller than average, even if the doorway was normal.

Calder was also right; it was much colder here than back at the packhouse. While the twins had been preoccupied with work, the weather changed, but I never felt cold on the outside. The cold I felt was always inside, like it was slowly filling a hollow space growing inside without my mates around. In this place, the cold was outside but not unwelcome. I always enjoyed the winter, even if this time of year was a bit tainted.

Adair had left us a welcome dinner inside the cabin. It turned out to be some of Calder and Cullen’s favorite Fae foods, which Adair already knew about them. It was all foods I recognized from the Fae books I read, and it was all delicious. It was late after dinner, so we finished the night by unpacking our things then climbed into bed to cuddle and sleep.

The following day, we slept in shamelessly. It felt nice to sleep so comfortably after so long. The twins were both unphased any time I sat in their laps or laid on them. I was feeling much better after all the quality sleep, and I was sure they were too. It had been a long time since they weren’t bothered by training, pack matters, or work.

When we finally got out of bed, we all cooked breakfast together. They were helpless in the kitchen, and it was quite entertaining. It took twice as long as it should have to finish making everything, but I had fun the entire time, so it was worth it. After breakfast, we shifted and explored the forest. I let Calli come forward, and she was over the moon with excitement.

It was well past lunch when we got back, so we all cleaned up and made a big dinner together. The twins' utter ignorance of such a simple task as cooking had me laughing at them repeatedly. They would make adorable faces as they concentrated on the small jobs I gave them, like slicing vegetables.

The entire day had been utter bliss. I finally felt connected to them again like nothing had ever happened. Gone was the sickening weight in my stomach from their repudiation. I could feel how happy they were every time they looked at me. As we laid in bed, my body sandwiched between theirs, I decided that it was time to tell them. Tomorrow, I would tell them the news I had been waiting so long to deliver.

-

I took mercy on my mates this morning and made breakfast for everyone. They dutifully washed dishes as I was done with them or found the things I needed, relieved not to be responsible for cooking. I was excited-nervous to tell them and wanted to do it during breakfast. When we were all sitting around the table, the twins gave me nervous glances, probably feeling my own anxious energy.

“Is something wrong, love?” Cullen asked.

I looked up from my plate, chewing on my lip. I hadn’t figured out exactly how to tell them yet. I also realized they might be upset that I waited over a month to say anything. I shook my head, but Cullen just scowled.

“What are you so anxious about, baby?” Calder tried.

I sighed. “Well, there is something I have wanted to tell you guys for a while.…”

“What is it, baby?” Calder asked.

“We’re all ears,” Cullen assured. They were both looking at me with nervous expectancy. I guess the best place to start was from the beginning.

“The day that I went to see Doctor Charles after my shift, he ran some tests,” I started.

“Is this when he kicked me out of the room?” Calder questioned. I nodded.

“He wanted to try and get me some answers about the whole….” I hesitated. “Pregnancy thing.” I paused for a minute, looking at both of them. They both sucked in a shallow breath and seemed to be holding it, waiting for me to go on. “After the Council meeting a few weeks ago, he called with results for me. He said there should be no reason I can’t have a pup,” I finished softly. It was like watching a double of the same reaction. They both opened their mouths into little ‘o’s inhaling sharply as their eyes widened in shock. Silence stood between us as they processed what I told them.

Cullen was the one to speak first. “So, we can…” he trailed off. I nodded my head shyly at him. “And you want to….” Again, I nodded. His face broke out into an enormous smile as he shot up from his chair. He dove at me, pulling me up into his arms and squeezing me tightly. I let out a laugh as he spun around in glee. He stopped and planted a fervorous kiss on my lips, elation rushing through our bond. He set me down panting, and I was pulled right into Calder’s arms for a similar celebration.

When I was back on my feet and a little light-headed from the sudden oxygen deprivation, I asked them, “You aren’t mad I waited so long to tell you?”

Calder grimaced slightly at that. “No… we didn’t really give you a chance, did we?” I gave them a small smile, contented with their reaction.

Cullen pulled me back into his arms, breakfast now completely forgotten. “When can we try?” he asked, running his nose along mine.

“Well… Doctor Charles gave me a pill to suppress my heat. I asked for it when you two were so distracted because I didn’t think it was the right time,” I admitted. He looked crestfallen for a moment.

“We will try whenever you are ready,” Calder said next to us. Cullen nodded.

“We were so stupid, Remi. We will never be able to tell how sorry we are. You’ve just made me the happiest wolf in the Realm, my love. Thank you,” Cullen said more quietly now. He rested his forehead against mine, and Calder came behind me, doing the same. I stood there, soaking up their love and joy, ecstatic that I could make them so happy.

-

I was in the bathroom getting ready. Calder, Cullen, and I didn’t do much for most of the day. Their jovial attitudes continued all day as we lazed about in our happy little bubble. When it was getting close to dinner, they surprised me with a box. They told me to get ready, and they had a surprise. They pushed me into the bathroom and shut the door. When I opened the box, there was a beautiful navy blue dress inside. They, of course, never mentioned anything about this when we were packing, so I had no idea what to expect.

I showered and readied myself. The dress was long-sleeved and hung just above my ankles. Luckily for me, my mates are very prepared, and there were shoes to go with it. I curled my hair and left it down. I didn’t bother with any makeup; I just rubbed a bit of gloss over my lips. When I was all done, I took one final look in the mirror before heading out to the main room of the cabin to look for them.

Calder and Cullen were talking to each other but stopped abruptly when I walked in. They both turned to me, smiles stretching across their handsome faces. My heart races when they smile like that at me.

“Wow, baby, you look beautiful,” Calder gushed.

“Thank you,” I said. “Where are we going?”

“Dinner,” Cullen said.

We left the cabin to find the car waiting for us outside. Neither of the warriors that accompanied us was present, though. Calder opened the passenger side door for me while Cullen got into the driver's seat. Then, Calder got into the backseat before we headed deeper into the forest. We drove for about 10 minutes or so when Cullen stopped the car in front of a white pathway.

“We walk from here,” he said with a smile. When we were all out of the car, they came to either side of me, and we set off hand in hand in hand down the white path. The sun was setting, and the forest began to glow around us. When we broke out of the trees, we stepped into the most magical little meadow. I let go of their hands as I stepped forward to look at everything around us. Gorgeous flowers were growing everywhere and small, glowing insects lazily floating about like little shimmering lights. There must have been a stream nearby because the sound of gently flowing water filled the air. There was a small table with a canopy over it right in the middle, flowers and plants climbing all the way to the top.

“Wow,” I breathed as I turned back to my mates. I gasped when I saw them both down on one knee, each holding out a box to me.