Grandma Frida sat at the table with Leon and a tall blond girl he brought as his date. She was gorgeous, but after five minutes of conversation I knew it wouldn’t work. Leon was . . . Leon. He needed someone who could keep up.
Ragnar also brought a date, a very serious, dark-haired boy with impeccable manners. He introduced him by first name only, but the way his date held himself was a dead giveaway. I didn’t know who he was or which House he belonged to, but there was a House there, and I would know by tomorrow. They danced together and it was adorable. Now they sat at the table with Alessandro’s sisters and Halle. Lilian had rented a house in Houston until they figured out what they wanted to do, and we saw a lot of them.
I liked Bianca instantly. We hit it off without a problem. The younger sister, who wanted to be called Lia, was a little more standoffish. She was clearly uncomfortable, which was understandable, but she was slowly thawing out. Last I checked on her, she was explaining to everyone at the table how authentic Italian food was far superior to American Italian food.
I looked to the left where Cornelius sat at the table with his daughter, sister, brother, and surprisingly Augustine Montgomery. I was hoping Cornelius would bring a date as well, but he hadn’t. I wanted him to meet someone, but there was nobody like Nari. An animal menagerie, including Sgt. Teddy, Zeus, a small pack of attack dogs, a few birds, and three cats napped behind them.
There were so many people who were important to us here. We had gathered for the wedding, and I kept expecting some horrible shoe to drop, some disaster to strike, but everything was peaceful and warm. We had ended Arkan. We had fended off the Russian Imperium and sent the princes home. We had won and succeeded. This was what I wanted for us.
A hand brushed my shoulder. I turned. Alessandro slipped into the seat next to me and gave me a brilliant smile.
“Where did you go?”
“I was saying goodbye to my mother. They are going to visit my grandparents in York and they might stay in the UK for a while. She wants the girls to see the country.”
“It sounds like a great plan. Are you sad?”
He shook his head. “No. I had them all to myself for a while and besides, I can see them again any time I feel like it. My mother is finally doing what she actually wants to do. She is accountable to no one. It’s a happy goodbye.”
I smiled.
He leaned over and whispered in my ear, “Speaking of happy goodbyes . . .”
“Oh?”
He flicked his fingers and showed me two plane tickets.
“Barcelona?”
“To start with. I want to show you the Mediterranean. Come with me.”
“Right now?”
He nodded. “The plane leaves at four in the morning. No responsibilities. No relatives. Just you and me.”
I glanced at the grandparent table pretending to be casual. Linus was watching Bern and Runa.
“Can we get away with it?” I whispered.
“Of course, we can. We are awesome.”
“I’ll need to pack.”
“You are packed. The bags are in the car.” A little glowing light played in his eyes, happy and slightly wild. “You can call the family from the road. Come with me. I promise you won’t regret it.”
I put my fingers into his and we slipped from the table into the night. We walked off just far enough to not be noticed and sprinted down the main driveway to the gates.
Acknowledgments
This book marks the end of Catalina’s story. It was a long time coming, and many people helped us along the way. We would like to thank Erika Tsang, our editor; Nancy Yost, our agent, and the team at NYLA; Nancy F., Mark Burkeitt, and Stephanie Mowery who copyedited the manuscript; Alivia Lopez who worked to buy us a few days of extra time when we needed it; Jill Smith and Jeaniene Frost for their infinite patience and feedback; Marian Xu for medical expertise—all errors are ours alone; our long-suffering beta readers: Loise McCoy, Chiara Prato, Francesca Virgili, Deborah Lin, M.D., Katie Heasley, Kerris Humphreys, Harriet Chow, Loredana Carini, Robin Snyder, Jessica Haluska, and especially Rossana Sasso; and finally we would like to thank our readers who followed the Baylors down a long and winding road to happily ever after.
About the Author
ILONA ANDREWS is the pseudonym for a husband-and-wife writing team. Ilona is a native-born Russian and Gordon is a former communications sergeant in the U.S. Army. Contrary to popular belief, Gordon was never an intelligence officer with a license to kill, and Ilona was never the mysterious Russian spy who seduced him. They met in college, in English Composition 101, where Ilona got a better grade. （Gordon is still sore about that.） They have co-authored four New York Times and USA Today bestselling series—the urban fantasy of Kate Daniels, the rustic fantasy of the Edge, the paranormal romance of Hidden Legacy, and the Innkeeper Chronicles. They live in Texas with their two children and many dogs and cats.