A Glassy Lady: Coeur de Lyon: A Renaissance Flair 2 Read online

  The Fates were mocking him. Not only had they apparently paired him with a morning person, going by the fact that she was not only wide awake but capable of complete sentences without any coffee, but she also didn't need it as badly as he did.

  Scrubbing his face, Bard tried to kick his brain into gear. What was he going to do without coffee? How could he be expected to function? To deal with people?

  Wait.

  Hank kept a coffee maker at the Forge, hidden up in the upstairs loft Hank used during the weekends. Hank would have coffee.

  Genius. Problem solved!

  Turning, he shuffled towards the door. He'd just go get some coffee, wake up, then give his mate a proper good morning kiss!

  It was good to have a plan!

  See? He could function without coffee!

  His mate, apparently, thought otherwise.

  "Baby," she gently wrapped her hands around his arm, "Go upstairs and go back to bed." She turned him, guiding him away from the door, and back towards the stairs upstairs, back towards the Hell of No Coffee Maker. He knew he was truly, madly, deeply in love with her, when he had no urge to resist her. It could also be because the bed was upstairs, and he may be able to talk her into returning to cuddling with him. That sounded like an excellent plan!

  See? He was adaptable! He'd be a great mate!

  "I'm sure there's some coffee here somewhere, so I'll go see if I can't hunt something up."

  Aw! She was the best mate ever! EVER!

  Life was perfect.

  Wait. He hesitated as his foot came down on the first step, tensing suddenly and canting his head.

  Fuck. Fuckity fuck fuck fuck!

  Want to know what the sound of a shoe dropping is?

  It's the sound of your two older brothers banging loudly, rudely, at the door at the butt-crack of dawn on a Monday morning, when all you want is to either have a cup of coffee or crawl back into a warm bed with your mate.

  Twisting his head, Bard glared, a growl escaping his chest as his wolf roused wide awake, just as enraged at the presence of two unmated male wolves banging at their mate's shoppe door as Bard was by being interrupted in his secret quest to get his mate to cuddle.

  Cockblocking sons of a bitch!

  Ever-so-delicately, Bard wrapped his hands around Harper's shoulders and traded positions with her, putting his body between her and the door before he turned and prepared to deal with the wolves’ intent on ruining on his morning.

  "Darling, go upstairs. I'll deal with this," Bard knew his voice was leaning towards wolf more than human, but his wolf was pushing heavily against the constraints of his body, ready to face down the interlopers.

  She slapped his shoulder. Hard enough to jerk him forward.

  "Deal with what? What's going on, Bard? And don't you go getting all cave-wolf on me! I don't remember making any promises to obey. Hell, we haven't even gotten to the married part yet!"

  Married? What? Mating was better than marriage! However, despite not having had his coffee yet, Bard knew that was not a discussion he wanted to engage in with a morning person. Not when he still had his family to deal with.

  "Just..." He growled in frustration, feeling his chest expanding as his wolf pushed harder for release. "Please, let me handle this."

  "Fine, handle it," Harper huffed. Then she surprised him. She wrapped her arms around his waist and pressed a gentle kiss against the back of his neck. "I've got your back, baby."

  And his back had those full, luscious breasts pressing against it. Lucky back! Wait, brothers first, then breasts! Yes, breast time would be a happy compromise for the lack of coffee.

  Focus! His wolf snapped, unamused at the wandering thoughts of his host.

  Reluctantly, Bard stepped out of Harper's embrace and strode to the door.

  "Wait! Aren't you going to put some clothes on?" Harper cried out from behind him.

  "No," Bard said succinctly as he threw open the door, planting himself in the portal and glaring at two faces nearly identical to the one he looked at in the mirror every morning.

  "What?"

  Who said wolves couldn't roar as loud as lions could? Take that, felines!

  Aksel and Donar stood outside, both looking a little startled at seeing their "little" brother standing there, not only naked, but half-shifted into his battle form, claws out, fangs out, and death glowing in his eyes.

  "Dude, what the fuck, man?" Donar shook his head in bemusement. "No need to flaunt what we all got, we are identical triplets."

  Aksel gave Donar a disgusted look. Always the most serious of the three, with the weight of being Alpha heavy on his shoulders and in the crow's feet and gray hairs already staking claim upon his features, he had little time for Donar's irreverent ways. Yet, the two made a formidable Alpha-Beta pair, and the fact both of them were there, outside his mate's door? Yeah, Bard was not a happy camper.

  "Look, Bårdr," Aksel began, running a frustrated hand through his otherwise neatly trimmed hair. Probably more to keep from thwapping Donar than anything else. "Can we come inside and talk? We have some things to discuss."

  When Bard didn't budge, Aksel sighed heavily, his shoulders slumping. "It's serious, brother mine. Our father and mother have stirred up the pack, but more than that, they've contacted the Council with a formal complaint."

  "A complaint?" Bard growled, "And just what are our parents complaining about?"

  "The fact that a Llewellyn Witch has cast a spell on you, in violation of the pact that forbids witches from forcibly binding shifters as their familiars," Aksel gritted out. Unfortunately, he made the mistake of glaring over towards Harper when he spoke.

  With a snarl, Bard snapped, lunging forward to deal with the implied threat towards his mate. He was in full battle form, his body erupting into a terrifying mix, half-man, half-wolf. A dense pelt of snow-white fur shivered over his upper body, his face extending and twisting into that of a giant wolf with blazing blue eyes, muzzle gaping open wide with ivory fangs gleaming, thirsting for the blood of his enemy.

  "Bard, you quit that right now," Harper called out, yanking on his arm and preventing him from meeting out the appropriate justice.

  Reluctantly, and quite probably pouting, Bard let his mate draw him back into the shoppe and shove him back. Placing her back against his chest, she turned to glare at his brothers.

  "And you two idiots, get inside before some poor Mortal sees a werewolf brawl in the middle of the street," Harper ordered, adopting her best lawyer guise as adeptly as he apparently transformed into a wolf.

  Were lawyer-shifters a thing? He knew there were shark-shifters, though he'd never met one. Apparently, before now.

  A sudden elbow met his gut, and he looked down to meet the glare of his beautiful mate. "I heard that thought, mister. Now put those fangs away before I show you just how big a shark I can be when I'm upset."

  Uh oh, apparently, the mate bond was settling in already, despite the fact they hadn't actually completed it.

  While his idiot brothers hesitantly stepped into the shoppe, being careful to close the door, Bard reluctantly let his shift ease back.

  "There, that's better," Harper said with a nod. Pointing up the stairs, she ordered, "Now, go put some pants on at least, then we can talk with your brothers and figure out just what the hell is going on."

  Giving his brothers a pointed glare, Bard huffed, "Fine. Don't let those assholes steal you away. Or charm you. Or bite you." He gave them another pointed glare, "And you assholes, be nice to my mate, or I will destroy you."

  Feeling that his threat was given and met with the appropriate amount of gravity, given the fact both his older brothers actually paled a bit, Bard nodded once in satisfaction, snarled to reinforce his point, then stomped upstairs to quickly grab his pants.

  He moved swiftly, unwilling to leave his delicate mate alone too long with the brutes, but he lost precious moments struggling with his jeans, trying to shove his legs in the tangled, resisting fabric. Finding that he h
ad broken the snap when he tore them off the night before, he left them undone and stomped back downstairs, barefoot and growling.

  He emerged to find Donar gone and Aksel actually lifting a crate with exaggerated care as Harper directed him with the imperious eye of a five-star general.

  Quietly coming up behind her, he murmured, "Um, darling? What's going on?"

  Turning, she gave him a small, smug grin, accompanied by a lift of that eyebrow he adored. "I sent Donar to go get you some coffee and some breakfast. Apparently, there's a café already operating full-tilt." She gently patted his chest, "I'm sorry, baby, I didn't realize you were a coffee person."

  Blinking, a bit taken aback, Bard wrapped his hands around her waist and pulled her close, leaning down to press his forehead against hers. Seeing that she was safe, that his brothers hadn't done anything in his absence, he and his wolf settled a bit. "And the other one?"

  "He generously offered to help move some crates out of the way for me," Harper explained, sliding her hands in slow, soothing circles over his bare chest in a way that almost had him purring like a damned cat. "I explained that I'm a glass artist, and if you three broke anything while wrasslin' around like a bunch of idiots, that I'd have to take it out of his hide. Particularly, since he's the eldest and should be providing a better example for his younger brothers instead of acting like some uncouth hooligan."

  Manfully fighting the urge to laugh, Bard brushed his lips briefly against hers. "Darling, we're descended from Vikings and are literally wolves. By definition, we are uncouth hooligans."

  Sniffing, Harper slapped his chest, then pressed a quick kiss against the spot, "Yes, well, not in my shoppe you're not. You all can brawl over in your forge."

  "Do you two mind?" Aksel said, in his typically droll, even tone. "We have serious matters to discuss, and you two making out like you're in a John Hughes movie is kind of creeping me out."

  Bard flashed his brother a middle finger behind Harper's back, while he focused on giving her a proper, and extremely thorough, good morning kiss that they hadn't yet had a chance to have, dammit!

  A man and a wolf had to have priorities!

  Chapter 25

  Okay, so she had seen a picture of Bard's brothers on Sanja's phone, but seeing all three of them together, in the flesh? It was a bit surreal.

  They were obviously brothers, there was no doubt about that. Hell, they were damn near identical to one another. Which, she had known, but knowing something and seeing something in the flesh? Particularly, three rather impressive specimens of masculine perfection? Well, if Bard hadn't already laid complete and total claim on her ovaries, they probably would have been strutting the catwalk and flashing some leg in hopes of claiming one of them.

  One of them was hers. Mental fist pump!

  When Harper had grabbed his arm to stop him from killing his brothers, Lord help her, she had to bite her lip hard enough to draw blood to not laugh in his face when he turned that pouting, puppy-dog-eyed look on her, wolf-headed or not.

  After she had separated three, she finally got a good look Bard’s older brothers. Aksel was obviously the eldest of the three, and the most serious. Wearing khaki pants, a flannel shirt rolled up to reveal muscular forearms, and hiking boots, if she didn't already know that Sam was blissfully happy with her anam cara, Harper would've begun plotting to get the two of them together. His hair was cropped short, and a faint dusting of a five o'clock shadow gave his otherwise youthful face a more rugged look. At least now she knew what Bard would look like without his beard!

  In contrast to both of his brothers, Donar was obviously the more light-hearted, carefree one, despite being the middle brother. His long hair was pulled back in a pony tail that hung down his broad back, and his beard was longer than Bard's; but neatly shaped, with small braids decorated with silver beads. He wore a black Harley t-shirt that strained across his muscular chest, highlighting his lean, yet perfectly sculpted muscles and abdomen; while his faded blue jeans looked painting on as they strained to contain his thick thighs. Biker boots and a leather jacket completed his "bad boy Viking" look, but while the outfit looked perfectly natural on him. Harper got the impression it was more of a persona.

  All-in-all, and hand to God, Harper preferred her Bard. He was broader, thicker, and more muscular than either of his brothers, due no doubt to his blacksmithing; while he may not be as athletically proportioned and put together as the other two, he seemed far more settled than either of these two.

  Maybe they just hadn't met the right woman yet. Or man. Whatever!

  As Bard stomped up the stairs, still pouting, Harper turned to confront Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum.

  "Okay," she held up her hands to forestall whatever the two idiots had been about to say. "It's obvious my annwyl is not a morning person, and until he gets some coffee in him, I doubt he'll be anything approaching human. So, first things first, we need to find some coffee."

  Donar, flashing her what she was positive he considered his best, most flirtatious smile, drawled, "Seems like you've already got a bead on brother dearest. How about I go grab us some coffees and pastries from the Coffee Fairy?"

  Harper blinked, "There's a coffee fairy?" That would certainly explain why Sam had decided to settle here. They'd have to pry her away with the Jaws of Life.

  Aksel sighed, then chuckled. "Yes, sort of. Café au Faé, it's a shoppe not far from here. She opens before the Faire because she knows she'll have a steady stream of customers while the workers, performers, and staff are all getting prepared to open things."

  Turning her attention to Donar, Harper made a shooing gesture. "Then go, quick, before the Beast returns and decides your blood would be a suitable substitute for his morning joe."

  When Donar attempted to speak, Harper shook her head, "No. It's the least you can do for waking him up and showing up without calling first."

  Aksel interjected, his voice a low, angry growl, "We've tried calling for the last day now. He hasn't answered his phone!"

  Leveling a steady, unflappable look at Aksel, the expression on her face must have cued Donar into her intentions, because middle brother beat a hasty retreat with a quick, "I'll go get that coffee now." Then, he abandoned his older brother and Alpha without a backward glance.

  "Mr. Ulvfang...may I call you Aksel?" Harper asked calmly. "Otherwise, it's going to be confusing clarifying which Mr. Ulvfang I'm speaking to, given there's apparently a whole pack of you."

  Without waiting for Aksel to speak-up, Harper continued on. "First, you need to calm down. The angrier you act, the more upset Bard is going to get, and I'm not going to have that, not in my house."

  She narrowed her eyes, "And you are in my house, my shoppe, which happens to be within the boundaries of a Sanctuary. So, unless you want to deal with the Sanctuary Guardians on top of everything else, I suggest you chill the fuck out."

  A bit taken back by the vehemence in her voice, Aksel's own gaze narrowed and he took a threatening step forward, fairly bristling with aggression. "Just who do you think you are, little witch?"

  Unflinchingly, Harper met the Alpha wolf's gaze, refusing to show submission, despite the waves of absolute dominance he was trying to shove down her throat. Oh no, only one wolf was going to be shoving anything down her throat, and while they might share the same face, it wasn't the wolf in front of her.

  Feeling her own wild power surging in response, Harper nevertheless kept a cool, calm expression on her face. "I think, I'm a lawyer, and a damn good one. Now, I suggest you put your wolf back in his cave and help me move some of these crates out of the way, because I swear to the Heaven's above, if you three break my glass, I will skin you with my bare hands and use your hide for a throw rug."

  Aksel stepped back, a calculating expression crossing his face as he tilted his head, listening for something. Without another word, he turned and picked up one of the crates, just as Harper heard the heavy stomping of her Viking coming back down the stairs.

  Feeling
him approach, now that she knew what to feel for through the rapidly developing bond tying them together, Harper wasn't scared to death when he loomed up behind her.

  "Um, darling? What's going on?"

  Turning, she had to catch her breath again at the sight of him. Hair mussed from sleep, his eyes nevertheless sharp and focused, with all that bared flesh of his exposed chest right there at eye-level. Resisting the urge to glance downwards, instead she gave him a grin.

  "I sent Donar to go get you some coffee and some breakfast. Apparently, there's a café already operating at full-tilt." And then, unable and unwilling to resist the urge, she reached up and patted that firm, flexing pectoral muscle. "I'm sorry, baby, I didn't realize you were a coffee person."

  Bard's large hands hooked around her waist, drawing her close to him as he leaned his forehead down to rest against hers. Amusement laced his voice as he nevertheless grumbled, "And the other one?"

  Harper shrugged, "He generously offered to help move some crates out of the way for me."

  She may have been a little distracted as she spoke, since she was busy running both of her hands over his chest now, feeling the faint prickle of his chest hair already growing back in, despite his waxing only a few days previously. Oh, that's going to chafe. What, what was I saying? Oh, yeah!

  "I explained I was a glass artist, and if you three broke anything while wrasslin' around like a bunch of idiots, that I'd have to take it out of his hide." Yeah, that's what she had been saying, and now she felt that indignation building once more. "Particularly since he's the eldest and should be providing a better example to his young brothers, instead of acting like some uncouth hooligan."

  Bard's lips grazed hers teasingly, his voice a husky growl as he murmured against her lips, "Darling, we're descended from Vikings and are literally wolves. By definition, we are uncouth hooligans."

  Nope, best to lay down the law now. "Yes, well, not in my shoppe you're not. You all can brawl over in your forge."