When an army of volunteers and vehicles arrived early the next morning, Selene, refreshed from a dreamless sleep, took charge with Ana.
Kyllian excused himself, leaving Kyler and Kyan to do the heavy lifting.
By early afternoon, the normally well-kept estate had transformed into an Easter wonderland.
Clusters of picnic tables spread across the lawn, empty booths that vendors would tomorrow fill with various delights, stood nestled together near the manor.
Over-sized cardboard cut-outs of rabbits, baskets and eggs gave everything a distinctly Easter atmosphere.
And lastly, discretely positioned out of sight, but not out of reach, rows and rows of porta-loos, whose arrival brought a clear sense of relief to the brothers. The possibility of hundreds if not thousands of guests needing access to the manor’s bathrooms had clearly not crossed anyone’s mind.
But perhaps most impressive, was the knowledge that several thousand chocolate Easter eggs and bunnies, now lay hidden throughout the extensive foliage.
By tomorrow evening, the Estate’s grounds would look a little worse for wear.
Kyan shrugged. “It’ll give Silas something to do.”
Silas.
The older man’s presence, at breakfast, had frozen her in place when she entered the room. He stared at her with apologetic eyes before making himself scarce for the rest of the day.
Kyler had gently steered her to a quiet corner while she composed herself.
Kyllian had joined them assuring her he’d taken every precaution to protect everyone attending the event. The previous evening he’d reinforced the rules they needed to abide by, and reminded them of the consequences for those who broke them.
With the fate of Julius and the wolves freshly in their minds, it wasn’t a difficult task. Kyllian offered everyone a choice to leave or be incarcerated to those unable to comply, without judgement. A number had chosen to leave, with an equal number asking to stay. In addition, Kyllian had trusted men and women patrolling the perimeter as an extra precaution.
Selene knew her own experience influenced her concerns, but she trusted Kyllian enough to put them aside.
Both Selene and Ana decided to spend a second night at the manor. Kyler loaned them his SUV so they could collect fresh clothes, and Selene’s hand-painted eggs for the auction. Given the fire had destroyed both their vehicles, transportation would be difficult in the short term, at least for Ana.
They shared a room once more preventing Selene from being tempted to share with Kyler. She missed the comfort of him sleeping beside her, the peace and contentment that filled her, lying in his arms. When the weekend was over, she’d figure out her thoughts on the whole bonding business.
Everyone in the manor was up and moving at dawn on Easter Sunday.
Selene returned from the bathroom to find Ana pawing through the wardrobe. She poked her head over Ana’s shoulder. “What are those?”
“Kyan had them sent over with the nightgowns. I just tossed on my jeans when they appeared clean yesterday. Didn’t even remember to take a peek. Not sure skirts are my thing, but this—” she pulled out an ivory coloured top and burgundy corset, “this would look hot with my skinny black jeans, and black boots.” She held the top in front of her and spun around. “What do you reckon?”
“Oh, nice. Very nice.” A full-length skirt, in a deep forest green, caught Selene’s eye. She grabbed an off the shoulder white peasant top, and a wide black leather belt that laced in a criss-cross pattern at the front, holding everything out to Ana. “How about this?”
Ana gave the outfit an appraising glance. “Yes. That top will go fabulously with your tan, and you pull off those long skirts in a way I never could. I approve.”
They quickly donned their outfits and headed downstairs. Nerves fluttered in Selene’s stomach. The top’s designed called for a strapless bra which was something it hadn’t occurred to her to pack yesterday. Her choices were to wear her regular bra with the straps showing or go without one. Not giving herself a chance to chicken out, she’d tossed her bra on the bed and followed Ana out the door. A few months ago, the old Selene wouldn’t even be here, let alone going braless, which left her feeling naked and exposed. It may have been much, but it was a start.
She doubted her decision the moment Kyler watched her enter the room. The nerves increased tenfold as he neared, his eyes raking over her body.
“She’d have liked you.”
Confusion replaces Selene’s her nerves. “Sorry?”
Kyler reached out and stroked the fabric of her skirt. “My mother. I remember her wearing this same outfit as a child.”
Selene’s hand flew up to cover her gaping mouth. “I’m so sorry. We didn’t even stop to consider how you might feel seeing—I’ll go change.”
He grabbed her hand. “No, don’t. Kyan would never have taken them from storage if seeing them again was going be a problem. It seems fitting a small part of her will be here today as if everything has finally come full circle. Besides, the outfit is perfect for you.” He leaned in and whispered in her ear. “Good call on the no bra, sweetheart. Proud of you.” He kissed her cheek and wandered off smiling, leaving Selene blushing from head to toe.
Cheeky witch.
“A little rabbit told me you all have something else you’d rather be doing, but first I have an important announcement to make”“ It was a testament to the power and respect Penelope Peterson commanded by how quickly the crowd quietened. “Now I had planned to hold the auction for the hand-painted eggs, painted by our own, Miss Selene Fischer, right before lunch.” Applause began, but Penelope waved it down. “Save it, folks, I haven’t gotten to the good bit yet. What I wanted to say is that as of a few minutes ago, I received a very generous bid of ten thousand dollars, for the entire collection, this year.”
Had Kyler not been on hand to catch her, Selene may have fallen over in shock. Ten thousand? Last year’s three thousand dollar figure had blown away, but ten?
She glanced at Kyler wide eyed and questioning, but he shook his head.
“Now, before anyone asks, the bidder has asked to remain anonymous, and you know me and secrets so don’t waste your time.” Nervous laughter rippled through the crowd. “But I’m required to ask, are there any advances on this offer?” Everyone fell silent once more. “Ten thousand going once. Ten thousand going twice. SOLD.”
Nothing held back the applause this time. Around the crowd, people rose to their feet clapping and cheering. Penelope passed the microphone to Selene, who accepted it with shaking hands.
“Wow. So I have to say, a huge thank you to our anonymous bidder, whoever you may be. Let me assure you your kind donation will go to help children who need it, just like I did, so again, thank you.” Applause rang out again and Selene took a deep breath. For someone who’d only regained her voice two weeks ago, she was making up for lost time. “Hello, everyone. Have you enjoyed your Easter breakfast?”
A rousing cheer sounded through the crowd.
“Well, that’s good, but I know the real reason you’re here. Simon says, hands up who’s ready to go find some Easter eggs?” A few hands went up. “What? Only five of you? Let’s try this again. Simon says, hands up who’s ready to find some Easter eggs?” Most hands shot up this time. Selene shot Kyan a sideways glance when his did too.
“What? I like chocolate. Sue me.”
She couldn’t argue. She’d eaten at least six hot cross buns already this morning. “Okay then, everyone got their Easter baskets?”
“YES.”
“Simon says, ready. Set. GO.”
Chaos descended upon the Everwood Estate, as children squealed with delight racing in all directions, leaving parents trailing in their wake.
Kyan stepped off the make-shift stage and held his hand out to Ana who feigned indifference. “What?”
“Oh, come on, like you aren’t as obsessed with chocolate as me.”
She cocked an eyebrow. “And you’d know that how, exactly?”
He laughed. “Because I watched you hide a secret stash after everyone left yesterday. BTW, it’s not there anymore.”
Selene and Kyler howled with laughter as Kyan ran off, an enraged Ana, hot on heels. Never come between a woman and her chocolate.
Kyler dropped into a nearby chair. “Well, I think we pulled it off.”
“I think we did.” Selene settled on his lap and wrapped her arms around Kyler’s neck. When the initial surprise passed, he gathered her up in his. “You know, there’s this Chinese proverb that says if you save someone’s life, then you’re responsible for that life. It becomes your responsibility to ensure that the life you saved isn’t wasted that it’s lived to the fullest potential.”
He chuckled. “Is that right?”
“Yes, and seeing as how you’ve saved my life three times since we met, I guess that means you need to make sure I do enough stuff to make up for three lifetimes.”
Kyler’s arms tightened around her waist. “Three, hey?” He dropped his voice. “Did I mention your life being tethered to mine means you share in my longer lifespan?”
Her eyes widened. “No. You totally skipped that part of the explanation.” She paused to consider the idea. “So, you’re saying you have a really long time to catch me up on what else you missed and the whole making sure I’m living my life to its potential promise?”
Excitement flared in his eyes. “Did you have something specific in mind?”
Selene pressed herself closer. She still hadn’t figured out her feelings on the whole blood bond thing, but that didn’t mean she had to do it alone “Well I was thinking that tonight, after everyone’s gone home, you could work your magick on the creek, maybe warm the water, and I could try that swimming naked you’re so keen on.”
His breathing came in short sharp breaths. “And then?”
She leaned in to cover his mouth with hers, smiling. “We’ll talk.”
THE END