“I love you more!” Cyprien whines, scurrying over and plopping down at Dagny’s feet. His arms wrap around her legs like a vise, and he uses his leverage to bury his face in the back of her thighs. “Give me attention!”

A laugh explodes from Dagny’s mouth, and she places her hand on Cyprien’s head, twisting her fingertips into his short blond hair. “What’s the matter, Cyppy?”

“You haven’t said you love me in the past fifteen minutes.”

She chuckles under her breath, sweeping her hand down the back of his head and neck in a soothing gesture. “I love you, Cyppy. I love all of you.” She turns her gaze toward Roark, Lir, Fenryr, and then me—her eyes swimming with a tender warmth. “I love our life together, and what we’ve built.”

I can’t help but smile as I take in the light beaming from her carefree smile. It’s hard to believe that just a year ago, we were fighting for our lives, under the constant fear that every coming day would be our last.

Now, we live peacefully in the underground lair I started building twenty-two years ago—the same one that has blossomed into a beautiful home. We live peacefully, surviving off the land and the occasional journey to the human realm to restock the food Dagny loves so much. We haven’t felt the need to rebuild Abaddon’s castle yet, and I’m not sure if we ever will. Maybe one day, if our goddess of a mate ever gets bored with our quiet little life and decides she wants to rule this world. But until then, we will all cherish every single moment. We’ll bask in the tranquil mornings, revel in the calm of the night, and be happy—thriving—as long as our mate is by our side.

My eyes trail down her frame, stopping to admire the gentle swell of her hips, stomach, and thighs before finding their way back to her smile. That smile. 

“I love you, wildfire,” I murmur.

“More than air. More than life,” Lir adds, his eyes filling with the same emotion filling my veins.

“More than anything.” Roark moves toward Dagny, placing his hand on the small of her back as his gaze burns into her profile. “Our beautiful, ineffable mate.”

“Ours,” Fenryr whispers, crawling over to join Cyprien at Dagny’s feet, staring up at her with a look of wonder. “It’s still too good to believe… even all this time later.”

“Yet it’s real,” she says, reaching down to cup Fenryr’s cheek. “It will always be real.”

The corners of her eyes crinkle as he nuzzles into her touch, a low whimper echoing from the base of his chest.

“Look,” Cyprien whispers, tapping Dagny’s leg to draw her attention. “The lights.”