Exton

I lean against one of the pillars on the patio, watching Gareth as he works in the garden. The elf is naked from the waist up, his muscles bulging as he works, sweat making his body wet and...

"He's gotten a lot done in three weeks." Raina comes around the corner, wearing shorts and a slightly smudged t-shirt.

"Having an elf doing your groundskeeping, it would be amazing if he hadn't. I think he's happier now that I've ever known him - Conal laid to rest, Morgan dead, all of us moved in together, a lover of his own race - or species or whatever it should be - and working with nature. He's gotten a lot more - errr - energetic, too" - I give her a wolfish grin - "or hadn't you noticed?"

She smiles. "Oh yes, I noticed that bulge, just like the one you have now. K'thyri has noticed most of all, I think."

"Yeah, but Ky can match Gareth's energy with her own." I smile. "Sometimes she makes me feel tired just watching her."

"Too tired for later tonight?" She leans in and kisses me, nipping at my neck.

"Never too tired for that." I put on a worried expression. "This party you're planning… I hope you don't expect me to cook. If it requires more than microwaving or picking up some chips and dip, I'm pretty hopeless."