Leo gave him a wry look. “I interrupted your story. Sorry.”
Sonny laughed. “I almost forgot. So, Myrtle showed me the fairy ring, then she took out a bag of sugary treats and set them around the ring. A few moments later, fairies started pouring from the ring. They were so beautiful and colorful with their gorgeous little wings. They went right for the candy and devoured it.”
“Wow,” Leo whispered. “How many did you see?”
“Over thirty before I lost count.” Sonny closed his eyes, and he could picture them all perfectly. “When they finished the candy, they flew to Myrtle and me. They were curious, so they played in our hair and clothes. They danced around us like butterflies, so Myrtle and I stood and danced too. We laughed so hard, and the fairies laughed too. It was the best Litha I’ve ever had.”
“That sounds…” Leo’s voice trailed off. “I want that for our kids. I want us to take them to the farm for Litha, and I want them to meet fairies and dance with them.”
Sonny swallowed the lump in his throat. “I want that too.” He patted Fluff’s paw when it poked out of the carrier again. “You and me, we’re going to be good parents. We have your parents and grandparents for good examples, and my parents and grandparents for bad examples.”
“We have Myrtle too,” Leo whispered. “I’m glad you were assigned to her when you were a kid.”
“I don’t know where I’d be without her.” Sonny watched the suburbs fade into farmland and thick forests. “We’ll love our baby, honey bear. The rest we can figure out, but that’s the most important thing.”
Leo kissed the top of his head. “As long as I have you with me, I’m happy.”
The rest of the drive went quickly. Sonny had been to Leo’s grandparents’ home several times now, but he could never quite get used to the wildness of the area. I’m definitely a city witch.
When they pulled into Janine and Ronald’s long driveway, Sonny sat up straighter and looked around. “Why are there vehicles lining the driveway? It looks busier than Christmas time. Wait. Is that Aaron and Gemma’s car?” He turned to look at Leo, excitement building. “What’s going on?”
Leo put the truck in park and turned to give him a smug look. “Did you really think our friends and family wouldn’t be here for our baby’s Litha scrying? Myrtle even brought her sister Hester.”
Sonny jumped when people started pouring out of the large farm house. He grinned as he recognized all the Rocchi family members as well as his own friends. Devin and Tilisha waved from where they sat with one of Leo’s lion shifter friends.
Burkhart opened the passenger side door and took the cat carrier. “There’s my two favorite sweethearts.”
“He’s talking to the cats, isn’t he?” Sonny asked wryly.
Leo snorted. “Need you ask?”
Rosemarie filled the open space when Burkhart backed up. Leo’s sister grinned and pulled Sonny out of the car and into her arms. “I’m going to be the best aunt this baby ever had. That’s the truth right there.”
Sonny laughed when she scooped him up and carried him toward the house. “I can walk, Rose. Sheesh.”
Janine’s weathered face lit up when she saw him. “Oh, Sonny. I’m so happy for you and Leo. Wait until you see what I have for the baby.”
“Love you, Grandma,” he called out as Rosemarie carried him into the house.
He heard Myrtle’s cackle before he saw her. His mentor and her sister, Hester, had Aaron and Gemma between them at the kitchen table. Several of Leo’s aunts, uncles, and cousins sat around it and watched as the witches instructed them on making Litha wreathes.
Aaron held his daughter, Wendy, in his lap and grinned at Sonny. He wiggled his nose, making Sonny smile. When Wendy did the same thing, Sonny couldn’t help but laugh.
“Use the citrine and jasper in your charm, Oscar,” Myrtle said, pointing to a wreath Leo’s uncle was making. “That will help your cattle production for the year if you hang it in your barn.”
A second later, his mentor looked up and saw him. Her smile stretched wide and she winked.
How could I have doubted her? How could I have doubted any of them? Sonny’s eyes watered, and he quickly wiped them on Rosemarie’s shoulder. This is how Litha is supposed to be.
Chapter 4
The next morning, Leo woke up slowly, frowning as he patted Sonny’s empty spot. Ravenpaw slept on Sonny’s pillow, but Leo’s mate and Flufflepuff weren’t where they were supposed to be.
Leo grumbled as he sat up. “Ravenpaw, where did those two go?”
Ravenpaw opened one eye, stared at him a moment, then closed it.
Leo sniffed. “I see how it is.”
The door slammed open as he was buttoning his pants. Burkhart stomped into the room, expression furious. “We have a problem.”
Leo froze. “Sonny?”
Thorwald pushed in behind Burkhart. “He’s fine. Grandma took him and Aaron for a walk in the woods.”
Leo let the tension drain from his shoulders. “Thank the Goddess. What the fuck, Burkhart? You almost gave me a heart attack.”
“Sonny’s parents are here.” Burkhart snarled. “They brought a few witches with them and are saying things that make me want to tear their heads off.”
Leo growled. “Thorwald, please go make sure Sonny stays in the woods. I’m going to kick some ass.”
Thorwald nodded and spun around, running from the room.
Burkhart threw Leo a shirt and followed him from the house, Ravenpaw stalking behind them.
A crowd of people were gathered in front of the farm house. Leo recognized Cynthia Thornton, Sonny’s mom. The man beside her had Sonny’s chin. Travis, Sonny’s dad.
“We demand to speak with Somerset,” Cynthia said, shoulders back and nose in the air. “This disgusting display of insolence has gone too far. It’s one thing to mate a shifter, but another to bring abominations into this world. We won’t let it happen.”
Several witches stood behind her, arms crossed and faces hard.
The group of Rocchi bears and their friends teemed with agitation, snarls and growls breaking free. Rosemarie’s mate, Kate, held a very angry rabbit shifter in her arms. Gemma wiggled, trying to get down to attack the witches, though Leo wasn’t sure what she thought she could do.
This is going to be bad, Leo thought, even as he fought his own anger.
“I told you they were pieces of shit, didn’t I, Hester?” Myrtle said, cracking her knuckles. “I’m going to enjoy this, Cynthia.”
Hester grinned, wrinkled face full of joy. “I haven’t been in a good fight in a while. This should be fun.”
Travis cleared his throat. “Somerset cannot have these children.”
These children? Leo frowned. Could the man see far enough into their future to see all of his and Sonny’s kids?
“We have representation from the Witches Council with us, Myrtle. You and your sister shouldn’t interfere.” Travis glared at all the others. “None of you should interfere. This is a family matter.”
“Family?” Jesse asked, voice hard. Katrin and he moved forward, hands already shifting into paws. “You come to our home and call my grandchild an abomination and dare order us around? You aren’t Sonny’s family. We are.”