Lyrica giggled, which made Gabriel’s head snap back around so he could stare at her.
“You heard me?”
“Yes.” Her eyes widened. “How can I hear you in my head?”
“Our telepathic connection is part of the D’Aire keeper bond. I wasn’t sure we’d have that since I’m a hybrid, but we—”
“Hey!” Harris shouted. “Why are you staring at each other like a couple of weirdos? And where the fuck did those come from?”
Lyrica peeked over Gabriel’s shoulder, smiling at the other two males. “We can speak mind to mind.”
Alden raised a brow. “That’s interesting.”
“It explains the staring thing you two were doing.” Harris grinned. “Must be that magical D’Aire cum.”
Lyrica gasped. “The what?”
“First time a D’Aire is intimate with his or her keeper, the mating bond is formed between them. We joke about it being because of magical D’Aire cum, though it’s—”
“Could we maybe have this conversation some other time when we’re both not standing here naked?” Gabriel snapped.
Ignoring him, Harris said, “I guess that means you have a full D’Aire bond as well as a Xenon mating bond. I wonder if that’s why you grew so much.”
“My mate also has wings now,” Lyrica chimed in.
“We can see that.” Alden tugged on Harris’ hand, leading him back toward the doorway. “Now that we know you are both alive and well, we’ll be leaving to do a little bonding of our own.”
After they hurried out and the door slid shut again, Gabriel muttered, “We’re going to have to put a lock on that damn door.”
“Actually,” she said, dragging out the word. “I think we might need to get a new door.”
Since he could hear the amusement in her voice, curiosity made him turn his head to follow her gaze. His wings unfurled and drooped at the same time his shoulders slumped. There, right in the center of the thick metal door that he’d been pressed up against earlier, was a perfect impression of his ass.
Well, hell.
She was right. They were going to need a new door.
Chapter Six
Gabriel stood on the back terrace of his parents’ house watching as his mate, his mother, and his older sister strolled through the extensive garden that was blooming with vibrant color and life. From the moment they had arrived, his whole family had welcomed Lyrica with open arms, delighted with the news that he had finally found the keeper of his heart.
Since Koric and Hazel Titan owned and operated The Titan Domes, the largest nursery and greenhouse on Earth, they lived on the outskirts of the Capital close to where the domes were located. The properties and business had been passed down in the family for generations, and over time, they had expanded.
The domes were climate controlled, so they were able to continue production year-round. They grew everything from flowers to vegetables to a variety of fruit trees. Half of the goods they provided went directly to restaurants and shops throughout the city, while the other half got transported to other cities and space stations.
Gabriel’s older sister, Poppy, and her twin Helios mates, Dorian and Dima, helped run the family business and lived in the house next door. He was glad they were close and could look out for one another, especially since Poppy was pregnant. Now, the twins were acting even more protective. They could barely stand to be more than a few feet away from her, but at the moment, they had been banished from the garden while the females bonded.
Lyrica, Poppy, and Hazel had become fast friends as soon as they had been introduced. Now, they were laughing and chatting together like old friends. While his mother wore a purple peasant shirt and a multicolored long skirt, Poppy was dressed in a bright pink tunic with a pair of black leggings that accommodated her large baby bump.
Lyrica looked like a princess in a beautiful, silvery white gown with gold and green leaves decorating the flowing skirt. Her long black hair fell loose down her back, but she had pinned one side up with a small comb. He loved watching her wander through the expertly manicured grounds. There was a touch of whimsy and fun to the design of the garden that filled the expanse between the two houses, though he thought the flowers paled in comparison to her beauty.
Gabriel knew Lyrica was fascinated by what she saw, and his mother and sister’s beaming smiles made it clear they didn’t mind answering his sweet little keeper’s endless questions. He hadn’t inherited a green thumb like the rest of his family, so he wasn’t really involved in the business beside pitching in to do a bit of manual labor whenever his schedule allowed.
Even Vaughn, the youngest Titan sibling, was better at growing things than he was. Because he still had a few years until he would be finished at the Academy, Vaughn had time to decide whether he wanted to stay in the military or focus on working in the family business.
Harris had been an adopted member of their family since he had cut ties with his own after they had found out he was gay. Because of that, he’d always had a home with Gabriel during their breaks from the Academy. He still helped out at the domes whenever he had time and loved pitching in around the family estate. Unfortunately, he was just as bad at growing things as Gabriel was, so he was also relegated to the manual labor side of things.
Everyone had been overjoyed to hear about Harris and Alden’s mating, but no one had been more pleased for them than Gabriel and Lyrica. He had always hoped his best friend would find someone to love him the way he deserved, and it seemed like that perfect person was Alden.
While Lyrica was a social butterfly, Alden still seemed to
