This is Týr and Kira’s slice-of-life story, exploring the daily lives of my Guardians.
Týr is a fallen god from the Norse pantheon now mated to Kira.
This scene takes place after Nik’s book.
Enjoy a peep into their lives after the HEA…

 

 

~OUTSMARTED~

 

 

The castle was too damn quiet.

Not a single peep from the often chattering females who lived there, or even his mate, and Kira usually led the pack.

Týr stuck his head into the TV room where the mates of his Guardian brothers often hung out, and still no sign of her. Not that he could blame her. He’d been swamped with things to do right from the moment he’d gotten up this morning, and he’d only caught glimpses of her in passing.

Kira? he telepathed.

Hey, honey, she responded instantly.

Where are you?

Busy with the girls; talk later. And she shut off their mind link. Dammit.

“Yo, Norse, what’s up?”

He closed the door and turned to find Aethan approaching from the back stairwell, something odd going on with his hair. As he drew closer, Týr snorted. All that blue was scraped back into a braid, with a few strands escaping. Hell, a perfect moment to vex him, but he had other, more pressing things on his mind. “Kira. I haven’t seen her all day, and now she’s”—he shook his head—“busy.”

“Ah, she’s finally seen the light.” Aethan smirked.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t laugh when looking like a girl in braids.”

The Empyrean’s annoying grin grew wider. “At least I got laid before it was done. It doesn’t make me any less of a bastard.”

“I don’t see how. The demoniis will die laughing when faced with you tonight,” Týr shot back and strode down the corridor, determined to find his suddenly cloistered mate.

“Wait up.” Aethan joined him. “So why are you hunting Kira?”

Frowning, Týr slipped his hands in his jeans pockets. “It’s been a year since we mated—well, almost a year, and I got her something to mark it. If I could just get a hold of her for five darn minutes.”

Aethan’s eyebrows rose. “Really?”

“Yes, really, you uncultured bastard. I got my girl a gift.”

“Rrright! I don’t suppose that gift has anything to do with the rumor circulating, you know, about you not being romantic enough?”

Fucking pain in his ass. Týr narrowed his eyes. “I wouldn’t talk. You didn’t even know what to get Echo for her birthday.”

“And you suggested a dagger. Did you get Kira one?” His eyes gleamed with merriment.

The bastard was enjoying this. “No, I learned from your mistake,” he retorted and slowed at the soft voices drifting to him from the library, the females’ other hangout.

“…I would say tie a bow,” Darci murmured. “None can beat that, a definite win for you.”

Frowning, Týr opened the door. They were all there at the far side of the massive book room, seated on the floor around the coffee table littered with snacks and drinks and hooting with laughter.

Tie a bow?

Fates, what was Kira up to? Because he knew darn well she would also be hunting for something to celebrate their upcoming ‘first anniversary,’ too.

A grin started. Oh, my mate, you can try! I so got this. Not romantic? His left nut.

I can’t wait to see how this turns out, Aethan telepathed him. Kira is ace in what she does.

Meaning she was more…thoughtful? Romantic?

Týr ignored the jibe, waiting for his mate to notice him.

***

Five minutes earlier…

“And you told him he wasn’t romantic enough?” Echo asked, leaning her elbows on the coffee table edge, the rest of the wooden surface covered with plates of sandwiches, cookies, and their beverages, her face cupped in her hands.

“Yup.” Kira nodded, absently surveying the fire crackling merrily in the spacious library they’d secluded in, then drifting to the soaring floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. She knew Týr would head straight here when he didn’t find her in the kitchen or TV room after telepathing her. “How else would I throw him off track with what I planned, huh?” she asked, keeping her voice low. “It took me days to get this going without him suspecting a thing.”

“And while he’s busy trying to figure out ways to outdo you in this romance quest—and you know he will,” Darci said—ugh, didn’t she just? The betting games between Týr and Blaéz were notorious, neither giving any leeway. “He wouldn’t suspect a thing.”

“Yep.” She glanced at the other women as the sensation of her mate coming closer grew stronger.

“Why not a bow in your hair, minus clothes?” Shadow, seated on the armchair, piped out with a smile, her hand on her pregnant belly.

“Yes!” Darci nodded gleefully, tendrils loosening from her careless topknot to frame her striking face. “I would say tie a bow.” Her eyes gleamed with mirth. “None can beat that, a definite win for you.”

The girls howled with laughter.

Kira bit her lip, stifling her grin. Naked and a bow in her hair? It had potential. All she wanted was to throw him off-scent. That man was like a bloodhound when it came to sniffing out the truth. It made her more determined than ever to keep this secret.

But, just in case he could hear her with that maddening heightened senses of his, she said, “Do you guys have that problem? Your mates not being romantic?”

“Not me,” Ely smirked, wrapping her arms around her jeans-clad knee. “I’m safe from all that.”

Shae leaned back against the couch, her gray-gold eyes brightening with laughter as she latched on to what Kira was about, but she didn’t say anything, not that Kira needed an answer.

“Hmm,” Shadow began, gently rubbing her baby bump, concealed by her loose red sweater with scattered snowflakes. “Can’t say I have. Nik’s always doing stuff for me, bringing me presents and such.”

“Gah, seriously?” Kira grumbled. “But you’re pregnant; we all spoil you; you don’t get a say in this.”

Shadow burst out laughing, sweeping back her raven-dark hair with the white streak at the front.

“Well,” Darci began.

“No, not you. I saw Blaéz get you flowers then suck your face off—so just me then.” Meeting their confused gazes, she mouthed, They’re back.

We know, they all responded, biting off their grins.

“What exactly do you want, Ki?” Echo asked softly, her spiky bangs dipping into her sparkling, bicolored eyes. She blinked the inky strands away and gamely kept up the pretense as Týr’s presence closed in on her. The girl needed a trim.

Casually, Kira picked up her choc-chip cookie and took a bite. As she chewed, she sighed out loud. “Well, for him to do something romantic without me saying so. Anyway, I’m going shopping tomorrow to drown my sorrow. Hedori said he’d take me—”

“Take you where?” Týr growled, prowling inside, looking a little testy. Aethan remained at the door, and Kira swore he was fighting back a grin. Well, he knew what was up anyway since they were all roped in to help keep her man busy.

“Oh, just some shopping,” she said airily, pushing to her feet. “I saved you a few cookies.”

He shook his head, which startled her. Týr was like an addict on steroids when it came to sweets, and he was refusing cookies? Chocolate-chip cookies, to be exact. His second favorite next to his sacred M&Ms. Guilt surged. But Kira pushed past the feeling since she planned on making it up to him very soon.

She grabbed her cell phone from the coffee table, shooting her friends a look that said, be ready, and headed to her mate. She hooked her arm through his and strolled out of the library, pulling her huge, turtle-slow man with her, passing Aethan, who winked, and she had to stifle a laugh. “C’mon, let’s go watch a movie. We have a few hours before you go on patrol, right? I’ll even let you pick.”

“It’s all right. I know how much you love your romance movies.”

Kira sniffed. “You say it like it’s a bad thing—”

“That’s not what I meant,” he said, tone terse.

“Okay then, it’s romantic comedy tonight,” she pushed, trying to get a response. Though nothing showed on his face, she could feel his disquiet through their mate bond.

Her cell beeped, but she ignored it as they entered the living room, where the TV was still on mute.

Only when Týr dropped onto the couch did she hastily glance at her text message from Hedori. Ten minutes.

Thank God. She tossed her cell on the couch, grabbed the remote, and selected Die Hard since he seemed to enjoy that. Then she sat next to him, resting her head on his shoulder.

Týr’s calloused palm sought hers, and he linked their fingers. “Is something wrong, elska?” he asked quietly.

Jesus. When he called her that, her heart went all gooey and melted in a puddle of love that she nearly blurted the truth. Darn. It was a close one.

Kira lifted her gaze to his, frowning. “Why would you ask that?”

“I heard you.”

She blinked. “What are you talking about?”

He nodded in the direction of the library, remaining silent.

“Oh. Don’t worry about it.” She gave him a warm smile as her brain rapidly sought an excuse. “Was in a funky mood, you know, PMS and stuff?” Since he knew about that, she was safe. But darn, seeing her usually smiling mate troubled, Kira knew she couldn’t sit back and wait for the next five minutes. They’ll just do this early—

“Eeep!” she squealed as he scooped her up and settled her on his lap. “Are you okay?” He swept back her hair. “Do you need anything?” That gorgeous face was all serious now. Yep, her well-being always came first with him.

Kira cupped his stubbled jaw with one hand, her thumb stroking his chin. “Being here with you is what makes me happy.”

He stared at her as if debating her comment. Nope, she couldn’t blame him with all her evasion tactics today. She reached for her cell on the couch, and the display lit up. Two minutes left. She got off his lap. “C’mon.”

“I thought you wanted to watch a movie?”

“I put it on for you, but you don’t seem in the mood. Let’s go for a walk.”

He frowned. “It’s snowing.”

“So?”

“You don’t like the cold.”

“And in summer, I don’t like the heat, but that’s me.” She grinned. “Besides, I have you, my own personal heater—” She snuggled into his chest. “So, I’m not worried about being chilly.”

They headed down the long corridor, and she felt his stare but ignored it as they passed the rec room, then more doors, all from which they could access the outside.

“Any particular exit you’re looking for?” he drawled. “Probably one to the stars?”

“What?”

“Kira…” He stopped, his expression inflexible now. “What is it? And don’t say it’s nothing.”

She looked at him, licked her lips, glanced down the long corridor, then back to him. Whispered, “Fine. There is something, but not out here where someone could hear us.”

***

At her words, Týr’s heart careened in his chest like a ping pong ball. Maybe something was drastically wrong after all. Kira opened the door into a darkened room and shut it. As he reached for the light switch, the sudden glare of the overhead lights had his corneas going on strike. Dammit, he blinked—

“Surprise!”

At the yell, he blinked in confusion. All his Guardian brothers and their mates, along with Jenna, Ely, and Hedori, were there, grinning at him. What the hell? Why were they here in this rarely used dining room with no sign of the table and the chairs all pushed against the walls?

Then they parted, revealing the dining table behind them, draped with a white damask linen cloth. White flowers with greenery in twin pewter vases graced each side, but it was the centerpiece that caught his attention.

A two-tier chocolate cake, with a ton of M&Ms cascading like a river from the top layer to the bigger, bottom one, it all flowed onto the stand in a flood of rainbow colors.

“What is this?” he rasped.

“Happy birthday, my love!” Kira grinned, sliding her arms around his waist and hugging him.

He blinked. “It’s not my birthday. That’s in summer.”

“So? It’s summer in the southern hemisphere. And I decided it’s your birthday today. Next year, it’ll be, well, whenever my mood decides.” She gave him an impish grin.

Týr stood there, overwhelmed. In his long life, nothing of this ever happened. No one had made his day of birth ever feel special. His past hadn’t included much joy. But his mate, she found ways to make it so for him.

“C’mon!” She grabbed his hand.

Too shocked to say or do anything, he let her lead him to the table. On the sideboard were champagne bottles cooling in ice buckets, along with sodas, juices, and a row of crystal flutes.

His attention came back to Kira, and his gaze caressed her gorgeous, flushed face. She tucked back her springy auburn hair free tumbling about her shoulders, picked up the three candles near the cake in red, blue, and green, and stuck them into the top tier.

“Only three?” he teased.

She rolled her eyes. “I couldn’t put thousands of candles on it, it would take forever, and I’d need a cake as big as this room, so three it is. And those symbolize the past, present, and future.” She lit the candles, and everyone burst into the birthday song, even his Guardian brothers. Their mates must have drilled them to learn the words. Then he caught Aethan’s smirk.

The bastard knew. No wonder he’d goaded him earlier. And he’d lost the braid. Pity.

Yup, I did. We all did. Kira asked us to keep it quiet, Aethan telepathed him.

Now, it all meshed. That’s why Dagan had dragged him off for a sword session the moment he came downstairs that morning, then Blaéz and the foos-damn-ball game bet, which he never said no to—hell, she’d managed his entire day smoothly. And he hadn’t known shit because it wasn’t unusual for him to be so busy…except, since Kira came into his life, he didn’t spend so much time doing all that stuff.

He huffed out a laugh. “Is this what you were planning all along?”

She grinned and nodded.

Hell, she’d completely derailed him. She’d outsmarted him.

As the song ended, Aethan called out, “Hip, hip—”

“Hurray!”

Their voices thundered in the dining room, reverberating off the walls.

“Yep,” she finally answered. “You’re too astute at times for my liking. I had to throw you off course.” She handed him a serrated bread knife with a white bow. “Blow out the candles, make a wish, and cut the cake.”

He cast her a tender look. “My wish already came true a year ago.”

“You’re not supposed to say, but I guess it doesn’t matter,” she grumbled as he smirked and sliced the cake with one swipe—

“Jesus, it’s not an enemy,” she sighed.

“It’s done. Now we get to eat it—”

“No, wait.” She grasped his hand, stopping him.

He arched a brow, then watched as she took over, cutting the part he sliced free. He knew she must have made the cake. It had all the signs of her handiwork, the uneven smoothing of chocolate, the slightly tippy lower layer—hell, he loved her for it. And at the added M&Ms since she often enough filched his candies if he happened to be eating them, his heart bumped hard against his ribs, emotions clogging his throat.

“You get the first taste.” Kira lifted the piece to him. He bit half of it and groaned. Fuck, his female sure could bake. After watching him demolish the large bite he took, she smiled and popped the remaining piece into her mouth. His mate went from not knowing anything about cooking a year ago to this. Hell, he was too darn happy—

He hauled her into his arms and kissed her hard. “Best cake ever.”

Her eyes sparkling, she then cut up the cake for everyone.

“A toast!” Blaéz called out, popping the champagne. The cork hit the ceiling, leaving a spot in the pristine whiteness before Dagan flashed out his hand, and with his telekinesis, the trajectory slammed his way, and he palmed the dangerous missile.

Blaéz nodded, then poured the bubbly liquid into glasses, handing them out.

“Seems I made it just in time,” Michael walked in, dressed in his leathers and black tee, his aviator sunnies parked on his head. His splintered sapphire blue eyes, revealing streaks of flashing silver, met Týr’s. He inclined his head in greeting—no, in a birthday wish, more likely.

“You missed the cake attack,” Blaéz supplied, making Týr snort.

The archangel smirked. “Expected no less from a warrior.”

Once everyone had the flutes in hand, Blaéz said, “Týr, may the Fates always watch out for you.”

“Hear, hear!” the females called out, followed by his Guardian brothers.

Hell, the Fates should watch out for all of them, but this was about him, so he let it slide. But damn, these fuckers made him want to bawl.

“Always,” Kira said softly, slipping her hand to his back and stroking his spine. “Nik!” she called out a second later, distracting him. “This is for the baby!” She held out the side plate with cake and a fork.

The Greek came over, sweeping back his overlong hair. “Our young isn’t even here yet.”

“Shadow will eat it for the baby. See? Simple.” She cast him a dimpled grin.

Smiling and shaking his head, he took the side plate with a thick slice for his mate.

Echo and Darci hurried forward, helping her hand out the wedges.

A short while later, as everyone ate cake and drank champagne, Hedori announced, “The birthday dinner will be in the kitchen in an hour.”

“So, all this is your doing?” Týr asked Kira as she joined him on the window seat.

She nodded and sipped her champagne, pilfering little bites of cake from his plate. “Well, I helped with the menu and prepping stuff, but the cooking was all Hedori. Besides the cake.”

“I know. I love it.”

As everyone headed out, probably to give them time alone, Týr remained sprawled on the window seat, leaning his back against the glass pane.

Michael headed for the door, then glanced his way and nodded. You can get in at midnight for work.

Týr inclined his head slightly, grateful for a bit of time off.

Kira rose and set the empty glasses and plates on the table. “Don’t you want to join the others for dinner?” she asked, arching a feminine eyebrow as she came back and sat next to him. “It’s in your honor.”

“There’s still time.”

When it was just the two of them in the dining room, he rose, fished around in his pocket, and she eyed him curiously. Then he crouched in front of her. “This is for you.” He handed her the small box.

As she opened it, her mouth dropped, forming an O, then snapped shut as she stared. “Týr, this past year with you has been amazing. I was only teasing you about being unromantic…” She swallowed, her eyes gone a misty hazel.

And he realized then it wasn’t even about the competition when it came to her. It was her smiles he wanted.

“Perhaps, but this I wanted and was waiting for December to give it to you. But since you brought it up a month early, I decided, why not. And I quite like the symbolism of this one.” He took the eternity ring studded with diamonds and slipped it on her finger. “Because you are my eternity.”

She blinked her teary eyes and put her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. “I love it—I love you.”

“I love you, too, elska. So damn much,” he murmured, kissing her. He picked her up and dematerialized them to their bedroom. Dusk crept into the room, lengthening the gloom. With his mind, he willed on the soft sconce wall lights and set her on her feet. And cocked an eyebrow. “So, about this bow Darci mentioned. Where is it?”

She bit her lip, a streak of red brightening her gorgeous face.

“Wait here.” She pivoted and sprinted for the dressing room.

Anticipation stirring, he wandered to the window and watched the snowflakes flutter to the ground. Minutes passed…

Then soft footsteps sounded, followed by a deep inhale of breath as if composing herself.

Týr turned and nearly swallowed his tongue.

Kira stood in the doorway of the backlit dressing room, naked, a white bow holding up her curly, auburn locks in a ponytail.

She waved her hand over herself, her ring glinting in the soft light. “Here it is.”

Blood thundered in his ears as he prowled over. Desire rushed down his body, settling in his groin. He scooped her up and pressed his mouth to hers in a heated kiss.

You win, elska, he mind-linked with her. As far as gifts go, nothing beats this.

Her laughter echoed in his head, the sound filling his heart. He only let her mouth go when he set her on the bed.

This female.

Yeah, he’d go to Hell for her again…

“I heard that.” She sat up, her expression tender, her eyes glowing like gemstones. “My sire lives in Stygia, not Hell.”

He shrugged, didn’t care for specifics.

A playful smirk curved her mouth. “And yup, score to me!”

He snorted and sat on the bed to remove his boots. Her expression sobered as she stroked back the hunk of hair falling to his brow. “I couldn’t do your birthday as I wanted back in summer because, well, you know, with Nik and Shadow and everything that happened.”

“I know.” He kissed her jaw, sliding his mouth back to hers, dragging her thoughts away from that dark, painful period of losing Nik, and she sighed.

“Since it’s my birthday…” His gaze lifted to her head. “It’s time to unwrap my present.”

“Unwrap, what?” She rolled her eyes, waving a hand over her naked, seductive curves that had his body winding tight, his cock gone rock-hard with need.

Still, he took his time untying the bow from her mane, and her curls fell to her shoulders in a silky cascade. “Now you’re naked.”

She laughed, wrapped his long hair in her fist, and kissed him. “Happy birthday, my love.”

And it was.

He pushed her back onto the mattress and didn’t care he didn’t know the exact date or month he took his first breath, but his mate, so human in her outlook on life, made every new day something to look forward to. He couldn’t wait for whatever or wherever life took them as long as he had her with him.

 

 

THE END…for now.

© Georgia Lyn Hunter