After facing demons and murderers, their greatest task is in front of them—meeting the in-laws.

With her binding to her partners, Benny feels safe and settled. She wants to start her career in the XIA and make a place in that organization. The past rears up and has other ideas.

The binding has its own issues. Their group has to meet and greet each family they are attached to and try to gain approval for their union. A different technique is required for each species, and they have to be ready for anything.

True love might win the day, but politics is a pain in the butt.

Excerpt:

Benny laughed as they staggered into the dower house, leaving her parents the big house for the evening. Benny and Argyle supported Smith, who was distinctly limping from his fall while eluding a handsy gargoyle.

He kept muttering. “She tried to take off with me.”

Benny was still giggling, though it wasn’t helping. “You are just too adorable for words and probably the only one she felt she could subdue without calling attention to the struggle.”

His black look was answer enough. The other two stayed wisely silent, but Benny could see them grinning at each other.

The party had been a riot. Everyone had enjoyed themselves, and her parents were on their way to their house for an anniversary all alone.

Dawn was staining the sky, and the dower house closed the drapes as Argyle made his way into the kitchen.

He looked at her with suspicion. “Benny, was that you?”

“Nope. It’s the house. It is structured for us now, and while the arrangement may be a little odd, we should be able to make it work.” They hadn’t been with her when she examined the new setup that the house had made with their specific union in mind.

He looked around. “Is Jessamine here?”

“Not quite yet, though I imagine she is holed up in her resting box. What my parents are engaging in, no one needs to witness.”

Smith grumbled. “Where can I put my foot up?”

“Up the stairs. When you find the bedroom, you will know it. I will make a poultice for that ankle.”

Tremble helped Smith up the stairs, and Benny got to work.

Argyle seemed content to keep her company.

“I didn’t know you could make a poultice without a lab.”

She grinned and got her mortar and pestle. “Folks have been grinding up herbs for healing purposes since they could mash any leaf with antiseptic properties with a rock.”

He smiled. “My mom did that while I was growing up. Every bruise, bump and cut got the same treatment.”

“How old were you when you were given your vampirism?”

As she spoke, she flicked through the counter herbs and found the ones she needed. She plucked a few medicinal herbs and then bulked the rest of the mortar out with parsley.

“I was twenty-six. Parsley?”

“Sure. It improves just about everything.” She winked and started to grind the leaves together. “I will actually use magic to make this more effective, but Smith needs to learn to be lighter on his feet, and a few minutes of pain is a good teacher.”

“Shifters heal quickly.” He watched her work at the process of making the equivalent of an herbal pressure pack.

“Yes, and magic heals even faster. If he was able to tap into his demon side, he wouldn’t have even had to hop away from the party.”

“Truly?”

She looked at him and winked. “Yup. But, as he manifests as an incubus, the rest of my night would be shot.”