Bonus Chapter

▪︎ Ariana's POV ▪︎

I was laughing so hard.

Rachel—whose almost three years old now—had bound Daniel's hair in cute colourful ponytails and he looks so damn hilarious.

"Dada, you wook wevy pwetty!" Our daughter squeals in her barely understandable language raining sloppy kisses all over Daniel's face and pulls at his cheeks almost brutally.

When Rachel was born two-and-a-half years ago, I and Daniel fell in love with her the first time we laid our eyes on the little bundle. She has my turquoise eyes and Daniel's midnight hair. Even though she can barely form proper sentences, she's a chatterbox. Like she talks a lot. And she also loves to show her affections to her Mama and Dada with her hugs and clinginess.

The fact that Daniel is amused himself is even more funnier than the flabbergasted look he passes Rach as she yells out for everyone to come look at her 'bootifool and pwetty' Dada.

I keep giggling at the whole ordeal and Daniel quickly snaps his attention my way with an accusing gaze although there's a certain softness to them.

'You put the idea in her head.' He says through our mind-link indicating about how I suggested Rach that her Dada would look prettier than her Mama with the ponytails.

'You look wevy pwetty though.' I shot back imitating Rach's voice. Daniel bites back a smile at the googly eyes I throw his way.

'He does look nice.' Selene, my wolf, laughed along before retreating into the back of my mind.

She started appearing back slowly by slowly in the last few years since I and Daniel mated. She still talks less and it's mostly about Carlos, Daniel's wolf, but she does talk.

I can hear her voice and it makes me so happy. These days, she lets me shift as well.

I'm bought back to the present when I feel a soft kiss on my forehead.

I glance up at Daniel who's gazing down at me lovingly as Rachel runs out the room with her short legs and floppy steps, shutting the door behind her to gather Cami and lords know who.

"What was that for?" I ask with a smile.

He pouts at that, "Can't I kiss my wife without a reason?"

"Sure you can." I roll my eyes at him and get up from the bed where Rach, him and I were sprawled on seconds ago.

Not even half a step ahead towards the door to get the little jumpy girl, I'm pulled back by a warm hand grasping my wrist. With a single tug, I go tumbling backwards and on top of Daniel who's laying on the bed on his back.

My hands flatten on his hard chest and his arms go around my waist as he lazily grins at me, "So, wifey. Let's go out tonight? Just you and me."

"What about Rachel?" I quirk a brow at him smiling myself.

"I could invite Anthony here so she can tie ponytails on his head? And we can go then?" He suggests.

I wound my arms around his neck, "That'd be fun if Anthony is free. He has a kingdom to run, doesn't he?"

Daniel pouts again,"Would you like for me to run a kingdom as well?"

"No, I want you all for myself. Women already fumble around you enough even after knowing you're married and have a daughter." I grumble remembering just how yesterday a beautiful courtier lady threw herself on Daniel in front of me.

Daniel chuckles tightening his hold around me, "Jealous, are we?" His lips morphs into a cocky grin.

"Never." I lie, narrowing my eyes at him.

I try to wiggle out of his arms but he just tightens them and flips us around with him now on top of me.

Stormy blue eyes stare into mine, "Sad for them, my eyes are set on this woman in front of me." He twirls a strand of my chestnut hair around his finger, "She seems to have captured my soul. Might be sorcery since I can't really free my poor heart out of her clutches."

I bite back a cheeky grin, "Carlos is right. You're hopelessly cheesy."

"Since when did you and Carlos started having heart-to-heart?"

My eyebrows raise a fraction and my lips twists into mirth, "Selene tells me what Carlos tells her. Wanna know what else he said?"

The look on his face is of utter betrayal which—I'm sure—is directed towards his wolf.

I smirk the same smirk he gives me all the time, "When we were in the courtroom and Walker was just being polite to me, you wanted to snap his—"

Warm, soft lips clamps over mine cutting my words mid-way. Daniel pins my arms next to my head with one of his arms while the other trails down my neck to my chest and down my dress sneaking in. . .

"Danny!" I squeak pushing his hands of off me as my cheeks heat up furiously.

I don't think I can ever stop turning into a blushing tomato when it comes to Daniel. No matter how many times we become intimate. No matter how many times he keeps me up all night doing the unholiest of things to my body or makes me scream out his name because of that devilish mouth. . . .

I shake my head warding off any wayward thought and fix Daniel with a stern look, "Rach will show up any moment with Cami."

"Should I lock the door then? So that we could do what we want to?" He quips his head at the door suggestively, that mischievousness playing within his eyes.

"Danny!" My face turns more redder if it's even possible but I still manage to glare up at him.

Daniel laughs at the look on my face and I could swear I looked like a flustered clown then.

His laughter dies at the murderous intent on my face and he gets up with me hoisted in his arms.

"Put me down." I grumble shaking my legs like a swing in his arms.

"Nope. Not until you're smiling again." He says and just when I'm about to smack him to put me down, he twirls us around.

I squeak clinging to him as if my life depends on it as he goes round and round laughing at my terror.

I find myself laughing along half-way through the twirling around the room as I wound my arms firmly around his neck.

We both end up laughing like silly idiots turning around in circles in the room when Rach jolts into the room with Cami behind her.

"Babies." Cami rolls her eyes spotting me and Daniel while Rach stares up at Cam with googly eyes looking between herself and us, probably thinking who her cousin is calling a baby.

Rach is a bit slow at grasping things probably because my baby is still so little.

"Mama Dada wis waby?" She asks Cam very attentively.

"Yeah, smaller than me, Rach." Cam nods in eagerly.

"Maller?" She has that shocked look on her face as she accesses me in Daniel's arms and then him, "Dada wevy wig tho."

"No, he's the smallest." Cami reprimands.

"Mallest?" She looks shocked again as she looks back at us.

I and Daniel share a dumbfounded look before he smartly puts me down so that the little sweetheart doesn't loose more of her brains thinking how her 'wig' Dada is 'mallest'.

"I'm the biggest." Daniel huffs.

"Dada wiggest!" Rach nods and runs upto him.

He gathers her in his arms and lifts her up and down in the air making her burst into a fit of giggles. Cami too runs upto him laughing as he tickles the little girls.

I smile fondly at them.

At Cami. At Daniel. At Rachel.

At my little family.

My heart warms at the sight of them and then suddenly there's that crazy tug in my entire being that sends my mind reeling for a moment.

It's a giddy feeling I've been getting occasionally ever since Daniel and I mated. It keeps coming once in a while and at those times, I feel those undescribable sparks from Daniel's touches and the love seeping so strong through our bond.

I had once asked Claire what it meant—the sudden jolt of giddiness, I mean— since she might know as she's an ancient witch. But she had simply looked at the carving on my wrist that appeared only when a witch held my hand resembling a half eagle face and then mentioned that Daniel and Evan were the same sought of idiots.

Which I didn't get, ofcourse.

But I remember how Daniel mentioned about Elina being Evan's mate and how the vampire lord didn't realise until late because of how the bond was so weak. With Daniel, he had lost both of his soul mate and moon goddess destined mate. His bond would've become even more weaker and that's probably the reason why. . .

Daniel seems to see my stumbling steps as he turns to me with worry marring his expression.

Moon goddess knows how much I love him.

And it is then I realise what it means.

"Are you oka—"

"I love you." I beam out of nowhere.

Cami gives me a confused look before pulling Rachel along with her outside the room as Daniel sets them both down.

"Ari, you are. . ." Daniel looks awestrucked when he turns to me completely, "glowing."

"I love you!" I run into his open arms and snuggle closer to his warmth.

"Love you more." He caresses my hair crushing me in his embrace.

"That strong giddy feeling. I know why I feel that way once in a while." I mumble against his chest as joy seeps through my entire being.

Daniel's gaze is knowing as he inches back a bit to peer into my eyes, "You do?"

I nod vehemently.

The smile he gives me is so bright. So lovely. That I could cherish it for my entire life. And the next one too.

"You knew, didn't you?" I ask, a smile of my own pulling at my lips.

"Long before." He confesses honestly, the light in his eyes brightening.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I'm too happy to even be upset at this point.

"I didn't want to dump the bond on you. I thought it'd be best if you figured out yourself. It wouldn't have mattered even if you didn't. I'll always love you—soul mates or not."

"Soul Mate." I test the words on my tongue gleefully, "This is amazing!"

"So are you, sweetheart." He puts his arms around me again kissing the crown of my head affectionately.

"How's it possible though? I thought there were only second chance mates, not soul mates. Isn't it a one time thing?" I tilt my head quizzically to the side.

He nudges his nose with mine making me smile, "I asked Lisa. She said it was possible that the bond let me choose my mate since it failed twice. And when I marked you, the bond clicked to place. Remember when I said I'd always choose you?" He asks very proudly.

I look at him with nervousness, "So no second chance mate by the moongoddess?"

"Nope. I marked and mated with you. The other bonds just nullified since then. I'm bound to you for eternity, my love." He holds my face tenderly in his warm palm.

"So am I."

My smile is intact as he leans down to kiss me.

I love him so much. And yeah, I love that piece of him and me too, our little daughter.

Our Rachel.

The first born vampire/werewolf hybrid to ever exist.

Bourne by two hybrid parents.

Who love her with all they have.

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A bonus chapter of Daniel and Ari with their daughter!

Hope you liked it :)