This is a collection of bonus scenes I've written over the years. Some are part of later books in the series. Some short stories are simply 'What If' scenarios. Some moments are scenes that happen off-the-page if you will.
I thought that I'd share...
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I entered the Battaglis' enormous mansion, enjoying how much cooler it was inside than out under the hot summer sun. I padded silently down hallways, through arched entranceways that led to quiet sitting rooms, and across the tiled floors or blue-patterned mosaics. The setup in the mansion was similar to all the Houses with the extended family living under the same roof. I kept to the places where we as guests could roam and unspooled my senses, searching systematically through the house for linen cupboards, coat and utility closets. That sort of thing.
Fifteen minutes later, I'd found them.
Ah-huh!
My parents were always disappearing into the closets of other people's houses. My mom said that how someone kept order within their closet said a lot about a person. Since she'd once been a servant it made her an authority on the subject, and I guess it made some kind of sense.
So it had become my parents' thing that they investigated closets together whenever they headed off to House Gatherings. My dad accompanied Mom, because, in his words—He needed to keep her out of trouble. I actually thought it was the other way around, but whatever-the-fuck.
Leaning a shoulder against the door frame, I rapped my knuckles on the coat closet door—knock, knock, knock.
Silence greeted me.
I rolled my eyes. "I know you're in there."
Annoyance still festered in my blood that everyone had forgotten about my birthday. And that included my mom who had given birth to me for fucks' sake. I banged louder with a fist and the ruckus accompanied my whisper-shouting of, "MOM! DAD!"
From behind the door came a startled squawk and an abrupt sound of clattering metal. Suddenly the door was flung open. My mother's cheeks were flushed pink as she quickly smoothed back the blond flyaways come free from her elegant hairstyle, before fussing with the undone top buttons of her blouse while saying, "And so, that's why someone needs an extra set of shelving to store all the additional winter coats in a closet."
My father pursed his lips and made an impressed, "Ooooh," sound as he nimbly fixed up his wayward tie, and then brushed his fingers through his disheveled black hair. When he swung his gaze forward and realized it was me, he clapped a hand to his chest as he burst into a grin and bugged his eyes. Buckling his knees slightly, he blew out a breath of relief. "Fuck, I thought—"
"Varen!" my mom yelled, stamping a furious foot. She turned a glare on him and pointed an angry finger at his face. "I swear it's almost like you want to be scolded."
His nostrils flared with excitement. "You are so fucking hot when you get all fired up with your prim manners." He pounced on her and she let out a shriek of fright as they tumbled backward, disappearing behind a curtain of fur coats. Behind the swinging coats, all I could hear was a rattle of hangers and wet-smacking-kissing sounds.
