Page 59 of Make Me Bee-lieve

Polina comes up beside me and clasps my arm gently. “Not fae,” she whispers. “Just bees going to work.”

When I look down at her, I notice the unshed tears in her eyes. Months ago, she made the painful decision to leave her life as the Sugardove Hive’s princess behind. There would be no more kingdom. She would not become anyone’s queen. Well, besides mine, of course.

“Are Bea and Sylvie coming?” I ask.

Polina lifts her shoulder in a shrug. “I don’t know. I called them, but they said they were pretty busy with things today. With Kyle and the others.”

My stomach twists. I know how badly Polina wanted her knights to understand her position. How much it meant to her to finally choose her own path in life. Ser Beatrix was loyal to the crown, though, and her entire life was in service to it. Now, she was living a life with her lover, Sylvie, but was she happy? The taciturn woman rarely ever let anyone know what she was thinking, let alone feeling. I know how much it stings for Polina, disappointing her like that.

Sylvie, on the other hand, was elated at the prospect of being able to stay in the human world with us. And I was right about Bea wanting to do anything in her power to make her girlfriend happy. She didn’t put up much of a fight in the end, and the two decided to stay in the free apartment Maurice provided them.

Polina looks up at me with a mixture of sorrow and relief. Our feelings lately have been … complicated, to say the least. But at least things are going well enough. I got a pay raise at work, and they didn’t seem to mind that I went missing for a few days. In fact, during my absence, they realized just how badly they needed me. When I got back to work, I felt like a hero when I put out several fires.

The sound of a car door slamming shut catches our attention, and Maurice steps out of the white van with a big smile. Kyle hops out of the front passenger seat and slides open the back door so Bea and Sylvie can climb out.

Polina runs ahead to meet them at the gate. “I thought you weren’t coming!” she yells.

Sylvie lets out a high-pitched squeal as the two embrace. “Yeah, right. Like I’d miss out on free food!”

Bea meets my gaze from across the parking lot and nods. I nod back with a tight smile. Whatever’s going on with her, I’m sure it’ll work itself out. Because despite the hardships we’ve all faced—and there were many—we got through them together.

As a family. And no matter what comes next, we’ll get through that, too.

The End