Enjoy! :)

Chapter 6

"Bo, you're pacing. Again." Kenzi's tone had grown more and more agitated over the last few days, but Bo couldn't help it. She was slowly going nuts.

"I know, I know", she whined, throwing herself on the sofa next to her friend, who was playing some weird videogame involving robot hookers, apparently. Bo couldn't understand, how her friend could be so calm all the time.

She doesn't have a mate she's missing, Bo's succubus offered. To an outsider, the comment might've sounded like it was meant to be helpful, but Bo knew that her inner beast was just taunting her.

Thanks for the insight, she snarled. Man, I need to get laid.

Tell me about it.

Bo snorted, smiling at the statement. She'd made great progress over the last weeks and was now able to communicate with her succubus whenever she wanted to. That didn't help her frustration though. She missed Lauren so much it hurt, and to say she was horny would've been the understatement of the century. She craved the blonde. The only good thing was that she wasn't in desperate need of a feed, like she used to be in her previous life. Ali had kept true to his word and let her feed off him whenever necessary.

She'd even fed from Kenzi once, who, after watching the magical exchange between her two friends so many times, had eventually given in to her ever-growing curiosity and asked Bo to feed off her… for science, as she'd put it. So that Bo could practise on another human.

About a week ago, they'd met up in one of the Reader's many apartments and conducted the ultimate test – under Ali's strict supervision, of course. To their delight – especially Kenzi's – everything had gone smoothly.

"Damn, Bo-Bo", the young woman had exclaimed after waking up from her hormone-induced high. "No wonder people flock to you like moths to a flame. That was some good shit."

Bo had to laugh. Kenzi really did her best to distract her from heavy thoughts about the doctor. She kept her on her toes and cheered her on, whenever she had a breakthrough with her inner succubus.

But the more time passed, the more Bo noticed that the effectiveness of her feeds from Ali was slowly decreasing. And after communicating with her succubus, both he and Bo were sure that soon, his chi wasn't going to cut it anymore. Bo instinctively knew that she needed Lauren.

Which was why, a few days ago, Ali had finally cleared her for a real-world test drive. The brunette had been over the moon at the prospect, but of course, the situation wasn't as easy as simply showing up at Lauren's doorstep. Firstly, because at this point, Bo was one of the most wanted fae imaginable, and secondly, because the doctor was ward of the Ash – which, according to Ali, basically meant that she was under constant observation by her controlling asshat of a boss. The thought made Bo sick to her stomach and the urge to go see her as soon as possible even more intense.

And while Ali had assured Bo that he'd make it happen, he'd also mentioned it would take some time. Once again, Bo's patience was tested, which unnerved her, and, consequently, Kenzi as well. It felt like forever ago since he'd promised to set up a meeting, and they hadn't heard from him since.

Jumping back up from the sofa, she started pacing again. Kenzi paused her game, about to snarl at her once more, when her phone went off. Bo practically launched herself at her friend. "Is it Ali? Please tell me it's Ali!"

Kenzi rolled her eyes and checked her messages. Observing the screen, she breathed a sigh of relief. "It's Ali."

Bo threw her hands in the air. "Yes!", she exclaimed. "So, where do I go? What do I do? Do I have to pack? Get on a plane? God, just tell me."

Kenzi snorted. "Okay, first of all, you need to chill out, horndog. He says, we should meet him tonight at nine, which is…" She checked the clock. "… five hours from now." She paused, observing Bo, whose breathing had sped up to about ninety miles an hour. "And he also says you should buy me dinner."

Bo exhaled in an amused puff, lifted an eyebrow and put her hands on her hips.

"Okay, that last part may or may not have been made up. But all your pacing, plus saving the world from robot hookers over and over and over again has made me real hungry. Please?", she drawled, batting her eyelashes.

The brunette knew, what her bestie was doing, of course – she was trying to keep Bo's mind off waiting in order to ease her pain. Well, that, and she was probably hungry. Again. Bo was still amazed by the amounts of food this tiny little person could devour in a single day.

She re-joined her on the sofa and sat down, her breathing somewhat calmed. "Thank you", she said, wrapping Kenzi in a bear hug. "Thank you for doing all this for me."

"You're welcome", the younger woman replied softly.

They left the house and went to a pub, where they intended to spend the remaining hours. The food was great, and the place was situated somewhat off the grid, so that Bo wouldn't accidentally run into any fae. Ali had provided them with a whole list of restaurants, pubs and diners to visit while they were in hiding, and he'd also advised them never to visit the same place twice. In large parts, it was thanks to him that the Ash's hounds had still not managed to sniff her out. Having him on their side definitely came in handy, and Bo had sworn an oath to all gods who would listen, that she would somehow repay him as soon as all this was over.

Which it would be. Soon. Bo had a plan, but first, she had to talk to Lauren… after they were done with the more pressing issues, of course.

She let out a low involuntary growl, thinking of everything she planned on doing to the doctor later tonight. The mere memory of Lauren's touch made her weak in the knees, and she couldn't wait for nine o' clock to come. Dreamily staring into space, she stole a French fry from Kenzi's plate and sighed.

"Hey, what's with the thieving?", the young woman complained, protectively covering her plate. "Get your own food."

"I'm not hungry… not really", Bo added, catching Kenzi's raised eyebrows. "I'm so nervous about seeing her again. What if she's realised by now that she doesn't love me after all? I mean, she's a scientist, and I'm not, and even I think this whole love at first sight thing is kind of ridiculous. And don't even get me started on this weird mating… stuff." She shot her friend a fearful look, panic rising inside her, as another familiar worry re-entered her mind. "What if I can't control myself around her after all, or… or my succubus suddenly decides to stop talking to me?"

Kenzi staidly put her burger down, wiped her fingers on a napkin, got up, and took a seat next to Bo. "You know this is all in your head, don't you?", she asked gently squeezing her friend's hands. "You heard what Ali said – you and the doc are connected. And you can control yourself. You've proved it twice already. And as for your succubus – remember, she wants to see Lauren just as much as you do. She's the one who mated with her, for crying out loud." She interrupted herself and looked into Bo's fearful eyes. "Come here." She pulled her into a hug and held her for a while.

The young woman loved her friend, truly. But if she was really honest, she was almost as anxious about tonight as Bo was. It wasn't just that the brunette had been a right pain in the arse over the last weeks, what with all the yearning and pining over her hot doctor – Kenzi couldn't wait for Bo to get back to her regular badass self. But what was much worse was that she was really worried about her bestie. And Lauren. And herself.

Ever since finding out that Ali was fae, Kenzi had thoroughly interviewed him about his kind and found out just how dangerous they could be when feeling threatened. He'd told her they didn't shy away from torture and even murder, no matter if fae or human, and that genuinely scared her. After all, there wasn't much she could do when faced with even one of these super-beings, and Bo and Ali couldn't be around all the time to protect her.

Besides herself though, she was also worried for Lauren. Of course, she didn't really know her yet, but she did know that the doc was everything to Bo, and that was all that mattered, really. Because to Kenzi, Bo was everything – a steadying anchor in her troubled life. Even though she'd only just found the succubus, she loved her like a long-lost sister, and she couldn't bear the thought of losing her now.

They let go of each other and spent the rest of the time talking about happier things, such as making fun of the detectives, who, in spite of their superpowers, still hadn't managed to catch the elusive succubus and her human sidekick. It took both their minds off their nervousness, and eventually, Bo even ordered something small to eat. She figured it was bad enough that her succubus' hunger for the blonde had reached previously unknown spheres, and she could certainly do without her stomach growling the entire time she was with her.

At nine o' clock sharp, Kenzi's phone buzzed with a message, giving her an address not far from the pub. Ali was there, waiting for them when they arrived. As always, they went with their routine of not speaking a word until he said it was okay. Bo wasn't sure if all the secrecy and precautions were really necessary, but she knew better than to question her new friend. She was still a rookie in the fae world after all, while he knew their kind better than most of them probably knew themselves.

Plus, if only half of what he'd told her about his crazy family was true, he was definitely better off without them. Besides, he was her only connection to Lauren and had helped her and Kenzi stay off the grid for all this time. She quite simply owed him big-time.

They drove for a few minutes, until they reached a fancy-looking building that was situated next to a beautiful park. "She's waiting for you upstairs", Ali finally said when he'd parked the car. "Top floor, apartment 10." He handed her a key.

"Waiting for me?", Bo echoed, surprised. "How did you even…?", she started, but he cut her off with a gesture.

"She'll explain everything. Now, don't waste any more time and go be with her. But don't forget to do some talking, too, okay?" Kenzi snorted, which he acknowledged with a cheeky grin. "You have all night and the morning, so there should be plenty of time for you to feed all you need."

Suddenly, Bo felt her eyes well up with tears. It was only now that it truly dawned on her that she was finally about to see Lauren again. The strain of the last few weeks faded away, and she felt like a huge burden had been lifted off her shoulders. Bo didn't know what to say to express her gratitude, so she wrapped Ali in a fierce hug, holding him close for a long time, until she trusted her voice to function again.

"Thank you", she whispered. "I don't know how I'm ever supposed to repay you for all you've done for me, but if there's anything… well, you know."

He smiled warmly. "I know. And it was my pleasure." It was the truth. Bo might not know it, but he was thankful that he'd met her. For one, because she was the reason he could finally tell Kenzi the whole truth about himself – he'd never enjoyed lying to his friend about his nature, but deemed it necessary for her own safety. Secondly, he could honestly say that he'd never had this much fun in his life. He'd thoroughly enjoyed teaching Bo about her succubus, and at the same time, learned so much about her species from his feeds off her. There could never be a deeper satisfaction for a Reader than knowing every single detail about a person, and Bo had been willing to share absolutely everything with him. In all honesty, he found he was way more indebted to her than vice versa.

After at least two solid minutes of hugging time, Bo finally let him go and took a deep breath. Then, she waved at her friends and headed for the building.

"Wow", she breathed to herself when she entered the lobby. The décor was old-fashioned and brand-new at the same time, as if the building was ancient, but had recently been renovated. She headed for the elevator and pressed the number 7 for the top floor. Her heart was racing, and the butterflies in her stomach were on a rampage, but she was no longer scared. She could sense Lauren nearby, which meant she felt her emotions as well.

Relief. Happiness. Love.

Exiting the elevator, she entered a lovely hallway that matched the lobby. The lighting was subtle, and there were plants in the corners and pictures on the walls. Bo stepped to the door labelled with the number 10 and inserted the key.

Swallowing, she carefully let it swing open and was greeted with the most beautiful view.

Little teaser for you. See you soon!