Mab came to me in the darkest and coldest hour of the night and I knew right away there was trouble inbound. She wore a nightgown of opalescent silk that fell to her thighs and clung to her figure, effectively hinting at what lay beneath without giving anything away.

I'd only had a few weeks of recovery from my last job, and the endless months spent on Demonreach prior to that had left my sleep pattern in shambles.

There hadn't been time to let things even out yet, so here I was in bed with a book in my lap in a room illuminated by candlelight. It was actually pretty cozy and like all good things, particularly in Faerie, it didn't last.

"I have need of your services, my knight," Mab murmured, her voice sliding across my bare chest like velvet.

In a calm and collected manner, I eyed the Queen of Air and Darkness, bidding her to continue. Really, that's what I did. If someone claims I pulled the covers up to my chin like a nervous teenager they're lying. Lying, I tell you!

Mab's lips quirked into a little smile and she slid up onto the bed. When it became clear she was content to annoy me, I sighed, lay the book down and scowled at her.

"What services, specifically?" I asked.

"Peace talks," Mab clarified, helpfully. "War is coming. Soon it will be at our gates and when it is, we cannot afford enemies threatening us elsewhere."

I winced. "Yeah… Fighting on two fronts never really works out historically."

"It does not," Mab agreed. "To that end, we need to make peace with Summer."

"Peace. With Titania." I rubbed at my face. "And you want me to do what, exactly?"

Mab flowed along the bed, as smoothly as the silk she was garbed in, and up onto my lap. Her deep eerily green cat eyes were full of desire and I refused to look away. Direct eye contact is intimate and generally a challenge, in one of many ways. Looking away is a sign of submission.

I might work for Mab and I might not have a lot of choice in the matter, but I was not going to bend over backwards for her. Not now, not ever.

She put her hand on my chest. There wasn't any pressure, but I think she wanted me to lean down onto the matrass. So I stayed right where I was. Because fuck Mab and whatever she might happen to want.

My plan worked brilliantly for about five seconds. Then Mab applied a little bit of force and pushed me slowly but inevitably towards the many fluffy pillows that littered the absurdly comfortable bed.

I didn't have much in the way of options. There was no opposing Mab directly, any more than I could stand in front of a glacier and hold it in place. But I wasn't about to take that laying down – except in the literal sense.

I changed tactics. Instead of attempting to overcome her unimaginable power by main strength, I put my hands on either side of her spread legs, running them upwards until I heard her draw a sighing breath. Then I stopped. She peered down at me and stopped pushing.

Promptly, I began to move again. The fabric of the silken gown felt as starch as burlap in comparison to Mab's skin.

Mab began to push me down again – and again, I stopped. Annoyance flashed across her features for a split second, but was soon replaced with a satisfied little smirk.

"You are learning well, my knight," she purred as my hands went up her inner thighs. Her gown pooled at their top, maintaining modesty by such an absurdly slim margin that it could only be by design, and I initially set for lifting it.

She moved her hips a little, pressing down against my growing excitement in a moment of heavenly friction, with nothing but the covers between us, and moving ever so slightly towards my hands… And at that telling sign, I immediately redirected my attentions.

Instead of delving in between her thighs as both she and my libido were clearly angling for, I instead went up and rested my hands on her hips.

It barely took Mab a second to recover and return her focus to the matter at hand, but it was enough for me to notice it. One point to team Dresden. I might be 100-1 down, but at least I was scoring.

"Your task," Mab said in a low smoky voice, "Is to facilitate this meeting. My sister and I have not spoken for millennia, and with good reason. You will act as a mediator, and you will be in charge of the meeting and entrusted with the peace effort."

Hells bells. That was a huge responsibility and, from a certain point of view that wasn't mine, a great honor.

"And you think bringing me along is going to smooth things out?" I asked, incredulous. "Titania hates me. I killed her daughter."

"And yet you live. No other man can boast such an accomplishment."

I was so dead. The last guy who'd gotten between Mab and Titania was a Sidhe Lord named Oberon and suffice to say, he had not lived. I wasn't eloquent enough an English speaker to fully explain the extent to which I was fucked.

"And your sister agreed to this?" I asked. "Is she going to bring someone, too?"

I shuddered at the thought of having to meet Fix. Poor guy. It had been a while since Demonreach, but from what I'd heard, he was still having problems adjusting to his new boss.

"It will only be you, I and my sister."

I frowned at that.

"Seems like a bad idea for her to be along with the both of us. She'd be at a disadvantage."

Mab smiled and ruffled my hair in a fond gesture. It creeped me out. A lot.

"Were an ant to side with your enemy in combat, the difference would be

negligible," she said. "But to put us all at ease, a pact of non-aggression for the duration of the meeting has been agreed upon. Additionally, you are bound to silence regarding anything that happens during this meeting."

Oh. Well, that was good. It meant I might, and I stress that might a lot, survive. I didn't even have to kill anyone, risk my life or that of my friends. Maybe I'm getting paranoid and cynical, but I immediately began to look for landmines.

"So we're going to have a talk somewhere, just the three of us, to make peace. We're all sworn to this pact of non-aggression, including me. Is that correct?"

"An accurate summary," Mab agreed.

I shrugged. "When are we going?"

"Immediately, my knight."

She slipped out of my lap. My lap missed her, but I did not.

"Get dressed."

You don't ever win against creatures like Mab, but as I said before, you can always even out the score a little.

Mab stood still as a statue, waiting patiently. For now. Making her impatient was probably a bad idea and I wasn't going to ask her to leave, or turn around. So I threw the covers off and casually strode over to my wardrobe without a stitch on. It was cold, but I was more than used to it by now, and having Mab get cozy in your lap isn't the kind of thing a man gets over in a hurry.

I was still hard. Painfully so, in fact, and Mab's gaze tracked me like cat who has spotted something it wants and might pounce on it at any moment. I ignored her and got dressed.

Now, I'm no expert in fashion, but I was pretty sure a meeting with Titania meant dressing up. Which is why I went with hiking boots, jeans and a t-shirt, finishing the look off with my leather duster.

Mab didn't offer any reaction to my ensemble, which I took to mean she wasn't satisfied. Goodie. By the time I was done, the Faerie Queen stood at my side. She opened the wardrobe I'd just closed to reveal not my clothes, but a portal.

I threw a glance sideways to her. "If we end up in Narnia, I quit."

We arrived outside the Hotel Sofitel Casablanca Tour Blanche in the middle of a sparse crowd that didn't seem to notice us. It was a tall rectangular building of a color stuck somewhere between gray and white. I immediately regretted the leather duster and knew I would until the moment we left, or until something took a swing at me.

It was early evening, but it was also the north-western coast of Africa and hot as hell. I stepped closer to Mab, purely because the air around her tended to be cooler. No, really. And the long slow breath I took through my nose was just to take in the scents of the city and not her perfume.

We stepped through the glass doors at the building entrance and into the hotel's lobby. The room overhead and the walls were all made of glass, set in a steel framework.

People stepped aside in the path of our progress. Mab's clothes had transformed from the gown she'd worn earlier to a discreet pantsuit of charcoal gray. She'd put on sunglasses too, rather than do anything about her eyes.

"Somerset," she said crisply when we'd made our way to the counter where a middle-aged man with thinning hair and an expensive suit sat waiting. He checked some things on his computer, which I made sure to stay as far away from as I could while still being close enough to Mab to perform whatever knightly duties she might require of me.

It only took a few seconds before we'd received our key and off we went to the penthouse. For me, that meant a lot of stairs, while Mab ascended with dignity up the elevator. I've had a few bad experiences with elevators, okay?

If you'd been attacked by seven feet long mutant scorpion, you'd be iffy about the prospect too, I guarantee you.

I arrived on the top floor to find Mab waiting outside one of the rooms. I took my place at her side and knocked on the door before going in.

It was a gorgeous room, about four times the size of my old basement apartment, with expensive furniture and all the technological gizmos anyone could ever want. A large bathroom, with a frickin' Jacuzzi, a kingsize double bed in the bedroom…

I wasn't sure how I'd persuade Mab about it yet, but I wanted to give that Jacuzzi a try before we left.

Titania, the Queen of Life and Light awaited us on the living room sofa, staring out the window and the fantastic view it offered of the city's nightlife. I wasn't really able to appreciate that view because of the literal goddess in front of me.

Titania wore a long green dress that left her arms and shoulders bare. She and Mab were identical twins, they had to be and at first glance, you wouldn't have been able to tell them apart at all, if they hadn't been wearing different outfits.

But though they looked so much alike, I knew that they very different creatures, and it was obvious enough that I could feel it without even reaching out with my magical senses. Titania was warmth and life, and not just in the literal sense. Mab, on the other hand, was a bringer of death and destruction, though fortunately one pointed towards our enemies.

Mab closed the door behind us and remained there, inhumanly still, eyes intent on her sister. I realized she expected me to –pardon the pun – break the ice.

"Queen Titania," I said as I strode forward. She rose from the couch and met me half-way. I tried not to think of how she'd almost torn me to pieces the last time we'd met, and then bowed over her hand and pressed a kissed to it.

"It is an honor to meet you again." I hesitated for a beat, then decided to take the risk. I wanted, no, needed to say something to Titania and now seemed like the best time since she couldn't respond by ripping my head off.

"I know it doesn't change anything and that it doesn't help or make anything better." I forced myself to meet her green alien eyes. "But I'm truly sorry about Aurora."

Titania blinked several times at that and her poker face cracked for a split second, and barely that, to show surprise and a deep hopeless sorrow. Then it reasserted itself and she gave me an oblique look.

"Your words are meaningless, but the thought is appreciated." She too hesitated a moment, then added. "Eldest Gruff sends his regards."

I bowed to her again, then took a step back. Titania didn't return the sentiment, but she nodded formally to me and then, with a heated glare to match that of her sister, to Mab.

I took a step away from the both of them out of pure instinct. Yikes. I had seen them with my Wizard's Sight once, two opposing elemental forces preparing to do battle and the sheer intensity of their power had been staggering.

That same clash was going on right now, even if it was more subtle and on a far smaller scale. As evident by the fact that the building was still standing. Any sensible kind of person would not put himself in between such forces… I guess I'm not a sensible person. I tried to strike up a tone of relaxed cheer.

"Soo… Would anyone like anything before we get started?" I asked, looking from one queen to the other. "A drink, or maybe something to eat? I'm sure this place has room service."

Hey, alcohol is a solution. Ask a chemist and they'll tell you.

I didn't wait for them to answer to go over and raid the liquor cabinet. I had to give the place credit, it was exceptionally well stocked. There was beer, but I really needed something stronger to get through this evening. There was a bottle of Jack Daniels and I grabbed the entire thing, twisted the cap off, and took a swig.

Mab eyed me, then her sister, then me again with a more strained expression and said:

"Is there any tequila?"

An hour later, the negotiations had barely gotten started. The entire bottle of tequila was gone, courtesy of Mab's and Titania's competitive view of drinking, though neither really seemed affected. I'm actually pretty sure that Faerie Queens can't get drunk, or that if they can, it'll take a lot more than it would a mortal.

I'd long since given up trying to keep pace with the two of them and enjoyed my light buzz of inebriation.

A pad of paper lay on the table in front of the sofa with a couple of sentences written, alternating between Mab's precise blocky script to Titania's flowing one. Several pages lay balled up on the table, in the sofa and on the floor.

The maneuvering had gotten so complicated at this point that I barely kept track of what they were discussing and had it not been for the pact of non-aggression, I was pretty sure it would've devolved to violence long ago.

Maybe the alcohol had warped my finely tuned investigator's instincts, but there was a certain amount of heat in their arguing that wasn't anger or irritation. I'd seen Mab in a fury, but never like this. Maybe it was the connection we shared through Winter, but through her I felt… Desire.

I looked from Mab to Titania and was struck with a sudden realization. Oh. Oh my. That was… Odd – and at the same time – it made so much sense.

I endured another fifteen minutes before shouting, exasperated.

"Oh for Christ's sake, just kiss already."

No sooner had the words left my lips than I realized what I'd done… And before I could actually do anything about it, the two Queens of Fairy met in a ravenous kiss.

I just stared. Seriously, can you blame me?

The kiss was almost feral in its intensity as feelings from what had to be the better part of a thousand years boiled over. Their bodies molded to one another's as they delved into complete abandon.

So… I was still in charge of keeping this meeting on course and apparently, as long as it furthered the agenda of peace, I'd remain in charge. I found myself grinning as I thought back on all the times Mab had twisted my arm. It was time to even out the tally.

"Dresden," Mab breathed, tearing free of the bruising kiss. "What is the meaning of this?"

Titania took advantage of her sister's preoccupation to take the offensive in the kiss.

"Hey, you left me in charge," I said. "I don't think we're going to get anything done here before you two get this out of your system… And like the man said, make love not war."

There really wasn't a better analogy than a battle for what was going on, either. Tongues lashed at one another, teeth nipped and hands conquered new territory with increasing ferocity.

Mab's eyes flashed with anger, but it wasn't like all the blame lay with me, either. The Sidhe are bound only to their word. They could've kissed one another on the cheek and still have fulfilled their part of the contract, and they hadn't. Just like they didn't have to stand with their bodies pressed together. They both wanted this. A lot.

"Titania. Would you take off Mab's jacket, please?"

The Queen of Summer clearly knew my game and though she didn't visibly smirk when she did as I'd bid her, it was all there in her eyes. She'd more or less side with me on this, I was sure of it, as long as it meant she'd get to demean Mab.

Mab's suit jacket hit the floor, leaving her in a crisp white shirt. Under which she didn't wear anything at all, judging by the outline of her nipples poking through the fabric. I licked my lips at the sight and had a sudden idea.

"You girls keep that up, I'll be right back."

That apparently wasn't going to be an issue. Mab bent forward at the waist, a truly amazing sight by the way, and grabbed hold of the hem of Titania's dress and then ripped it all the way to her upper thighs. She pulled the Summer Queen back into the kiss with renewed vigor. Her thigh slipped into the improvised slit in the fabric and Titania made a soft sound of pleasure at the contact, pressing closer.

I had to get room service to deliver the limes to go with the salt and second bottle of tequila I'd found in the room, but it only took a few minutes and judging by the way my two companions were going at it, I hadn't been missed.

I deposited the wares on the table and just soaked in the sight of them all but dry humping one another in the living room. Slowly, I felt the weight of the Faerie Queens' attention fall upon me.

"Come sit down on the couch," I told them firmly, but politely, keeping the intonation closer to a suggestion.

They did so, without breaking apart. The next step was going to be pushing my luck, but in for a penny...

"Let's lose that shirt. Then lay down."

Mab had only gotten the first button undone before Titania reached out and ripped the shirt open, scattering buttons all over the place. She trailed the palm of her hand across the exposed skin and up between Mab's breasts while her sister shrugged out of the tatters of the shirt.

She cast me a glance, and then pushed the Winter Queen down onto the couch where her snow white hair fanned out and made a lovely contrast to the rich brown leather.

I offered her the bottle of tequila and she took it.

Mab lay there, with anger and lust warring for dominance on her features, her gloriously firm breasts rising and falling in time with her eager breathing. I stared down at them for several long seconds, drinking in the perfection of her pale, almost luminous skin and the proud pink nipples standing at attention, begging to be lavished.

I wasn't in the state of mind where resisting such impulses seemed like a bad idea. I leaned over my Queen's chest and took the nipple between my lips, swirling my tongue around it and biting down gently with soft moan of pleasure from Mab as the result. I repeated the process, then sprinkled both nipples with a light dusting of salt.

Titania had already poured a shot of tequila in her sisters' belly button and was leaning over her body.

She took her time with the salt, drawing consecutively smaller circles on Mab's skin with her tongue before taking the stiff offered peak between into her mouth. Then, smirking, she descended, scattering kisses across pale skin and taut muscles. Some of the tequila spilled, but Titania clearly didn't mind, and meticulously cleaned off every drop before straightening and chomping down on the slice of lime.

As much fun as it was having Mab where she was at the moment, I didn't think she'd accept it for much longer.

"In the interest of balancing the scales," I said as diplomatically as I could, managing to keep my face straight by a minor miracle, "I think it's Mab's turn to have a bit to drink."

"I concur," Mab said smoothly. She rose and sidled up next to me as she considered her sister. Titania had gone as still as a statue, save for the quick and intriguing rise and fall of her chest.

"My Queen," I said quietly, and as calmly as I could. "Get rid of her dress."

"With pleasure."

She moved across the sofa with a liquid, almost serpentine grace towards Titania. I trailed a hand along her spine as she went by and Mab arched her back much like a cat might, leaning into the touch. I didn't dare to give her posterior a swat, so I settled for a squeeze and Mab responded with a hungry little sound.

Oh, and in case you're wondering. Best – ass – ever.

Once she'd reached her sister, Mab wasted no time. She grabbed Titania's dress at the rip she'd made earlier and tore the rest of it into two pieces, baring nothing but naked skin underneath.

"Would you pass me the bottle, Harry?" she asked, licking her lips as her eyes roamed.

"Of course," I told her and did. "You know, if your orders were more along these lines, we'd have a lot more fun on the job."

"Noted," Mab said and pushed Titania down onto her back on the sofa with an idle shove.

She poured a shot in her belly-button. Then she took a moment to stare down at the other Queen of Faerie along with me, drinking in her beauty, her obvious excitement, and the position she was in.

While Mab busied herself with the salt, leaned in between Titania's spread legs, I considered my next step. Titania lay there wondrously naked, but I'd best let Mab have her… For now.

I focused instead on Mab's posterior, wiggling a little in the air as she teased Titania, almost as if she was offering it up to me. Actually, to hell with it- I put my hand on her inner thigh and moved it slowly upwards across the silky fabric of her designer suit pants. She tensed more and more the higher I got, but didn't pause her work.

I brushed my fingers along the crotch of her pants in a feather light touch as I went by and pulled back as she tried to move against them, finally reaching my destination, the little silver clasp of her belt. I undid it one-handed, eased the zipper down, then grabbed the fabric at either side of her hips and tugged it down sharply. She helped me by raising each leg off the leather sofa.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Best – Ass – Ever.

Really, having her in that position, both literally and figuratively, there was no reason not to take full advantage. I didn't even ask. I just pulled my jeans down, positioned myself and pressed up against her slick sex.

She was cold, but it wasn't an uncomfortable feeling. Rather, it was akin to stepping out of harsh sunlight and into shade, or pressing ice against a headache and feeling it blissfully fade away.

Mab sighed softly, a sound of anticipation.

One of my hands trailed up her ass, along her back and seized a handful of her snow-white hair to hold her in place. I moved against her in tortuously gentle motions, almost but not quite slipping inside her and denying the friction she clearly wanted. I was slowly losing the battle with my own self-control, until I caught Titania's heated gaze and noticed how it flared hotter still when I pulled back a little to prevent Mab from seeking even more contact.

It helped me shut up the part of my mind snarling at me to go ahead, to fuck her and have my fill.

"Proceed," Mab commanded where she lay on all fours. It still sounded authoritative, but I knew I held the better hand.

"Nope," I said cheerfully. I gave Mab's hair a little tug as she once more sought to press against me and she subsided.

"I suppose there would be a symmetry to it," Titania mused with a mysterious smile that her sister soon mirrored. I wasn't sure what she was on about and I so didn't care at the moment.

"Indeed," Mab said. "A foundation for future cooperation."

She made a delicious "Mmm" sound and again, pressed herself against me. This time, though, when I gave her hair a little jerk instead of being dissuaded, she pushed harder and I only managed to pull back in time. Couldn't have that.

"I'm sure you can do something way more creative with your tongue, Mab," I said, pointing at Titania, between whose spread legs my Queen still lay.

"Exactly what are you suggesting, my knight?" Mab asked, her tone of voice a warning. I ignored it.

"Go down on her. Lick her. Get her off. I'm pretty sure you've done it before."

I couldn't see Mab's expression, but her head dipped down between Titania's legs and the Summer Queen's smirk disappeared and a little moan slipped past her lips as her sister got to work.

It would probably be hard to do what Mab was doing while someone was pounding into her from behind, but I really didn't care. It had been hard to rob Hades, too. She'd happily fucked me over there and right now, it seemed like what went around had finally come around.

Mab let out a slow shuddering breath as I pushed inside her, without warning or any other preamble. The sensation was indescribable, better than at the Stone Table, which had probably been a dream… Or rather, it had probably been my soul, or spirit or whatever, rather than my physical body. Whatever.

It took me several seconds to get my head clear of that pure bliss, but I managed it.

"I think we should start with the points we can easily agree on and move from there," I said, keeping up a steady pace.

"How about neither side attacks or moves past their borders. If some outside power shows up, like the Red Court did, you stomp on it together. Does that seem like something you could agree on?"

"Yes," Titania gasped, arching her back more and more as Mab continued her work.

I gave Mab's hair another tug to prompt an answer.

"The phrasing leaves things to be desired, but the essence was not entirely imbecilic."

She made a rolling motion of her wrist and the moisture from the air condensed into water, which in turn froze and formed – and I'm not shitting you here – an ice dildo. The creepiest part was that it was an exact replica of, well, parts of my anatomy Mab was getting intimately acquainted with right now.

"Great," I said. "We'll write that down when we're done with the – preliminary negotiations."

I eyed Mab and her improvised tool.

"Uh. I'm gonna have to veto you if you ever plan on using that on me, but could you teach me how to do it?"

I was certain that using it on a person would be a very bad idea, but on the other hand, there were plenty of Sidhe ladies in the Winter court. if I ever were to give in the to the corruptive influence of the mantle, I might as well have some fun.

"I am sure we can agree to terms," she replied, even as she slowly pushed the ice-phallus up against her sister's sex, purposefully mimicking what I'd been doing to her.

Titania clearly wasn't a fan of slow at the moment and it presented me with a difficult choice. Did I want to see her writhe in ecstatic agony for half an hour more while Mab did things to her I probably didn't even have words for, or did I want to see what she looked like when she came?

I remember Susan liking to draw things out, on occasion, and how she'd once gotten frustrated enough that she yanked some of my hair out. It had looked ridiculous and I probably didn't want that to happen here on a scale measured in kilotons.

Besides, Titania was the one whose good will we needed to inspire. I made my decision and leaned in over Mab's back, sliding deep, deep inside the sweet snug embrace of her as direct consequence. Ah, the lengths, (heh) to which I go to maintain peace.

My lips brushed against her ear and I could feel the shiver running all the way down her body as I took it between my teeth. I gave the malleable flesh a little tug, resulting in more delicious reverberations running down Mab's body and to where we were joined, then whispered into her ear.

"Don't torture her, Mab. I want to see her come all over your face."

I returned to fucking her in earnest, eyes intent on her progress with Titania. I'd assumed she'd have to switch between her icicle and her mouth to fulfill my command. As it turned out, she found somewhere else to use it. To be more specific, she found someplace else.

I faltered for a moment as I stared. Well damn. I'd never seen that before. Susan had been adventurous, but we'd never even discussed doing that. Titania clearly had no such reservations, though. Her back arched and moans spilled shamelessly from her mouth as she pressed herself against Mab's toiling tongue. From there it was all an uncontrollable downhill tumble towards release. Titania got there first, crying out and falling back on the sweat-slick leather of the sofa and I was only a few seconds behind.

Mab clearly wasn't happy with the way I collapsed on top of her, but I was still twitching inside of her with the aftershocks of my orgasm, and I really didn't care.

Titania laughed quietly where she lay, still on her back, legs spread and with her eyes mostly closed in blissful relaxation. The sound of it was as warm as the evening outside of the air-conditioned room and I found myself answering in kind.

"She must treasure you, sir knight, for whatever reason," Titania chuckled. "Other mortals would have been slain outright for half the insults you have inflicted this night."

"He still may be," Mab said icily, letting her icy creation disperse into mist. She pushed herself against my hips. "Finish your work."

I could already feel myself getting hard inside of her, another apparent side-effect to the mantle of winter that I hadn't noticed before and the sight of Mab looking straight at me as she wiped her mouth off with her hand was more than enough to get from a semi to rigid as steel. I was tempted to tell her to say please, but I didn't think I could get away with that one. Instead, I said.

"Titania. Help me out, would you?"

Titania sat back up slowly, a predatory smile of her lips and then stalked towards her sister on all fours. She kissed Mab with an intensity that borderlined on assault. As they struggled and ravished one another, both of them straightened, the better to press their bodies together.

As a result, I had to change position, to where Mab was riding me with her back to me. There was a term for it, but I couldn't remember it. I considered dissuading Mab from thinking she could take charge of the situation, but it was way too much fun watching her and Titania get it on.

The pace had been set high and with Titania's fingers meeting mine where they were busy circling Mab's clit, and diligently helping out, it wasn't long before Mab came, clutching at Titania as she convulsed around me.

I fell back on the couch and lay there, closing my eyes in hopes to get my head to stop spinning. The combination of alcohol and exhaustion were ganging up on me and I needed a few seconds to recover.

Mab's weight shifted on top of me and I slipped out of the blissful chill of her snug embrace. A moment later, she lay down on my side, her leg thrown over mine and her cheek resting on my bicep.

Her fingers idly grasped my still throbbing erection and her silky touch enveloped the slick tip, gently tracing over it with a thumb. A moment later, her hand was joined by another one and I didn't have to open my eyes to know that it was Titania's warm grip that was currently pumping up and down my shaft.

No rest for the wicked, it would seem.

I sat up before either of the Queens decided to do something more without me telling them to. Titania's eyes were intent on me and on some instinctive level, I knew exactly what she wanted.

I'd give it to her, but on my terms. I ignored Mab and leant in to kiss Titania. There might've been a second of surprise, if that, but then she responded almost viciously. She moved up into my lap and her legs tangled around my waist, pushing the smoldering heat of her body against mine.

Titania didn't waste any time. She had her hand on my dick already and slowly guided me inside of her. Mab slinked up behind me, pressing her body up against mine and her mouth and her misting breath against my throat. The tips of her breasts pressed prominently against my shoulder blades and her teeth nipped at the muscle of my shoulder hard enough to leave marks. Mab clearly wasn't particularly happy about being left out. Fortunately, I am a man with a plan.

I eased Titania down on the sofa without breaking my steady pace of movement into her. Then I put my hand on Mab's slender shoulder, guiding her around me and over to Titania.

"Time to balance the scales," I said nudging Mab up onto the couch until she sat astride Titania's face.

I picked up the pace again and Titania's moans came anew and were then muffled as Mab lowered her hips, silently demanded service and received it.

"Are we agreed on the peace settlement, then?" I asked, directing the question a little more down to Titania. "You know what we do and why. We're all on the same side of the wall. You have my word that no innocents will be harmed by my hand."

Titania made an "Mmm" sound. It wouldn't count as an official answer, but we could deal with that later. Mab's eyes glittered with delight at the victory and she was tall enough to lean forward and capture my lips in another bruising kiss and to complete our strange little triangle of bodies.

And I swear to God her lips tasted like sweet lemon ice cream. I looked down, then shook my head.

Later, I told myself. It was a mystery that could wait until later. As intriguing as it was, Titania's fierce heat and Mab's clever tongue were keeping me occupied for now. I groaned into that kiss and surged forward with increased ferocity into the embrace of that warmth.

I could feel the tension gathering in Mab, like a wire vibrating as it was slowly drawn taut. Like that line, she stiffened as she reached her breaking point and then her entire body quivered… and broke.

Not as violently as the metaphorical wire, but cried out as it happened, then slumped down over her sister in a boneless heap. I could still see her ass tensing and her hips moving as Titania slowly eased her down from her orgasm.

After a few seconds, Mab slid off Titania and lay down at her side, resting her cheek on her sister's belly.

Titania and I may have lost the race, but we were both closing in on the finishing line too, and I wasn't sure who'd get there first. Then Mab turned her head and pressed a soft kiss to her sister's belly button. Then one lower… And lower. Past neatly trimmed white blonde hair and at the apex of Titania's sex, she found her spot. Her tongue darted out once, twice, and the Queen of Summer tumbled over the edge with me a trailing behind by only a few seconds.

We lay there for several minutes enjoying the afterglow until I interrupted the silence.

"It seems to me that the best way to maintain peace would be to maintain communication," I said. My mouth was a little dry and I really wished I had the energy to drag my ass over to the fridge and the coke I knew to await me there, but I needed a few more minutes. During which I might as well get the meeting moving again.

"Say once a month, unless either party requires a meeting for any specific reason. The ladies could come too."

Mab blinked at that, her eyes intent on mine. Since that fateful night at Demonreach, her daughter had been made the Lady of Summer. I had no doubt that it had made it impossible for them to see one another ever since, and as cruel and cold as Mab might be, she still loved her daughter.

She didn't actually thank me, but it was there in her eyes.

I got up and got my coke, chugging it down and fetching another before turning to the Queens.

"How about we bring that contract to the Jacuzzi?"

We'd only just gotten back to Arctis Tor through Mab's portal before the Queen of Air and darkness grabbed me by the throat and shoved my shoulders against the closest wall. It was a couple of feet away and she carried my full weight over there in one hand.

The impact hurt, even through the winter knight's mantle and the protection of my leather duster. Mab let me slide down until she could look me in the eye, though her hand remained closed around my windpipe, fingers like steel wire.

"You played a dangerous game tonight, Harry," she hissed, the anger in her voice slashing at me like a scalpel. And then she smiled, a slow and vicious smile, which was far scarier than her fury had been a few seconds ago.

"But you played it well," she purred and released me slowly, as if relishing every second of my pain.

After what had happened, I wasn't about to back down. I smirked but inclined my head respectfully to her. "Are you satisfied with the outcome then, My Queen?"

A hungry little smile touched her lips. "Oh, very."