Filed to story: The Wolf Prince’s Fated Love
I blinked, rocking back on my heels at the sudden change of topic.
“I wouldn’t bring it up now, but I need to know if you’d be uncomfortable if I was one of those two. Elodie wants to volunteer, and we’re usually partners. She’s already fallen in with the females of your pack, but you know that doesn’t come as easily to me. If you want another, I won’t be offended. Our childhood was complicated, and?-“
I reached out and grabbed her hand, stopping her midsentence. She swallowed hard, unwilling to meet my eyes.
“Our father was not a nice man. He was more than willing to see you as second best, but I never saw you that way. You were my big sister, and that was all. I didn’t care that we had different mothers or that you weren’t a boy. I would be honored to have you at our side, if that’s something you want. Is it?”
When she met my eyes again, I couldn’t believe there were tears in hers. My big, strong warrior sister was crying?
I pulled her into a hug, shocked to realize that sometime since I’d last seen her, I’d outgrown her. She tucked under my chin now, when I used to fit easily under hers. It was strange, but I hugged her with all the enthusiasm my eight-year-old self had possessed. After a beat, she hugged me back equally hard.
“I would be honored to join your pack and defend your daughter,” she choked out, pulling back from my embrace so she could swipe at her eyes with the heels of her hands. “Now, it looks like your pack has arrived to keep you company, so I’m going to find a seat before all the good ones are gone.” She shot me a wink, and for a second, she was my big sister again.
“Those were happy tears, I hope,” Reed murmured as he walked up, trailed by Kane and Dirge. He looked like he’d stepped off the pages of a fashion magazine, and as usual, I wondered how he always looked so damn put together.
“Yes. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen each other.” I looked over at Kane and Dirge. “She said the priestesses are going to assign us a pair of maidens to protect Leigh and the baby.”
Kane nodded. “Priestess Marciana stopped me on the way over. She would typically assign six, two per omega or omega-marked female, but given the scrutiny we’re already under, the priestesses felt that the best course of action would be to assign only two, since they typically protect children these days. Given your status as a prince and Leigh’s pregnancy… it shouldn’t draw unnecessary scrutiny.”
I nodded. I didn’t like to use my family’s status for my own advantage, but in this case, if it protected our pack, I wouldn’t turn down the help. There was pride, and then there was stupidity.
The maidens’ song changed then, and we all turned toward the front of the garden. Dozens of maidens marched in, in two lines, scattering white flower petals over the garden path.
“They’re coming,” Dirge murmured with an anticipatory grin. “I’m going to take my seat.” He punched me on the shoulder hard enough to sting and then made his way to a bench near Galyna, as Reed and Kane took up their positions behind me.
It’s time.
Those nerves were back in full force, but also a longing to see Leigh so strong, I could barely keep still. I clasped my hands behind me, forcing myself into the rest stance I’d been trained to as a teen. The familiarity grounded me as the last of the maidens took their seats. The priestesses came next. There were five, each wearing a different-colored robe, with Marciana at the back in a navy so deep, it was nearly black under the twinkling lights.
She took her position at the top of the flower mound with a smile and a nod.
Shay came down the aisle first, wearing a lovely blue dress. She gave me a small wave before taking a seat next to Dirge on the bench. Next came Brielle in a shimmering gold gown, carrying a jar of fertility water with pink specks floating in it. She stood across from us behind the mound of white flowers. Olivia was next, wearing deep green and carrying the ceremonial lovelace perfume that acted as a potent aphrodisiac to shifters.
But I only had eyes for Leigh.
When she stepped into sight at the end of the path, her head was bowed, golden hair in a waterfall of curls cascading over one shoulder, dotted with crystals that shimmered under the lights. Her gown was blood red but mostly sheer, and her skin seemed to glow with life underneath. It draped low over her arms and dipped between her breasts, leaving her collarbones and neck completely free for my bite. The whole dress was like an homage to her beautiful bump as the material hugged and highlighted her every curve, her warm skin flashing underneath with every step.
She was the sun burning bright, and I was her moon, orbiting around her with unending devotion. But when she finally looked up and met my eyes, her smile nearly stopped my heart.
SIXTY
Leigh
The girls all kissed me on the cheeks before they walked out of the bridal room, leaving me alone in the cool darkness.
I felt like I was burning up, whether with anticipation, need, or nerves I wasn’t quite sure. It was a potent cocktail regardless.
Olivia was the last one to walk down the aisle, and she paused before picking up her ceremonial perfume.
“I hope you don’t mind, but you didn’t have a specific bouquet planned. So I made you one. It’s not much as far as wedding gifts go, but I still hope you like it.” She tucked a red curl behind her ear and pulled the most gorgeous white bouquet I’d ever seen out of a box.
“It has roses from the garden here, but also ranunculus, hydrangeas, lilies, and peonies.” She pointed to each flower as she named it, and I noticed her omega-marked palm seemed to brighten as she held them in her hand. “This one is special,” she said, reverently touching a single bloom with dark stamens at the center. “It’s a white poppy. They’re rare in this part of the world, but something about it just called to me, almost like it wanted to be included.”
She shook her head as if clearing a fog, then passed me the bouquet.
The stems seemed to pulse with energy when I took them, and not for the first time, I wondered what her special affinity for plants meant.
“Thank you, Olivia, it’s the perfect wedding gift. I love it, really.” I stroked the petal of the beautiful poppy, feeling a bit of that draw she mentioned, myself.
As Olivia stepped out of the room, I drew in a deep breath and held it, steeling myself to walk out in front of all those people. What I found as I walked out to the entrance of the garden was nothing short of a fairy wonderland. It was so beautiful, it was beyond anything I could have imagined. The lights, the rose garden, the flower petals. Even the fireflies sparking in the air added a level of wonder I couldn’t have dreamed up. All the people gathered, smiling at me and excited to celebrate our bonding.
Gael had pulled it off, and it was perfect. I smoothed my free hand over my dress and started to walk down the aisle. It curved a little, so I couldn’t see Gael yet.
I hoped he would like my gown. I had never planned to be pregnant in my bonding dress, but it somehow felt right to have Petal here with us.
Although, Priestess Lisanne had surprised me by choosing a nearly sheer fabric and insisted I be fully naked underneath. She worked some kind of wizardry with a nude fabric backing in key areas so nothing showed through that shouldn’t, but ninety-nine percent of my skin was on display, and there was a slit all the way to my hip bone, where the full skirt fell like a waterfall from beneath my bump. The fabric was soft and supple, caressing my legs with every step, and the cool night air caressed my fully bare back. It swooped so low, she had stopped it less than an inch above my ass. You could see the dimples in my hips, as well as every single line of my mate marks. There was no other dress like it in the world, I was certain.
I sped up a little in my eagerness to get to him, looking down to make sure I didn’t trip over the front of my gown. And when I looked up again, he was there.
He looked thunderstruck, and I had to resist the urge to hike up my hem and bolt into his arms. The way he looked at me made me feel like the most gorgeous woman in the whole world.
But I understood the feeling, because the sight of him was enough to turn my bones liquid with desire. He looked like a shifter prince of old, surrounded by the maidens in his dove-gray slacks, with the creamy shirt a stark contrast against his throat. But it was open, unbuttoned halfway so that all his rippling muscles were on display, casting shadows between them from the twinkle lights.
I was so ready to be his. I still had no idea how any of the mess was going to work itself out, but ever since our marks had appeared, there was this certainty in my chest. He was mine, and I was his. And everything was going to be okay, somehow.
The last distance between us disappeared, and I practically threw myself into his arms, crushing the beautiful flowers under our feet and sending up a fresh burst of their perfume as he pulled me into his chest. A gentle kiss on the top of my hair had me pulling back enough to see his face.
“Hello, princess,” he whispered, the words just for me.
“Hello, prince,” I whispered right back, and he smiled.
Priestess Marciana cleared her throat, and I took a half step back so I could angle myself to see her, but still be in Gael’s arms.
It wasn’t traditional, but I didn’t care. I loved him with all my soul, and I never wanted to be separated from him again.
His warm palm on my bare back was like a brand, and I loved every second of it.
Kane was the first to step forward, smiling widely as he took in the two of us. “For prosperity,” he said loud and clear, so even the maidens at the back of the crowd could hear, and held up a jaw-droppingly beautiful necklace. A teardrop-shaped moonstone longer than my thumb dangled from it, the setting inlaid with diamonds. He laid it carefully at our feet and then stepped back into his position.
Brielle came next, shooting a secret smile at Kane before leaning in to hug me and kneeling at our feet. “For fertility,” she said, and all at once, the flowers were drowned out by her omega scent, cool, crisp water surrounding us as she sprinkled the rosehip-infused water over our bare feet. I had a feeling there was a bit more fertility juju than usual in the water.
Olivia came forward next, looking beautiful and shy as she lifted her chin and spoke the ceremonial words. “For passion.” She carefully lifted my curls as she dabbed the sides of my neck with the perfume stick, then did my wrists, repeated the dabbing on Gael, and took back my bouquet so my hands would be free for the next part.
Reed stepped over the necklace, holding two shining rings in his palm. I didn’t even know how Gael had managed to find rings, given how remote this enclave was and the fact that we’d decided to bond yesterday, while under attack. But he had.
“For eternity,” Reed said, offering first Gael and then me the other’s ring so we could slide them onto each other’s fingers.
My hands were shaking.
Eternity.
But when Gael took my left hand in his, I remembered why eternity was a good thing.
Priestess Marciana’s voice was clear and warm as she spoke the next part of the bonding. “Gael and Leigh, we gather here under the Goddess’s moon to bind you two together as perfect mates. It is a lifelong bond, unable to be broken, even in death.
Gael Starling, prince of the blood of Spain, alpha in your own right, what do you offer this female to prove that you are worthy of her love and capable of her protection for the rest of your days?”
It was a more formal address than I’d ever heard in a bonding, but Gael looked unfazed.
“Priestess, given our circumstances, I didn’t have a gift purchased in advance.”
The priestess nodded as if this was no surprise, but he wasn’t done.
“As such, I would like to offer my mate a personal sacrifice as proof of my devotion.”
“As head priestess of the Maiden’s Enclave, I can offer you the warrior’s rune. It is painful and it is permanent. They are only awarded to skilled warriors and those who are proven worthy friends of the enclave. It is an honor not bestowed on many.”
Painful? No, I didn’t want him to do anything painful. We’d been through enough. But before I could argue, Marciana turned to me.
“Your male offers you a great honor. Do you accept this sacrifice, or will you reject his hand?”
I looked at Gael, slightly horrified. “Gael, I don’t want you to hurt yourself. Please, I don’t need this. I would accept you with nothing.