<i>Zephyrine </i>
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“Lycan, stop…” A giggle slipped from me as I moved away from him, putting a distance I thought was safe. Iughed, smiling at him.
We had just left the chamber after bathing and making love, but it seemed the more we gave into each other, the stronger the thirst grew.
I wondered if it was because of the ring now on my finger, or simply the reality that we were engaged, bound to be married soon.
He wouldn’t stoping for me, and I wouldn’t stop wanting him until I finally pulled away to find a safe distance, to dress and focus.
He watched me from where he stood, then raised a hand as though surrendering.
“Alright, wife,” he said with a wink before turning to get
dressed.
But I froze. Because the way it sounded was so perfect, so tantalizing. Wife. That I would be his. Swallowing hard, I reached for my gown and began to dress.
I was nearly done, only the zipper remained, when I turned to him for help. Lycannar was standing there, gaze fixed on me. I hadn’t realized he’d been watching all along.
“Can you help me with the zip?” I asked, my eyes on him. He didn’t answer, and somehow his silence thickened the air, turning the moment tense.
“Zephyrine,” he said suddenly, “how about we get married before the next full moon?”
I raised a brow, as though he’d lost his mind.
“That’s just… a week from now, Lycan.” I murmured, but he only stood still, waiting. His silence stretched until I had to swallow. “I… I… maybe we should wait. Until Varyn is strong enough to reim his crown as Alpha.”
He stopped, eyes fixed on me, and after what felt like an eternity, he asked quietly,
“What if your brother never likes me? Will you still be my
wife?”
The question choked the chamber, heavy, suffocating. I smoothed it with a shrug.
“I am the love of Varyn’s life, and I’m not bragging. He’ll love whoever I love.” Smiling, I
walked to him, turning my back so he could help with my gown.
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He came close, his fingers brushing my bare back as he slid the zipper up, then leaned down to whisper,
“But what if he truly is against our marriage, Zephyrine? Will you still
The rawness in his voice startled me. He wanted to know the truth.
I turned to meet his eyes.
go on with it?”
“If your sisters or brother were against our union, would you still go on with it?” I asked.
He stilled.
“They won’t be against anyone who makes me happy.”
“Same for mine,” I whispered. “Varyn will love you. And if he doesn’t at first… he’ll learn to. Because before you today, Lycannar Blood, you will be my husband.”
***
I descended the stairs, ready to begin the day by dropping a bombshell across the empire with Luna Tahlia’s arrival. But when I entered the dining hall, I froze.
Lycannar hadn’t told me his family would be here. Wait. Hadn’t he said he quarreled with his uncle yesterday? Why were they still here?
“Come, take your seat,” my love said gently, guiding me to the chair beside his and pulling it
out for me.
I bowed my head respectfully before his cousins, his aunt, and uncle. They returned the gesture.
To
my
side sat his sisters, and I went to them first, wrapping my arms around each.
“I should have known you were here with my baby brother. He’s in far too good a mood,” Princess Serena teased, and I smiled. Turning to Princess Mearez, I found her staring at me in quiet awe.
“Shouldn’t you be with your brother?” she asked.
“There’s little I can do for him now except watch him rest. He’s in safe hands,” I answered softly, before ncing at her arm, where Varyn had once shed her. “Are you alright?”
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“Perfectly fine. You shouldn’t worry about me and…”
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Her words stopped abruptly. Even Princess Serena, who had been grinning, rushed forward, nearly tripping.
The ring. They had seen it.
Their eyes flew to mine in horror.
“I… I uh… wait,” Princess Serena stammered, her face pale as she tried to piece it together. “Please tell me this is just an engagement ring.”
Hope. They all hoped. Desperately.
I bit my lower lip, then burst into a giggle.
“I said yes,” I confessed softly.
In an instant, Princess Serena, loud as ever, squealed and threw her arms around me.
“My gods, my goddess! Finally. Finally! I love you. I love you so much. Congrattions! No, wait… it’s my baby brother I should congratte for bagging such a woman!”
Iughed gently, but when I turned, my heart tightened. He was watching me from his chair, eyes locked, pampering, obsessing, loving.
Lycannar.
“Zephyrine.”
Princess Mearez’s voice drew me back. She rose, took my hand gently, her eyes steady on
mine.
“Are you sure this is what you want?”
Her question made me frown. It was almost as if…
“I love him,” I said softly.
She nodded slowly.
“Love and eptance are not the same. You know how he is. The limits, the ws, the curse…‘
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“We’ll work on all that, Princess Mearez,” I cut her off gently, grateful for her concern even though her brother’s happiness was at stake. “I love Lycannar, and I want to spend my life with
17:36 Fri, <b>Sep </b>19 B…
him. In his tower, where I know I’ll find peace.”
“And you
will have no regret?”
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The voice came not from her, but from Dareth, Lycannar’s uncle, cutting through the air. We all turned to him.
“The ring on your finger,” he said, eyes sharp. “Look at it well. It is a symbol of two powers. Dark and light. Do you even understand what that means?”
My heart clenched. I lowered my gaze to the ring. He was right. One side was carved of sacred ck quartz, the other of the purest gold, fused together into something ancient, sacred.
I bit my lip, looking back at the man as he continued.
“You have no idea who this king truly is, youngdy. I hear you are an Ashmere, from one of the most prestigious families. Will you allow a Blood, no, a man not even fully a Blood to taint you?”
I swallowed hard. Not fully a Blood?
“He is not who you…”
“I think that’s enough.”
The deep voice came from behind, stopping me cold. The air shifted, strange and heavy. Ancient. Almost… unholy.
“I think that’s enough, uncle,” the voice continued. “A couple will work out their own fate. People like you and me have no say when love is involved.”
Slowly, I turned. And for the second time, I saw him.
Hades.
Lycannar’s older brother. Same mother, different father.
He was here.
Dressed in ck, eyes sharp and steady, beauty carved too perfectly, as if the moon goddess herself had yed favorites. Power radiated off him. And I noticed, with a shiver that he was dripping. Water pooling around his boots.
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