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Chloe This was it. It was finally here. The day of our mating ceremony. The day Tidirath would officially recognize me as Finn’s mate and as a Princess of the Kingdom. I spent the entire week prior going to teas and luncheons and fancy dinners and dancing lessons and etiquette lessons. I felt like my feet were going to fall off and my brain was going to explode out through my ears from the information overload. There were so many rules and customs to learn, and I wasn’t sure how I would ever remember all of them. I understood why Finn had left his home. The strict policies and the intense formal atmosphere were not his style at all. I was glad that we were just here for a short while, and he didn’t want to remain here after our ceremony or even come back here to raise our children when we had them. The last two days, they had completely sequestered me in my room, as was the custom here. Finn and I could not lay eyes on each other until the mating ceremony. Not that it stopped us.
Finn I was pacing back and forth at the front of the Temple of Eos in the royal palace, one hand on my hip and the other stroking my chin. I did not know why I was so nervous. She had already accepted me, already mated with me, and already bore my first mark and I bore hers, but, for whatever reason, I was a bag of anxiety. My mom sat with my dad and my brothers, so I knew Chloe wasn’t far behind. I stopped in the spot where I was supposed to stand while Chloe entered, and I fidgeted with the bow tie around my neck. Lukas stepped in front of me and swatted my hands away, fixing the tie for me. “Relax, Beta,” he smiled. “She’s already had plenty of opportunities to run and she hasn’t yet. I think you’re safe,” he winked. “Shut up, fucker,” I growled, and he just laughed, clapping me on the shoulder and standing off to the left of me. Normally, it would be one of my brothers or my dad standing with me, but there truly was no one I would have wanted other than Lukas to be our primar
Lukas Home. At last. After almost a month, I was finally back at Midnight Moon, back with my pack and my people and my mate. Even though it hadn’t been long, I felt like a different person than I was when I left. I hated to admit it, but Selene had been right when she’d visited me three years ago and told me the challenges I would face would strengthen me and make me a better Alpha. I still wished I didn’t have to have these challenges, these hardships, but I couldn’t deny they had, in fact, strengthened me. As soon as we had crossed the border into the packlands, I handed the wheel over to Finn and took off for Simon and Sofia’s house to see June. Imagine my surprise when they told me she moved out, and was living in a cottage just down the path from them, closer to the stream than they were. I paused along the path to June’s new house and picked a handful of wildflowers and then continued on my way, enjoying the sounds and smells and sights of my packlands. My home. I had misse
Juniper “What just happened?” I asked, staring after Lukas as he stormed out of our house. I thought everything was going fine. He hugged me, and held onto me for longer than necessary. He brought me flowers, flowers he had picked himself. He rested his hand on my hip and stood close to me as he got the vase down for me. I swear he even sniffed my hair when I hugged him in the front yard. And then he stormed out after Drew got there. I didn’t get it. What was he so upset about? Was he still that mad at Drew for quitting as his beta? If he was back, then I’m assuming that meant he found a new beta, since that was why he left. But I guess finding a new beta didn’t automatically mean forgiving Drew. “Just Lukas overreacting,” Drew grumbled as he slammed the door shut a bit too hard. I set the vase on the counter, then turned to look at Drew. “Overreacting about what?” “Did I just hear the sweet, dulcet sounds of my dear brother throwing a tantrum?” Everly asked as she walked out o
Juniper :I’m telling Lukas,: I linked Drew. :About your undying love?: he replied. :No,: I sighed. :About what I am.: He was silent for a long moment. :Are you sure?: he finally asked. :It’s supposed to be a secret, and—: :And he’s the future alpha and our best friend and we should have told him to begin with,: I finished. :I know you’re worried about protecting me, and thank you, because you are the best protector I could ever ask for, but I need you to trust me on this, Drew.: :Of course, Princess,: he said resignedly, then dropped the link. I dropped Lukas’s hand as the portal closed, then turned to face him again. He put his hands in his pockets, as if he needed to keep himself from touching me again. I was still reeling from what he had all but admitted to me, but I would not focus on that until I got this revelation out of the way. I couldn’t focus on that until I explained what I was to him. I closed my eyes and concentrated on my magic, creating a sound barrier using t
Lukas June did her magic fairy portal thing, and I stepped through it, straight into what I was assuming was her bedroom. It smelled like her, and it was filled with art and plants, so I could only guess that it was hers. As soon as the portal closed behind me, I was kissing her again, soaking up every moment of her in my arms and against my body. The only thing I wished was different about all of it, was that I wished she could feel the mate bond, feel the warmth and the sparks and the tingles everywhere our skin touched. With the way she was moving against me and the way her body responded to my touches and my kisses, I could almost forget that she didn’t feel it. I was eating up all her little gasps and moans, and my fingers were loving the feel of her skin and her curves under my touch. I squeezed her perfect ass again, and she pressed her pussy against my cock, grinding herself against the length of it. My hand on her thigh moved closer to the hem of her little cutoff denim
LukasI slept like a rock. As soon as my eyes closed, I was out like a light, not waking until the first rays of sunlight began creeping in through the shades.The small, soft, warm body in my arms reminded me of everything that had occurred last night, and I glanced down to see June sound asleep, her head still resting on my chest, her arm wrapped around my waist in a vice grip.I was sure that my uninterrupted sleep was due in part to having her next to me. Her smell and the feel of her body and just her presence itself helped to soothe and calm my wolf and my body, letting me sleep better than I had in years. Probably since the night I first knew she was mine.I grabbed her hand and unwrapped her arm from my body, slipping myself out from under her and off of the bed.I went about my morning business as quickly and quietly as I could, trying to think about anything other than my gorgeous little mate lying in the bed just on the other side of the bathroom door as I brushed my teeth,
Juniper “Can we just portal to the packhouse?” I asked Lukas once I was dressed and had exited the bathroom. His eyes raked over me, taking in my blue gingham dress—or maybe just my body— and I blushed under his gaze. He made me warm all over, made me feel things I wasn’t used to him causing in me. His touch and his kisses woke something primal and bold within me, something fierce and daring, and I wanted more. I wanted so much more. The connection we had was undeniable. I don’t know how I hadn't realized it before. I guess we had both just been too good at hiding it from each other, but once it was out in the open, there was no going back. We couldn’t keep away from each other, or keep from touching each other, even if it was just holding hands. “Why do you want to portal there?” he asked me, holding his hand out to me. I took it without hesitation, and he lifted my hand to his lips and kissed it softly. “I just don’t really want everyone’s eyes on me if I can avoid it,” I said