He didn't want to kill Dupont. His heir had found him in the middle of a summoning ceremony. He was reaching out to Kasdeyah for advice. Grayson was in love and had finally admitted it. The girl loved him too. It could mean bad things for him. Abigail already had him wrapped around her little finger. She could easily turn Grayson against him.Most parents would be thrilled if the one their child was in love with was a good influence. Not King Hayden. It annoyed him to no end that Abigail was a good person with a good heart. He needed advice. Then Dupont walked in on him and ruined it all. He had threatened to tell everyone and to expose his identity as a dark sorcerer. Before the king knew what he was doing, he had his hands around his oldest son's neck. Dupont was dead.Grayson ran in just then and saw the scene in front of him. Despite still being bloody from his previous beating, the king beat his younger son again, almost killing him in the process and pinning the blame for his b
Catherine stood where Grayson was supposed to stand almost a decade before. She smiled as Rose walked down the aisle in a beautiful dress toward her. It was an unconventional wedding for two unconventional people, but it was perfect. The king stood next to his daughter to give her away. The Grand Duke walked Rose up the aisle to do the same thing. In front of them, Abigail and Grayson’s four oldest children walked down the aisle - the girls tossing flower petals while the boys carried the rings. They were all dressed in their finest and looked absolutely adorable. Abigail cried when she saw them. Abigail cried again when she saw her sister. Rose looked radiant and incredibly happy. Her hair was carefully braided into a sophisticated updo. Her dress was a pale yellow and long. It wasn't something she would normally wear - she would never voluntarily choose to wear a dress - but she felt beautiful in it. Catherine’s hair was curled, and she was also in a dress. Hers was dark green
Rose and Catherine danced well into the night at their wedding. They far outlasted Abby and Grayson, who went to bed just after midnight. Rose had always been proud and impressed with how hands-on they managed to be as parents, especially with all of their other duties as Duke and Duchess. They were Rose’s idols and the example of an almost perfect marriage. Rose knew no marriage was perfect, but her sister’s marriage was up there, right alongside her parents'. Prior to them going to bed, Rose had watched them still stare into each other’s eyes as they danced. Close to ten years of marriage, and they still acted like teenagers in love. She looked at her new wife - she loved being able to call her that - and smiled. She and Catherine had been together about as long as Abby and Grayson had been married. They took a while to take the plunge because they both wanted to travel and experience the world. They had seen a good portion of it when they saved Cat's father, but they had the go
**The next 15 years** In the end, Abigail and Grayson did end up spending much of their time in Alderei. As much as everyone hated to admit it, the Grand Duke and the monarchs were getting older. That meant more of the actual responsibility of ruling fell to their children. Catherine and Rose couldn't decide on which twin to name as their heir, so they named both of them. They could co-rule if one of them didn't choose to step down. That left Teddy as the heir to Lydisia, and Charlotte would receive Odel upon their mother's passing. Grayson had some land in Eswen that his uncle was currently overseeing, which would eventually go to Calista and Benjamin. It had been ten peaceful and happy years for Alderei. Abigail and Grayson had enjoyed every minute of it. Being able to watch their children grow was their greatest joy. The land prospered as the peace grew. A new treaty had been established with Eswen when Stefan took over. Catherine had even been able to get a treaty signed wi
Charlotte and Peter were 13 when their parents stopped allowing them to share a bed at night. Charlotte had gotten her moon blood and had told her parents ecstaticly that Peter loved her and they had kissed. That was enough for their parents to lay down some rules, but not too many. They were allowed to nap together if they did so in the common room.Their days were also unchaperoned for the most part. They could usually be found somewhere in the garden, playing games or reading. It was comforting to the Odels to see them together as teens. They were able to see what they would have been like together had they not been separated. If the children were anything to go by, they would have been very happy. When they were 16, Peter came to the Odels to ask permission to propose to Charlotte. He professed his love for his long-time friend, saying he didn't want to go through life without her. He was given permission, but both sets of parents agreed that the marriage itself needed to wait un
When they traveled to Knocklean to watch the castle being destroyed, they stopped at the cliff where they married. Catherine suggested that they renew their vows, and they happily agreed. It had been 30 years since they married the first time, and they were still as in love as they had been that day.They spent the night in the same clearing they had for their honeymoon. They made love loud enough to embarrass their companions, but they didn't seem to care. Some of the younger men were impressed that they could still make each other scream like that after 30 years of marriage. Grayson woke up the next morning and smiled at his sleeping wife, again naked under a blanket in the same clearing as 30 years ago. She was still as beautiful, her curls still wild, her body still gorgeous. He had never and would never love another. Abigail opened her eyes that morning, and it was like she'd been transported back in time. Her husband had aged well, keeping the kindness in his eyes that she lov
Everyone must die, eventually, and unfortunately for Grayson and all of Alderei, Abigail passed on at the age of 82. Being a sorcerer, Grayson was destined to live a long life. Losing his soulmate threw him into a deep sorrow. Abigail died in her sleep, in her favorite place - her husband’s arms. When Grayson woke up holding his wife's cold body, his wails could be heard for miles. He refused to let go of her for hours. Eventually, Benjamin managed to pry his father away so the undertaker could prepare the body for the funeral. Being a Grand Duchess, Abigail’s funeral was a grand one. All of Lydisia and Odel came to pay their respects, as well as most of the rest of Alderei. Grayson could be seen next to the coffin the entire time, crying and mourning the love of his life. He was inconsolable to the point that his children were worried about leaving him alone. Depsite the original plan to leave the Grand Duchy to Teddy, the children as a group decided to leave it to Benjamin, wit
The loss of Grayson was a huge blow to his family. Samuel and Olivia were preparing to take the throne upon the death of their aunt Catherine. Catherine was ailing, and the news of Grayson’s death made her condition worse. Their aunt Rose passed away a year ago, never quite recovering from the death of her beloved sister. Catherine fell ill when Rose died and was now the last of their group of friends. She did not handle the news well. She made sure Grayson was given a funeral befitting his rank and managed to be his chief mourner before succumbing to her own illness a week later. The last of the generation of heroes had gone to her eternal rest at age 89. Samuel and Olivia’s rule was also prosperous. They had inherented Alderei at the height of its existence and continued the projects and promises brought about by their aunts. Their brother, Theodore, was their most trusted ambassador and brokered peace with nations across the seas. The land of Knocklean had been absorbed by t
Six months later, they were married in a ceremony held on the lawn of her mother’s nursing home. Their mothers held hands and wept happy tears as Tony and Molly exchanged vows they had written themselves. Molly started. “Tony, you are one of the few people in this world who truly see me. You’ve always seen me as so much more than I thought I was. You’ve helped me realize my worth, and that I do have something to offer the world. Every day you make me feel like the most beautiful woman on the planet. You encourage me, you don’t just listen to me – you hear me. We have been through so much together, and I can honestly say I wouldn’t have gotten through half of it without you by my side.” She stopped to wipe away her tears, but Tony got to them first. She smiled at him. “You are better than any fairy tale or romantic hero. You have saved me in so many ways. I promise I will always be honest and upfront with you. I will always support you, and you will always be the best thing that’s ev
**Three weeks later**Molly called her mother on her way home from work, like she did every night. “Hi mom,” she said cautiously. “Hi baby girl, happy birthday!” her mom answered. It was another good day for Sarah.“You remembered!” Molly exclaimed.“I did,” she said. “There should be a package waiting for you at home, too. The nurses helped me.”“Thank you, mom,” Molly said with happy tears.“I just wanted to send my daughter something special,” Sarah said. “Not every day is your birthday.”“I still appreciate it,” Molly replied. “That’s because you’re a good girl,” Sarah said. “How’s Tony?” she asked, changing the subject. “He’s good,” she responded. “We’re both still doing therapy separately, as well as going together. It’s been really helpful. I’m going to call him later and he’s going to bring over dinner.”“That’s great, Molly.”“I know,” she replied. “I’d forgotten how much I missed just talking to him. It’s great to be able to talk to him again.”“I’m just hap
It was difficult, but they did the work. They went through therapy together and individually. Their couples’ therapist wanted them to just spend time together, not as couple or with anything sexual between them, so they could focus on building back their friendship and trust.The no sexual contact was difficult for both of them, but they stuck to what they dubbed the ‘muddy waters’ rule. They spent a lot of time together over the next three months, mostly talking, but also just sometimes sitting with each other. On Halloween, Tony brought over Horror House 3, which was the movie they saw on their first date. He also brought take out from the restaurant they had gone to that first night. Molly almost kissed him several times just because of how thoughtful it all was, but she stuck to the rule. She did allow herself to kiss his cheek, which caused him to smile and blush.They bent the rule a little when he put his arm around her and she snuggled up against him. They bent it even mor
He pulled back and looked at her. “When?” he asked, his voice cracking.She hung her head. “About two years ago. Right when we sold the house and put mom in the nursing home,” she said softly, angrily wiping away her tears. He held her hand, and listened. “I found out I was pregnant and I had been trying to tell you, but it was one thing after another,” she said waving her arm from one side to the other. “It was never a good time. The night I was finally going to tell you, I had cooked dinner and made it all nice and… you never came home. Not until it was very late, anyway, and you stank of alcohol. You said you’d been out with your coworkers celebrating a big deal.” Tony remembered that night. He had seen the set up when he came home, but had been too drunk to ask. When he’d woken up the next morning, it was gone and so was Molly. He had assumed she’d gone to work.“That morning, after I woke up I started bleeding,” she continued. “I tried to wake you but you were passed out, s
“I’m over here,” said a small voice filled with pain. It was coming from the floor on the other side of the bed.He rushed over and saw her holding her foot, her hands covered in blood. Without a word he grabbed a towel from the closet, wrapped it around her foot, picked her up, and carried her into the kitchen. He set her down on a chair before unwrapping the towel. Molly winced in pain.“What happened, Mols?” he asked gently, sitting on the floor in front of her.She sighed. “I think Orange knocked a picture frame off the dresser and it broke. I stepped on the glass.”He washed her foot off gently. “It doesn’t look that bad,” he said. “You won’t need stitches.”“Good,” she said. She was so tired. Tony could hear it in her voice. “That’s the last thing I need.”Tony cleaned her foot up and handed her a rag to wash the blood off her hands. He was quiet as he carefully bandaged her foot up. He kissed her leg and held her foot in his lap.“You broke the door,” Molly said, exhaust
“Molly?” he ventured.She was pinching the bridge of her nose, trying to hold up her towel and the journal with one hand. “Yes, Tony?”“What secret were you keeping?” he asked softly. He reached out and fixed her towel. If the towel slipped again, he wasn’t sure what he’d do. Molly was gorgeous and he missed her so much. She wouldn’t look at him. “It doesn’t matter now,” she answered. “Please don’t jump off a bridge,” he said sadly. She still wouldn’t look at him. “I’m going to put on some clothes,” she said.Before he could stop himself, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. “I don’t mind you in just a towel,” he said softly into her ear.She looked at him, confused. “Muddy waters, Tony, remember?” she said. “It’s your rule, not mine. I didn’t know you were out here or I wouldn’t have come out in my towel.”“But…” he started. “Do you want to get back together?” she asked angrily. “I…” he hesitated.“Please leave, Tony,” Molly said with tears in her eyes
A few minutes after Molly got in the shower, there was a knock at her door.“Mols?” Tony called. “Hey Molly, come on – open up.” More knocking. “Please, Mols.”Maybe she’s in the shower, he thought. He pulled out the key that Molly insisted he keep after he moved out, in case of emergency. Molly didn’t have any other family outside of her mom, so Tony was still her emergency contact. While being ignored wasn’t an emergency, he didn’t like the thought of her sitting by herself being sad. He still loved her. He had been devastated when she agreed to the breakup and didn’t even try to fight for him. He went through with the breakup because he figured she didn’t love him anymore when she didn’t fight it. They hardly saw each other due to work, even though they had lived together. They had both changed and things were different between them, but he still loved her. He knew she thought of herself as a disappointment, but he never did. The last few years dealing with her mom’s rapidly
No one paid attention to Molly Monroe. She was average. She blended into the scenery, unremarkable with her shoulder length brown hair, brown eyes, and glasses – she was every girl and no girl in particular. Only two people in this world had ever truly seen Molly Monroe – her mother and Tony.Tony Morales was her high school – and only – boyfriend. They had broken up about a year ago. The reasons were numerous. He traveled a lot for his job, her schedule was strange, and they never saw each other. The spark had disappeared. The break up had been ‘mutual’ in that he suggested breaking up and she knew she had nothing to offer him, so she let it happen. In high school, she had been the one ‘with so much potential.’ Now she was just a disappointment and going nowhere. She was sure that’s why Tony dumped her, though he was too kind to say it. At least they were still friends and he would take her calls. He didn’t just drop her after eight years of dating.God, she missed Tony. Almost a
From the diaries of Grayson of Eswen, Duke of Odel, and Lydisia. Before I write any more, I want to be clear with anyone who finds this journal: my wife is the most amazing, smart, wonderful, kind, loving, and talented person I know. I would literally not be alive today without her. I would have died in my father's attack on Alderei. I love my wife. I always have. What can you say about someone you've loved since you were five years old?My wife gave me the family I've always wanted. She birthed six beautiful children, and we lost one little soul. Little Sawyer will always be acknowledged as part of our family and will always be in our hearts. Samuel, Olivia, Theodore, Charlotte, Benjamin, and Calista. They are the six the Mother chose to stay in this world. They are our world. I will admit to be slightly more overprotective of Olivia than the others, but she was the one we almost lost to my father. My oldest girl, my baby, was almost a sacrifice. I try not to think about my fathe