I didn’t have to wait for Lesley to let me know that it was over. I could hear it from the movement in the passages outside of my room. I almost wished I had been there, but seeing someone experience what I went through was too much. It was bad enough that I went through it myself. The second Lesley walked into my room, I wanted to know how the old king was doing and if he was okay.The man was a lot older than I was and I couldn’t imagine him surviving what I had, but according to Lesley, he didn’t even cry out. Well, I didn’t cry out most of the time, so it couldn’t have been that bad, could it? I honestly couldn’t imagine Lorenzo allowing anybody to whip his father to the full extent to which I had been whipped.Unfortunately, Lesley had a lot more to tell and by the time she was done, I was actually feeling nauseous. At least, it was over. We could all move forward from here. The slaves could be freed and no one would ever have to go through that again. Which made her think about
I could feel his eyes on me while I prepared the paste for his father, and the entire time we were in the hospital wing until the queen finally excused me. She wanted me to help Ella with the wedding preparations since it was apparently more about finding me a husband than it was about Ella’s special day. It made me realize that Lorenzo hadn’t said anything to his mother about his confession yet.Would he? Did he actually expect me to stay quiet about it and just not marry? What the hell did he expect of me?! I didn’t have much time to worry about it when I reached the queen’s sitting room. Ella was freaking out now that she had to take charge of her wedding arrangements. I jumped in and helped her sort out the very last of the details before the seamstress arrived.It was to be our last fitting before the wedding and I was kind of hoping I could convince the seamstress to change my dress a little, seeing as the queen wasn’t there to comment. Unfortunately, the seamstress had received
LorenzoI DIDN’T KNOW WHAT I WANTED, which was a strange new feeling for me. I couldn’t see myself crowning a slave as the queen, but I also couldn’t imagine living my life without her anymore. In a very short time, Ariana had shown me that my first impression of her was completely wrong.She definitely wasn’t weak, that much was clear. She was smart, and I bet if she was in the right circumstances, she would be funny. She was fair even when the world around her wasn’t. She was kind even when she really didn’t have to be. If I was honest with myself, I would have to admit that she was the woman I had been looking for all this time, but I wasn’t honest with myself.I might be in the process of trying to free the slaves, but that didn’t change anything. Ariana would always be remembered as the slave girl that was saved by my mother and that girl could never be our queen. I wondered how she would feel about being my mistress but pushed that idea out of my mind as soon as it popped up.Wh
The man was a great dancer, but I couldn’t stop thinking about Lorenzo. I could feel his eyes on me, but I couldn’t see where he was.“Are you excited?” The man asked, drawing my attention back to him.“Yes,” I wasn’t entirely sure what I said yes to!“Well, I guess any woman would be excited at the prospect of the queen finding her a husband. I have a huge estate, you know?” He smiled and, for some odd reason, his smile nauseated me.“Yes, yes, of course.” Dammit! I had completely forgotten that was what this entire wedding was about! Finding me a husband! I wished the song would end and made a mental note to be more careful about who I agreed to dance with! The man rambled on and on about his estate and his riches and I wondered if that was really what women wanted in those circles. Whatever happened to love? To be with your destined mate and trust that the moon goddess has chosen the perfect partner for you?I almost breathed a loud sigh of relief when the music ended and he escort
LorenzoI let her go. She slipped out of my arms and I let her go. When my brain finally started working again, I realized what the hell I had done. I wanted Ariana! I wanted her to be my queen! Everything I had been looking for was right there in front of me and I couldn’t even say that I didn’t see it, because I did! I knew that she was perfect and I had done exactly what I accused everyone of. I judged the slaves before taking the time to get to know them.I was so damn wrapped up in my own world that I didn’t want to see what was right in front of me. I scanned the crowd who had started the next dance but I knew she wouldn’t be there anymore. Running up the stairs, my mother called me and I turned around sighing.“Lorenzo! What did you do to Ariana?” The scowl on her face was strange. She never showed emotion in front of people. Quickly moving up the stairs, she stood opposite me but I was still taller than her.“I made the biggest mistake of my life, Mother, and I would like to g
Lorenzo“LORENZO, WHAT A NICE SURPRISE.” Emanuel appeared in front of our group. I was expecting her to show up a lot sooner, but with this one, you never really knew what she would do next! Shifting so she couldn’t read my thoughts, I took her hand and kissed it.“Emanuel, I hope you are doing well.” She looked at my crotch for a moment, raising her brow as a smile started to form on her face and I had to fight the urge to roll my eyes as one of my men handed me a pair of shorts to put on.“Now, not so much.” She sighed and turned to walk away. “What are you doing in my forest? We didn’t have an appointment, did we?” She had to know that Ariana was in the forest, but I had to be very careful how I approached this. Emanuel might look like a little fairy, but she was a pixie. She had powers beyond our comprehension.She was bound to the forest in a way that was just breathtaking and I envied it sometimes. Wishing I could be bound to my territory that way. Feeling when people trespassed
THINGS WERE STARTING TO TAKE SHAPE around my new home after a couple of days. The seeds had been planted and, thanks to the pixies, I could already see small plants growing. Their magic just touched the plants and it would come to life. I would really have been lost without their help and I knew it.So, I hadn’t built my own home and they were helping me grow the food … So what? They seemed friendly enough and they hadn’t asked me for a thing since I got here. I hadn’t seen Emanuel again in the past couple of days, but since she was a queen, I could only guess that she was busy. I wondered if Lorenzo had even come to look for me, and quickly pushed all thoughts of him to the back of my mind.I had a lot to do around my new home, and keeping busy kept my mind off what could be happening in the world outside of mine. My wolf was slowly starting to accept our new life and that I wouldn’t be going back to Lorenzo no matter how much she cried, but I could feel the effect her sadness had on
I needed to find out exactly why Emanuel wanted the harbour so badly. It felt as if that would be the key to solving my problem once and for all and saving Ariana. I decided I needed to get down to the harbour. If I could see it for myself, I might just be able to see something that I might have missed before. It wouldn’t just be the business that moved through the harbour. I couldn’t see Emanuel running around collecting taxes and dealing with ship captains.As I walked through the market, it pained me to see the slaves chained up. The market wasn’t what I remembered it to be. The shock was enough to distract me from Ariana being missing. I spent all morning in the market taking notes of all the things I wanted to change in the lives of the slaves, like making sure they had their own homes.It was one of the reasons I needed Emanuel to grant us access to the forest. I couldn’t expand the kingdom beyond its current borders because that would mean war with some nation, but I needed my
IT FELT AS IF I BLINKED AGAIN and we were standing in the front of the chapel waiting for Liam’s beautiful mate to come down the aisle. We planned their wedding in record time because there was no way those two would be able to hold out for much longer! The only reason we probably did was because Lorenzo rejected me, and I had a chaperone. I suggested it to Liam, and he nearly bit my head off!Besides, Lorenzo was already the king for a couple of years when we met, so the circumstances were different. Lorenzo slightly nudged me and I smiled at him. I found myself constantly trapped in memories over the past couple of weeks, but I just couldn’t help myself. The castle was filled with love and happiness, and I couldn’t help myself. My children’s lives have turned out so much better than I could ever have hoped for.They actually turned out far better than I ever prayed for. The bride walked down the aisle and she looked even prettier than she did at the last fitting. She curtsied in fro
ON THE NIGHT LIAM TURNED EIGHTEEN, I was standing in our room looking at myself in the mirror. I had the seamstress make me a dress similar to the red one since Lorenzo actually physically tore the old one from my body! Only this dress was a little more appropriate for the queen … For the last night, I would be walking into the ballroom as the queen.Our darling son didn’t just look like his father. He was a true carbon copy. He was kind and loving with a fire in his belly. He wanted to change the world and make things better for our kind and he loved visiting the pixies who simply loved him. Tradition dictated that Lorenzo hand over the title to Liam tonight in a small alpha-type ceremony.The big coronation was going to happen in a couple of weeks. At least the damn protocol allowed for a little time to just celebrate the fact that he was coming of age. I was sending up silent prayers all day that he would find his destined mate tonight. So, it could possibly complicate things, but
THE NEXT YEAR I STILL FELT STRESSED when the other kids had to go through their ceremonies, but it was a lot easier since they weren’t the future of our territory. Well, they were, but it wasn’t a make-or-break moment like it was with Liam.All our children found their wolves and it was part of the memories I would never forget. It was almost as beautiful as the days they were born. The children were growing and our pack was growing, and while I was sitting in the morning room with my ladies, Lorenzo showed up out of the blue.“I thought we could go for a walk.” He grinned and I knew my husband well enough. I was right because he had a basket waiting just outside the morning room. I laughed as we rushed down the hallway and breathed in the fresh morning air. Lorenzo pulled me into the maze in the garden and finally came to a halt right where we had one of our first dates. I loved that spot. He pulled out a blanket and nearly made me fall into his lap when he pulled me down with him.H
WE GOT THROUGH THE MEAL, and I mean literally just survived it with all the children. I breathed a sigh of relief as we stepped out onto the grass and I could feel the cool grass under my bare feet. Everyone was dressed casually so we could shift after Liam shifted.The moon was full and beautiful in the sky as Lorenzo made his speech. The bonfires were lit, and we started a countdown. The moon shone down on my beautiful boy as I sent up one last silent prayer. I know I’ve asked a lot of her during my life, but if she could just help me this once …“Three … Two … ONE!” We all shouted and everyone looked at Liam. When the first bone breaking echoed through the clearing, I realized that everyone had probably been holding their breaths! It was horrifying watching my son go through his first time, but it was an incredible relief as well. His wolf was gorgeous once he completely shifted.His pelt was a purist silk black colour just like his father's and he had a beautiful white spot on the
AS I EXPECTED, Lesley and her mate returned from their getaway with the news that they wanted a normal werewolf ceremony. I was a little sad to hear that they wanted to have it at his pack house, but I could understand why. He wanted to show off his Luna and it was going to be her new home.They invited us to their ceremony, which was a plus at least. After most of our guests left and the excitement of the entire thing was over, I had some news for Lorenzo and, this time, it was huge! I couldn’t believe it myself when the doctor told me, but it happened! Lorenzo was sitting on the couch in the library and I curled up next to him while the kids played on the floor with the nanny.“Since there is no reason to give you a gift this time, I thought I would just tell you.” I felt so damn nervous! Why was I so nervous?!“Okay …” I could hear the frown in his voice and I laughed nervously.“Well, I don’t know how it happened so fast, but I’m pregnant!” Our baby girl was barely a couple of wee
ON THE NIGHT OF LESLEY’S COMING OUT BALL, the two of us got ready together and when Lesley walked out from behind the dressing divider, I gasped. I had seen her dress at every fitting, but seeing it on her with her hair done and her make-up, she looked stunning.Lorenzo arrived and we went downstairs. When Lesley walked into the ballroom to be presented in front of us, the old queen looked so proud. It was a great moment for all of us. As if a circle had just been completed. I could feel the excitement in the room and all the single male eyes looked at Lesley as if she was the best dessert they could ever have!In the corner of the room, I couldn’t help but notice the guard she had been seeing before all of this, and I swore at myself for not thinking of making sure that he wouldn’t be there. But as I looked at Lesley laughing at something one of the males said to her, I knew it didn’t matter. The champagne was flowing and people were dancing and having fun.At the end of the night, i
THE WAR DIDN’T LAST LONG if you could even call it that. The rogues attacked our borders a couple of times, but they never broke through. It was sad to think that it happened on the day of Rebecca’s birth, but thankfully, it all worked out.Peace reigned … Or so I thought. Things had just turned back to normal around the castle when Lesley walked into our room with red tear-stained eyes. I had to drag it out of her, but she finally told me that the guard had found his destined mate. My heart ached for the pain she so clearly felt. He might not have been her destined mate, but she clearly cared for him.“Lesley, why don’t you let us have a proper coming-out party for you?” Okay, so I sounded like the old queen, but I didn’t care. I wanted to see her happy. She had given so much and cared so much for me over the past couple of years that I felt she deserved to be happy. Lesley sighed and wiped the tears from her eyes. I couldn’t believe it when she actually agreed!Jumping for joy as so
LIAM’S FIRST BIRTHDAY was the best day of my life. Okay, well, one of the best. We had gotten him this far. We survived the first year, and more importantly, he survived the first year with us. If it wasn’t for the entire village of people helping, I would probably have done something to make it all go wrong.Two more ladies-in-waiting had been married by this time and it was incredible to see them with their destined mates. Leila was pregnant, but since they were lower-ranked wolves, her pregnancy would last a little longer than mine did.People came from all over the kingdom to celebrate with us. There were balloons and streamers and flowers everywhere. The food ranged from snacks for the children to all sorts of finger foods for the grown-ups and people were laughing. The entire lawn was covered with people who were all there to celebrate.Liam looked like a carbon copy of his father, but he had my eyes. He was a good little boy and I loved him more than life itself. My boys … But
I was a shifter dammit! Of course, my body would accommodate the birth of my son, but I was in so much pain that my brain seemed to short out and I couldn’t think straight. I understood why some women only had one child because this was just the worst pain I had ever gone through. Pushing and screaming and sweating like a pig! It wasn’t beautiful! It was the most horrifying moment of my entire life!“Okay, Your Majesty, one last big push.” The doctor sounded as though he was smiling, but I didn’t give a damn! I was tired, and every muscle in my body ached, not to mention what was going on down there! I begged Lorenzo to stop this madness. I couldn’t push anymore. Lorenzo climbed onto the bed behind me and I felt some relief as he whispered in my ear.“Just one more push baby and I promise it will all be over.” He sounded just as frustrated as I felt.“YOU’RE NOT THE ONE PUSHING!” I growled as another contraction hit and I had no alternative but to do as they asked. Falling back onto L