All Chapters of A Prophecy of Crowns and Harmony: Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

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

Lukas “Look who finally decided to grace us with his presence!” Drew teased as I jogged into the training yard. I was a bit late, but it wasn’t my fault. Well, okay, it was sort of my fault. I had forgotten to set an alarm the night before crawling into bed beside June, and then that morning, when I awoke with her naked body still draped on top of my own naked body and realized what happened in the middle of the night was not, in fact, a dream, I had to have a repeat. I took my time with her, bringing her right to the edge and then backing off until she couldn’t take it anymore, and then I finally let her come. It was all so worth being a bit late for training and getting razzed by Drew. I smiled to myself at the memory of her gripping my hair as she held my head down between her legs. And then I had to think of the time I walked in on my parents doing it on Dad’s desk in order to calm down Lukas Jr. I jabbed Drew sharply in the abs as I passed by him, and he collapsed on the gro

Juniper “What do you think, the ivory or the cream?” Luna Claire asked me as she held up two, almost identical, off-white linen samples. To the untrained eye, they might look the same, but my artist’s eye could differentiate between them easily. I lifted the navy blue sample between them, comparing each to the blue, before I made my decision. “The ivory,” I stated confidently. I had spent the better part of the morning after Lukas left for training with Claire in the packhouse, helping her to plan out the decorations and seating chart for Lukas’s ceremony and after party. The ceremony itself would take place just before sunset on the summer solstice. Because we were further north, the sunset would take place late, around 10 pm. I felt odd, helping her, since I wasn’t Lukas’s true mate, but his parents hadn’t even batted an eye when we announced we wanted to be chosen mates. “Perfect,” she said with a smile, setting the ivory with the chosen decorations, and the cream in the rej

Lukas We were all crowded inside of my dad’s office. And when I say all, I mean ALL — Finn, Chloe, Drew, Everly, Damien, Veronica, Simon, Sofia, Myles, my dad and mom, and June and me. It was cramped, but most of us males had our mate sitting or standing close to us or on our lap, not bothering with formalities since we were all basically family. June wore one of my button-up shirts and some leggings from Everly’s old room since she didn’t want to portal home to change, her hair up in a messy bun on the top of her head that was almost right in my line of sight with her in my lap. My hand was resting casually yet possessively on her hip, and she was stiff, obviously a little shy to be sitting like this with me in front of her parents, but I was trying to ease her discomfort with my touch. I wished I could mindlink her already, or that I could use the mate bond to calm her, but that wasn’t the case for us yet. The tension and aura radiating from my father and mother had me nervous. H

Lukas I slept terribly. It was the worst night of sleep I’ve ever had. Even worse than the night I was way too drunk at Alpha Phil’s academy. Or the night after my 19th birthday. After June had walked out of my room and I knew she had made it down the stairs to the main floor, I let out all of my anger and frustration. I slashed through the curtains with my half-shifted hands, tore the bedding from my bed, and threw whatever I could get my hands on. It was the worst feeling ever. To have her pulling herself away from me because of my mate, when she was my mate. Every fear and insecurity she had about me leaving, about me meeting someone who would replace her, was completely unfounded, because she was already the only one for me. But I couldn’t even tell her that. I could say absolutely nothing to assuage her fears. And then, foolishly, I had offered to mark her. I pretended I didn’t notice the way she flinched away from me when I said that, but it hurt. My wolf had whimpered and h