Page 37 of Enchanted Shadows (The Enchanted Kingdom #6)

T he four hours Kessara had to get ready with the other women for our celebration ball was the longest I left her alone in the following days.

Still nothing from her ex-lover. Hopefully he’d caught a whisper that one of the team members married their general. The prick didn’t deserve to hear it from her lips. He didn’t deserve a thing more from her at all.

I’d had some business to attend to with Keir and Krew, but demanded Emric, Miles, and Allen keep watch over the women. The team was spending the night in the castle, and Jorah had arranged for them to be on my floor, the old Assemblage rooms, so I could keep an eye on them.

Business attended to, I felt more energized than I had in days. Training was wrapping up and we had a month off. I had the entire weekend off to do nothing other than hang out with my nephews and catch up on sleep.

Calix could come. And when he did, I’d be ready.

As I walked to my room to grab a quick shower, I noted Miles and Emric standing in the hall whispering. “You good?” I called .

Emric looked to Miles and back to me. “I—” he cut off before blurting out. “I believe I am in love.”

I laughed and nodded toward the door where the team was all getting ready.

“They have that effect on you.” I thought of this entire training group.

How they’d been late and lazy on day one, and how by the end, they framed and apprehended three men.

“It’s not just because they are women, they are. ..” I fumbled for words, “them.”

Emric put his hands out at his sides. “How did you do it? How were you around so many dazzling women for ninety days?”

I laughed again. “Em, I married one of them.”

Miles smirked. “Fair point, General Raikes. However, not all of us are under their spell.”

“You sure about that?” Emric asked him. “You seem awfully hard on Wren.”

Miles gestured to me. “He has spoiled her. Much like he’s doing to the next generation of princes.”

“Do me a favor?” I shot him a grin. “The next time you’d like to call my sister spoiled, please do so to her face so I can watch the fallout.”

Emric laughed.

Miles huffed. “You both can be all enamored by the women, but I’m not. They are a decent team, I’ll give them that.”

I had to state the obvious. “You’re jealous.”

“Of a team of women?” Miles asked, chin going back.

“Yeah. One with a water wielder, and our first dual Enchanted woman. Three of the five Enchantments of the realm are on this team.”

“I’m not jealous. I’m just realistic.” As if realizing his words he added swiftly, “Look there are some missions that Team One will always be more adept at.”

“I agree, and there are some missions they will be better equipped for. They are strong. Even now. But that doesn’t have to be an insult to your strengths, Miles.”

He put up a hand. “I’m not irritated they exist as a team. I’m irritated they got off so easily for sneaking out!”

And there it was. The root of the problem would always bear its ugly face.

Emric turned to look at him like he had a horn protruding from his head. “That was weeks ago. Let it go, man.”

While the two of them continued to bicker in the hall, I moved into my room to shower, otherwise I would be late. And the general being late seemed like the wrong message to send after an otherwise successful training session.

I turned the water to scalding, knowing that if it was borderline too hot, I would shower quickly.

As the water ran over me, I considered all the last three months had thrown at me.

Was I easier on the group of women than the groups of men I had trained?

Hard to say. Maybe. But the end result was that this team was a group of women I couldn’t be prouder of.

They weren’t Team One ready, but they were ready for whatever came next, together.

That was my job. A job I had succeeded at.

And their training wasn’t complete either. I still had two more rounds with them.

As I turned the corner to the closet to grab my formal guard wear, there was Kessara. In my room. In a black gown that left most of her back open.

She was looking at a few pictures I had up by the fireplace and hadn’t noticed me, so for one brief moment in time, I allowed my eyes to travel along her.

Travel that defined line down her back. I allowed myself to ogle my wife.

She was... well she was the damn sunset.

The way the purples and pinks dipped together, reminding you that another morning would be coming, enticing you with the lure of the night .

I was reminded of the fact that I was only in a towel when she turned toward me, and gasped. “Oh. Sorry.”

I found I couldn’t speak as I demanded and focused my eyes on not checking her out again. Once was allowed. Twice was creepy. But dammit, my eyes did not want to listen to me.

“Emric told me to bring my things over and head down with you versus the rest of them.”

I smirked. That damn pot stirrer.

Her eyes traveled over my bare chest as she inhaled sharply. “Would you like a moment to change? I can?—”

“Stay.” I kept a hand at my towel and headed for my clothes to take to the bathroom to change.

I changed into my formal guard wear quickly, ready to head down. Happy to blend into the background and let the women have their night.

“Ready, wife?” I asked her.

“No,” she admitted.

“Well, you look...” she looked enticing, entirely damn tempting, but I settled for, “stunning. I knew you were all planning to match gown color, just hadn’t realized it was black.”

“Black like my soul,” she joked.

“Black like the shadows which free your soul,” I amended.

She tucked her hand around my bicep as we moved to walk down. “They do not bother you anymore?”

“Your shadows?”

“Yes.”

“They’re a part of you. Just like your gold magic. I cannot resent either as they both are just a part of who you are. How could I hate something that merely lies in your blood? Something you inherited?”

“They do not remind you of the dead king?”

I snorted. “Not anymore. Now that I understand them. He’s dead. And he may have had access to the shadows, but he knew nothing of how to wield them. Nothing like you do.”

Just before the ballroom doors, she asked, “Owen?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you for the last three months. They have meant... everything .”

And before I could say a thing back, we were ushered into the ballroom.

The room was packed with Teams One, Two, and Three all present to celebrate the end of training. There were a few parliament members also. I knew Hatcher, one of the original Six, wouldn’t have missed this.

This first celebration was normally full of promise and hope. The second one born out of exhaustion and bragging rights. But the celebration after the third round of training? That was the one that usually got rowdiest.

Kessara snagged a champagne flute as we walked by.

“Only one,” I told her. “I need you sharp.”

“You really think Calix would be fool enough to show up to this?” She moved her champagne glass outward as if to note how many trained guards were in the room.

“Where you are concerned, I think he’s entirely foolish.” I saw Krew and Keir and gestured with my head toward them. “I need to go check in. Do you want to head to the other women or come with me?”

“The team, please,” she told me.

I dropped her off with the other women in their various black gowns and headed to Krew and Keir.

Jorah gave me a quick squeeze of a hug as soon as she saw me. “Thank you, Owen.”

We turned to face the team of women, talking animatedly. “Thank you. For entrusting them to me. They’re pretty great, aren’t they? ”

Jorah nodded and sniffled.

“Jorah,” I groaned.

“It’s the hormones,” she explained.

Krew, Jorah, Keir, Esta, and I moved to walk up the stairs to officially kick the night off. Warrick and Arden followed along, the latter of which I scooped up and threw over my back.

“Good evening,” Krew began, using his magic to amplify his voice and carry the sound throughout the room. “We gather tonight in the name of celebrating. Before we do, there is a quick item of business I need your help in attending to.”

And then he stunned me by turning toward me .

“General Owen Raikes, now both prince and general in title. You have trained over half of the men in this room. You have been loyal to Wylan through the darkest of times.” He paused, his eyes on me.

I didn’t have a brother. And yet in Krew and Keir, I always had.

Krew’s throat bobbed. “You have done the hard jobs, the underappreciated and dirty jobs for far too long. As of this moment forward, you have one more title to add. You are promoted to Commander of Wylan’s forces and are, from this moment on, an honorary heir of Wylan. ”

Arden’s scream of joy in my ear was enough to shake the shock off me. The entire room cheered. For me. And none louder or harder than the team of women. The Slay Sisters.

Krew added, “Those of us who love you know you’d hate a prince title, so I think ‘Commander’ in place of ‘prince’ will do nicely, don’t you?” He moved to hug me and pinned a fancy new large pin to my gear.

“Had to do it publicly?” I said quietly enough that only he could hear.

He cut off his magic amplifying his voice and responded, “It was the only way to ensure you’d accept, you stubborn ass.”

Jorah grabbed Arden off my back and hugs were doled out all around .

Krew moved back to the front. “Now. The real reason we gather tonight is to celebrate a group of women who have defied the odds. Who are breaking history right before our very eyes.”

A server quickly passed us all drinks.

Jorah took over. “To you women, we thank you. We thank you for proving to Wylan that her daughters are not only safe now, but can dare to dream. Wylan is less limited because of you. We are all the better because of you . Take this moment in. Lean in together. You are not done, but what you have done, you have done well . To Wylan’s first team of women. ”