Page 23

Lina

Since Betty, my mom, and I had moved into Blackthorn Villa, it had been transformed. I didn’t just mean in its oppressive, dark décor, although tearing out the secret room my mom had been imprisoned in had been one of the first things we had done. I knew I’d always remember her in safety goggles and with a demolition hammer, knocking down that partitioning wall with such vehemence as if she were striking Magnus with every swing.

Blackthorn Villa, three months on, simply had transformed with the chatter, laughter, and joy that was housed within it once again. Now, three months after moving in and at the height of summer, the celebratory atmosphere today made it feel full to bursting.

Betty proceeded down the grand staircase ahead of me in a lilac dress similar to my own. Our bouquets of lilac filled the warm summer air. My mom waited at the bottom of the stairs, her tearful gaze skipping between Betty and me. My mom had on a peachy-hued gown to the knee and was positively glowing with health.

Matt came out of the study that my mom had enjoyed doing demolition on so thoroughly. “Get your ass out here, Em,” he called. “Or we’re gonna miss the bride walking down the aisle.”

Matt’s blue eyes were bright as they swept over me. “You look beautiful, Lina.”

“Thanks, Matt,” I beamed, reveling the third and final time of being a bride. But today, the fizzing in my chest wasn’t because of nervous anxiety, but excitement. The bubbly, effervescent feeling was because I was about to commit to the man I loved.

Matt looped his arm through Emily’s, dragging her out the door as he murmured, “I swear even if it was us walking down the aisle, I’d have to drag you from the office.”

“Maybe we’d just have it in the office, then I wouldn’t even have to take the day off,” Em quipped, full of her usual sardonic wit.

But I didn’t miss the pleased look on Matt’s face as she didn’t completely oppose the idea of a ceremony.

Emily had spent a few weeks in hospital after Magnus’s men had injured her. But with her shifter healing, she was back to her usual bossy self. She and Matt had happily relocated back here to New York, and although they had an apartment in the city, just like in Philly, they had rooms here in Blackthorn Villa, as well as Magnus’s renovated office that they spent most days working in. They were still my most invaluable employees for Luna Remedies.

I took my mom’s arm as Betty skipped ahead of us, leading us through Blackthorn Hall. We continued out the wide-open doors and into the garden, and I took in a breath of relief.

I hadn’t wanted mine and Stephen’s mate ceremony to take place in the hall, which seemed tainted with the memories of the other two times I’d unwillingly felt forced to play the part of a bride. So, we’d decided to have a summer ceremony out here in the garden.

Thank God it isn’t raining today.

We’d just celebrated my birthday last week at Midsummer’s, and now, a week later, Stephen and I were celebrating our mate ceremony. The fourth of July was in a week’s time, and now, to add to this time of year that my mom and I had always loved, it would now mean even more to me. Every year, it would be the anniversary of my special day with my mate.

Betty led the way, scattering rose petals as she skipped toward Stephen. The little girl went at a much swifter tempo than Mom and I walked, but Betty was dancing, of course. People cooed and cheered her as she danced lightly toward her father, where Stephen spun her until she bowed and then stood beside him, beaming at me.

“Good job, my little ballerina,” Stephen murmured, stooping down to her, and something in my chest squeezed even tighter.

Stephen looked breathtaking. I felt my legs go weak as I took in his perfectly tailored suit, bright white shirt and navy tie, and artfully tussled black hair.

Ben stood beside Stephen as his best man, one of his rogue wolf brothers. Stephen had told me how much Ben had been there after his mother died, swearing to help him in his quest to take his father down and prove him guilty of Charlotte’s murder. It was a quest that was now complete, with Magnus found guilty of murder by the Shifter High Council and sentenced to life imprisonment. I knew Ben—and Victor—who was in one of the front rows, smiling too—were Stephen’s Matt and Em. Gratitude beat through me that we were all standing here together, united. All our allies who had helped us over the years to triumph against Magnus and bring him to justice were gathered today.

As my mom and I reached Stephen, she kissed my cheek, leaving me to link arms with Stephen.

“You look absolutely stunning,” he murmured to me.

I let out a slow exhale, grinning. “You don’t look so bad yourself.”

His bright green eyes brushed me with tenderness and loyalty, and for a moment, I found myself breathless, hardly daring to believe that we were finally standing here together. My fated mate was finally going to officially be mine.

The two corrupt Blackthorn elders who had colluded with Magnus in murdering Charlotte had been imprisoned along with Magnus by New York’s High Council of shifters.

Instead, it was one of the Silvermoon elders, Rosemary, who officiated our ceremony.

The ceremony began with a reminder of the sanctity of the mate bond and how it was something hoped for and wished for above all others. “For fate to sanctify a bond is something unusual and special, but one that you—Lina Silvermoon, and you—Stephen Blackthorn, have been lucky enough to be given.

“But given the fraught history between our packs—your fated bond might have been seen as a crux to bear instead.”

We had spoken with Rosemary about what we were setting right between us, here before our packmates and ourselves, and the kind-faced elder said, “I believe you each have your own vows prepared?”

We nodded, and Stephen began, his gaze finding mine and making me feel like I was the only one here. “Lina, for too long, I have had to hide my bond with you, which given that this,” he laid his hand over his chest, “is like trying not to breathe, pretending you don’t need to drink, I never want to do again. I promise to honor and celebrate the bond between us, to strengthen it, and to listen to it so that it is the guiding light in my life that I now know it’s meant to be.”

Tears pricked my eyes as I blinked at the look of love on Stephen’s strong, handsome face, and I had to take a moment to find my breath again. “Stephen,” I choked. “I’ve always felt like I had to be enough myself, strong enough, fast enough, happy enough. But with you, I never feel like I need to be anything but myself. I promise to give my all to our bond because I know that together, you, me, our family, and our pack make me feel not just enough but whole and happy.”

The look of adoration and passion crossing Stephen’s face made me practically giddy, and it was a relief as Rosemary announced, “I now pronounce you fated mates. Stephen, you may kiss your mate.”

The raucous applause that resounded as we kissed told me that our packmates valued our unity and strength as much as we did. This time, the Blackthorn and Silvermoon Packs had come together organically because Stephen and I were meant to lead together, and each one of our packmates was valued.

We soon began mingling with our guests, sharing drinks and chatter. As we stood beside each other, we reveled in every brush of our gaze, every casual touch, and, most especially, every kiss because even now, after months of being with each other, the memory of being unable to be so carefree with one another lingered still.

Once the champagne had been served, waiters began to bring out canapes.

“Oh my god!” Emily exclaimed as she spotted the trays of pizza pies; I’d deliberately kept it a secret from her, knowing she’d otherwise have found a way to raid the caterer’s stash early. “Is that Giuseppe’s and Nonna’s?”

When Stephen and I had been planning our wedding breakfast, and he’d asked what I’d like, I’d jokingly said, “Nonna’s.”

But instead of laughing it off, his gaze had softened, and he’d confessed, “That night was the first time I felt there might really be a chance for us. The way you told me about Emily and opened up was the first time I dared to truly hope.”

So now, as the guests started to crowd the trays, my gaze met Stephen’s, and his tender look undid me all over again.

“Nonna’s!” Betty shouted with joy, already well-acquainted with the establishment.

“Traitor!” Stephen said, rolling his eyes as Betty’s only cackled. “Daddy just has worse taste than me and Mommy,” she teased, repeating the taunt I liked to throw at Stephen whenever we ordered in.

“That’s right,” Miriam said, “You’re definitely a Granny’s girl!”

“I am so unfairly outnumbered in this family,” Stephen griped, but his bright green eyes sparkled with happiness.

Because other than their pizza preferences, Stephen and Betty were as thick as thieves. He’d been giving her swimming lessons since we’d moved into the villa, and Betty could be found in the pool with her father as often as she danced across Blackthorn Hall with her granny.

The rest of the afternoon whizzed by in a blur of celebrations—drinking, eating, and dancing.

But later, in the falling light, Stephen and I finally got to sneak away from the festivities.

He drew me down to our private beach, and I relished the stillness, with only the lapping waves rolling in.

Stephen had built a summerhouse on the beach before we’d started renovating Blackthorn Villa. For those first few weeks, while all the work was going on at the main house, Stephen, me, and Betty had slept in the big bed in the summer house. The place had been a magical cocoon where we’d gotten to find our feet as a family, away from the lingering ghosts that memories of Magnus had cast in the villa.

Stephen’s bright green eyes fell over me, and the look of desire in them made me feel aglow, the softness and heat as magical as the setting sun kissing the horizon. “Do you want to go inside yet?”

I shook my head, a smile tucked in the corners of my mouth. “Walk with me.”

“Whatever you want, mate,” he murmured.

My toes curled in my heels, and sparks started low in my belly at the low rumble of promise in that word.

I kicked off my heels, relishing the bare sand on my feet. I ventured along the sand, and Stephen slipped my hand into his again.

“What are you thinking?” he asked, watching me attentively.

I looked out at the sea and said, “I’m not. No plans. No next moves. Just this. Just us.”

He swallowed, a mix of tenderness and want washing over his features. He pulled me against him, leaning down to kiss me. “Just us,” he echoed back, breathing me in as he stared down with a hunger that I swore became more and more open with every passing day.

Sometimes, I wondered if that look was so devastatingly delicious because it had been hidden for so long. Maybe our love had grown so strong because we’d buried it, and it had strengthened and matured like fine wine or whiskey, growing potent until just one taste was enough to get drunk on.

At the thought of tasting, my gaze unconsciously sunk to Stephen’s lips.

A mischievous light sparked in his bright green eyes, and my heart skipped in my chest. I darted away but only got a few steps before he caught me, kissing me. His mouth was rough and urgent, each kiss growing messier and wilder by the second.

“Lina,” he intoned against my lips, his thumb pressing at my jaw and his tongue teasing my mouth open until he was devouring me.

He kissed me ferociously as if he hadn’t been able to these last three months. My mouth pulled up as I wondered whether it would always be like this and we’d never get our fill of each other.

“What are you grinning at?” Stephen rasped against my lips.

“That we’re still as hungry for each other as we were when we first met.”

“No, I’m even hungrier,” Stephen growled. “In fact—” A moment later, he had me down in the sand, my tulle skirts shucked up around me, and the evening air dancing over my bare legs and silk underwear.

“What if someone—” I began.

“My rogue wolves are under strict orders to ensure our guests know our beach is off-limits tonight,” Stephen said. An appreciative groan climbed up his throat as his attention fell to me, his mouth already kissing up my calf, licking and kissing at my soft inner thigh.

“Stephen,” I moaned as his mouth teased me through my knickers, a jolt of pleasure making me buck against his mouth. He ran his nose up over the silk, nuzzling along my slit, his decadent groan sending shivers down my spine as much as his touch.

“I’m going to have this pretty pussy right here in the open.” He kissed me through the silk, nipping and teasing me and making me grow wetter by the second until he ordered, “Lift your hips.”

“You’ve definitely got bossier,” I joked. It was true. I’d noticed a change since he’d become alpha. He was definitely more domineering in bed. Not that I minded. It turned out I liked to be bossed around, too.

I lifted my hips, and he pulled off my knickers.

“Open your legs,” he growled, and a judder of pleasure beat through me as my legs fell open to accommodate him. Pleasure sparked as his mouth sank between my folds, his finger falling to my clit. My body turned molten, and I felt as fluid as the silvery sea.

My hips rolled up against his mouth, rising to meet him like a cresting wave, and he murmured, “Come for me, Darlin’. I need you on my tongue.”

And just like that, I was over the edge, feeling as if I was boneless and drifting on the sea. But Stephen held me, lapping at me until I collapsed back into the sand.

Stephen’s mouth traveled up my body, his big hands managing to slip up under my bodice and beneath my silk bra, cupping my breast and pinching my nipple. I moaned, heat climbing in me again as I arched up into him.

As his mouth met mine, I could taste myself on him. It mixed with his spice and earthiness, and I felt intoxicated yet still in need of more. The salty fragrance of the sea mixed with the heat radiating from his body, and I nipped and licked at his skin, tasting the salt of him and the air on his neck. I moaned, arching my back to press myself into him. “Stephen…I need you.”

He pulled back for a fleeting moment, a smirk on his lips. “Ask me nicely.”

“I need you, Alpha,” I purred, my voice a sultry whisper, my eyes shining with want.

His bright green eyes blazed with heat, and then the sound of his zipper had a heady need consuming me. I sighed, overwhelmed as he parted my folds and thrust between my legs.

“My alpha,” I moaned, my hands coming up under his shirt, feeling the hard muscles of his back flexing as he moved.

His green eyes darkened, flashing with desire, warmth pouring off him like the summer night around us. “My luna,” he answered.

And it was like it had always been with us, the fire igniting between us and feeling as if we were about to combust together. But this was the fire of passion. The cold flicker of vengeance had burned itself out, and there was only us.

Just us.

The reality of that sank in, and each of Stephen’s thrusts, as he seated himself as deeply as he could, seemed to deepen that truth, too.

My mate’s fangs lengthened, a flicker of his wolf leaping to the surface. I felt the power rolling off him. His fingers moved to my waist, grasping me as his claws shifted slightly, too.

“Claim me,” I urged, my voice low and husky, fingertips tangling in his hair as I pulled him closer.

The moment hung in the air between us, heavy and charged, and then, Stephen lowered himself, his mouth brushing against my neck. I gasped as he placed gentle kisses along the sensitive skin, each press of his lips igniting a fierce heat. Then he found his mark—the place where our bond was woven—and, with intent, pierced the skin with his fangs.

A thrill of ecstasy and sharp pleasure coursed through me, overwhelming everything else. I gasped, my body rippling with an earth-shattering release. I felt his claim radiate through me, resonating deep within my core, filling my body with heat and ringing through my very essence.

My back arched instinctively, and I cried out—caught between the pleasure of his thick cock sheathed inside of me and the delicious sting of his teeth still singing through my neck. The bite of his claws sank deeper into my hips, amplifying this all-consuming feeling, the intimacy like nothing I had ever experienced as if our very souls had merged.

When his fangs left my neck, his tongue licked at the mark, and he whispered, “Lina.” His voice was thick with desire and wonder, low and laced with tenderness that made me melt into him. “You’re mine.”

“And you’re mine,” I echoed, my nails digging into his back and drawing him closer.

The taste of saltwater, spiciness, and earth enveloped me. The waves continued their hypnotic dance behind us, and every kiss and touch made me feel as if we’d left the world behind. But it was better than that. This was our world, the one we were building together.

Stephen’s hands swept more urgently over my body, lifting my ass up in the sand, and bringing me even closer to him as he rolled his hips, his glorious cock filling me. Another wave of heat built low in my belly, climbing with every second.

“I need your tits,” he murmured, his tone demanding. Suddenly, his claws raked down the back of my dress, and the night air whispered against my breasts. In another moment, Stephen sucked and nipped at them, making me moan and buck against him.

That molten desire crested with every tantalizing kiss and bite. His mouth devoured mine, and I was helpless to think of anything but him. Each brush of his lips was a promise, affirming that this moment—this connection—was eternal. My heart raced, echoing the rhythm of the crashing waves, that wildness beyond mirroring the one pulsing between us.

“Stephen,” I gasped, want lacing my tone as the pleasure mounted. I pulled him closer, desperate for him, my nails raking down his back.

“Come for me,” he commanded, his fingers dipping between us, stroking my clit, and coaxing me back toward that glorious release. I bucked against him, gasping and moaning as I lost myself to the feeling. This time, as I spiraled into bliss, Stephen roared out his own release, drowning in the fire we created together as his warmth filled me completely.

When the waves of ecstasy ebbed, Stephen leaned over me, his elbows resting in the sand as he smiled down at me, his face shining with satisfaction. As my breath steadied, my heart thrummed softly, and I soaked in the love and intimacy between us that was so full of promise.

“What are you thinking about?” I asked.

“Just us,” he said, a goofy grin spreading over his face, one that quickly spread over my face, too. Because this type of happiness was infectious, it felt easy and wonderful. He lay down beside me, wrapping me in his strong arms, and my contentment sent my thoughts drifting to us again, too.

Because the truth was I was so goddamn happy. I looked forward to spending every day with this man doing ordinary things, like working at Blackthorn she was part of our lives, eager to share in the life we were weaving—filled with warmth, laughter, and love. And then, of course, there was Betty, dancing through our home and spreading joy wherever she went. My hand slipped to my belly as I hoped that our family would grow before long. Betty had already asked for a little brother or sister, and I couldn’t wait for that moment when we might be able to tell her she was going to be a big sister.

A sense of lightness enveloped me as if we were floating on a gentle current. “I can’t wait for what’s ahead, too,” I murmured, brushing my fingertips along Stephen’s jaw. “Together, we’re going to build something incredible.”

His hands tightened around me, roguish delight lighting up his features. “With you by my side, I know we will.”

As our lips found each other, I surrendered to the warmth of that promise, lifted and lightened by the love we had created.