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White wedding gowns hadn’t been stylish in Taimarah since some celebrity had decided to have an elaborate green dress to get married in. Since then, jewel tones have been the most popular colors for brides to walk down the aisle in.

I’d been given my pick to choose from. Out of protest, I’d picked up the most out-of-fashion dress available. Now, as I stood facing the mirror, dressed to the nines for my wedding, I wondered what my groom would do if I simply refused to say ‘I do.’

My heart hammered against my ribs, my stomach fluttering. The dress was well-made, so white it almost hurt to look at. It washed me out, making my olive-brown tones look sickly rather than have the sun-kissed golden glow I usually had.

Marissa, who styled my hair and makeup for the wedding, had clucked her tongue when she saw it. She’d done her best to make me look better, and her work was terrific. My dark brown eyes stood out as the main feature of my face, which was challenging to do, considering the burn scar covering my lower half.

The dress was high-necked and long-sleeved. The bodice clung to me, and with the corset I wore beneath it, my breasts looked about two sizes bigger. The skirt was a simple flowing chiffon that swept against the floor. It could be detached at a moment’s notice, leaving me in soft silk slack. I wore boots beneath, comfortable and able to run in.

“It’s unlikely that the wedding will be attacked, but you can’t be too careful,” Marissa had told me.

The wedding.

I was getting married today. I’d be escorted to the Elven grove in just a little while. I would marry Luken Holakas, the half-vampire, half-elf king of Taimarah. Four years ago, this would have been a dream come true. It should be a dream now, too. I loved him. He sent my pulse racing, and when I was near him, it was all I could do not to beg him to carry me to bed.

Oh, but this was one of the worst days of my life.

I chose the wedding dress, but that was it. I wasn’t choosing to marry Luken. He’d decided we were getting married, so here I was.

There were only two days that were worse than this one. The day that my family was slaughtered in an attempt to keep me from Luken, to fulfill the prophecy of being his mate. The day when the only other survivor, Darcie, was taken away to be a tribute to the Gods.

My stomach knots tighter as guilt washes through me. I should be out of here by now, tracking down the temples so I could rescue her. She only had a few months left.

I took a deep breath, embracing the dark feelings that swept through me. Luken might be forcing me to marry me, I might love him deeply, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t hate him. He made me think he cared. He made me think that we had something special. Something I thought had been proven correct when we were magically tattooed the first—and only—time we had slept together. We were mates, born to be together.

But it was all a lie. I was only a tool to him, something to make him more powerful so he could take on the gods.

He only wanted power. My blood gave that to him. It increased his magic, made him stronger. It made me stronger, too.

***

“You give me my strength, and I will not let you go. You will stay here, with me, at all times. We will marry and fuck, and I’ll drink your blood, and it will give me what I need to defeat these false gods.” His grip was tight on me.

I closed my eyes. “Very well.”

“You understand?” His breath was sweet on my face.

“Of course,” I answered, no emotion in my voice. “You have a prophecy to fulfill.”

Luken’s arms fell from around me. “Elara, look at me.”

I kept my eyes shut. I was a fool to fall for him. But no more. I wasn’t going to let him confuse me again.

“Elara,” he whispered, his fingers brushing my cheekbone. “The prophecy says that I can only defeat them with my mate. They know about you, and they’re afraid of us. I can’t sacrifice the kingdom for one person. Look at me.”

“Fuck off,” I said calmly.

Luken growled. “Fine. I have you as a mate and I’m already stronger for it. We will be married in two weeks. You have that long to get used to the idea as well as your new body.”

My eyes snapped open. “New body?”

He arched one dark eyebrow, looking so sinfully attractive I nearly forgot I had to hate him now. “You were pierced through the heart. I had to put my venom in you. You drank my blood. If you were even a fraction closer to death, you’d be a vampire right now. As it is, with our mating, you have changed. Can’t you feel it? You’re stronger. You’re faster. Your senses are sharper. And I’m assured that you will no longer age. You’re still vulnerable to injury and illness, but if you continue to drink my blood as I drink yours, eventually you’ll be a vampire, too.”

“I don’t want to be a vampire,” I snapped at him, my head pounding. I looked down at my hands. So much had happened that I hadn’t had time to think about it. But last night, I had been impressed with my own stamina.

My stomach swooped. If it was real, if I was changed, then…

I sprang forward and swung. My fist cracked into Luken’s nose, sending him stumbling back.

“Ha!” I crowed. “Let’s see you try to force me to stay now!”

***

I hadn’t quite escaped the way I planned. Luken was still stronger and faster than I was. Our ensuing fight had almost been as pleasurable as the lovemaking—fucking—we’d done the night before.

“They’re waiting for you,” Marissa said.

I turned, taking a deep breath to settle my nerves. I’d been trained to be an assassin. I could get through this wedding without letting my true feelings show. Marissa’s glowing silver eyes lingered on me, a slight pinch between her eyebrows. She was one of Luken’s most loyal allies in the court and had sort of taken me under her wing, but I still couldn’t trust to confide in her.

“Let’s get this over with,” I said gruffly. I shook out my shoulders, rolled my neck, and plastered a smile on my face. “There. Can you tell I’d rather gouge out my eyes?”

Marissa smirked at me. “No. You look every bit the blushing bride.”

I had to laugh at that. Nobody would ever accuse me of being a blushing bride. I was ready, though. Marissa walked with me out of the bride’s room and through a low, covered tunnel toward the glade where I’d be married. Vampires didn’t have much for wedding traditions themselves. They tended to borrow from other cultures.

Luken had incorporated some human elements into our wedding. He’d even offered to have a selkie tradition, in honor of my distant selkie heritage. But I’d refused. So, we were having an elven wedding in honor of his mother.

Marissa left me at a set of doors leading to the glade and slipped away. I would be walking to the altar alone. Once I was alone, my heart started to pound even harder. Would Luken drag me down the aisle if I refused to go? Would he be furious that I embarrassed him? If I did kick up a fuss, would he let me go?

And take another woman into his bed.

My jaw tightened at the thought. Two weeks. He hadn’t touched me or drank from me since our fight. Was he taking from another woman? Marissa assured me he was not, that vampires didn’t really need that much blood, especially born vampires like Luken. He could subsist on regular food for long periods before he grew weak.

The thought of him penetrating another woman, either by fang or cock, made me want to claw her eyes out.

No point in pushing this off any longer. I stepped through the doors, holding my head up high. Only to be met with a blast of glamor that knocked the breath out of me. The glade dripped in ropes of flower-shaped crystals. Everything glittered. It was so bright that it almost hurt my eyes. A long carpet rolled from where I was to the tallest, widest tree I’d ever seen.

And then there were the people.

Hundreds of eyes were on me, all of them staring and judging. For a moment, I was rooted to the spot, searching the crowd. In the sea of faces, I was suddenly overwhelmed with a sense of loss. I should have a mother, father, brothers, and sisters in this crowd. They should be beaming at me. They should have gathered around me in the bride’s ready room, giggling and reassuring.

My heart ached. They weren’t here. They never would be here.

I almost turned and left. Not out of spite but from the sheer grief that washed through me. Before I could turn, a pair of dark eyes caught me.

Thessa, my one ally in the court. She loved Darcie as much as I did, and we were going to get her back. We had a plan—I just had to get through this.

I strode forward, letting my mask slip back into place. I wasn’t going to let a wedding, of all things, disrupt my plans. Thessa and I were getting out of here. We would find the temples and save Darcie. We only had a few months left, but we would be successful.

I passed her and tore my eyes away to look ahead, searching for Luken. I found him standing beneath the tree, next to a low altar that looked as though it was carved from a single piece of crystal. He wore a black tunic and pants, edged in gold. A blood-red sash was tied over his shoulder. His black hair was braided, though from here, I couldn’t tell what kind. No doubt, it was as intricate as usual. A golden crown sat on his head.

His lips were curved into a smile, and his amber eyes glowed brighter than usual. My heart skipped. He was always devastatingly handsome, but the way he looked at me right now… he looked happy . Happy to be marrying me. My feet slowed as it seemed as though everyone else disappeared.

Gods, but I loved him. Heat swept through me, pooling between my thighs. Two weeks. It had been two weeks, and my body wanted him again. It was no wonder he’d broken down my defenses so much the night he took my virginity… or rather, when I’d given it to him.

As part of the Blood Trials, I’d killed Thessa. But after I begged Luken to save her, he did. And it was that, more than the intensity of the pleasure from when he drank from me, that had me pulling him closer, begging him to take me. I thought since he saved Thessa, he actually cared about me. I thought…

I started walking again, feeling out my facial muscles to make sure I looked appropriately happy. I wanted him more than ever, but I’d be damned before I let him know that. The truth was, sex wasn’t enough. I needed more if I was going to be with him. And he wasn’t about to give it to me. He’d said it himself. He was a cruel man. He couldn’t give me the warmth and safety I wanted. He wouldn’t save Darcie. Wouldn’t even try.

“You are beautiful,” he whispered to me when I reached him.

“Liar,” I answered coolly, quiet enough that nobody else could hear.

Disappointment filled his eyes, and I resisted the urge to punch my fist into the air. Good. Let him see how it felt! He took my hands—fuck, why did something as simple as holding his hand have to feel so good?—and led me to the alter. We knelt on either side, and he picked up a small silver knife.

“I swear with blood that I will protect you,” he said. “I swear I will guard you, stand with you, and support you. I will appreciate everything you bring to my life, and I will not turn my back on you.” He sliced the tip of his finger and held the knife to me. “Do you accept me?”

“I do,” I said. My mouth went dry. I’d also been given traditional vows to memorize, but somehow, they didn’t seem appropriate anymore. “I swear with my blood, I will be your wife. I will…” I faltered over the words. I wasn’t going to be barefoot and pregnant for him. I couldn’t make vows I was unwilling to see through. “I will do what I can,” I finished simply and cut the tip of my finger. “Do you accept me?”

Luken smiled. “I do.”

He pressed his finger to my lips and I pressed mine to his. The taste of his blood was salty and tangy. His eyes darkened as his lips closed around my finger.

A thrill washed through me. One, I tried to fight but couldn’t. I wished I could lean across the altar and kiss him, but there was too much between us. We were married now. We’d made the vows and were bound together even more than we were before. And though I hadn’t thought it would change anything, it had… this intensity, my desire for him, was even stronger.

What was I going to do with myself now?