Page 58 of Queen of the Crimson Throne (Queen of Blood and Stardust #2)

58

LUKA

I stared up at the ceiling as Lennox lay sleeping beside me. The sun had risen a while ago, we didn’t have long until people would come looking for us both to begin preparations for the wedding, but I wanted to savor as much of the morning with her as I could.

The events of last night kept replaying in my mind as I lay there. I was still unsure as to how we got here, but I was so fucking grateful.

Lennox Adair was my wife. My wife.

And by her own accord.

She chose me last night.

I brought my hand to my face admiring the mark that now tied me to her. The metallic ink infused with stardust glimmered as I shifted my hand in the sunlight streaming through the windows.

“What are you doing?” Lennox mumbled as she shifted beside me.

“Admiring our mark.”

She squinted and brought her own hand in front of us.

“It is pretty miraculous isn’t it.” I brought my hand next to hers so we could admire the two together.

“Do you regret binding yourself to me yet?” I nudged her slightly.

“Not yet, but give it a few hours.”

I tried not to wince. I knew she was joking—I brought the joke on myself for fucks sake, but I wasn’t yet confident she wouldn’t regret her choice one day.

“Hey.” She spoke softly. Her hand cupped my cheek and she turned my chin to face her. “I have never regretted you. Remember that? Even when I was mad at you, I never regretted you. I—I care about you. You’re the one that might end up regretting binding yourself to me.”

I took her hand from my face and kissed the center of her palm, directly over our mark. “Never.”

She smiled, but I saw the caution in her eyes.

I pulled her to me and she rested her head against my chest.

“How about this?” she said finally. “Let’s promise one another if we’re ever feeling uneasy or unsure or anything about our relationship we will tell one another. That’s the only way we’re going to make this work. No matter how stupid or insignificant it might be, we tell one another.”

“Okay.”

“I know you’re afraid of the people you love leaving you, but I’m not going to do that to you, Luka. I’m here,” she said softly.

I sighed. “I know, but it’s hard to remember that sometimes. Especially when everything is going so well.” I paused as memories assaulted me. “Everything was going so well before my father died.” Before he left me. Before everyone started leaving. Everything was going well before I messed up things with Lennox and she left me.

“We’re two fucked up people aren’t we?”

“But all of our broken parts fit together somehow.” I fiddled with the end of her hair. “How much time do we have before Gulia comes knocking on the door?”

“Not long.” Lennox glanced at the door .

I scrubbed my hands over my face. “But you could be in the bathtub when she arrives.”

Lennox sat up and looked at me. “You mean we could be in the bathtub.”

“You’re insatiable aren’t you.”

“We are newlyweds, it comes with the territory after all.” She placed a quick peck on my cheek before moving from the bed. She let the sheet fall to the floor as she waltzed towards the bathing chamber. I watched the perfect swells of her ass as she swayed her hips. Her long hair flowed down her bare back in a tangle of waves. Goddess, she was stunning.

She stopped at the entrance to the bathing chamber, placing her hand on the door frame as she looked over her shoulder at me.

“You coming?”

I had made a point to avoid temples since my mother’s funeral.

Why it is that they are places where we celebrate new beginnings and also mourn the ones we’ve lost?

The temple at the center of Alethens was similar to the one in Cel Nox, temples were fairly uniform across all courts. They all had rows of bench seats that led to an altar at the front—used to worship and give thanks to the Goddess and the Stars.

At the center of every temple, there was a scene depicting the Goddess. At the Star Court temple, a portrait of the Goddess creating the first High Fae was etched into the stone. The Fae was kneeling in front of Astria as she held the Fae’s face in her hand, her fingers brushing her newly pointed ears. The one in the Blood Court wasn’t as flattering towards the Goddess—not that it depicted her in a negative way, but it was a simple portrait of Astria etched into the red stone.

The room quieted around me, a sign the ceremony was about to begin. The rest of the guests filtered in and found their seats. The temple was packed full. Several crowns glimmered in the front rows as their heads turned towards the temple entrance.

Nothing would ever compare to how Lennox looked last night, but nonetheless, she was still breathtaking.

The gown was a stark difference from last night—gone was the dark glimmering gown of moonlight in favor of colors typical of the Star Court. The gown was sleeveless, leaving Lennox’s chest exposed with no adornments. The bodice was fitted at the top and was a dark blue that disappeared as the gown flowed, ending in a white as pure as snow. Flecks of gold were scattered throughout the gown, tying in the Star Court’s signature color.

Lennox’s hair was pulled back and gold gems that resembled water droplets adorned her ears. It was simple and elegant.

I let my gaze drop to her hand, where her marriage mark was hidden. The mark that marked her as mine.

There were murmurs around me, but I couldn’t hear them. All of my attention was focused on the female walking towards me.

On Lennox.

On my wife.