Page 12 of Wild for the Wyvern (Mated to the Monster: Season 3)
Kori
I t’s my wedding day. I can’t believe any of this has happened to me. I was lonely and unhappy for most of my life, and now I have a mate who adores me, a life where I get to co-write cookbooks with a famous chef, and a job in a local restaurant. I look in the mirror while Astra fusses over my hair and I sigh.
“I hope that’s a happy sound.” Astra pins the curl she just made beside the last, forming a tiara shape along my crown.
“So happy. Thank you for doing this. Meg and Lori will be here soon, and you’ll be able to join the other guests.” I admire the way I look on the biggest day of my life. Besides the hair and light makeup, I look happy. I hardly recognize the woman I see in the mirror today or any day in the last three months.
“I didn’t think wyverns took much stock in formal marriages.” She winds another piece of my hair around a curling iron.
“Drayce is doing this for me. He even got the local judge to come and marry us. It’s enough for him that we are mates and bonded for life, but I’d like the paper and customs of my human world too. Besides, who doesn’t want a party?” I grin at her through the mirror and she laughs.
It’s still impossible to look away from the nymph. She’s like a magnet. “Well, one thing is certain, with all the food that you and Niko made over the last few days, no one will go away hungry.”
The door to my bedroom flies open, and in stumble Dean, Meg, and Lori in a clatter of noise and laughter.
“We’re here!” Meg’s arms are full. She’s carrying a dress on a hanger and rolling her suitcase. She ushers the others into the room without looking up.
Dean stares at me with wide eyes. “You look amazing.” He dabs a tear from the corner of his eye.
Lori drops her things on the floor and runs across the room. “Oh my god! I can’t believe you’re getting married.” She stops short of hugging me, as if I might break.
Standing, I pull her into my arms. “I can’t believe it either.”
“I’m afraid I’ll wrinkle you.” She laughs. “There are so many um…people outside. My head is spinning.”
“It’s like the monster interstellar convention or something.” Dean acts as if he sees monsters every day and it’s no big deal. “I’m so curious about the one with the tentacles.” He pulls me out of Lori’s arms and holding my shoulders, gives me a look from head to toe. “Spectacular.” He hugs me.
Astra’s laugh is warm and impossible to ignore, as it’s like music. “Marty is a good time, but be advised, he can get attached with those tentacles and you have to wait for the suction to release. It can be…tedious.”
Lori and Dean both shift their attention from me and stare wide-eyed at the nymph in her pale-blue gown that clings to every curve of her perfect body. Her blond hair streams down her back and over her shoulders like a cascade of golden waterfall.
Trying to make light of the awkward way they’re staring, I say, “This is my friend, Astra. Astra, this is Dean, Lori, and that’s Meg fussing over the clothes. We were all in foster care together.”
Astra’s hair flows to the right as she cocks her head. “Then these are your siblings. How lovely to meet you.” She extends her hand to Dean first and then to Lori.
Mouths slightly agape, they each shake her hand and blink.
Finally, Dean says, “You’re the first woman I’ve ever found attractive.”
Somehow, Astra manages to look both amused and sympathetic at the same time. She grins, but her gaze is soft and full of kindness. “Don’t worry. It’s only because I’m a nymph. You’re still gay.”
Then we all laugh.
Except for Meg, who is still fussing. Finally, she turns and looks at me. “I wanted to be here to do your hair.” A tear slides down her face and she rushes into my arms.
I pat her back. “It’s okay. I know wrangling these two is a full-time job. Astra helped, and you can finish my hair if you want.”
With a deep breath, Meg steps back and turns to look at Astra. She freezes. “It’s you.”
“Hello, Meg. I remember you too.” Astra pulls Meg into a hug. “I was sorry to hear about your parents.”
“You knew? How…” Meg pulls back and stares at Astra as if they were friends long estranged.
Cupping Meg’s cheek, Astra says, “I always kept an eye on you after that day in the lake. I wish I had been watching your father too. Maybe I could have done something.” She sighs, and even that sounds like the harmony of some sad song.
“Um…” Dean clears his throat. “What’s happening?”
I’d actually like to know too. Then I remember the story Meg told about being rescued from drowning. “Wait, is Astra the woman who saved you when you were little?”
With a watery smile, Meg nods.
Drayce
The wedding was nice, but for me, Kori has been my mate from the moment I first saw her. Even though I made mistakes, she was always mine.
Still, hearing her tell the judge and witnesses that she would love me for a lifetime was satisfying. My wyvern barely contained himself.
Across the yard, she’s talking to her friends, and places her hand over her abdomen. They all scream and hug her, then look over at me.
Before I know it, I’m engulfed in hugs and congratulations. I hug them back, happy to be included in Kori’s friendships with the three people she’s closest to. They’re her family, and I want them to like me.
Lori says, “Um, I hope this isn’t rude, but will the baby be human or a mon…um…wyvern?”
Meg elbows her. “It is rude.”
Dean stares with wide, expectant eyes, waiting for my answer.
Smiling, Kori puts her hand on Lori’s shoulder. “The baby will be born human, though the pregnancy might be a few months longer. There are very few examples of matings between wyverns and humans, or even dragons and humans. We’ve been doing research, but we have a lot more to do.”
“I didn’t shift for the first time until I was six or seven. That’s fairly normal. Though, I’ve heard of young shifting as early as three and as late as twelve.” I’m trying to assuage their worries, but they look less comforted.
“What about a doctor?” Meg’s voice is sharp with concern as she grips Kori’s hand.
I listen for the strong steady heartbeat of my baby growing inside Kori. I was happy before we knew she’d conceived, and now I’m ecstatic. “There is a very fine monster doctor, as well as a human doctor living in town. We shall consult with both since Kori thinks that is best and I agree.”
“The town in the valley? That’s a very small hospital. What’s it called?” Dean twists his mouth and narrows his eyes. It’s a sure sign of a New Yorker’s disappointment or judgment.
“Mountveil Hospital, the same name as the town. It might be small, but they have all the most modern equipment and doctors for all species.” Kori steps to my side and presses her cheek to my chest.
I wrap an arm around her waist and admire how beautiful she looks in this wedding gown, but wish I could tear it off of her right now. The wyvern growls. “We will be prepared. You don’t have to worry.”
“Of course, we’re going to worry.” Meg props her hands on her hips. She takes a deep breath. “But we know you’ll take good care of our Kori and we’ll be up here to visit regularly. If we’re going to be aunties and Uncle Dean, we’re not missing any part of the process.”
I like them, and not just because they love my mate. These are good humans who have endured much and are wonderful, either because, or in spite of their circumstances. “We wouldn’t have it any other way.”
The music, played by a kraken and two imps, shifts to a soft ballad. Kori sways against me.
I kiss the top of her head. “Dance with me?”
She nods, and I take her hand as we walk to the dance floor.
With her in my arms, I know my life is going to be wonderful. “You make me very happy, love.”
“I’m happy too.” She smiles up at me as we sway from side to side to the beat.
“Are you as worried as your friends about the baby?” I span my hand over her back and feel her warmth through the gown.
Shaking her head, she rests her cheek on me. “No. It’s going to be fine. I’m not that thrilled with the prospect of being pregnant for eleven months, but I can’t wait to meet our baby.”
“It will go fast.”
“Spoken like a man who is barely inconvenienced by pregnancy.” She laughs.
“I would spare you this if it were possible, love. I would carry the baby within me and suffer all the woes of pregnancy.” I tip her chin so that I can press my lips to hers.
With her eyes filled with love, she smiles. “You are the only male who I believe means that.”
“I do.” I would suffer any discomfort or pain to keep her happy. But this isn’t possible when speaking of procreation.
“We’ll endure it together, Drayce.” She looks serious, but laughter lights her eyes. “I’m too happy to even fake worry. Thank you for today. I feel like a proper wife, and soon I’ll be a mother. You’ve made all my dreams come true.”
The warmth of being mated to this amazing woman floods my heart. “That is my sole purpose, mate.”
She hugs me tight. “Mission accomplished.”
Thank you for reading Wild for the Wyvern . I hope you enjoyed Drayce and Kori’s story. They were so much fun to write. You can read more about the monsters living in the Catskill Mountains in T he Manticore’s Mate and Promised to the Satyr .
The Manticore’s Mate is a great way to continue reading my monster stories. Here’s what it’s all about.
Leona
I thought I could handle it, but I was wrong. My ex just married my sister at a fancy hotel in upstate New York. The party is just getting going when I reach the last of my strength. I can’t take it anymore. With no idea where to go, I run into the woods, hoping to catch my breath. In my panicked state, I get off the hiking trail and lose my way. The music is so far away, I’m not even sure what direction it’s coming from. That’s when I see a lion. I must have lost my mind because there are no lions in New York. My instinct says to run, but there’s something in his eyes that’s almost human. I see pain and hopelessness, and in that moment, I can relate to this beast. Thinking he must be injured, I carefully draw close enough to see there’s an injection dart protruding from his chest. I might lose an arm for my troubles, but I move in and pull the needle.
Cade
At first, I imagined the beautiful brunette running toward me was a woodland sprite. I’ve been stuck in my manticore form for too long. Soon I’ll lose my humanity completely. I don’t know who shot me, but with the poison still pumping in from the syringe, I can’t turn back. Then she speaks, telling me to please not bite her. Her voice is sweet and soothing. She pulls the damned needle. I immediately shift into a man, wanting to know more about the angel who saved me. So, when she runs, I chase her. Why she’s more scared of a naked man than the monster? I don’t know, but I’m willing to spend the rest of my life trying to find out.