EPILOGUE #2
Case in point—they were somehow able to convince members of the coven to come onto Pack land for our mating ceremony tonight without concern for their safety. I loved seeing both races of supernaturals enjoying a party together without violence breaking out—though the night was still young.
And of course, Ice Man was still well-known for the revolving door of his bedroom.
Many female wolves hoped to be the one who would finally convince him to take his Alpha Mate, but so far they had all failed spectacularly.
It didn’t matter—he was young, the Pack was thriving, and Bianca carried on the duties she’d already perfected over the last twenty years.
He shot me a wink as I neared him. I rolled my eyes, then caught him returning his attention to where my bridesmaids stood at the front. Anita was looking thoroughly amused.
Dad and I approached the end of the aisle where there was a tasteful, gorgeous arch made of flowers.
Underneath it to the left, my bridesmaids Harriet and Anita stood looking hot in their fitted dark purple dresses.
In the center, our officiant Marilynn Embry looked even more like an old hippie than I remembered.
And to the right was my sexy-as-sin mate and his handsome groomsmen.
One of them was Ben, who was the perfect all-American Adonis in his fitted gray suit.
He had wasted no time in joining Blake and me in California for college after his graduation, and I was thankful for it—I’d felt like I had a limb missing that year he and I spent apart.
So, if it was possible, he was even blonder and tanner than usual, having spent so much time in the California sun these past few years.
He still took surf lessons with Blake and me every week, and he was the president of the local Cali chapter of the LGBTQIA+ Wolves Association.
His smile for me at this moment contained so much love that I almost couldn’t handle it, and I saw him wipe a little tear from his eye.
I would murder him if he made me cry right now.
Ian was next to Ben, standing up for Blake as his best man.
Blake had only lived with Ian for that last year of school, but they’d remained close ever since.
Ian was younger and more easygoing than Blake’s parents (who we loved, don’t get me wrong), and he’d continued to tutor Blake in magic from afar.
This meant we video-called him several times per week, and Blake still called Shreveport and Ian’s condo home whenever we weren’t in California.
Ian grinned at me as I approached, and then I saw him glance out into the audience where his girlfriend was sitting with Aunt Augusta.
His new lady? None other than Miss Ashley Park.
That night we deposed the Alpha several years ago had been successful for Ashley and Ian, both with the Unbinding spell and sparking a little bit of a love match.
Ian had kept his distance at first, as Ashley needed to get back on her feet and get used to life as a free wolf.
She got a job at a preschool, and Knox continued to give her an allowance and health insurance.
He also paid for her college correspondence courses so that she could get a real teaching certificate, and he even hired a home health worker to help take care of her mother.
Mom had also decided to bite the bullet and start attending some of the female wolf Pack functions so that she could bring Ashley along to reintroduce her to the Pack. They both ended up enjoying it immensely, and they now had several lady wolf friends, including Bianca.
Ian had invited Ashley for coffee about six months after the Unbinding, allegedly to check on how she was feeling, and the rest was history.
They were happy, especially since no one had seen or heard from the ex-Alpha since that night he’d disappeared out of the Pack party.
Lissa and Chris James had informed the National Shifter Council of his actions, both with respect to the imprisonment of his fated mate and the drugging and kidnapping of one of his own Pack members, and as far as we knew, he was still in hiding or on the run from their marshals.
We were all content with the fact that at least he would never be able to officially Alpha another pack without putting himself on their radar.
Finally Dad and I made it to the front of the garden, and I took my place next to Blake. Dad kissed my cheek, shook Blake’s hand, then retired to his spot next to Mom and Knox.
I grasped Blake’s hands and stared into his mesmerizing green eyes. Marilynn began her opening remarks, giving a little history of mating ceremonies and imploring the Moon to impart her blessing on us as chosen mates.
I ended up tuning her out, just a bit, lost in Blake’s gaze and my heart overflowing with love for this man.
He’d been right there during the worst weeks of my life, and instead of running from my drama, he’d stood with me to face it head on.
He’d almost lost his freedom—and maybe even his life—because of me, and it somehow only made him love me more.
And it was because of him that I wasn’t cursed to live out my life stuck with a mate bond that caused me only heartache and pain.
He stared back at me in wonder, seeming just as lost to Marilynn’s ceremonial words as I was.
“I love you, Wolf Girl,” he mouthed to me as Marilynn began to recite the traditional chosen mates vows used by all packs.
“I love you, Mr. Blaze,” I mouthed back.
We recited our vows, asking again for the Moon’s blessing of our chosen mate-ship, and then Marilynn announced the exchanging of our wedding rings, adding the human element to the ceremony for Blake and his family.
“And with that,” Marilynn’s voice boomed, “I pronounce you both husband and wife, and chosen mates as recognized by this Pack and the Moon herself. You may now kiss your mate!”
Blake yanked me into his arms with surprising force, and he cradled my face in his hands, pulling me to his lips with urgency while our guests cheered.
I kissed him back with equal fervor, pouring every ounce of love, passion, and wonder at how I could be so lucky into that kiss.
At the same time, I let loose a hint of Alpha power to caress his body and his soul.
Then I felt it.
He jerked back from my lips suddenly, still holding my face and looking at me in awe.
“Is that…?” he whispered, staring at me with reverence.
“Yes,” I whispered back, everyone still clapping and hooting for us. “I feel it. It’s like… I can feel you now, Blake. In my heart.”
“I feel you, too, baby.” His eyes filled with tears, and I was helpless when mine did too.
As soon as we’d embraced and I touched Blake with my power, the Moon must have blessed us with our chosen mate bond.
It certainly wasn’t as all-consuming as the fated mate bond had been, but it was a lightness and a presence that my heart knew was Blake.
I could feel his joy at this moment and his overwhelming love for me.
Blake kissed me again, then grabbed my hand so that we could face our guests.
“Thank you to all of you for being here with us tonight!” he called over the raucous cheers. “Now, let’s party!” Then he waved his hand, and thousands of multicolored twinkling fireballs appeared, hovering in the air over the garden.
“Showoff,” Ian coughed from beside us.
“Asshole,” Anita said at the same time. Blake never let her forget he was the most powerful young mage his coven had seen in a century, and they had quite the friendly rivalry going.
Harriet appeared at my side.
“You ready for your first party as a mated lady?”
I grinned at her as Blake tucked me under his arm.
“I’m ready for the rest of my life with my mate. And my best friend. And my brother,” I added as Ben slid in by Harriet and kissed my hair.
“I’m so happy for you, Magic,” he said, then he ruffled Blake’s hair. “I like having this guy around. I’m so glad you decided to let him bang you in the library that fateful night all those years ago.”
We both cackled at that.
“Mmm, memories,” Blake sighed dreamily.
And then my mate and I made our way back into the grand ballroom of the guesthouse where we partied the night away surrounded by our closest friends and family. Then, after we’d thoroughly exhausted ourselves and said goodbye to our loved ones, we had a party for two in the honeymoon suite.
I hadn’t thought sex with Blake could get any better than it already was, but apparently sex with my bonded mate was an experience on another level.
As we came together, I could feel the raw intensity of his feelings for me, not just in his actions as he made love to me, but in his emotions that were now present inside my heart as if they were my own.
And he could feel it too, as my own feelings for him mirrored what he was feeling for me and then some.
I was once Mave Fortune—rejected mate. Now I was Mave Fortune Agnon—chosen mate, and I was truly the happiest wolf in the world.
The End