Epilogue #5
Footsteps approached, measured and confident, and I lifted my gaze, my breath catching, the world freezing in a single, shattering moment.
The man before me had Allen’s chestnut hair, his lithe frame, his graceful stride, each step a memory that tore at my heart.
When his eyes met mine—those dark, gentle eyes I’d dreamed of, wept for, doubted—my heart lurched, a wildfire igniting in my chest, my wolf roaring to life, her howl a thunder that shook my soul.
Allen.
No. Prince Alexander Valder.
His gaze held a storm of emotions—joy, guilt, an aching yearning—as he bowed, his movements flawless but his voice unsteady, betraying the turmoil within.
“Your Highness,” he said, his words formal but laced with a tremor, “it’s an honor to meet you.”
My wolf surged, recognizing her mate, her joy a tide that threatened to drown me, my blood singing, my heart pounding so fiercely I feared it would burst. Anger, longing, confusion collided, a maelstrom I barely contained, my hands clenching to hide their tremble.
I held my composure, my voice cool, a shield against the chaos within.
“Prince Alexander,” I said, each syllable measured, “welcome to our kingdom.”
My parents stood nearby, discussing the friendly relations between our two kingdoms and arranging the itinerary for the coming days, but my attention was entirely on the man before me.
Allen—no, Alexander—maintained the demeanor expected of a prince at all times, but I could feel his gaze lingering on me every now and then, his eyes filled with too many unspoken words.
At the banquet that evening, he invited me to dance. When his hand took mine once again, that familiar electric sensation surged through my entire body.
“Anna,” he whispered in my ear, “I have so much to tell you.”
“Now?” I tried to keep my voice cool and detached. “Prince Alexander?”
A flicker of pain crossed his eyes. “Tomorrow, in the rose garden, the place where we first met. I’ll explain everything.”
I didn’t respond, but we both knew I would be there.
The next evening, I arrived at the rose garden. As the sun set, the Bulgarian white roses looked even more pure and beautiful under the golden light.
He was already there waiting for me, still the familiar figure I knew, but now dressed in the lavish attire of a prince. Hearing my footsteps, he turned around, his eyes filled with apology and anticipation.
“Anna,” he said, his voice rough, breaking on my name, “I know you’re furious, and you have every right to do so.”
“Furious?” I scoffed, my voice sharp, a blade honed by months of pain. “Why would I be, for someone who never existed?”
He flinched, closing his eyes, pain etched across his face, his hands clenching at his sides. “I exist, Anna,” he said, his voice low, raw. “I’m Alexander Valder, prince of Valder. Three months ago, I came here as Allen, because—”
“For what?” I snapped, cutting him off, my anger flaring, a fire fed by betrayal. “To spy on our defenses? To toy with a naive princess, to break her heart for sport?”
“No!” he exclaimed, stepping forward, his eyes blazing, then halting as I recoiled, his hands raised in surrender. “My father wanted this marriage to unite our kingdoms, but he feared a direct proposal would be rejected. so, he sent me to assess the situation first.”
“So, you lied,” I said, my voice cold, “pretending to be a groom, sneaking into my life, my heart?”
“It was...at first,” he admitted, his voice raw, his gaze unflinching despite the pain in it.
“But Anna, when I saw you in that garden, when our wolves called to each other, everything changed. I wasn’t here for duty anymore—I was here for you, for the girl who stole my breath, who made my world make sense. ”
My heart raced, a traitor to my anger, his words stirring the ashes of a love I’d tried to bury. “Then why disappear?” I demanded, my voice cracking, tears threatening. “Why let me think I’d imagined it all, that I was losing my mind?”
His eyes shimmered with anguish, his voice breaking. “My father summoned me back. A neighboring kingdom attacked, sparking a border war, and I had to leave immediately. It was chaos—I couldn’t explain, couldn’t reveal who I was without risking everything.”
“You could’ve left a note,” I said, my voice trembling, “sent a message, anything to stop me from thinking I’d gone mad.”
“I wanted to,” he said, his voice thick with regret, his hands reaching out, then falling.
“But Anna, if I’d told you the truth, would you have believed me?
I won your heart as Allen, a groom, not a prince.
I feared you’d see me as a liar, that our love would be tainted by politics, by duty.
I couldn’t bear the thought of losing you to that. ”
I stared at him, the man who’d haunted my dreams, my heart a battlefield of love and hurt, his words a balm and a blade. “And now?” I asked, my voice steady despite the storm within. “You’re here as a prince, proposing a marriage. How is this different from the political game you feared?”
He stepped closer, his gaze unwavering, his presence a pull I couldn’t resist. “Because I’m hiding nothing now,” he said, his voice fierce with conviction.
“Anna, I love you—not as a princess, not for alliances, but for you. The girl who laughs like an angel under moonlight, who races horses without fear, who stole my wolf’s heart and mine in a single glance. ”
His hand brushed my cheek, warm and steady, igniting a spark that woke my wolf, her joy a tide within me, her certainty a beacon.
“I know I hurt you,” he said, his voice breaking, “and I don’t deserve your forgiveness.
But if you still feel anything for me, even a spark, please, give me a chance to make it right. ”
I closed my eyes, his touch a lifeline, my wolf trembling with recognition, her bond unbroken despite the pain.
“Do you know what these months were like?” I said, my voice thick, tears spilling down my cheeks.
“I thought I was mad, loving a ghost. Everyone said you didn’t exist, and I doubted my own heart, my own sanity. ”
“I’m so sorry,” he choked, his voice a sob, his thumb brushing my tears away. “I’ll never forgive myself for your pain, Anna, never.”
We stood there, the sun sinking behind us, the roses whispering in the breeze, their scent a soft embrace.
“Alexander,” I said, his true name heavy on my tongue, a weight and a promise, “I don’t know how to forgive you.”
His eyes dimmed, despair creeping in, his shoulders sagging under the weight of my words.
“But,” I continued, my voice trembling, my heart leading, “I don’t know how to stop loving you either.”
Hope flared in his gaze, a light reigniting, his breath catching. “Anna…”
“If we start again,” I said, my voice firm, a vow to myself as much as to him, “it’s with truth. No more lies, no more secrets, no more hiding.”
“I swear it,” he said, relief flooding his face, his eyes shimmering with gratitude. “No more hiding, Anna, ever. I’m yours, completely.”
He knelt, as he had in this garden months ago, but now as himself, his prince’s garb a stark contrast to the groom’s tunic, his gaze unwavering.
“Princess Anna,” he said, his voice steady, a vow carved from his soul, “I, Alexander Valder, beg your forgiveness and ask you to marry me—not for kingdoms, not for power, but because you’re my fated mate, the heart of my life, the only future I want. ”
My anger softened, love rising like a tide, warm and unstoppable, my wolf’s joy a song within me.
“Stand up, Prince Alexander,” I said, offering my hand, my voice soft but certain, a promise of my own. “We begin anew, together.”
Our engagement sent shock-waves through both kingdoms. When Alexander officially proposed to me, the entire kingdom was abuzz with excitement. The union of our two nations not only brought political benefits, but more importantly, it was a marriage rooted in true love.
The wedding took place in the spring, with subjects from both kingdoms coming to offer their congratulations. As I walked down the aisle in my white wedding gown and saw the tears in Alexander’s eyes, I knew that all the waiting and pain had been worth it.
“We’ve been through so much,” he whispered to me as we exchanged rings, “but I’ve never regretted falling in love with you.”
I said, my voice steady, my heart full, sliding his ring—engraved with a wolf and a star—onto his finger. “You broke my heart, Alexander, but you also made it whole, stronger than ever.”
The priest pronounced us bound, and as Alexander lifted my veil, his kiss was soft yet searing, a seal of our vows, our fated mate bond humming with joy, a light that filled the cathedral. The crowd erupted, their cheers a wave that carried us into a future we’d build together, hand in hand.
After the ceremony, we slipped away, returning to our meadow, the ancient oak a silent witness to our beginning. The grass was soft underfoot, the air sweet with wildflowers, the moon rising to bathe us in silver. “Remember our first dance here?”
Alexander asked, pulling me close, his hands warm at my waist.
“How could I forget?” I laughed, leaning into him, my heart light. “I thought you were just a groom, a boy with dreams as big as mine.”
“That was the purest love,” he said, his voice soft, his eyes holding mine, “no titles, no games, just us, two souls finding each other.”
We danced again on that meadow, this time with the moonlight as our backdrop and our eternal vows as our melody.
Years later, when we had our own children, I would tell them our story: a tale of a princess and a “stable boy,” of destined partners breaking through the barriers of status, and of true love conquering all obstacles.
As my grandmother once said, “True love cannot be hindered by status or position.” Our story, and that of my parents, is the best proof of that.
-END-
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