Chapter 38
AVELINE
The central square of the Wild Oak Woods is a disaster area of wedding planning, but at least the sun is finally out. The snow from the Unseelie storm has completely melted, leaving the cobblestones wet. Thick puddles of mud are everywhere, but nobody seems to care. I don’t.
The whole place smells incredible—a mix of damp pine, woodsmoke, and the heavy, sweet scent of caramelized sugar emanating from Piper’s bakery.
Sprites buzzing around the iron lampposts, dragging strings of white winter ivy through the air, while a couple of minotaurs are arguing in the corner about where to stack the extra banquet tables.
If my mother could see me right now, standing in a puddle of mud while a mythical beast hoists four oak tables at once, she would probably faint. It would be a very elegant swoon, but a swoon nonetheless.
I smirk.
"Open up," Piper commands, appearing out of nowhere and shoving a fork under my nose.
The fork is loaded with a dense, pale yellow cake covered in a massive swirl of lavender frosting.
"It’s lemon-honey. Tell me it doesn't taste like soap. Wren said it tasted like soap, but I suspect her palate is dead from inhaling metal shavings.”
I would be an idiot to refuse, so I take the bite. The flavor immediately explodes on my tongue. I close my eyes, savoring it before swallowing.
Piper watches me expectantly, Velvet at her side.
"Piper, it's perfect. If Wren tells you this tastes like soap, I’ll have her banished from the reception."
"See? I told you," Ga’Rek rumbles, stepping up behind her. The warrior orc slides a arm around Piper’s waist, leaning down to nuzzle his face against her hair.
Back in Stormspire, public affection was a polite nod across a ballroom. Here, a terrifying eight-foot warrior is cuddling a baker out in the town square for anyone to see, and it is doing ridiculous things to my heart.
"She has excellent taste," a low voice murmurs right against my ear.
Before I can even react, a pair of arms wrap securely around my waist from behind. Malakai pulls me back against his chest, instantly blocking out the chilly afternoon breeze with his body heat.
He has completely dropped the terrifying, aloof King of Shadows act today. He’s just... there. Solid, quiet, and holding onto me like he still can't quite believe I'm letting him hold me in front of people.
I’ve decided I quite like his displays of affection.
He’s basically turned into an additional shadow over the last few days. I should probably tell him to give me some space, but… my hands are cold and he’s warm.
"You're getting mud on my cloak," I tell him, though I lean back against his shoulder anyway.
"I'll buy you a new one," he whispers, his dark eyes fixed on me with an intense look that makes my heart skip.
He hooks two fingers under my chin, tilts my face up, and kisses me right there in the middle of the street. It’s a gentle, sweet kiss, and he completely ignores the fact that half the coven is watching us… and cheering.
We pull away to boos, and Malakai winks at me. “You taste like honey.”
“I thought you should try our wedding cake, too.”
Wren Tiersen walks past, carrying a massive length of cream-colored silk and looking entirely stressed out. "If you two are done making out in the streets, I need to know if these banners look centered."
Behind her, Caelan dutifully lugs a wooden ladder, looking like he would gladly jump off a cliff if she asked him to nicely. "They look perfect to me, love," he offers.
"I didn't ask you, Caelan. You're biased because you want to get paid in kisses," Wren grins. "Have you seen Willow? She was supposed to be handling the archway."
"I'm right here," Willow calls out from near the fountain.
She steps around a wooden wagon, her long hair messy and full of tiny blue wildflowers.
Her hands are glowing with a soft green light as she coaxes a massive cluster of briars to bloom into white winter roses right along the stone.
Her elf mate is right behind her, his hand resting gently against her lower back, watching her work with genuine awe.
"Thank you, Willow," I say, a sudden wave of gratitude washing over me.
Just a week ago, I was completely alone, waiting to be traded away to some old lord.
Now, I’m standing here with a coven of women who actually care if I'm happy, surrounded by people who are building a festival just for me. For us, for me and Malakai. It’s overwhelming, and beautiful, and all too rare.
But for the first time in my life, I don't feel like I have to pretend to be something I’m not.
I’m just Aveline.
My gaze drifts past the fountain, landing on the eastern alleyway, and the sweet moment immediately ends.
Wedged entirely askew between the bakery and the weaver's shop is a completely random, crooked three-story stone townhouse that definitely wasn't there the last time I checked. It’s pulsing with an angry green light around the chimney.
"I see the spite-architecture from this morning is still blocking the road," I say, dryly nudging Malakai with my elbow.
Malakai snorts. "Ah yes, Cern’s brilliant plan at a gentle abduction for Nerissa. What could go wrong?"
I shake my head, smiling
The Wild Oak Woods is still a mess, to be fair.
The second Malakai and I locked the first threshold, the rest of the wild magic in the area went into absolute overdrive.
The weather is unpredictable, and the other couples desperately need to sort themselves out to calm the current before the town splits in half.
Naturally, Malakai's brothers handled it with the emotional maturity of bricks.
Cern had basically panicked over Nerissa and managed to somehow get her into the three-story house, which is now sealed off completely.
Meanwhile, Valen used his death-magic to vanish into thin air with Ruby the second the frost started to crack, only to bring her back when she threatened to cut his balls off.
I wish I’d thought of that.
Gods forbid they try to win their love normally. No, the Elder Gods apparently teach the 'kidnap the witch and pray she doesn't castrate you' school of romance.
It's a bold strategy. We’ll see if it plays out.
I shrug.
"They are completely ridiculous," I turn my attention back to Malakai. “Nerissa is probably trying to set Cern's antlers on fire right now, and Ruby will likely bore Valen to death by reading him the town histories."
"They're desperate," Malakai rasps, his arms tightening around my waist as his tone turns quiet and serious.
He buries his face in my hair, his chest rising and falling heavily against my back.
"The mating magic is a chaotic thing, Aveline.
They saw the peace settle over my shadows the moment you claimed me, and they're running blind trying to find that same peace for themselves.
They'll yield to them. They don't have a choice. "
I close my eyes, letting myself sink into the safety of his arms. If Cern and Valen fall even half as hard for their witches as this terrifying Shadow King fell for me... those women will be just fine.
"Let them figure it out," I whisper, turning around in his arms so I can look up into his dark eyes.
I offer him a saucy wink, watching the shadows around him ripple with excitement.
"In the meantime, husband, you still owe me a proper rehearsal for these vows.
And I expect you to say them without using the words 'ancient prophecy' even once. "
“What about the words ‘in between your legs?’” he asks, and I swat at him, dissolving into laughter.