Chapter 51 Monroe
MONROE
Fairy lights twinkle, floating midair above beds of fresh soil and flowers transplanted to The Nestling Fields from The Greenhouse.
Oversized bunny ear sculptures—some pricked, others flopped—are peppered throughout the grass, creations that took Briar and I weeks to configure.
Once I’d modeled them from clay, he’d figured out the best way to use our magic and make them life size, adding leather-covered cushioned shells for use during the bacchanal.
Each couple participating in the ceremony had a reserved flower bed with a raised dais for them to take their rites at the center.
Canvas stretched over the wooden platform, and in the corner of each flower bed sat a metal bucket holding tubes of paint, lube, and various sex toys—compliments of the Solstice Center.
Lining three of the hedge walls, harbingers scoped out the sheer tents with blankets and lush pillows tucked within, a place of semi-privacy for anyone who wanted it.
On the final wall, a row of tables boasted trays of macarons, scones, fresh breads, and decadent truffles, and in each corner were water stations to keep the participants and fellow revelers hydrated.
Watching every Bloom’s jaw drop upon entering The Nestling Fields made all the effort leading up to today’s event worth it. All that was left was facilitating the rites and once things evolved from there, I’d become a mere spectator.
But then Cherri arrives. Alone.
My face falls and I hurry over to her. “What’s wrong?”
“They’re not here?” Her eyes dart around the space, clearly disappointed.
“I figured Dani was with you.”
“They should have been, but they never showed, and I can’t reach them.” She rubs her chest and frowns. “Our bond—it’s silent.”
A heavy stone drops into my gut, nausea rocking me from the inside. I quiet my mind of all the chatter and excitement buzzing around us…
Nothing.
I can’t feel Briar at all.
I grab Cherri’s hand and hunt for Roxy and Kendrick. Already mated, they are here to enjoy themselves, but I’m sure if I explain, they’ll happily take over while we figure out what’s going on. I need to find Fate, see if she knows.
I’m almost to them when Cherri taps my shoulder. “Monroe.”
She smiles behind me, tears streaking her cheeks. Releasing my hand, she runs toward a wary and exhausted-looking Dani. Gone is the swagger I’ve grown accustomed to.
This can’t be good.
I follow my friend, fear flooding my veins. “Where is he?”
“Still earthside.” Dani’s attention drops to their boots. “We found Skylar, but she refused to come home. Briar sent me back before the veil closed so I wouldn’t miss this.”
“Skylar refused to come back? We thought she was taken.” My nails dig into my palms.
“That’s what we thought too.” Dani sighs, running a hand through their disheveled mop of mulberry. “Turns out she’s been holed up in some cave that isn’t affected by the seasons or Fate’s magic. Neither of us could sense our bonds once we stepped inside.”
“So Briar’s okay?” I ask, the words heavy on my tongue.
“He was when I left.” They don’t expand, but I know what isn’t being verbalized: Briar was fine when he sent Dani back, but who knows what’s happened since then.
“Skylar has another mate,” Dani says, rocking back on their heels. “A Storm named Torynn.”
They say it so casually it takes a moment for the words to register.
Cherri’s eyes go wide. “How is that possible? What about Corrigan?”
“She’s mated to the Storm as well—or was. It seems our dear sister’s known for years and never said a word. Would’ve been useful information to have those weeks we spent searching for Skylar.”
I can’t imagine how painful it would be having a mate in another season, one we all actively avoid… It had to be excruciating for Corrigan.
“What do you mean was?” I ask.
“Skylar and this Storm were able to—” Dani makes a cutting motion with their fingers. “Those summer bitches have some deal going with Time, and that fucker can somehow sever the bond, I guess. They weren’t exactly forthcoming with the specifics.”
“I need to go find Briar.” I pull the agenda and script from the pocket of my dress, holding it out to Dani. “Give this to Roxy and Kendrick. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
“The veil is closed,” Dani says, though they still take the paper from me and stick it in the pocket of their leather Rescue Rider jacket. “You won’t be able to get to him.”
“I have to try.” He came for me when I refused to leave, and now he’s with Skylar, refusing to leave her behind in the mortal world. “I can’t give up on him.”
I won’t.
Resolve propelling me forward, I place my hand over my mate mark, praying it’ll take me to Briar, hoping I’m not too late.
Whether my knees buckle from the force of my landing or the fear rioting through me, I lose my balance and stumble into a patch of grass. It takes me a moment to catch my bearings, the world spinning in a blur. But there, at the center of it, I find a seed of hope.
The bond.
It’s faint, like a low hum, but it’s him.
I blink, getting to my feet and scanning my surroundings. I’m not earthside… I’m in Briar’s backyard, but I don’t see him anywhere.
Wiping the dirt off my hands, I peer down at my sage-green wrap dress, redoing the tie around the waist as I go inside the house.
“Briar?” I call out, reassured by the bond but uncertain how I ended up here. Climbing the stairs, I peek into his room and the bathroom.
A loud clatter comes from below, and I scurry down the stairs. Nerves and pain slip through the bond.
“Briar?” I call again, eyes snagging on the thick smear of blood streaked across the collage wall leading toward his office. A crimson handprint wraps around the wood of the partially open door. I sprint through it, finding Briar with gauze shoved in his mouth, leaning against his desk.
“What happened?” Taking the gauze out of his mouth, I watch the labored rise and fall of his chest.
“You’re here,” he says, a bit dazed. His eyes flutter. There’s a gash on his side where his white T-shirt is torn open. Blood mottles the cotton.
“Where else would I be?” I grip his chin, wanting him to stay alert. “Dani told us what happened with Skylar at the cave. Did she do this to you?”
“No,” he rasps. I exhale in relief. Skylar’s choice to leave is surprising enough, but I want to believe I knew her, and I couldn’t imagine her hurting Briar even if his sister had broken her heart. “The other Storms— They did it when I brought her back here.”
“She’s here?” My attention snaps to the office’s entryway.
Briar shakes his head. “She’s at the Solstice Center.” He swallows, then glances down where I’ve rolled up his bloody shirt. “She wasn’t too happy I took her. The storms won’t be either...”
Sorrow sweeps through the bond, and my own meets it. Yes, Corrigan kept this secret and she went about dealing with her mate situation terribly, but I know she cares for Skylar. Maybe this Storm too. “What happens now?”
He inhales deeply. “I’m not sure. We can’t keep her here forever. It would be cruel, especially when her mate is out there—”
“Her Storm mate,” I clarify, reaching for the healing balm on the floor as he nods in confirmation. “What about Corrigan?”
His face falls. “I truly don’t know.”
I dip some gauze in the balm and then press it against the gash. He hisses.
“Means it’s doing its job,” I tease before ripping another piece of gauze off the roll. His skin burns against my fingers as I continue to layer the strips until his wound is covered.
I’m so glad the girls are at their grandparents’. Seeing him like this would have terrified them.
The bleeding has fortunately stopped, and I’m relieved to see his immortal magic is coming back, albeit slowly.
I lift the back of my hand to his forehead. “Do you have a fever? Wait, do Blooms get fevers?”
“No.” His lavender stare holds mine, and he wraps his hand around my wrist, guiding my palm to his chest.
“What is it?” My voice is merely a whisper. I try to count in my head and slow my breathing, but I seem to have lost the numbers. I’ve never seen him look so intense.
The ball of his throat works. “I need to tell you something.”
Silence grows in the space between us.
I preemptively blink back tears. It’s been weeks since I’ve seen him, and after the night of Corrigan’s unexpected visit, I’ve practiced over and over what I’d say when he returned. Now I can’t recall any of it. I’m drowning in the seriousness of his tone and the quiver of his hand around mine.
Whatever this something is, it’s bad.
“My sister may have the mark, but her connection to both of them has been severed,” Briar finally says. I open my mouth, trying to determine what to ask first but he continues before I can. “I didn’t want to believe it, but Fate confirmed it when I brought Skylar to her. Time can snip the bond.”
Our eyes both drop to where our hands hover above the inky foxglove and peony at his sternum.
The bond whirs round and round like a jump rope, waiting patiently for someone to join in and play. When Briar doesn’t leap in first, my stomach twists. “Are you saying the bond can be removed?”
His body tenses, but when I move to retreat, he takes my hands, brushing his lips over my knuckles. “I’m saying I love you, Monroe.”
The words should fill me with joy, relief, but his tone isn’t one of sweeping declarations.
It sounds more like a goodbye.
“I know we both believed this bond existed whether we wanted it to or not, but that’s no longer true.
” Heat prickles behind my eyes, and I blink to no avail, unable to stop the tears.
They slip past my defenses, streaking down my cheeks.
“There is a way, if you want out. I’ve already asked Fate’s permission to open the veil briefly to take you back. ”
“I—”
“Please, let me finish,” he says, and I nod.
“I understand that for you, the bond feels like a trap that took away your choice. But the truth is, if it didn’t exist, I would still wait eternities for you.
You could never accept the bond, never touch me again, and it wouldn’t change that I’d claim you as mine.
“I can take you there now. You’d have the space, the freedom, to choose.
” He winces and pushes up onto one knee.
I get up and hold out a hand to help him stand, but he shakes his head at me.
Reaching into his pocket, he pulls out a small, circular band.
“Bond or no bond, I’ll always choose you, Monroe. ”
My mouth falls open.
“I’ve fallen for every iteration of you. I’d claim them all and every one to come.”
I allow his words to sink in and stare at the band clutched between his quivering fingers. One side is wood and on the other, ivy threads through moss and tiny blossoms suspended in time. “Is this what I think it is?”
“I know it’s unusual for Blooms to marry, but the girls were adamant that it’s a symbol of eternal love and devotion for mortals.
At least that’s what it seems like in their fairy tales.
” He tilts his head, glancing through his spectacles at the token.
“I made it for you because I don’t need a claiming bite or a mate mark to tell me how I feel.
I love you, and no matter what, you have a place here—a home—with our family. ”
Our family.
My chin wobbles and I close his fingers around the ring, knowing what I say next will irrevocably change things between us.
“I’ve had a lot of time to think about things while you were away.
” His lavender stare drops to the floor, but I tilt his chin back up.
“A ring made with such care should be worn by your mate—once she’s claimed you, of course.
” A smirk draws across my lips. “As it so happens, there’s a ceremony happening right now. ”
Briar’s brows lift. “Is that what you want?”
“It is. So much has changed in my life since you came into it. But through it all, you’ve been here for me. I was alone and you refused to let me be. I rejected you and you’ve loved me unconditionally.”
Hell, he was willing to sever our bond so I could be sure of this. Of us.
“There’s so much I’m still learning about being a Bloom. What eternity looks like, how I can bring what I loved about my life to this world. But despite the unknowns, I’m certain I want you.” I cradle his cheek and thumb along the stubble of his beard. “In every iteration.”
I nod toward the ring hidden within his fist. One step back, then another, I take the end of the bow holding my dress together and tug. It drops into a puddle of silk on the floor, then disappears. “As event organizer, I may have prepared an extra bed…just in case.”
“Just in case?” Briar arches a brow, pocketing the ring.
I playfully bite my bottom lip, savoring the sweet vanilla filling the air. “However, there’s one thing you have to do before you claim your mate.”
“And that is?” He stands, matching my tempo stride for stride.
The breeze tousles my hair as I pivot on my heels.
“You’re going to have to catch me first.”