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The gargoyle stepped forward, a tall, broad-shouldered male with piercing blue eyes. He looked at me, his expression hard and unyielding.
“Evie Galante.” His deep, gravelly voice matched his stature. “I am Kuzar, your gargoyle mate.”
CHAPTER THREE
Kuzar
A rustle of movement - soft like a moth’s wing against silk - brought my gaze to the entrance. There, framed against blazing sunshine, stood the woman fated to be my mate.
Evie Galante.
She held up her blonde wavy hair in an elaborate braid wound with silver, letting it fall past her shoulders in elegant waves. Her dress was simple but tasteful, a muted blue that brought out the color of her mesmerizing blue eyes. Deep red lips, the color of cherries, adorned her alabaster skin. She was strikingly lovely, with a natural beauty that could make a gargoyle forget his troubles. I found myself strangely drawn to her, despite my better judgment.
My instincts roared at me. Mate. Protect. Cherish.
I stepped forward, my heart pounding in my chest like a blacksmith hammering out metal, my hands clenched at my sides to quell my strange restlessness.
“Kuzar Durzomian,” I introduced myself, my voice low and gruff.
Her eyes widened a fraction, and a faint blush tinged her cheeks. She inclined her head, a small, nervous gesture, her lips parting like she wanted to say something. But no words came.
The high priest stepped forward, an ancient tome clasped in his gnarled hands, his hooded eyes scanning the chamber.
"We have gathered here to witness the sacred union of Kuzar Durzomian, warlord of the Goliath gargoyles, and Evie Galante, daughter of the human settlement of Elderwood," he intoned, his deep and resonant voice carrying the words.
He spoke of honor, sacrifice, and the ancient covenant between our two races. Of shared blood and common cause, of the strength we find when we stand together, and the power of our combined bloodlines.
His words fell on me like rain on parched earth, their weight pressing upon my shoulders like a stone.
This was it. The moment I’d been dreading yet somehow longing for, all at the same time.
The high priest’s eyes settled on us, a flicker of knowing in their murky depths.
“Do you, Kuzar Durzomian, take Evie Galante to be your mate, to love and cherish her in sickness and in health, to protect her from all harm, and to remain faithful to her until death parts you?” he asked, his voice ringing through the chamber.
I met his gaze, my resolve unyielding. “I do."
“And do you, Evie Galante, take Kuzar Durzomian to be your mate, to love and cherish him in sickness and in health, to stand by his side in battle and in peace, and to remain faithful to him until death parts you?” he asked again, his words like a beacon in the darkness of uncertain times.
Evie drew in a sharp breath, her eyes shimmering with emotion. “I do.” She trembled as she spoke.
The high priest nodded, his eyes lighting up with satisfaction. He opened the ancient tome, its pages yellowed and brittle with age. He chanted in a language that echoed through the chamber, his guttural phrases stirring an ancestral memory that hung in the air like a mist.
I watched Evie, saw the way her eyes fluttered shut, her head tipping back, her body trembling slightly. Her skin tingled, and a warmth spread through her. The energy that pulsated within her was now a beacon, drawing my unbidden energy toward it.
Instinctively, I reached out, wrapping my hand gently around hers. The power coursed through us, forging an unbreakable bond, sealing our fates together.
The priest’s voice faded, and he closed the ancient tome. He raised his arms, and the chamber filled with light. The ceiling seemed to disappear, replaced by a swirling vortex of stars and shimmering clouds.
Evie’s eyes snapped open, and she gasped. She looked at me, her expression a mixture of awe and confusion.
And then it hit me like a lightning strike. The attraction toward her, the heat simmering between us, wasn’t just lust. It was love.
We were mates.
Truly, irrevocably, and eternal.
I held Evie closer, my heart overflowing with a love so fierce and all-consuming that it terrified and exhilarated me in equal measure. I never thought it possible. Gone were the dread and angst that plagued me the previous days.
