Page 237 of Nobody's Girl

I send her thoughts of how I’ll never treat her with anything but the respect she deserves. If I could change the words of this ceremony, I would, but it’s out of my hands at this point.

We may be able to make changes during our reign, but we are powerless until this part is completed, putting us in charge.

The man who presides over this ceremony is something not of this world either. Galchobar is an ancient and he is immortal, sent here to oversee our kind, and other special creatures as well.

Not vampires, though, for reasons he did not care to explain to me. He detests them as well as werewolves.

“Eden, son of Lyle, do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife, not only in man’s eyes, but also in the eyes of Our Creator?” Galchobar asks me.

Alyssa’s hand trembles in mine as she kneels before me, her head bowed. I give her hand a small squeeze. “I do.”

“Allow her to rise now, if you are ready to,” he tells me, and I immediately pull at her hand to help her stand.

Her eyes are narrowed, thankfully not at me. No, she looks at Galchobar, and she plots to give him a piece of her mind as soon as she possibly can. I do feel a bit sorry for the old fellow.

Somehow he holds her molten gaze as he says, “Alyssa, daughter of David, do you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband, not only in man’s eyes, but also in the eyes of Our Creator?”

“I do,” she replies and turns her head to me. Her eyes soften and her heart beats wildly.

She is beyond anything I could have ever hoped for and she is almost mine.

Galchobar holds out two silver wedding bands. A bird is etched on both. I reach out to take one from him as he says, “Eden, please take the smaller of the two wedding bands and place it on your mate’s finger.”

I do as he says and look into Alyssa’s gorgeous sapphire eyes as I do. She smiles at me and I feel her joy.

Galchobar takes her attention from me as he says, “Alyssa, please take this ring and place it on your mate’s finger.”

She does as he’s asked and I feel complete.

“By the power vested in me by the state of Louisiana and Our Creator, I now pronounce you man and wife,” Galchobar says with a flourish of his hands and a deep bow to us both. “I am your humble servant. You may kiss your bride.”

I life the veil, which has hidden her beauty from me a bit, finding the most gorgeous and perfect creature I’ve ever laid eyes on. My heart swells with emotion as I finally have her. From now on we will be as one.

My arms wrap around her as I lean her back to kiss her. One of her feet comes off the floor as I hold her in my arms. “I love you, Alyssa Fontaine.”

“I love you too, Eden,” she says with a smile, then I kiss her.

Long and slow, our kiss seals our vows. My heart beats like a bass drum, as does hers. Slowly, I bring her back up and Galchobar says, “Let me introduce you to Mr. and Mrs. Eden Fontaine.”

I hold our clasped hands up in the air as our guests cheer,  clap, and shout out congratulations to us. It’s overwhelming how many people are here in this dank and dark old church. As my eyes scan the crowd, they land on Kyle and he is frowning.

“I must talk to him first, Eden. He’s upset,” Alyssa whispers in my ear.

I nod at her, knowing she needs to do this.

Am I happy about it? No!

We approach Kyle and Laura. Kyle frowns, but Laura is beaming. It’s she who speaks first. “How dramatic. So cool! I love theme weddings!”

“I thought it was barbaric,” Kyle says as he reaches out for my mate’s hand. “Is this how you wanted it, Ally?”

Ally smiles reassuringly to him as she allows him to hold her hand. “Sure, Kyle. It’s kind of cool, don’t you agree?”

“No,” his voice is flat and he searches her eyes for the truth he knows is hidden behind them.

“We can talk later. We have a lot of guests to thank for coming. You guys go get some drinks and something to eat up in the patio area. We’ll join you soon,” Alyssa tells them as she pats Kyle’s hand.

He kisses her cheek, “Okay, we’ll be up there waiting for you. Are you sure you’re okay, Ally?”