Those aren’t just two of the rarest gems. They’re what’s needed to pass through the portals between worlds.
With this ring, Becks isn’t just proposing, he’s sending a message.
Wherever I want to build my life, he’s willing to build it there with me.
Overcome with emotion, words escape me, and so I pull Becks down for another kiss, losing myself once again.
As the lake glimmers behind us, and the night hums softly around us, for the first time the future doesn’t feel scary or uncertain.
It feels like home.
Epilogue
BECKS
My palms are sweating, my skin prickling with nerves. I’ve never been this anxious, and it’s not because I’m about to get married.
It’s the sudden, irrational fear that Haven woke up this morning, realized how out of my league she is, and changed her mind. Never mind that we’ve been together for years. She wanted to wait until she finished her undergrad degree before getting married, and I supported that decision wholeheartedly. We have a lifetime ahead of us, and I’ve loved every phase we’ve shared. But I still wake up every day a little stunned that someone so extraordinary, and so perfectly right for me, chose me back.
Soft music starts up and my heart rate spikes. I take a deep breath to steady myself.
A hand settles between my shoulders as Talon, my best man, leans forward and whispers, “Relax, man. You’ve got this,” before giving me a reassuring thump and straightening again.
There’s movement at the end of the aisle and Ensley appears, dressed in a floor-length lavender gown that matches the purple streaks in her hair. I catch Titus twist in his seat to watch her, a smitten look on his face.
They were married six months ago in what was perhaps the wedding of the century. It was televised all over the creature world. The prodigal fae prince’s return. Although, to get him back, his parents had to agree that he and Ensley would only live in Endora for half the year. The other half of the year they live in New York in an apartment next to Locklyn and Talon, completely out of the public eye.
As she passes, Ensley blows her husband a kiss.
Next down the aisle is Tate, Haven’s human friend. Since she knows all about creatures and our world, she was allowed passage through the portal to be part of the wedding today. Something that’s become more common since Haven destroyed the demon and the threat it posed.
By some miracle, Tate pulled through after her possession. She was in a coma for more than a month then woke up one day. The last couple of years haven’t been the easiest for her. She remembers everything from when she was demon-possessed, as if she was a passenger in her own body.
That’s some heavy stuff to work through, and although she knows on a logical level Kendra’s death wasn’t her fault, according to Haven she still deals with guilt. Haven thinks she’s working through it though, albeit slowly, and was thrilled when she agreed to be a bridesmaid. Despite the trauma still clinging to her, dimples crease her cheeks as she makes her slow walk down the aisle. I spot her gaze lingering on more than one of the single guys seated on either side as she passes.
I’m chuckling to myself about the looks they’re sending back her way when Talon catches his breath behind me.
Glancing up, Locklyn appears, holding a small white bouquet, dotted with tiny purple and teal flowers like the rest of the bridesmaids. Her hair is twisted up, with little wisps framing her face. With a brilliant smile, she only has eyes for the guy standing behind me.
When she reaches the dais, where I’m standing, she gives me a quick hug and a chaste kiss on the cheek. Before pulling away, she whispers in my ear, “You’d better treat my sister like the princess she is, because I happen to know several places to hide a body.”
She pulls back with a pleasant look on her face. No one would know she just threatened my life. But that’s Locklyn for you: looks are deceiving.
I give a good-natured chuckle, and she smiles back and says quietly, “I wasn’t joking,” before taking her place off to the side. I sneak a quick peek over my shoulder at Talon. He just says, “You heard my girl.”
I clear my throat, the nerves back. Not because of Locklyn’s threats, but because it’s the moment of truth.
The music fades, and then a new melody starts. All the guests rise to their feet. I hold my breath, clenching my fists because they start to shake. And then . . .
. . . she appears.
And steals my breath all over again.
Haven has always been the most beautiful creature I’ve ever laid eyes on, but walking toward me with her hair softly curled and draped in white lace and silk, it’s almost too much for me to take in, and I feel my eyes misting.
I don’t know the names for the different types of dresses, but the one she’s wearing is strapless and tight throughout her torso and hips, flaring slightly around the knees before cascading to the ground.
The soft smile on her face is just for me, and as she nears everything drops away.
