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A few more toasts of general good-will occupied the next several minutes.
Stone then shared a few critical points about the battle at the Overlook. The Invictus in the camp were quickly subdued and the wraith-slaves taken to a rehabilitation center where physicians and fae would tend to their recovery. Though Oregis had helped him backtrack to Underworld, all signs of the captives were gone. Nothing had remained but the glass enclosures and scattered crystals all over the cavern floor.
“I’ve ordered the Sidhe Council to do a complete investigation of Lanarae’s workshop. They’re hoping to determine how these latest Invictus pairs were created and, more importantly, whether this new evolution might prove a threat to all the realms.”
Both Devyn and Rez asked questions about the battle itself, but Rosamunde ended the discussion by announcing that the buffet was served.
Shortly after everyone was seated, Stone asked Rez if he would be interested in rejoining the Guard.
Holly was so surprised, she almost choked on her wine.
Rez, however, refused. “Thanks. But I’ll continue as I’ve been. The eastern villages and hamlets need me, maybe now more than ever.”
“I understand, though I’ve had an idea I’d like to run by you. What if you returned to create, train and lead a division designed specifically to care for all our outlying areas. It would mean bringing on more warriors but our people would be safer.”
Holly could feel the release of tension within Rez’s body. He’d been a Guardsman a long time before he’d left to patrol the east on his own. She knew his desire to serve alongside his brothers-in-arms had never abated. He was being offered a way back in that would restore his reputation and trust among his fellow Guardsmen.
Still, he hesitated. Holly thought she understood the reason. Rez cleared his throat. “Your idea has merit. Great merit, in fact. Just what I’d want to do. But for the present, I need time with my daughter.”
“Of course.” Stone’s brows rose. “Yes, of course. We can discuss it later. Any time that suits you.”
Oregis’s high, thin voice took the conversation a different direction entirely. He addressed the former queen of Ferrenden Peace. “Rosamunde, has anyone told you that you have the prettiest eyes. Violet, with these lovely hints of blue and purple. They remind me of the color of my wife’s—”
“Oregis.” Four masculine voices called sharply to the gremlin.
He appeared innocent with brows raised. “Whatever do you mean? I was going to say the sofa in her third sitting room.” He then chortled with glee.
~ ~ ~
Rez insisted on flying Holly back to her mountain home where they would spend the day, in bed, together. They would complete the bond with a full union of their bodies, the sharing of blood, and the engagement of their mating frequencies.
He couldn’t wait, yet he wanted to take his time with her, so he flew her.
Everything about this moment felt sacred. He was living inside a miracle. Love had found him again and that same love had brought his daughter home safely. He felt blessed and overcome.
He held Holly close to his side while he flew. Her foot was planted on his right boot and her left arm was slung across his shoulders. She used levitation to keep herself upright while her free hand caressed his shoulder, his chest, his neck and his face.
His woman.
His blood rose.
His partner.
The air was cooler now as he levitated above the slope of the rising forest. “I love you, Holly, more than words could ever express.”
~ ~ ~
Holly hugged him in response.
She shared Rez’s mood.
Reverence was what she felt coming from him, as though this shared moment belonged to the heavens and not to the mere realm-world. She loved and she was loved. She’d found passion, companionship and an incredible bond in the arms of a man she’d once thought of as a deserter.
They would marry sometime this year. But she hoped, as she never had before, that she carried his child when she bound herself to him in front of their families and loved ones.
She gasped as a vision came to her rich with color and life. She was at a midnight picnic, on the lawn in the smithy backyard. Isobel was there and held a baby in her arms. Her husband was bringing her a plate of ripe apricots and a glass of mineral water. He was smiling at her and she looked beyond content.
Children ran around the yard. Several of them and they belonged to Holly. All hers and Rez’s.
