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“Oh, Papa!” Ella rushed toward her father and flung herself into his arms. “I promise you I’ll come visit as often as you’d like. Right, Raven?”
“Of course. She is not a prisoner here. She is the wife of the grandson of our chief. She holds a position of honor.”
“And you can come visit me whenever you want. I’ll always be thrilled to see you.”
Her father’s arms tightened, and Ella’s breath caught. This was so difficult for him, for reasons she still didn’t completely understand. After a moment, his hold relaxed, and he spoke softly. “Ready yourself for a weddin’, Ella. I’ll be back with your mama.”
Ella kissed her father’s stubbled cheek. “Thank you, Papa. Thank you so very much.”
* * *
“A white man’s wedding?” Wandering Bear’s golden gaze rested on Raven’s face. His voice was deep as he spoke the Lakota words.
“Yes,” Raven said, “and you must stand with me. Ella says we each need an attendant, and that it is customary for the man’s attendant to be the brother or the best friend. You, Bear, are both to me.”
“I am honored, Raven. What of Ella? You have told me she has no brothers and sisters.”
“She had a brother, but he is gone. She has no sister and no close friends since she left Minnesota, so she has asked our sister, Singing Dove, to stand with her.”
“That is kind of her.”
“Singing Dove is very excited. She is helping Ella dress for our white man’s wedding.”
“Will she wear white man’s clothing?”
“I do not know. According to Ella, I am not allowed to see her before the wedding. It is bad luck.”
“That is ridiculous.”
Raven laughed. “I agree. We have already mated. But she has agreed to live here with me and respect our ways. So I will respect hers.”
Rays of sun shot into the tipi when Standing Elk entered.
“Reverend Morgan and his wife are here. And Ella and Singing Dove are ready to proceed. Are you ready, my son?”
Raven nodded. “I have never been more ready, Father. I wish to be mated to the woman I love in her way as well as ours.”
Raven and Bear followed Standing Elk out of the tipi across the village to the camp circle, where the band held their ceremonies.
“Ella said we must hold this ‘wedding’ in a sacred place,” Standing Elk said. “I told her we would go to her village, to her house of worship, but she was concerned for our safety.” Standing Elk let out a chuckle. “I told her we were capable of taking care of ourselves, but she insisted you be married here. There is no more sacred place than our circle.”
Raven looked toward the circle as they approached. Ella’s father stood, looking sullen. Next to him was a lovely woman, an older version of Ella herself. Ella’s mother. But for a few strands of silver highlighting her sable hair, she would be Ella’s twin, right down to the violet eyes.
He and Bear walked slowly, solemnly, respectfully, toward Ella’s parents. Robert Morgan’s amber gaze rested on him. His demeanor was more of resignation than of happiness. As they came closer, the amber eyes widened and darkened.
Surprise?
Surprise and anger?
He pierced the gaze with his own, and it was then he realized Robert Morgan wasn’t staring at him.
He was staring at Bear.
“Those eyes.”
Robert Morgan’s voice was soft and deep. The tone chilled Raven’s skin.
“Of what do you speak, white man?” Bear turned away from his gaze. His discomfort trickled through Raven.
