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“It’s okay.” I wanted more than anything to reassure her. The desire to distance myself from her evaporated, leaving nothing but a desire to protect. But, no matter how much I wanted to tell her everything would be fine, it was a lie.
She studied me, her eyes narrowing. How could I protect her? She was damning herself by marrying me. There would be two death sentences today. She just didn’t know it yet. As my wife, she would carry my sins and burdens with hers, and they were heavy. My smile fell into a frown, and I turned my attention to the priest, the heaviness returning.
“Repeat after me.”
My mind raced as he spilled commands for Olivia to say. She spoke the words with such conviction. I could believe they were her own if I hadn’t heard the priest speak them moments earlier. “I honor my pledge to my husband, to guide his light, and find redemption for his sins.” She’d brought the vows spoken in Baldoria, combining them with our own. I didn’t look at her. Not when I knew redemption was too far out of reach.
“In death, upon your execution,” the priest continued, the words falling from his lips so casually, as if they were nothing, “your marriage will continue. The bond created here today is eternal and never to be broken. Do you agree to marry this man and take him as yours forevermore?”
She closed her eyes, and my fingers flexed against hers. “Yes, I do.”
He spilled the same vows to me. I let out a long exhale as I repeated his words back to him. Then, for the first time in three years, I felt the cold chilling my bones as I muttered the words, “I do.”
The priest said, “The gauntlets,” and a man brought the two cups, placing one in each of our hands. I took mine, having seen it at many ceremonies before. Olivia fumbled with the knife they handed her and dug the sharp metal into her skin. She winced, and a hiss sounded through her teeth. Several vampires stood as the blood dotted through the skin, then settled into a steady stream.
I bit into my hand, filling as much of my goblet as I could before the bite healed. The sound of her heartbeat pounded in my ears.
She took the goblet and scrunched her nose as she lifted it to her lips. Slowly, I brought the cup to my mouth, wetting my lips with her blood. Closing my eyes against the bloodlust, a deprived, dark part of myself wanting the cup to overflow, or take more directly from the vein. “Sebastian?” Her voice cut through the lust, dragging me back. The goblet was dry. I’d all but licked it clean.Fuck.
“Congratulations,” the priest said, and I blinked twice. The ceremony was done. We were married.
The crowd stood, their cheering overwhelming my senses. Olivia’s grip tightened around mine as we were announced as husband and wife. It didn’t feel real, but the anxiety in every squeeze of her hands anchored me to the real world. She needed me to be strong, if only long enough to get us out of there.
Her eyes widened as people called out to us, and the king and queen hugged us both. Once finished, I escorted her down the aisle. “Hold on to me. It’s just nerves, love,” I assured her as her arms trembled.
“Now I must die,” she said, tears threatening to break through.
“Not yet.” I placed my hand on the small of her back, hurrying us under the cloud of rose petals thrown in our path. “We still have time.”
Kalon sped to us, paces from the doors leading us between further crowds swelling in the foyer. “Congratulations to the happy couple. May you enjoy your time together before the ceremony, Sebastian.” He looked down at her, something dark dwelling behind that intrusive stare. “Seraphina.”
I tightened my arm around Olivia, pulling her closer. Even with innocent words, he made them sound like a threat.
He arched a thin eyebrow, and I forced an amused smile. “You address her as Your Highness, now.”
His frown pinched, a show of anger leaking through his stoic expression. “I’m a prince, so actually, I don’t.”
Kalon stepped out of our way, but strangers crowded us. Some booing at the princess they didn’t want, most, fortunately, cheering, desperate for a look at her. “Prince Sebastian,” one woman shouted, waving. I’d all but forgotten my new title. Two grabbed her shoulders, followed by others who danced their touches over her body, as if they owned her.
I held her tight against my body, cradling her head as my wings extended, forcing the vampires away from where we stood. Before they could bother us further, I kicked off from the ground, flying us up.
ELEVEN
Olivia
His thumb pressed against my chin as he lifted my head. I raised my lashes, peering at him. His breath hit mine, our lips only inches from each other. There was something primal behind his night-blue eyes as he landed us on the floor outside my bedroom. Our bedroom now, I supposed.
“I didn’t think we’d make it out alive,” I joked, but the feel of my subjects touching all over my skin made me shudder. “Thank you.”
“Soon you will be able to do the same.”
I wrinkled my forehead. The thought hadn’t occurred to me before. “I’ll have wings.”
“You will. There’s nothing quite like the freedom of flying.”
My stomach knotted. I’d always been afraid of heights, but I supposed I had nothing to fear as an immortal. “Yes. Soon I will be a vampire.” My breaths quickened, my mind speeding from one thought to another as a wave of numbness overtook me.
“It’s not as bad as you think,” he said gently, softening his tone.
