Wild Magic One: By the Light of the Moon-- A Wolf Shifter M/M Romance

Epilogue: Wedding

*****Cover courtesy of immortalmorals *****

EDON

Our wedding was as small as we could make it, with it being the wedding of one of the high rulers of the empire. The emperor, whom I was horrified to find was a close friend of Lhiam's— they had played frequently as children together, Lhiam told me— attended. His being there made it possible for us to only invite him, and not every other ruler of the different realms of the empire.

"If I'm here," he told me, his beautiful hazel eyes shining with mirth as he stood far too close to me, drawing a glare and a growl from a fuming Lhiam. "Then I'm the emissary for the empire, and you need no other."

Only our friends and family attended the wedding. Tate stood by Lhiam's side, Cain by mine. Lacy walked me down the aisle to my love, and brought us the rings. Lhiam's had been made to match mine, the swirling silver gorgeous on his thick, strong finger.

Cain and I had become close over the few months while we prepared for our wedding. It started when he came up to me during Lhiam's announcement of our engagement. He congratulated me, in a language I recognized like a memory from a dream. And the answering words fell from my lips, in that same language, faster than I could notice that I was speaking a foreign tongue.

I had stared, shocked, at Cain's harsh but knowing face, as he bowed and then straightened and shrugged.

"I had guessed, Prince Consort," he said as I felt dozens of gazes fall on us in shock. "But I hadn't felt it was my place. Forgive me if I overstepped."

Since then, we have spoken many times of our shared homeland— a far away country he called Akar, where the men were fierce warriors, the families were large, and what he called the wild magic was powerful.

I guessed he had a secret he had yet to share with me, something about the wild magic, which he said was the reason I shared a soul with a wolf, but I wouldn't push him. I had come to know the closed-off man as much as I could, and I knew he would tell me in time. And nothing I could do or say would push him into divulging sooner.

The animosity between the emperor and Cain was marked from the day the outgoing, sensual emperor leapt from his horse, landing in front of a stone-faced Cain, and planted a full kiss to the other man's lips. After a shocked moment, Cain shoved the taller man back, wiping at his mouth, and spit on the dirt at the emperor's feet.

My fear had been great, terrified the emperor would order Cain arrested, but the man only guffawed and shook his head as he put his long, smooth fingers to his lips and smiled seductively.

"Such a spoil-sport, Akaran," the emperor said with a heavy, purring rasp. "This is a time of love and beauty. Let me love your body, beauty."

Cain's annoyance was held in check with only clenched fists as he stood solidly at attention. "No thank you," he said simply.

The emperor's laughter was like the rushing of wind through trees as he bowed a little and turned away. "I'll change your mind, beautiful Akaran. Mark my words," he all but giggled, finally moving to Lhiam and me. Lhiam was keeping his laughter in check only by biting his lips between his teeth, but I was horrified.

This was the emperor of the 7 realms? This flighty, flirty, absolutely stunning man, that had even me blushing as he looked me over and smiled in the same way he had when openly looking Cain over.

The emperor stayed only a week, a few days before our wedding and a few days after. I rarely saw Cain during that week, as he spent most of his time hiding from the pursuing emperor.

I was coronated Prince Consort the day after the wedding, with the emperor presiding, and only two days later we officially adopted Tay.

And had plans to adopt many, many more children. As many as we could, to fill our home with the love I had never had, and that Lhiam had in abundance to share.

LHIAM

After the public announcement of our engagement, Stefan and a few other councilors cornered me, demanding I take back the announcement and break the engagement. To take a wife, and keep Edon as a concubine only.

I did what I should have done years before.

I gave Stefan and the three councilors who always backed him an ultimatum: retire and return to their own homes, or I would force the retirement on them and they would lose the chance at the honorable way out.

I assured Stefan that the only reason I was being this merciful and not imprisoning him for the pain and suffering he caused to both me and my lover was because said lover had begged on his behalf.

He hadn't wanted any kind of animosity to darken the beginning of our life together.

But I swore, if I ever saw him again, I would ensure he was arrested for acts of treason. That I was essentially banishing him to his small, northern castle.

They all chose the former, and within days I replaced them with Tate, Robert, Dasan, and Lacy.

Needless to say, the first female councilor to the prince, and it was a pubescent female at that? Two more councilors quietly moved into retirement, and I was able to replace them with two nobles I knew wouldn't be afraid to stand up to me, but wouldn't have their own interests in mind when dealing with matters of state.

One of which was Lady Sera, a sweet, quiet, but fiercely passionate woman who had been born a man, but since a very young age had dressed and acted as a woman. And now, very few even knew that she had ever been anything but Lady Sera, daughter and heir to Lord Spencer.

The only problem I could see with the arrangement of two women on the council, was how very smitten Lacy seemed with the beautiful Lady Sera. But I was assured quickly by both Edon, and Lady Sera herself, that my cousin was only young, and would get over the infatuation.

I honestly didn't know how I would react if she never did get over it.

The day of our wedding was, of course, the happiest of my life. Watching Edon move towards me, his tunic, shirt, and pants perfectly tailored to his stunning body, I was struck dumb. Riece, the emperor, was behind me, whistling softly in admiration as I could only try to keep breathing. Even as he held my hands in both of his, Riece's words marrying us floating by my ears, I was unable to hear anything past the pounding of my heart in my ears.

Until Edon said, "I do," and kissed me, and the world came back into color and sound. And the laughter all around me at my deaf and dumb state washed over me.

"Well, Your Highness?" Edon whispered, his eyes lit with laughter as he shot a look at a doubled-over Riece. "Do you take me as your husband?"

"Dear gods," I managed to hiss out on a breath. "I do. Always, until my last breath takes me, I'll choose you, Edon."

THE END

*****Please stay tuned for Cain & Riece's story— The Dark of the Sun; and Lacy & Sera's story— In the Shadows of the Stars*****