19

Jacque stood in the room that she was sharing with Jen and Sally in the mansion where Fane and his family lived. It had been a week since they landed in Romania and the whirlwind of preparing for the bonding ceremony had begun. Tonight, in a matter of less than an hour, those preparations would finally bear the fruit of their purpose. Tonight Jacque would tie herself to Fane for all eternity. Needless to say she was a little anxious, and it would be a lie if she didn’t admit that she was a bit jumpy feeling that at any moment some crazy wolf would jump out of the woodwork to steal her away in some freakish attempt to make her his mate. Okay, if she took a minute to really think about those fears she just might break down into hysterical laughter knowing that three months ago she didn’t even know werewolves existed. She looked in the mirror at the simple, green gown adorned with embroidered flowers stitched in a darker green thread, with gold thread mingled in working its way up from the hem of the dress up and growing sparser the higher up the dress it went. It was cut low in the front but had a high back that would cover her markings. Alina chose this dress as the replacement for the original one ruined in the accident. The green accented her eyes and complimented her red hair and although it wasn’t the first dress, it was still just as stunning in its own way.
Today was not only the Blood Rites ceremony, it was also her eighteenth birthday. Who would have thought that on her eighteenth birthday she would be in Romania getting ready to bond with a werewolf? Ya, her either.
“How you doing of there, wolf princess?” Jacque heard Jen ask from the bed she was lounging on while Sally finished painting her toenails.
Jacque turned to face her two best friends, thankful beyond words that they were here to support her and if nothing else, give her sarcastic remarks to help keep her nerves under control.
“I’m nervous, but honestly I’m so beyond ready to be bonded to Fane.”
“Well, believe us when we say we wish you would hurry up already because the whole ‘crazy Alphas knocking down your door to get in your pants’ is getting old,” Jen told her dryly.
“Classy, Jen, real classy.” Sally rolled her eyes.
“Well, better Jac than me, that’s all I’ve got to say.”
“Wait a minute,” Sally began. “If I do recall, inebriated Jen was all about some wolf to be her man. What happened?”
Jen rolled her eyes, her mouth going tight. “We all know that’s never going to happen. Besides, I’m beginning to think I wouldn’t look good in fur anyways.” Jen snorted at her own comment. “Get it? Fur? Wouldn’t look good in fur? No, no takers, huh? Ok then, tough crowd.”
Jacque walked over to Jen and knelt down in front of her, her eyebrows raised. “Jen, um, about that. I need to tell-” Just then the door to their room opened and Decebel stepped in.

Jen jumped up off the bed, causing Sally to fling nail polish all over. “Decebel, how good of you to join us in our private room, where we could be naked at any given moment. I was just saying to my two friends here how badly I wished that a grumpy, cocky, condescending, conceited werewolf would barge in uninvited. So thanks for that. Really, thanks.”
Decebel just stared at Jen amd his eyes took her in from head to toe. Jen felt heat rise in her face under his scrutiny. “What, have you never seen a girl in a dress?” she snapped.
Decebel growled low. “Not a dress like that. Is it missing a jacket or some material?”
Jen’s jaw dropped open, her eyes going wide. Sally coughed into her hand and Jacque just flat slapped her hand over her mouth.
Jen looked Decebel straight in the eyes as she pulled her already low cut dress just a tad lower, daring him with her lethal glare to make another comment.
Decebel walked over to her, standing directly in front of her. Jen had to lean her head back to look up at his towering form. “This conversation isn’t over, Jennifer, and you aren’t leaving this room until you put on a sweater or robe, or a parka for all I care. But you are not going out there like that.” He then turned to Jacque. “It’s time. He is waiting for you. Once Jennifer adds some material to her body I am to lead you and your friends to the gathering hall.” Without another word he turned and walked back into the hall, waiting for them to follow.
Sally was already pulling out a soft cream short waist sweater that would go with Jen’s navy blue dress. “Just put this on and lets go. It’s Jacque’s day, okay?” Sally whispered to her fuming friend.
Jen snatched the sweater from Sally and jerked it on, never taking her eyes from Decebel’s stiff form. Finally she wrenched her eyes away and looked at Jacque. Her face immediately softened. “Okay Jac, let’s do this. I’ve got your speech thingy so we’re good. And you look amazing!”
Jacque beamed at the compliment. She nodded her head, taking a deep breath, and turned to follow Decebel out to where Fane waited for her.



As they approached the gathering room Jen and Sally both gave Jacque a hug. Neither spoke as they had already said all that needed to be said. Jen handed Jacque the sheet of paper that had her vows and gave her a quick wink. Decebel escorted Jen and Sally into their places in the hall, leaving Jacque standing there alone.
As Jacque stepped up to the entryway and looked into the hall, she saw that it was dark. As she continued to watch, one by one small lights lit up on the floor. She realized it was candles being lit and they created a circle. All around the circle were people. She could see the first couple of rows but then the rest of the faces faded into the darkness that the light of the candles didn’t reach. She also saw that in the center of the circle was a chair, a basin of water, and towels. But the most important thing standing amidst the soft candle light was Fane.
He was wearing relaxed jeans and a white button down shirt untucked, the long sleeves rolled up, showing off his strong forearms. And he was barefoot. She could see his tattoos like a vine crawling up from beneath the collar of the shirt, hugging his neck and face in a loving caress. Jacque took a deep breath and then walked into the hall. With every step she took a candle was lit on either side of her on the floor, creating a lighted path. It was quiet, unlike a wedding there was no music for her to enter in to. But that didn’t matter because all she could hear was her heartbeat getting harder and harder until she was standing in front of Fane. She looked at his handsome face and a big grin broke across it. Jacque giggled, remembering how he had told her he would be the one with the big goofy grin. Only he didn’t look goofy, he was breathtaking.
“Hi,” she whispered breathlessly.
“Hello, Luna.” His voice was a caress across her face. Fane took her hand and then turned to face Vasile who had been standing there the whole time, but Jacque only had eyes for Fane.

“Fane, Jacquelyn,” Vasile began, his voice strong and deep, “you are here today to complete the mate bond. Though fate has brought you together and destined you for one another, you have both chosen of your own free will to be here to profess your love and commitment to your mate.”
“We have,” Fane answered for them. Jacquelyn looked up at him and he squeezed her hand in reassurance. “As the Alpha I will answer for us as a mated pair. When my father addresses you directly, then you will speak.”
Jacquelyn nodded her head once in acknowledgment to his thought. Fane returned his attention to his father just as Vasile said, “Fane, it is time for you to recite the formal vows to your mate. Jacquelyn, you will sit in the chair while Fane recites the vows and while doing so he will wash your feet. This symbolizes his willingness as the leader and Alpha to serve you, his mate. To care for your most basic needs no matter how big or small, and to give you the honor you are due as his Luna. Once she has answered you, Fane, you may stand and recite the vows you have written.”
Holding her hand, Fane led her over to the chair for her to sit down. Jacque pulled her dress up, baring her calves and feet. Jacque watched as he brought the basin of water and set it on the floor next to her. Next he removed the slippers she had been wearing and took one of the towels and placed it under her feet. She watched in awe as he took a small cloth and dipped it in the water, picked up her foot and began to wash it with the cloth. As he washed her feet he spoke, “On this day I kneel before you, as a servant to my mate, to ask if you will make me whole. Will you give yourself to me? Finally calming the beast inside, bringing order to chaos, shining light where there has been only darkness? Will you bind your life to mine, your fate to mine, and your soul to mine and in doing so complete the mate bond?” As Fane waited for Jacquelyn’s response he rinsed her feet and began to pat them dry with the final towel. When she finally did respond it knocked the breath out of him.
Jacquelyn got down on her knees so that they were face to face. She placed her hands in his, holding his gaze with hers and recited the response that Alina had taught her. “On this day I kneel with you, my mate. I will make you whole as you will make me whole. I will give myself to you, calming the beast, bringing order to chaos, and shining light where there has been darkness. I will bind my life to yours, my fate to yours, and my soul to yours and complete our mate bond. I will take you for my own, my mate, and my Alpha.” Fane couldn’t breathe and for a moment his mind went blank as he stared into the face of his own personal miracle. He realized he had been quiet too long when Jacque squeezed his hands to get his attention. She waited patiently for him to read the vows he had written to her. Neither one of them stood but instead remained on their knees, staring into each other’s eyes. He cleared his throat and then he spoke.

“Jacquelyn, Luna, Mate. You have many names. Each of them holds a special meaning, but the only thing I want to call you is mine.” Fane paused briefly, watching the emotions play across Jacquelyn’s face. He wanted to look into her mind and see what she was thinking, instead he continued to look into her deep green eyes. “I wasn’t sure how to tell you all that I feel for you and the depth of those feelings, but someone very wise helped me and so I pass on her words and add some of my own. I don’t know if there is any way to explain or truly understand the bond between mates. It’s not human. It’s beyond the realm of reason and that makes it hard to believe it is even possible. I know I haven’t known you long. I know we are both young. But we will grow closer faster than either of us can imagine. You will become my best friend, my lover, and I will become yours. Even now I know you feel it, that no one in this world will ever love me as you will and no one will love you as I will. We were born to love each other and that love will grow stronger as time goes on. I worry that I won’t make you happy,” Fane’s voice was so soft, laced with tight emotions, “but that wise voice helped me see that I will. I will also make you mad, sad, annoyed, and probably a little claustrophobic at times.” Jacquelyn grinned at him, full of adoration and he pressed on encouraged by her response. “But I will do everything in my power to make you happy. My wolf will step in when my human side steps out of line. The wolf only sees black and white. All he understands is that you are our mate. He will love you, protect you, provide for you, play with you, and make you content while my human side fills in the gaps of emotions the wolf does not understand. You will make me a better Alpha, a better man. I will give you what no other man ever could, the other half of your soul.” When Fane finished he saw that Jacquelyn had tears running down her cheeks, her eyes full of love. He reached up with the hand that was holding hers and gently wiped the tears away.
“Jacquelyn, it is time for you to recite the vows you have written to your mate,” Vasile told her gently, mindful of her emotions.
She had to let go of Fane’s hands as she unfolded the piece of paper she held in her hand. When she looked up and saw Fane watching her she grinned. Fane winked at her which made her heartbeat pick up. “Easy, love. It’s just me, just us. Talk to me,” Fane whispered in her mind, helping to calm her so that she could unfold the paper and read it to him.
“Fane, there is so much I don’t know about you, so many secrets I have yet to discover, but there are a few things that I do know. I know that your face is the first thing I want to see in the morning and the last thing I see before I close my eyes at night. I know that your smile is the one I want to see when life fills you with joy. I know that I want to be the one to hold you when you are hurt or discouraged, and when life knocks you down I want to be the one to help you get back up. I know that if we are so blessed, I want you to be the father of my children, and I hope they have your beautiful blue eyes. I know without a doubt, out of the millions of people on this earth, you were created for me and me for you. All these things I know. What you need to know is that I am yours and yours alone. You hold my heart. You have the power to fill it with love and you have the power to destroy it. You need to know that not a day will go by that I don’t thank God that you are mine. You need to know that I will get mad at you, I will give you hell when you need it, but I will also love you unconditionally and without reservation. I will give you everything I am and I expect nothing less from you.” Fane looked at his mate, speechless at her precious words. He didn’t even realize his father was asking him a question until Jacquelyn turned to look at Vasile.
“Fane, what offering do you bring your mate to show her you will provide for her and care for her needs both physical and emotional?” Vasile asked him.
Fane stood up and brought Jacquelyn with him. He reached into his other pocket and pulled out a little black box and heard Jacquelyn’s breath catch.
Fane opened the black box and knelt back down on one knee. He took Jacquelyn’s left hand into his and felt her shaking. He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it and held it to his lips until the shaking stopped. “I have brought a ring. There is no other like it in all the world just as there is no other like my Luna. Engraved all the way around the band in Romanian are the words: finalizarea (complete), for without you my soul is incomplete, absolut (absolute), that is how my love is for you, chiar (unmovable), there is nothing on this earth that will separate me from you, and intreg (whole), you have filled the void in me making the man and the wolf whole. In the center is a very rare red diamond. I chose red for two reasons. One, you are my micul incendiu (little fire). And two, it is a reminder of this day when we both shed blood to bind our souls to each other.” Fane looked at Jacquelyn, pleading with his eyes for her to understand how much he needed her. “Jacquelyn, I love you. You are my mate and from this day forth every wolf will know that you are mine. But because I am selfish and a barbarian just as my mother called me, I don’t want just the wolves to know you are mine. I want every man to know you are taken. I realize you are not ready to marry me right now. That is okay, I will wait. But I am asking you to tell me that you will be my wife in the human sense of the word one day. Wear this ring as a symbol that your heart is spoken for. Jacquelyn, will you marry me?”
Jacquelyn’s eyes were closed and when she opened them he saw them glisten with unshed tears. Fane stood up and pulled her close to him. He pressed his lips to her ear and whispered, “Please tell me those are tears of joy.”
Jacquelyn nodded her head but that wasn’t good enough for Fane. He needed to hear it from her lips. “I’m going to make you say it out loud, my love. I need to hear it from you.” Fane sent her his thought and then waited for her response.
She pulled back away from him so she could look into his eyes, “I will marry you, Fane.”
Fane could see a little sparkle of mischief in her eyes. She had something up her sleeve. “When Luna? When will you marry me?” he whispered.
“I would marry you now, here, in this place,” she told him, her eyes filled with determination.
There was a gasp that rippled through out the room, reaching far into the darkness where the faceless stood. Fane’s breath caught, he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He turned to look at his father. “Alpha, marry us,” he said firmly. Jacque laughed at the urgency in his tone. He turned back to look at her. “I don’t want you to have the chance to change your mind.” His voice was playful but Jacque could see in his eyes that he was serious, he wasn’t ever letting her go.
Vasile’s voice brought them both from their private world back to where and what they were doing. “Before the marriage vows are spoken, that is only one offering, Fane. Where is your second?”
“I have another offering but I wish to give it to my mate in private when we complete the blood rites.”
Vasile turned to Jacquelyn.”You accept this request?”
“Yes,” Jacquelyn answered, her eyebrows raised as she looked at Fane.
“Alright, I suppose now we will do the marriage vows,” Vasile said as he grinned at Jacque.
“Hey, it seemed a good a time as any,” she told him as her cheeks flamed with heat. “Oh, and you can do the quick version. I’m pretty sure what we’ve already said covers all the rest.” The crowd laughed at her words and then quieted when Vasile looked out into the darkness. Bringing his attention back to Fane and Jacque, he spoke the marriage vows and everyone listened once again as Fane and Jacque bound themselves in the human way as well.

“I now pronounce you husband and wife.” Vasile finished the wedding vows and then added, “Fane, it is time for you and your mate to perform the blood rites. Once done your bond will be complete.”
Fane turned to her and took her face in his hands and kissed her soundly on the mouth. The kiss seemed to last forever and Jacquelyn was sure that even Jen would be blushing. When he finally pulled away he placed one more soft kiss on her lips and said, “Mate, come. I have waited long enough.” Jacquelyn’s eyes popped open as she looked into the face of her mate, the face of her wolf.


***

Jacque couldn’t say that she wasn’t nervous as Fane led her to his suite in the mansion. When Fane had ended that kiss and spoke to her, she realized that Fane had been out of commission and the wolf was in control. As they reached the door, Fane turned and looked at her. “Don’t be afraid, I am here. I am in control but the wolf has pushed forward because the blood rites is a bonding between the wolf and his mate, you. We will not hurt you, Jacquelyn.”
Jacque smiled up at him and leaned forward to gently kiss his lips. She whispered, “Mate, I trust you.”
A low growl rumbled from Fane as he gently pulled her into the suite. Jacque could smell flowers and when she looked down at the floor she knew why. There was a path of rose petals that lead into the suite. She had been in his room several times over the past two weeks. It was basically like a hotel suite, only very fancy.
It had a sitting room with a fireplace, which Jacque noticed had a blanket spread out in front of it with a basket full of food. The suite also had a small kitchen and dining area. As they followed the path of flower petals on the floor she found herself in awe of all the candles lit everywhere giving off a soft glow. Arriving at the room Jacque knew to be where Fane slept, she felt her stomach drop to her feet and her breathing increased.
Fane pushed the door open and the sight momentarily took Jacque’s mind off her fears and took her breath away. There were candles of all different shapes and sizes around the room. There had to be fifty or more. The bed had been covered in a bedspread Jacque had never seen. It was a quilt with two wolves in the center. One larger than the other. The smaller wolf was tucked into the front of the chest of the larger wolf as he sheltered her. It was a beautiful quilt and it spoke volumes. As she looked around the room Fane stepped away from her. She watched him take a basin of water that was on a warming plate and place it on the bedside table. Next to it he placed several towels. He must have felt her confusion because he turned and grinned at her. “It’s to clean the bite marks, love, that’s all.” Jacque felt heat rush up her neck and face as he had picked up on her thoughts.
She sat down on the bed and looked up at Fane, surprised by her own confidence as she stared into his beautiful eyes. “So how does this work?”
“You will need to remove the dress, love.” Fane told her, eyes twinkling wickedly. Then he added, “If you want you can go into the bathroom and there is a robe for you.”
She grinned at him. “You’re bad, you know that? Trying to scare an innocent girl, you ought to be ashamed.”
Fane grabbed her hand and kissed it before she could walk away. “I should be, but I’m not.” Jacque felt Fane’s eyes on her as she retreated into the bathroom to change.

A few minutes later she stepped out in a plush white robe that came to her knees. With her head bowed, eyes hooded by her eyelids, she couldn’t help but feel vulnerable knowing there was nothing under the robe. But she reminded herself again, as she had a hundred times while in the bathroom, Fane was her husband and her mate. She heard the intake of Fane’s breath and she finally looked up. His jaw had dropped, his eyes wide as he took her in from head to toe and back again. Jacque had never felt more beautiful.
“You have never been more beautiful, love.” She heard Fane’s words and even in her mind they sounded breathless.
He took a deep breath and ran both his hands through his hair. Jacque could feel how restless he was and how desperate he was to complete the blood rites, but he was trying to be gentle with her.
She walked over to him and took his arms, pulling them around her waist to encircle her. She didn’t know what to do so she just let instinct take over. She looked up into his eyes with all the trust in the world. She tilted her head and exposed her neck to him. She saw his eyes glow brighter and heard a low growl. “You are sure you are ready?” Fane asked her, his voice rough with emotion.
“Fane, I trust you.”
She felt him pull her closer, and then his hand came up and pulled the robe gently until her neck and shoulder were exposed. His fingers traced the mating marks on her back, no longer marred from the claw marks, completely healed and whole. Small chill bumps erupted all over Jacque’s skin and she shuddered under his touch. He cradled the nape of her neck and Jacque felt him place his nose against her skin and heard him breathe in deep. She heard a rumble from his chest. She tensed briefly and then relaxed as she felt his lips on her skin. He gave her gentle kisses from her chin to her shoulder then back up to her neck just below her ear. Jacque felt his lips part and a stroke of his tongue, then she heard a deep growl just as a sharp pain pierced her neck, then it was gone. She could still feel Fane’s mouth on her, but where she first felt pain she now felt pleasure. It was making her stomach do weird things. She felt herself pushing against Fane’s body and heard soft moaning. A moment later she realized the moaning was coming from her. She should’ve been embarrassed but she couldn’t bring herself to feel that when this was her mate, the other half of her soul who held her.
Then Fane was pulling away. She wrapped her arms around his neck. desperate to pull him back, but Fane was stronger and continued to pull back until he could see her face. Jacque saw the tears that ran down his cheeks and felt the intensity of his stare into her heart. The look changed abruptly to concern as he looked at her neck. He reached for one of the towels he had laid out and dipped it in the warm water, squeezed out the excess, and brought it to her neck to clean away the blood. She couldn’t help the wince that crossed her face as the water touched the wound. Fane gently turned her face to his. “Did I hurt you?”
“No. I mean, it hurt for a moment but then...” Jacque didn’t know if she could even put into words how it had felt once the pain had subsided.
“Then what, my love?” he asked.
Did he not know? Could he not hear her moans and feel the emotions rolling off of her? Fane stepped closer, his body brushing up against hers. “I felt your desire,” he whispered. “I heard you, my love. I just want to hear you say it. You so often avoid this topic altogether I was beginning to think maybe you weren’t attracted to me.”
Jacque let out a breathless laugh. “Liar,” she teased him.
“After the initial pain, it felt good. No, it felt freaking awesome.” Fane chuckled at his mate, but Jacque continued on undaunted. “I have always desired you, Fane. I’ve just never been comfortable talking about it. But rest assured after feeling your mouth do that on my skin,” Jacque shuddered at the memory, “I without a doubt desire you, wolf-man.”
Fane decided not to torture her any more with questions about her physical affections for him. Instead he reminded her that the blood rite still wasn’t complete. “Are you ready, Luna?”
Jacque took his hand and led him over to the bed. She pushed him down to sit on the edge. With him sitting and her standing, her face was level with his neck. Jacque watched as Fane undid the buttons on his white dress shirt until they were all open and then shrugged the shirt off. She looked at him and although she had already done this twice, this time it felt different, more intimate. Fane turned and exposed his neck as she had done for him. Something deep inside Jacque stirred at the sight of the bared neck. She felt a desire to mark it, claim it, to claim him. She leaned towards Fane and placed her arm around his strong shoulders. She kissed his cheek and down his jaw to his neck just as he had done. She kissed him down to where his neck met his shoulder. At that point instinct took over, the wolf blood in Jacque came forward to claim their mate. Once again, as she had felt the first two times she took Fane’s blood, Jacque felt her teeth lengthen just a little and when she ran her tongue across them she realized they felt much sharper. Before she could stop to think about it she opened her mouth and sunk her teeth deep into Fane’s flesh. She heard a groan coming from Fane’s chest and then the low growl she had become accustomed to. Fane wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close. Jacque closed her eyes as she tasted Fane’s blood. She felt something, like her very soul was being knitted into Fane’s. The bond, she thought, the bond was complete.
After a couple of minutes she felt Fane pulling her away, reluctantly she relented. Neither of them spoke for several seconds. Jacque kept her eyes closed as her breathing slowed. When she opened her eyes to look at Fane she saw the blood running down his neck. Just as he had done, she wet one of the towels and gently wiped the blood away. Fane sat there quietly, watching every move she made. Finally Jacque couldn’t handle the silence anymore. “What are you thinking?” she asked him.
“You don’t have to ask, Luna, you could just look.”
“I know, but I want you to tell me. I want you to share your thoughts with me without me invading your privacy,” Jacque explained.
“I am your mate, Jacquelyn. We are bonded. You have every right to invade my mind, but if you want me to talk then that’s what you shall get.” He grinned at her and grabbed her hand to pull her on to the bed next to him. Fane scooted until his back was against the headboard of the bed.
When he reached to pull Jacque up against him she started to resist. “I want to be able to look at you while we talk.”
“In a moment, Luna. First let me hold you. I can feel our bond growing stronger now that we have shared our blood. My blood is in you now and you will always carry my scent. Let me and my wolf hold you and enjoy our scent being all over you.”
Jacque rolled her eyes but acquiesced to his wishes. “Your mom was right when she said you were possessive, overbearing barbarians.”
“I never claimed otherwise, my love,” Fane teased her.
He pulled her close and she rested her head on his chest, her legs tucked up against his side. Jacque felt a rumble in his chest and a smile quirked her lips as she thought about her telling him he purred.
“I do not purr, mate, I rumble.”
Jacque glanced up at Fan., “Your wolf is doing that more and more you know?”
“The bond is strong now. You will feel him and hear him more easily now. He is very smitten with you, you know?” Fane told her. Jacque laid her head back on his chest and enjoyed Fane’s hand rubbing up and down her arm.
“You were supposed to tell me what you are thinking, remember?” Jacque asked.
“I’m thinking about how in awe I am of you, of your ability to take all that has happened since we met and still smile, tease, take me as your husband and mate. You could have turned away from me, running for your life.” Fane paused for a moment and Jacque just waited patiently to see if he would say more. “I’m thinking that I am the luckiest wolf in the world to have found such an amazing mate.”
“Funny that,” Jacque said. “I was thinking the same thing about you.” She felt Fane kiss the top of her head and she snuggled closer.
Jacque held out her left hand and studied the writing on the band. She remembered the words that Fane had said were engraved on it and she felt warmth fill her. “It’s the most precious thing I have ever received, Fane.” Jacque’s voice was filled with awe at the beautiful gift he had given her. She remembered then that he had told his father that the second offering was something he wanted to give her in private. “So where is my second offering, oh wolf of mine?” Jacque asked him in the haughtiest voice she could muster as she sat up and turned to look at him.
“Oh yeah, about that,” he began.
Jacque interrupted him quickly. “Don’t you even try to act like you don’t have something, fur ball.” She slapped his leg playfully.
“Have I ever told you that you are a violent little thing?” Fane asked her as he reached to open the bedside table drawer. He handed her a box wrapped in purple paper with a simple ribbon tied around it. Jacque untied the ribbon and unwrapped the package to find a shoe box. “Um, shoes. Great, thank you,” Jacque said, trying hard to keep the confusion out of her voice, knowing she was failing miserably. Fane’s face was blank. Jacque could read no emotion on it nor could she pick anything up from their bond.
“The shoes represent my ability to provide foot coverings for you and maybe one day our children.” Fane cleared his throat and continued, fumbling along as he went. “You see, it is important that you know that you won’t be without something on your feet, so-”
Jacque held up her hand to stop Fane from going any further. “There are no shoes in this box, are there?”
Fane shook his head once. “Not one.”
As Jacque began to open the box Fane heard her mutter under her breath, “Furry little liar.” He started to say something in response but stopped when he saw Jacque’s face light up as brilliant as the sun breaking through the early morning dew. “Fane! I can’t believe you remembered!” Jacque pulled out the first edition copy of Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstien. She held it so reverently and ran her hand across the cover.
“Open it,” she heard Fane tell her. When she pulled open the cover she could feel the binding bending for the first time, the newness of the book apparent. If it was possible her face got even brighter as she saw the hand written autograph on the cover page.
“This is so freaking awesome,” Jacque told him as she closed the book and flung herself into his arms. Fane was surprised by the motion but caught her easily and held her tight. “Thank you, thank you, thank you,” he heard her whisper.
“If I had known you would react this way to a book, I would have proposed with it instead of a ring,” he teased.
“The book is amazing, no doubt. But that you remembered something so random, yet so important to me means so much to me. You got skills, wolf-man. Serious, mad skills.”
Fane kissed her gently on the lips and then let her pull away from him. She sat flipping through the book and he was content to just watch her. Jacque finally looked up from the book when she felt Fane begin to rub her back. She couldn’t help the big grin that spread across her face. He was hers. She could feel the mate bond growing stronger now that the blood rites had been completed.
“Will it continue to grow stronger?” Jacque asked him.
Fane's brow furrowed as he thought and was quiet for a moment. “From what my father has told me it will be stronger because of the blood rites, but once we consummate our mating it will be its strongest.”
Jacque's eyes widened at his words, and Fane realized how that had sounded. “Jacquelyn, I’m not trying to rush you. I know you said we would make love once we were married but if you aren't ready I will wait for as long as you need. I will never pressure you. Do you believe me?” Fane asked her and desperation coated his voice.
Jacque looked up at him. “I believe you and I love you all the more for your patience. But it's not necessary. I'm ready, Fane. I'm ready to be yours in every possible way.”
Fane sat frozen at her words, then a slow grin stretched across his face. Jacque felt that grin from the bottom of her feet to the tips of her red hair. He stood up and Jacque watched as he began blowing candles out until there were only four left burning, one in each corner of the room. Fane stepped close to Jacque. She tilted her head back to look up at him as the candle light danced shadows across his face. Jacque's breath caught as she saw Fane's eyes glowing wolf blue.
He took her face in his hands and kissed her gently, then whispered to her, “I can't believe you're here, and you're mine.” His body shook with emotion as he stared into her eyes. “I love you, Jacquelyn Lupei. I will love you until my last breath.”
She took a shuddering breath as she felt him untie the robe and slowly push it off her shoulders until it fell in a gentle heap on the floor at her feet.
Fane never took his eyes off hers as he pulled her into his arms. As his lips met hers Jacque trembled at the skin to skin contact. She felt his hands on her back, his fingertips lightly moving over her skin. Fane pulled back and they were both breathing hard as he continued to torture her with his gentle caresses.
Fane chuckled at her thoughts. “It's not meant to be torture, love,” he told her gently. He pulled her closer to the bed and then tilted her chin up with his fingers to look him in the eyes.
“I would make love to you now, Luna.” Fane's eyes continued to glow as he stared intently at her. And as Jacque felt his love pouring through their bond, wrapping around her and filling her up, she knew she was ready, ready to be Fane's mate. Finally.
“Then why are we still talking?” Jacque whispered. He pulled her onto the bed with him and into his arms, arms that would always hold her, always protect her, and always wrap her in love.