Once she reached the front of the room, he helped her sit in the chair that had been provided. Maxim knelt and carefully removed Alice’s shoes. He washed her delicate feet with lavender water, drying them gently. “I kneel before you now, willing to wash the dirt from your feet to show you that I will strive to be the servant leader of our home. I give myself to you always—your needs before mine, your wants before mine, your safety and health before mine.” The words rolled off his tongue as easily as if he’d practiced them. They would forever be a mantra for her and for any children they might one day have.
When finished, Alice did the same for him with tender reverence. The intimacy of the moment shook Maxim to his core. That this woman would kneel and care for him so sweetly was a gift beyond measure.
Next, they turned to face one another, hands clasped. Maxim spoke his vows from the heart. Gazing deeply into Alice’s eyes, his heart overflowed. “My radiant Alice, from the moment my wolf felt you, my soul knew it had discovered its missing piece. Even before I knew where you were, my soul cried out and led me to you. You reawakened light and hope when I feared the darkness would consume me.”
“I remember sitting vigil by your bedside, praying you would survive the night. Your strength amazed me. You are so fierce for one so delicate.” Maxim said. “You’ve endured pain no one should bear, yet your spirit remains so gentle and true. I vow here to forever be the shelter you deserve, to nurture the rare joy between us. You are my heart, my home, my very purpose. This I pledge before our pack and the Great Luna: to honor, cherish, and to protect you all my days.”
Tears swimming in her eyes, Alice gripped Maxim’s hands tightly.
“My Maxim, my soul’s missing piece, you found me at my darkest hour and gave me hope again. Your patience and care saved me when I felt too broken to mend.” Alice’s voice trembled. “I remember waking to your presence after so much fear. Feeling for the first time that I was safe, that I was home. Together, I believe we can face any shadow as long as we stand together. You are my rock, my guide, my cherished mate. I pledge here to nurture our bond and the family we will build. To be your faithful companion all our days, in joy or hardship. You hold every hope I have ever dared dream. I give you my heart, eternally yours.”
Overcome with emotion, Maxim pulled Alice into his arms, pressing his lips to hers in a searing kiss, their souls uniting as one.
Finally,Maxim presented his gifts—a necklace of pearls to symbolize the purity of their union and his promise to be hers and hers alone, a gold bracelet representing provision, and a delicate crystal wolf figurine signifying his steadfast protection of her. They were the only things of his mother he had left, and he carried them with him always.
Alice accepted them with glistening eyes. In return, she gave him a simple iron band to wear on his finger. “A symbol of my love and commitment, which will never waver, and, like a circle, is unending.”
At Fane’s prompting, Maxim picked Alice up into his arms, a laugh bubbling out of her. “The rest of the ceremony is for our eyes only,” he whispered against her ear as he carried her from the room, which had now erupted into cheers.
Once they were alone in the privacy of their room, Maxim tenderly set her on her feet next to their bed. He ran his fingers along her face, tracing the cheekbones and down her jaw. “I love you, Alice. I will love you until my dying breath and then even after that.”
He tilted Alice’s head to the side. His wolf rumbled in satisfaction as he leaned down, wrapping an arm around her waist, pulling her tightly to him. He sank fangs gently into her skin, forever marking her as his. Their bond snapped fully into place with a sharp sting in his chest. Maxim knew with bone-deep surety that he held his very future in his arms. United first before the pack and then their Creator, they were one, now and for all time.
“My mate,” he murmured against Alice’s lips, joy and devotion overflowing from him. She clung to him just as tightly, radiant with love and newfound belonging.
Whatever storms lay ahead on their path, Maxim now had his true home. And she was here in his arms. He silently vowed to be the man worthy of her trust and love each day they walked this life together. She was his entire world.
Epilogue
“Never say never. You have no idea what things may happen in life that will lead you to a place you never thought you’d find yourself. An impossible situation standing at the line you thought you’d never cross. Never is a word that shouldn’t exist for a supernatural being with a lifespan of thousands of years.” ~Perizada
Peri eyed the spiteful sprite before her with thinly veiled disgust. Celise’s aura swirled with darkness. Using the forbidden magic of the Nushtonia had corrupted her deeply. Such power came only through sacrificing innocent lives. Nissa had managed to hunt Celise down while Peri had been helping the Romania pack with their hunt of the hybrids, a problem which still wasn’t completely handled.
“You know we cannot allow you to keep using deadly magic freely,” Peri said sharply. “Your own hatred has twisted you.”
Celise let out a chilling laugh. “My hatred comes from a just cause, high one. Or have you forgotten your hand in my sisters’ deaths?”
Peri flinched almost imperceptibly. The loss of all those from the Arizona compound still haunted her, though events had spiraled beyond her control. Perhaps she did bear some guilt in fate’s cruel twist. But sympathy only went so far. Celise had strayed too far into the shadows to walk in the light again. The wickedness of the Nushtonia had claimed her utterly.
Still, when Celise offered the book’s forbidden knowledge toward solving the mystery of their past, Peri hesitated. Those gaps tormented her, kept her off balance. What secrets remained buried?
Sensing her conflict, Nissa touched her arm. “We have not fallen so far as to tread with darkness,” she said gently. “Our answers will come another way.”
Peri watched Celise’s aura as it swirled in darkness. “That wicked book must be destroyed,” Peri pinched the bridge of her nose. “Its power comes through sacrificing innocent lives. I cannot allow you to keep using it freely.”
Celise’s lovely face twisted in a snarling rage. “You hypocrite! After the deaths you caused? I will keep the book and make you pay!” She began chanting in a harsh, unfamiliar tongue. The air crackled with a gathering power that set Peri’s teeth on edge.
Cursing, Peri unleashed her own magic in a concussive burst meant to contain the venomous sprite. But Celise merely laughed again, a mad, sinister sound.
“You are weak! But I have power now—the power to avenge my sisters!” Her form wavered, turning insubstantial as she prepared to flash away. Something that shouldn’t be possible.
“No!” Peri shouted, lunging forward. But her hands passed right through Celise as the maddened sprite and her twisted tome disappeared completely. Peri could not stop her in time.
She slammed a fist into the ground in frustration. Celise was loose with the Nushtonia, more dangerous than ever in her instability. Peri had failed. She was so damn tired of failing, of coming up just short of where she needed to be.
Nissa touched her shoulder gently. “We will find her again. All is not lost.” Her calm eyes helped settle Peri’s raging emotions.
Taking a deep breath, Peri rose with a fresh resolve. Celise would not evade justice forever. And when they met again, Peri would not let the sprite slip through her fingers so easily.
