“Nothing’s been easy about my journey back to you,” I reminded, meeting his smile, having no doubt my dragon would do just fine. “This is probably going to be the easiest and without doubt the best part of it.” I winked at him. “That is, until we make it back to our cottage.”
Before he could utter another word, and eager to finally be dragons together, I leapt off the balcony and shifted, not frightened in the least and with good reason. Already comfortable in my serpentine body, spreading my wings and swooping out over the forest, then the ocean beyond was effortless, if not one of the most exhilarating experiences of my life.
And it only got better when his massive black dragon with sky blue eyes sailed up alongside me and our gazes connected for the first time in this form, confirming what we already knew.
We were and always had been fated mates.
There was no need to say a word as we climbed into the sky and flew among the snowflakes and clouds, enjoying the feel of the frigid wind over our bodies and the thrashing of Mother Nature at her most glorious. The wind was at our back as if eager to usher us home, and so it did as we raced alongside each other, relishing the feel of the flight. The untouchable sensation of finally, atlonglast, flying alongside our fated mate until we landed in front of our little cottage and sat together as dragons, taking in everything from the sea to each other, before he wrapped me in his wings.
That’s when I truly,finally, came home in the best way possible.
First to the embrace of his beautiful beast, then to his human half, as wings turned to arms, our lips finally found each other’s, and I was once again airborne as we lost ourselves in oneanother. I couldn’t say when we made it to our bed amid our passion, only that we did.
After that, our lovemaking took on a whole new dimension. Sometimes we came together with a fierce gentleness, and at other times voraciously, as our limbs twisted and our need for each other became more and more desperate. Endless. Every thrust and tongue-tangling kiss was full of soft moans and ragged groans, only driving us closer together and would until the end of our days.
“I willnae,cannae, ever get enough of this,” he murmured hoarsely in my ear when I ended up straddling him and he sat up, wrapping me in his arms, still buried deep inside me. He inhaled the scent of my sweat-slicked skin before cupping my cheek, brushing his lips across mine, and gazing into my eyes. “Nor will I ever want to.”
Feeling the same, I kissed him again and again, all the while moving my hips slowly, increasing our pleasure. The delicious friction. Our building, rabid need before we moved faster, and lost ourselves all over again until I cried out, trembling from head to toe, locking him deep inside me, and we sailed over the edge together.
There was no way to know how long we held each other like that, our groans mingling as he filled me with his liquid heat, basking in the pleasure we brought one another, only that it led to more and more pleasure as the evening wore on and we made love countless times. Made love and without a doubt, created life, because his dragon wouldn't have it any other way now I was free of Dugal.
In fact, we made love so intensely, losing ourselves all over again, that we almost missed our wedding day had a knock on our door not stirred us awake.
“Don’t answer it,” I mumbled drowsily into the crook of his neck, drawing in his scent because I couldn’t get enough of it,still lost in the oasis in which we’d been immersed all night. “Just stay here and they’ll go away.”
“Aye,” he agreed, of the same mind. Yet when he pulled me closer, another, more insistent knock came, and then another.
“Och,” he muttered. “I best answer it or they willnae go away.”
Even though I muttered, “No,” and tried to stop him, he wrapped a plaid around his waist and went to the door, giving me just enough time to wrap our fur around me before he opened it.
“Well, it's about time,” Aspen exclaimed, round-eyed, from where she stood alongside my sisters, including Lilias. She peeked around Tavish and offered me a little grin and a wave hello, no doubt noting my overly tousled hair. “Any chance you wanna get married sometime today because the cavalry is all here?”
“Bloodyhell,” Tavish exclaimed, looking over Aspen's shoulder. “She isnae kidding, lass. They are indeed all here.”
Curious, I wrapped the fur more securely around me and padded to the door only to find his brother, cousins, and my father sitting around a small fire outside sharing a dram of whisky. All raised their cups to us and grinned.
“Whilst I would say good morn to you two,” Broderick said, “’tis nearly sunset and your elm still waits to oversee yer marriage, so what say you?” He looked back and forth between us. “Are you ready to become husband and wife at long last?”
“Heck, yes.” I grinned at the lot of them and shook my head, wondering about the finer details. “But I have nothing to wear.”
“Aye, but ye do if ‘tis something ye would like to wear,” Chara said softly, as she, Storm, and little Marjorie appeared alongside my sisters carrying the wedding dress I was supposed to wear in my past life. She looked from Tavish to me. “If ye would liketo...if ye feel ‘tis right, we thought ye might like to wear this today.” She shook her head. “If not, I’ve other dresses with me.”
I blinked back tears as I fingered the dress, remembering how much love I had put into each and every stitch. All the hopes and dreams I’d had for our future together. How Tavish would look at me when I finally wore it. The look in his eyes when we became each other’s always.
“I would very much like to wear this,” I said softly. Yet there was more to this than just my wishes, so I looked at Tavish and told him what it was. That it was Elowyn’s wedding dress because he liked this shade so much on her...on me. “But only if you think it’s appropriate. Only if you think—”
“Aye,” he said, cutting me off, his heart in his eyes as he looked at me, then the dress, his gaze lingering on it for a moment before returning to my face. “I would verra much like that, too, if ‘twill not be too difficult for you. Verra much, indeed.”
“Not at all,” I assured him, eager to finally have the moment stolen from us in my last life, wearing the dress I’d made for our special day.
Wasting no more time, the men ushered Tavish along so he could dress for our wedding. Meanwhile, I got ready with my sisters and Storm, because she was every bit a sister at heart, while Chara and Marjorie made their way back to prepare the castle.
As they helped me get ready, it felt like the six of us had always been together. As if the centuries in between hadn’t separated us. Instead, as we chatted and it became clear Lilias truly was one of us, and we were all interconnected, I felt the love that had always existed between us. The unbreakable bond of sisterhood and bright futures ahead for us and our children.
“I wish I could have been there when you reunited with our father,” I said to Aspen, Hazel, and Willow at one point. “Howdid it go now all the bad stuff is behind us?” I shook my head and looked from them to Storm, seeing how well they got along, as if they hadn't just met mere days ago in the Morrow. “Because it clearly went well. Especially with Storm.”
“Of course, with Storm,” Willow admonished, smiling at Storm. “How could it not? She’s been with us for years, quietly steering us into the arms of our heroes, a best friend to all of us in her own unique way.”
