Page 194 of The Fallen Fae King

“I am Empress Freya, of the House of Fang, Thorn, and Sin,” she says, “and I freely give myself to the Emperor of Draca.”

Shocked gasps rush around the Basilica.

My Wolf Queen just declared herself to already be Daire and Lanlin’s bride, as much as she is mine.

Fuck.

I quell the guests, however, with a look.

“Well said, love,” Daire murmurs.

My heart beats faster.

She didn’t say Aurelius.

Did she just marry me or Hadrian? Or both of us?

Lucius gives me a concerned look, before passing me the second crown. My hands are shaking when I lower the crown onto Daire’s head.

He hesitates just long enough that I don’t know whether he is going to say the vow.

Why does that hurt?

War nudges him roughly with her foot. “The words, fae, are⁠—”

“I am Emperor Daire, of the House of Thorn and Sin,” Daire says, firmly, “and I freely give myself to my bloody beautiful Empress and her Emperor.”

I blink.

How does the fae always manage to end up as the one who is in the dominant position, even when he’s kneeling at my feet?

Freya chuckles. “Well said.”

Lucius is grinning and purring. “Then in the name of the Shadow Gods, may everyone rise and toast your new⁠—"

“What is this?” Decima breaks the spellbound hush that has fallen on the Basilica, leaping to her feet. “I can’t allow this farce to go on. How dare you marry these creatures before my own noble daughter? Where is Liviana? These whorish consorts shouldn’t have arrived until after she had married you and become Empress. You have got the ceremony out of order now. You will bring down the wrath of the Shadow Gods by your sacrilegious perversions.”

I seethe with rage. “Will I?”

I hold out my hands to my new Emperor and Empress. They finally let go of each other to take my hand, and I rise from my throne, helping them to their feet.

When Freya and Daire stand on the apse under spearing sunlight, we may as well be going into battle together, and there is no one else I want at my side for the rest of my life.

I gesture to Wraith, who has been leaning on a column, watching with a serene expression.

She slinks out of the shadows behind Decima. “My spies hear that your daughter has run away.”

Shocked whispers race through the room.

Abandoning the Emperor on his wedding day is treason.

Decima is ruined.

She will need to leave the Shadow Court herself.

After what Decima has publicly called my mates, however, as well as how she tried to force me into bonding, it’s not enough.

Decima shakes her head, while her eyes widen in panic. “Lies. I demand that my daughter is searched for. Someone has kidnapped her, murdered her, or your foul consorts have⁠—”