Page 43 of Betrothed

“Follow my steps,” Fawn instructed him.

She stepped back. He followed eagerly. She stepped to the side, and he followed that, too. Soon, they were walking in a circle around the rocky mountain path. No, not walking—gliding. There was a rhythm to it, an ease which Zax had been missing for all of his long existence. It made him wonder what else his mortal wife could introduce him to, things he did not even know existed until she fell into his life.

“I like dancing,” Zax announced.

“Good,” Fawn said. Her cheeks darkened under her lovely freckles, and she could not look at him directly as she led him around another joyous circle. “There are other dances—communal dances—where everyone links arms or dances in circles together, and runs under each other’s stretched hands. But this type of dancing is my favorite. Here, duck under my arm and turn in a circle.”

She stretched their joined arms out. Zax puzzled at what she meant, but ducked obligingly under her arm, bending mightily to do so. His unbroken horn skimmed her elbow, but otherwise he made it.

“Just like that,” Fawn said, her eyes gleaming as if he had just done something magnificent. “Now do me.”

Zax held out his arm. Fawn twirled underneath it, and Zax understood what he was meant to have done. There was such grace in her twirl, her dress flaring out in a way that made Zax want to spin her until she got dizzy. It was the delight in the movement, he thought. That, and the way she fell into him afterwards, hugging him hard before leading him back into the dancing.

“Did you learn this in your village?” Zax asked as they spun together in another circle, faster this time.

“All the young girls learn how to dance,” Fawn replied with a grin. “The boys, too. We made such a fuss of it at that age. But most of that was the communal dances. The first time I danced like this was at my wedding.”

More angry sadness crossed her face. She pressed closer to him, rubbing absentmindedly at his scarred back. Did she find them comforting, the same way he found her freckles comforting? Zax hoped so.

“It was the first time I had been so close to a man,” Fawn continued. “I thought…”

“What?”

Fawn shook her head, her face twisting wryly. “I let myself believe it would be like I dreamed. My dreams weren’t as wide as they are now, but still. They were better than what I got.”

Zax had to stop himself from tightening his grip. He wanted to love Fawn so dearly that it washed away the sadness of her past. One day, he vowed, she would be able to talk of it without those emotions playing over her expression. Her past would feel like a story that happened to someone else. Then again, after so many mortal lifetimes, it would. Once she was properly bound to him with his brother’s magic, they had so much time to fill. Maybe one day, centuries from now, she would not even remember her old husband’s face, let alone the way he made her feel.

“I will give you all you dream and more,” he promised fiercely. “And I will polish my own claws, always!”

He said the last thing partly to make Fawn laugh. And she did, a little. But it was a distracted laugh as she stared into his face, her expression dreamy and unreadable. She lay her head on his chest, and Zax tucked her against his body, feeling completely at peace. Which was not the best thing to feel when they were being actively pursued by a group of hunters, but Zax could hear none of them about, so he allowed it.

“We should have a wedding,” Fawn said softly, her breath hot against his chest. “Did your brothers tell you about those?”

“I have been to many,” Zax said proudly. “Wick has a wedding with his Briar every few decades. Last time, we ended up in the suffering void and had to fight our way out. Briar killed a demon king with a bomb she made out of things from her pockets. She is very resourceful.”

Fawn blinked. She did not seem to know what to say to that.

“I will tell Briar not to cause any trouble,” Zax added. “She is very nice. And she always fixes things in the end.”

“I think meeting my sisters-in-law will be interesting,” Fawn said. “What are Skullstalker weddings like?”

“It depends,” Zax said. “Slate and Ruby have theirs privately. Wick and Briar usually invite people, especially after they met me. Oh, I have not told you about Vale. He is new to me and only met his wife recently. I do not know if they had a wedding.”

“But what happens at these weddings? Is there food, dancing, speeches?”

“There is food,” Zax agreed. “And drinking. And kissing. And much talking. Sometimes they mentioned dancing, but then usually something would happen, and we would go on another adventure.”

“So many adventures,” Fawn said. “The life of a Skullstalker’s wife sounds exciting.”

“I think that is just Briar,” Zax admitted. “Ruby and Slate live quietly in their void, and I do not know how Vale and his wife live. What would you like—adventure or quiet?”

Fawn hummed, considering. She looked so beautiful under the starlight that Zax had to stop himself from kissing her before she could answer.

“Both,” she said, sounding surprised. “I would like to have adventures and then come home afterward for quiet.”

“That sounds perfect,” Zax said, though he would have said that no matter how she had answered. Either life sounded wonderful if he got to do it with Fawn at his side.

Fawn smiled. She brought their dancing to a stop and leaned up to kiss him. Then her eyes widened, and she yelped, stumbling back.