You may kiss the bride

Rain.

Seeing my mate in pain is taking a toll on me and my wolf is bent on making me suffer for that. I'm pretty sure you all are wondering why she hasn’t found out that I am her mate. Well, that is because as true royal borns, my brother and I can mask our scents.

This is especially useful to us during war. I told my brother before arriving here at the Blood Moon pack about concealing our scents with the excuse of not inviting troublemakers on our arrival to which he agreed without any doubt. So that is why she has not noticed anything. Which is a good thing considering how I planned for this to turn out. I watched as the family exchanged a grim expression to my last statement, all of them were too stunned to speak. I guess you can say that I am full of surprises because even my brother was stunned.

I never did tell him about moving the wedding date but I know he would not question me as he trusts my judgment over things but I know for a fact, that he still wants answers. So pulling me aside, he questions

“Why did you move the wedding date and is there anything else I need to know? you know I am not a fan of surprises, I like to be well-informed before any event or occasion so that things will not spiral out.” he sighed.

“Sorry for not telling you, and that is all you need to know for now,” I responded in an apologetic tone. I did not mean to dis-center my well-organized brother but this was something unplanned and spontaneous but needed.

Raising my head so I could address his first question loudly for the family to also hear, “I had already addressed my reason for moving the date to today but I will say it again for clearance.” clearing my throat I continued

“My reason was clear and simple. This is more of a business deal than a wedding which you are benefitting more from than I am. So I see no point wasting time to make preparations of any sort, all we need to do is sign some papers and maybe say some vows and we will be on our–”

“At least let’s get her dressed up. Even if this feels like a charade at least let her feel pretty like it is a real wedding she is attending.” Mrs. Lyon says cutting me off my speech, how rude of her and audacious of her to cut off royalty in between his speeches.

I have come to notice that my wife-to-be is quite audacious, no wonder she is also a spitfire I said as I looked at her while I recalled the last part of her mother’s statement.

She was already pretty enough to have my wolf stirring and purring as he had just fed his favorite meal, any more than this would have me proposing to her on the spot, confessing my love and identity to her.

She did not try to meet my eye which shows how angry this whole situation has made her feel so the least I could was to allow her to be with her family as they got her ready for the wedding.

“You have twenty minutes for all preparations you are to make, nothing more than that and remember to keep it simple,” I told them in a calm but serious tone while looking at my wristwatch. Before I could look up, I heard running footsteps up the staircase indicating that they had gone.

“Oh well.”

Returning to my brother’s side, I heard a voice that belong to no one but that old fart.

“I don’t know why you are doing this,” he said in a disbelieving tone like he could not comprehend why this was happening to him. Not wanting to waste much breath on him, I scoffed a reply, looking him dead in the eyes, while waiting on his daughter.

“You know why.”

Thirty minutes passed, and we got her dad to get an officiant to lead the marriage vows while we waited on the bride.

I was slowly getting agitated, I hate when people don’t keep to time. I was just about to call for her when the scent of honeysuckle clung to the air, suffocating yet somehow fitting for the occasion. Every fiber of my being screamed at me to mark her, to forget this plan of mine and claim her. Oh goddess if only this farce of a ceremony was indeed real then I would have no problem doing the aforementioned. But I stood frozen, a puppet master pulling the strings of her misery.

Hela stood at the sidebar, where the officiant, a plump man with a perpetually surprised expression stood waiting for us to be ready. She was radiating a glacial beauty that mirrored the coldness in her eyes. Every stolen glance, every defiant tilt of her chin, fueled a fire within me. A twisted, masochistic pleasure coursed through my veins, knowing I was the architect of this storm brewing behind those emerald orbs.

The guilt gnawed at me, a relentless beast feasting on my conscience. To bind my mate to this gilded cage, to force her hand in this political game, was an act of unparalleled cruelty. Yet, the responsibility that weighed on my shoulders, heavier than any crown, left me with no choice.

The officiant, droned on about the sanctity of marriage, and then he told us to recite our vows, the vows etched into the very fabric of our existence. Hela barely acknowledged him, her gaze fixed on a point far beyond the opulent living room where the ceremony was held, with her mind probably filled with ways in which she would murder me and run to live her life freely. So I had to remind her what was going on.

“Pay attention, darling, the officiant is asking for our vows,” I whisper but the look I got from her was nothing new.

Her defiance, a stark contrast to the demure demeanor of past brides, ignited a flicker of something akin to approval within me. I craved a mate with spirit, not a meek follower. But the approval was swiftly drowned out by a wave of shame. This wasn't a game, a twisted test of her fortitude. This was a life sentence, hers and mine, intertwined in a loveless union dictated by political expediency.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see the officiant throw a few questionable glances in my direction. I get though, none of this probably makes sense to him, carefully he nudges Hela’s side, “Miss Lyon?”

“Oh, yeah, sorry,” Hela mutters apologetically, then looks me directly in the eyes. I swear it is starting to annoy me that they don’t acknowledge her as an Alpha. I squeezed her hands as she took in a deep breath and cleared her throat, “I, Hela Lyon, take you, Eros Rain Vasillos, to be my lawfully wedded husband, to have and hold, to be with all the days of my life, for better or worse, sad or happy days, good health or poor, until death divides us apart.”

I hear her brother cheer for her. He at least has the decency to show his support and happiness for her for getting married, even though it was fake to them.

Throwing a quick glance at my brother, I see him holding up his phone. One thing about my brother is that he will support you no matter the situation. So even though this wedding is a show to him also, he will act be happy for me.

Who knows, we might need the wedding photos and videos later. It's not like we can predict the future. I turn back to my bride to say my vows. “I, Eros Rain Vasillos, take you, Hela Lyon, to be my lawfully wedded wife to have, hold, caress, and make love to, to be with all the days of my life, for better or worse, sad or happy days, good health or

poor, until death divides us apart.”

Audible gasps and a little chuckle filled the after the words of my vows. The look on Hela’s, the officiant’s, and her parent’s faces is sheer horror. I think the chuckle came from her brother who found the words pretty amusing.

Pulling himself together the officiant speaks again, may the goddess accept your vows and grant you consent to a happy married life. Turning to me like he could not stand being in my presence he hurriedly adds: “Your majesty, you may now kiss the bride.

I could feel the heat of anger burning from her emerald orbs as she tries to pry her hands from my grasp, but I’ll be damned if I let an opportunity of kissing my mate pass me by.

I pull her closer to me, putting her hair behind her ears quickly grabbing the side of her head and leaning in until our lips touch. She was unresponsive at first, but as soon as my lips brushed against hers, Hela gave in. I run my tongue along her lower lip, and my wife opens up to me giving me access to her snarky mouth. Words can't explain how blissful it was.

The officiant clearly embarrassed cleared his throat, breaking us off. “Since we are not with the rings, let us move to the paperwork.” I had to calm myself from strangling the plump man for ending my contact with my mate's lips.

We both looked at the officiant, who quickly placed the paper on the table and gestured for us to sign them. I stay behind and wait until she has signed everything, and only then do I leave my signature next to hers. “I now pronounce you husband and wife.” Seeing that he was done here, the officiant packed his belongings and hurriedly left the house.

“Well since the ceremony is over, I would like to say that we will be heading for Greece today,” I say shocking the family and even more her mother.

“You are taking my daughter nowhere, married or not, as her mother, I demand that.”