by Julia Mills
Immediately upset with himself for not asking, Brannoc turned until he and Annie were facing one another and spoke directly into her mind, “I am such a clod. I can’t believe I didn’t ask how you were. I am so sorry.” He rushed on, “Are you suffering any ill-effects from the wizards’ spell? How is your heat? Are you okay?”
Standing up on her tiptoes, she gave him a chaste kiss as she answered, “I’m fine. Almost watching my mate get pummeled to death put my heat on hold, at least for the moment, and as far as the spell, as soon as it was gone I was fine.” She gave him another quick kiss. “Just worried about you.”
“No need…”
A swat to his arm stopped his answer and had Brannoc looking over his shoulder as Lenn teased, “Stop the kissy face crap and the mind speak. We all know you’re in love,” he drew out the last word and rolled his eyes.
“It’s absolutely...”
“Nauseating,” Pearce and Tabby said in unison, making the whole group erupt into laughter.
Looking back to his mate, Brannoc grinned, “Looks like those two have a lot in common.”
“Don’t play Cupid, my love.”
“But it’s almost Valentine’s Day.”
Laughing out loud, Annie didn’t respond but instead asked everyone, “Are y’all hungry. I know I could eat a cow.”
“Me, too,” was heard from everyone in attendance and then Niamh piped up, “How about a pig? I might have had one put in a pit yesterday for just such an occasion.”
“Thank the Goddess,” Annie smiled then grabbing Jackson as he turned to leave, she ordered, “Oh no you don’t, you’re not getting away that easy.”
“Thanks, but I need…”
“You need to shut up and come with us.” Tara appeared on the male bear’s opposite side. “I just heard from Micah and everything at the village is okay. Everyone is still in shock. They can’t believe Noah involved the wizards. He’s got them all sitting around the fire talking about what happened and besides, you need to take care of you before you can take care of them.”
“Thanks,” he looked at each and every person and nodded. “Can I ask a favor?”
“Anything,” Brannoc quickly answered.
“Will y’all come to the funeral rite. I know it’s a lot to ask, but I would really like it if you were there.” Then looking Brannoc in the eye, he added, “And you and your friends, too, please. We’re family now, or soon will be. I want us all to lay the past to rest and start anew.”
Patting the bear’s shoulder along with his three brethren, the dragon immediately answered, “Absolutely.”
Hours later, after eating almost an entire pig and stopping his brethren from telling Annie every embarrassing story about him that they knew, Brannoc held his mate’s hand and whispered, “Can we take a walk?”
“Sure,” she responded, before furrowing her brow and asking, “What are you up to?”
Shrugging his shoulders, the Guardsman replied, “Nothing, just want a few minutes alone with you.”
Leaving the party behind, the couple walked hand-in-hand in silence until they reached the wooden dock Tabby had shown him the day she’d trained him in the lake. Leading Annie to the railing that overlooked the water where the reflection of the full moon high in the sky created the perfect backdrop, Brannoc got down on one knee and pulled a blue velvet pouch from his pocket.
Looking up at a smiling Annie, the Guardsman couldn’t help but smile too. Not only was his mate beautiful and sexy and absolutely irresistible, but she was also strong, independent, intelligent, and…perfect.
Placing the bag in her hand, Brannoc said the words he had been holding in his heart since the day he’d carried her from the cells of the O’Baoills’ facility. “Annie O’Bairne, you are the love of my life, the woman of my dreams, and the best person I know. I was born to love you. From the moment I laid eyes on you, I knew there would never be a second you wouldn’t be on my mind and in my heart, a minute I wouldn’t want you by my side, an hour that I wouldn’t need to taste your lips, or a day I could go without telling you I love you. You are the best part of me. You see the real me and love me anyway. For these reasons and millions of others I will spend a lifetime telling you about, will you be my mate, together forever, forever in love?”
He heard the answer in her mind a second before she sighed, “Yes, oh my Goddess, yes.”
Tipping the velvet pouch over in her hand, Brannoc took the ring that had been his mother’s from her palm, slid the five carat oval-shaped topaz rimmed with diamonds and set in platinum on her ring finger, and explained, “My father gave this ring to my mother the night of their mating ceremony and he gave it to me after she’d gone on to the Heavens. He told me the story of the day he picked it out and how he knew the moment he saw it that his mate had to have it. I have felt the same way since he gave it to me.”
He had to clear his throat to get control of the emotions threatening to overcome him before continuing, “Not only is blue topaz the color of the scales of my dragon but the stone itself reminds me of the wind in my wings, the sky that I soar across, and the water the first dragon called home all those many millennia ago. It is also a symbol of the love and affection that grows stronger within me every time our hearts beat as one. Wear this always and know that I love you with all that I am.”
“Oh, Brannoc, I love you so much.” Annie sighed as their lips met and the Guardsman confirmed with his kiss the plans for their very long, very happy future.
Chapter Ten
“What do you mean we can’t see each other for the next twenty-four hours?” Annie squawked at her grandmother’s response to the couple’s question about having the official Golden Bear mating ceremony as soon as possible.
“You know that is the way of our kind. Why are you acting like you have never heard these words before?” Annie could see the twinkle in Niamh’s eye and was sure her grandmother was holding back a smile, but her next words were unyielding. “You will stay here with us in the caves. We will meditate and prepare you for the ceremony while Jackson,” the Matriarch looked at the leader of the male bears, who nodded solemnly, “will be staying in the cabin with Brannoc and his kin to give them instruction.”
“But the Period of Preparedness is for younger bears who have not…not…” Annie stopped what she was about to say, looking at her mate for help and then wanting to scream as he shrugged and shook his head.
“Have not what, my child?” Her grandmother was definitely holding back a smile this time and as for the rest of her family, their shoulders were bouncing and their eyes wide as they tried to hold back their laughter.
“Oh, dammit all, you know what I mean.” She stamped her foot and slammed her fists to her hips. “This is not right, Grandma, just not right.”
The room erupted into laughter as Niamh chuckled. “It is right and it’s the way it is going to be. Your heat is under control. The Fight for Dominance has been completed. There is no need to stray from tradition now.”
Crossing her hands on her chest and letting out a long-suffering sigh, Annie mumbled, “Tradition sucks.”
“I heard that,” Niamh raised a single eyebrow before speaking to the whole group. “Let’s let the couple say goodnight. Ladies back to my grotto, gentlemen to the cabin.”
Waiting until the room had cleared, Annie turned around to Brannoc and pouted, “You could’ve tried to help me.”
Putting his arms around her waist, he pulled her close and kissed her forehead before grinning. “And then your grandmother would’ve been mad at both of us.”
Rolling her eyes, Annie grumped, “I’ll remember that when you want something.”
“Oh, will you now?” Her dragon waggled his eyebrows, lowered his lips to hers and kissed her until all thoughts of family and waiting were replaced with their love and passion for one another.
The next morning came way too soon after spending a night of drinking and going over the mating ceremony with her family. Annie crawled out of bed, jump
ed into the shower, and after two strong cups of coffee, followed the sounds of laughter to her mother’s grotto and found her family involved in making her dress and the flowers for her mating ceremony.
“Hey there, sleepy head,” Tara greeted her with a big smile, followed by salutations from the rest of the crew.
“Hi,” she gave a wave, grabbed her third cup of coffee, and sat at the end of the table hugging her mug. “Looks like y’all have been busy. What’s left to do?”
They all shook their heads as Tabby answered, “Nothing but your meditation.”
“I think Grandma’s gotta book for you or something,” Leanne added with a grin and a wink that made Annie wish she’d just stayed in bed.
“Indeed, I do.” Niamh pulled a small, old, leather-bound book from under the mound of material in front of her and held it in the air.
Slowly standing, Annie made her way to the opposite end of the table, took the book from grandmother’s outstretched hand, and waited as Niamh instructed, “Now, go to the Elder’s Chambers, light the flame, and study the ancient text.” She leveled her gaze and added, “I know you think you know everything of our customs and traditions, but I think you may find a few surprises in that book.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Annie sighed, knowing when not to argue with her grandmother.
Hours later, the bear’s eyes were drooping, her butt was asleep, and she wanted nothing more than a nap before her mating ceremony and the feast that was to follow. Shifting on her blanket for the hundredth time, Annie shook herself awake and turned the page to the last chapter of the book her grandmother had insisted she read.
It began like all the others but soon took on a much different tone that spoke directly to the soon-to-be matriarch. “When the time has come that the Matriarch of the Golden Bear Sloth and the Keeper of the Magic of the Ancients is the same person, the time of the Dawning will be upon the descendants of the Mother Ursa. This woman, who shall change the face of the great Bear Nation, will meet her mate at a time of great distress. She will find the lost part of her soul in one who does not have fur and paws but scales and wings. Together, the Matriarch and her winged warrior will change the course of the great Bear Nation and return unity to our kind.”
As if on command, the flame before her burst to life and she saw the memory of Brannoc rescuing her from the hell she’d suffered at the hands of the horrid hunters. From this perspective, she could see the true depth of kindness in his eyes, the way he took special care to move quickly while not jarring her fragile body or causing her any more pain, always thinking of her. She saw him standing off to the side after the dragon healers had begun triage, watching and worrying, making sure she was okay before going to help the others who had suffered a similar fate.
Just as quickly as it had flashed to life, the memory was gone and another image appeared; not a recollection but a look into the future. Annie smiled as she saw children playing on a hillside. Strong little boys with wavy brown hair and dark eyes full of mischief chasing little girls with pony tails and bright green eyes who squealed in happiness. It was not a random prediction but a look into the life she and Brannoc would share.
Slowly, the picture faded away and the flame returned to a slow roar just as Aimee and Lorna burst into the chamber and in unison smiled. “Come on, crazy girl. It’s time for you to get mated.”
Annie had barely crossed the threshold of her grandmother’s grotto before being ordered into a chair and having the makeover of her life. Each of her family members brushed and braided, plucked and tweezed, did her eyes, her cheeks, and her lips, all while telling stories about the way she used to beat up the little boys at school, how she punched her first boyfriend in the nose for trying to kiss her in the parking lot, and how she had refused to take a date to the Sadie Hawkins Dance. They laughed and reminisced for over an hour until Tabitha pronounced her gorgeous with one last sweep of a huge makeup brush across the apple of her cheeks.
Looking in the mirror, Annie almost didn’t recognize herself. They had piled her long, thick hair atop her head in a messy bun held in place by tiny braids of her own hair and adorned with baby’s breath and small blue blooms from Niamh’s Empire Blue Butterfly Bush. They had left a few curly tendrils framing her face; giving her a look of romance and mystery. The makeup her sisters and cousins had applied was light and tasteful with her eyes lined in kohl, her lashes long and dark, and her lips glistening with light pink gloss.
Holding back the tears for fear of messing up all their hard work, Annie looked at them all standing behind her waiting for her reaction and couldn’t help but smile. “Thank y’all so very much! You guys are just the best.”
Nodding and clicking her teeth, trying to act cool, Tabby sighed. “Yeah, we’re pretty awesome, aren’t we?” Before busting out laughing and making the rest laugh along.
“You look beautiful.” Tara kissed Annie on the cheek. “Now, let’s get you into your gown and down to the garden. I know a dragon who’s been waiting for hours for his mate.”
Standing up and taking off her robe, Annie stood still with her arms over her head as ordered by her mother as her sisters lowered her cream-colored silk gown down her body. Letting her arms down and shaking with anticipation as they buttoned what felt like fifty tiny pearl buttons that went up her spine from her waist to the bottom of her shoulder blades, Annie tried to breathe. The corseted bodice was a perfect fit and as she spun and looked at herself in the mirror, the bear had no doubt her mate would appreciate the way it and the sweetheart neckline accentuated her ample bosom.
It was absolutely a work of art. Her family had outdone themselves by not only designing but also making her dress in less than twenty-four hours. They had thought of every detail, from the pearl-adorned spaghetti straps that caressed her shoulders to the mixture of intricately embroidered miniature golden brown bear paws and light blue dragon flames that decorated the skirt, which flowed from the light blue silk ribbon around her waist all the way to her dark red painted toes.
“This gown is just gorgeous, you guys. How am I ever going to repay you?” Annie gleamed.
“By helping make ours,” her sisters and cousins answered in unison.
“Absolutely,” she smiled. “Absolutely.”
“All right, you motley crew,” Niamh called with a clap of her hands. “Time to get this bear to her dragon.”
Her grandmother was the first to leave the cave, followed by her mother, her Aunt Maeve, then Aimee, Lorna, and Leanne, and finally Tabitha, who turned, winked, and chuckled. “You look beautiful and despite all my complaining, I really like Brannoc. You guys make a great couple.”
“Thanks, Tabs,” Annie struggled not to cry as she smiled and watched her sister walk out of the cave.
Finally, the music changed from just the smooth strumming of the guitars to the tune of the ancient mating song. Stepping out into the moonlight, Annie was awestruck by the hundreds of candles lining each side of the path leading down the mountain. Carefully maneuvering the carpet-covered trail, the bear followed the candlelight to the base of the mountain, through the patch of trees to the right, and stopping where Jackson was waiting at the tree line.
Looking down, the leader of the male bears gave a quiet whistle and waggled his eyebrows, “You look ah-mazing. Brannoc is one lucky dragon.”
Feeling the blush on her cheeks, Annie chuckled and swatted his arm. “Thanks.”
“Oh,” he exclaimed, before pulling a bouquet of white roses accented with blue-tipped Glory of the Snow lilies and wrapped at the stems with a light blue satin ribbon out from behind his back and handed them to her. “I had strict orders to deliver these to you along with this.”
Taking the small ivory envelope from his fingers, Annie pulled out the note card and smiled as she read, Together forever…forever in love. Always, Brann. Taking a deep breath as Jackson asked, “You ready to get this show on the road?” Annie nodded. “I am and thank you so much for giving me away, Jackson. I know this can’t be ea
sy for you.”
Giving her a sad smile, the male bear nodded. “I’ve made my peace with my actions. Now, it’s time to celebrate the future of not only our sloth, but you and your mate. I have to admit, I like him.” He snickered. “Even though he is a dragon.”
The sound of Niamh’s voice brought silence to the Garden of Peace. “Welcome to this place of peace and blessings. Please stand as Annalissa and Brannoc make their way to the altar.”
Stepping onto the white carpet, Annie once again could not believe her eyes. The garden was alight with every size, shape, and description of white candle and where there wasn’t a candle, there was a glass vase of white roses and blue-tipped Glory of the Snow lilies resembling her bouquet. Looking to the side, she saw her dragon’s brethren all smiling and winking in her direction. She had seen how close they were in her time at the dragons’ lair and couldn’t wait to be a true part of their comradery.
Walking toward her grandmother and Brannoc, the gaze of her mate captured the bear and in that moment, absolutely nothing else mattered. Reaching the altar, Jackson placed her free hand in Brannoc’s and after handing Tabitha her bouquet, Annie turned and winked at her mate before they both looked to her grandmother. Niamh was beaming with love and pride as she began the service.
“Long ago, people believed the human soul shared characteristics with all things celestial. Because of that, Mother Ursa blessed our ancestors with the task of keeping safe the soul of the Golden Bear. Through this great gift, we became not only one with our beast, but also with nature and the Universe.”
“We adopted the virtues to the East, South, West, and North, the cardinal and divine four corners of our world.”