I step forward until I almost touch the pyre. I conjure a fire spiral and let it fly high into the sky. It shines down on us together with the pale winter sun.
“I, Wynter, the daughter of Beira and the new Winter Queen, will light the pyre and release my mother so magic may take her home.”
I lower the fire spiral and make it wider so it surrounds the pyre. This is the moment. Be strong, Wyn. You can do this.
I close my eyes for a moment and let the fire touch the pyre. I can’t bear to look. I lift my head and open my eyes again, watching as the first smoke begins to drift up and form a beautiful pattern on the clear sky.
I raise my voice again and recite the ancient blessing.
May the road rise to meet you;
May the wind be always at your back;
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
May the snow fall softly upon your lands.
Until we meet again,
May you find rest and peace in your eternal slumber.
Tears run down my face by the time I finish. The pyre is burning brightly now and I can barely make up my mother’s body. This really is the end.
Around me, people start to sing the same blessing I just recited, their voices lifting to the heavens. My heart aches at the sound and the beauty of the emotion expressed by it.
My mother may be gone, but her spirit lives on in everyone who’s standing on this hill with me. I step back and immediately, my Guardians surround me, hugging me from all sides. They hold me in their arms until the fire has died out and nothing remains but ashes.
I teleport us back into my chambers. Tamara leaves us after giving me both a hug and a knowing smile. I sit down on my bed and take off my crown, using some magic to deposit it on the sideboard. Another swirl of magic removes my black dress, leaving me in just my underwear.
“You did well,” Storm says, his eyes gentle and full of emotion. I’m still getting used to being able to see their faces again. I forgot how beautiful they all are, each in their own way. “She’d be proud of you.”
I smile. “I know. It doesn’t make it any easier though.”
“How can we make it better?” Crispin asks and sits down by my side. He wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me close. My naked skin rubs against his clothes in an annoying way. I make them all naked. Now we’re equal.
“Give us some warning next time?” Arc grumbles but then he laughs. “I much prefer it like that. Trousers chafe.”
“It was your decision not to wear your kilt,” Frost chuckles. “I know how much you like to feel the wind down there.”
Arc grins. “I like to feel other things there too.”
I beckon him to come closer, but he looks a little unsure.
“Are ye sure?”
“I think sex at funerals is an Earth tradition, but I’m the Queen and I can do what I like. And right now, I want to be with my Guardians. Now, let me feel you.”
He nods and steps forward until his knees touch mine. I take his cock into my hands as if it’s the most precious thing. Well, it is. All of them are precious. Not because of their manly bits, but because of their souls, their hearts.
I rub him gently while Crispin takes off my bra.
“I love your boobs,” he mutters and lowers his mouth to them, sucking on one nipple. Frost climbs onto the bed behind me and runs his lips along the nape of my neck, pressing rows upon rows of kisses on my skin. I shiver at his touch.
Storm is still standing a few feet away from us, watching with a smile. I lock eyes with him as Frost slips a hand under my panties and begins to draw his fingers over my bud in small circles, making me gasp softly with each touch. These men will be the death of me.
I’m still looking at Storm, not able to take my eyes away from his passionate gaze that’s full of fire and promises. The other three are worshipping my body while I’m still rubbing Arc’s cock, eliciting groans from him that make me only want to increase my pace. I want to make them all feel good, just like they’re making me feel amazing.
We’re made for each other, four Guardians and their Goddess. Once, I thought I didn’t deserve them, but now I know that we deserve each other. We all have our strengths and weaknesses, and we fit together like a perfect puzzle, increasing strengths and making up for weaknesses. We’re one.
The bond flares up at that thought and sparks dance before my eyes. No, they’re not just in my mind, they’re real. Silver sparkles are filling the room and we all stop and stare. They swirl around like a gentle snow storm, then slowly begin to form a circle around us. As if by magic, Storm is pushed towards the rest of us and the sparkles swirl faster, encompassing us.
Something nudges my mind, a memory of my mother’s. Wow.
“Guys?” I ask and they all turn to me, their faces illuminated by the light of the silver particles. “You’ll have to say two words for this to work.”
They all look at me cluelessly.
I smile. “The bond has decided that we’re ready. It’s… ehm… a marriage ceremony. Except that we have magic conduct it.”
Their expressions mirror my own surprise and shock.
“So… it wants us to say the words. The two words that will make it real.”
Crispin’s eyes widen, then he smiles. “I do.”
A group of sparkles branch of from the main circle and surround his head like a halo.
“I do,” Storm and Frost say at the same time, like the brothers they are. The magic marks them as ready just like it did to Crispin.
Arc is the last one. He looks me in the eyes and takes my hands in his.
“I do.”
The sparkles around us turn a bright gold and become so fast that they’re blurring into lines.
Only one thing left to do.
I take a deep breath and let my magic caress all four of them. These words are so simple, yet they’re the most important words I’ll ever say. And I’ll never, ever regret them.
“I do.”
And that’s how I make them mine. My men, my Royal consorts.
My Guardians.
~ The End ~
This truly is the end of Wyn’s story, but there are so many more tales to tell!
Ada and her husbands are soon getting their own book to explain all the adventures these four Guardians and the dragon prisoner went on. It’s already available to pre-order: Guardian’s Dragon. Read on for an exclusive sample!
If you enjoyed this book, please consider leaving a review!
Author’s Note
In July 2017, I published my very first book, Call of Winter, the first part of the Winter Princess serial. I was a new author, nobody had ever heard of me, and I was only just starting to be active on social media. Not the best starting conditions, but for some reason, people bought the book. Lots of you amazing readers took a chance and started reading Wyn’s story.
Overnight, I was suddenly a bestselling author with readers from all over the world who wrote reviews, sent me messages, demanded more. Some even volunteered to help out with my Facebook group and others started beta reading for me. It was all a bit overwhelming, and yet terribly exciting at the same time. I was working for a university back then and spent all my evenings and weekends writing - goodbye social life. I’d been wondering whether it was going to be worth it, but having even just one happy reader totally made it worthwhile.
Since then, I have written many books, not just about Wyn, but about bear shifters, kelpies, Mars colonists and even a cult. I don’t like to stick to one genre and style, there are far too many stories to tell for that. The Daughter of Winter series is currently being made into audio books and it might even be translated into German soon.
Last month, I became a full-time author. I moved to the sea and now have an office with the most amazing view. Above my desk, I have a whiteboard where I track my current projects, but there’s also a Winter Princess magnet on there, always reminding me how it all started.
And now, one year after it all started, I
finished my first ever series, with both a laughing and a crying eye. It’s been quite the journey and it’s strange to say goodbye to Wyn and her guys. I won’t fully leave their world though, there are a few books planned that will be loosely connected through their setting and side characters. Ada, for example, is getting her own book, and so is Pippa, Thor’s adopted daughter.
Why am I writing all this? To say thank you. I never thought I’d ever get to this point. Being a full-time author was something big and important people managed to do, but not nobodies like me.
Well, now I’m here and while it still doesn’t quite feel real, I am incredibly thankful to everyone who’s joined me on my journey.
You, the readers, who bought my books and motivated me to write more.
The Flock, three amazing authors who have become my best friends, co-authors and so much more.
My beta readers and my street team who make sure every book is as good as it can be. Sorry for not always giving you as much time as I would like to.
My PA, Rachel, who keeps me down to earth (I promise I’ll try to do less micromanaging in the future!).
My friends, online and offline, who’ve put up with my craziness for years.
My fellow authors, who have let me into their community and taught me so much.
And of course my family, who turned me into a bookworm and always make sure that I stay realistic in my ambitions and plans ;)
Now I better stop before tears ruin my keyboard. To many more magical journeys into my imagination!
Also By
The Drowning Series (Dystopian RH)
Polar Destiny
Polar Fates
Polar Miracle (2018)
Seven Wardens (Paranormal RH co-written with Laura Greenwood)
From the Deeps
Into the Mists
Beneath the Earth
Within the Flames
The Mars Diaries (Sci-fi RH)
Alone
Hidden
Found
Ruined Heart Series (Fantasy RH)
Heart of Time
Heart of Four (2018)
Anthologies
Kiss my Corset – Corsets and Cogs (steampunk RH)
Broken Princess – Royal and Reckless (contemporary RH)
Hell’s Calling – Realms and Rebels (Paranormal RH co-written with Bea Paige)
Highland Butterflies - United in Love (FF romance)
About the Author
Skye MacKinnon is an International Bestselling author with a slight obsession with bunnies, dried mango and Scotland. And when she says slight... her friends are trying to find ways to trick her into not having a book set in Scotland.
Whether it's set in space (Scottish space, obviously), fantasy worlds (Scottish fantasy worlds, obviously), or Scotland, Skye's tales are full of magic, romance and adventure. Oh, and unicorns. There's a few demons, too.
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Sample: Guardian’s Dragon
Alastair never wanted to kill the Winter Princess, but he had no choice. Now he is getting ready to spend the rest of his life in a prison cell...
Ada and her three husbands have just been promoted to the Queen's Guard, but there is no time to celebrate. The Realm is in uproar and she needs to interrogate the dragon shifter assassin. But he's deranged and no matter what she does, all he keeps saying is that Ada is his mate - just the mutterings of a madman or could he be right?
When a new threat appears on the horizon, Guardians and dragons have to come together to fight - and Alastair, Ada and her husbands might just be the key to that new union.
Prologue
She didn’t come with an army. She didn’t rain fire and fury down on our lands. There were no warning bells ringing from the towers. No soldiers defending us. We were easy prey.
She took the entire Realm without a single drop of blood beings spilled.
Dragons, the mightiest race of them all, defeated by our biggest weakness. The love for our Queen.
Now we’re slaves to her, the Goddess of Shadows. Her personal army of mindless drones.
I wish I could say I was strong enough to withstand her influence, but I’m not. No one is. Which is why I’m about to kill the Winter Princess.
I’m sorry.
Pre-order your copy of Guardian’s Dragon now.
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