Chapter 46 The Ceremony
Alpha King Rhett POV
The temple went quiet the moment I took her hand.
It was almost like the stone itself leaned in to listen.
Rhea walked beside me, with her fingers threaded through mine. I could feel her pulse wild and bright against my skin. Fire lived under her bones now. I felt it. Kaen felt it too, pacing slow and proud in the back of my mind.
"We are so lucky," Kaen rumbled. "She is perfection."
“I know,” I murmured under my breath.
"Breathe Rhett. Loosen up a little."
I loosened my grip, just a little. She glanced up at me and smiled, small and real, and something in my chest eased.
We approached the altar together. The Lunar Mother’s stone was pale and worn smooth by centuries of vows and blood and devotion. Above us, the open oculus framed the moon. It was nearly full now, and watching us like an ancient eye.
The priest stepped forward, with his face hidden beneath white linen, and his hands bare and steady.
“You come freely,” he said.
“I do,” I answered.
Rhea squeezed my fingers. “I do.”
No crowns. No thrones. Just choice.
The priest handed us a braided cord. It was silver and white and faintly violet where her magic touched it. We wrapped it around our hands ourselves, slow and deliberate, knotting it in the old way. Not binding. Joining.
Kaen bowed his head inside me.
"True mate," he said, and his voice was thick. "Chosen. Not taken."
We spoke our vows without prompting.
“I choose you,” I said, looking only at her. “In fire and shadow. In peace and war. I will stand between you and the world.”
Rhea swallowed, and her hazel eyes were shining brightly. “I choose you. Not because I have to. Because I want to. I’ll burn with you or burn everything for you, but I won’t walk alone.”
The cup was brought forward. It was warm, and made of moonstone.
I drank first, and the liquid grounded me, ancient and familiar. She drank next, and the air shifted immediately. Magic rolled through the chamber, and soft gasps echoed from the wolves.
I cupped her face without thinking, and my thumbs brushed warm skin that hummed beneath my touch. Her hands slid into my hair, not desperate, not claiming, just there, steady and sure, like she was anchoring herself to me.
“Rhett,” she whispered, not a plea, not a question. My name sounded different on her mouth. Chosen.
“I’m here,” I murmured back. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Our foreheads touched first, and our breath mingled, the space between us was charged and trembling. I felt Kaen still completely, like the entire pack was holding its breath with us.
Then I kissed her. Not rushed. Not hungry. Not territorial. I kissed her like a vow.
Her lips were warm and soft, fitting mine like they had always known where they belonged. The kiss deepened slowly, and her sigh brushed against my mouth as she leaned into me fully. I felt her open to me in that quiet, terrifying way that meant trust. Love.
Something in my chest cracked open.
The world answered.
Moonlight poured down through the oculus, silver and blinding, striking us full on, right as her fingers tightened at the nape of my neck. Magic surged through the kiss itself, racing along our joined breath, and our joined hearts.
She gasped against my lips as heat bloomed between us. Purple fire erupted around her in a halo, answering the love instead of consuming it. The flame wrapped us together, lifting us from the stone as if the temple itself had acknowledged what we’d chosen.
I felt the mark sear at my neck, sharp and perfect, and knew without looking that she bore its twin.
When we finally broke apart, hovering in that silver light, her eyes were bright with wonder and laughter and something fierce and unbreakable.
“This,” she breathed, smiling like the world had finally made sense, “is exactly where I belong.”
And for the first time in my life, I knew it too.
\~~~~~~~~~
Rhea POV
We floated back to the stone in a haze of new love. I was full of it, and my heart felt like it might burst.
My feet touched down first, then Rhett’s, and the silver light faded slowly as the magic settled into my bones. The temple erupted.
Wolves clapped and howled. They pounded their chests, and their voices echoed off the stone.
“LUNA!” “LUNA!” “LUNA!”
The sound wrapped around me, fierce and joyful and a little terrifying. I laughed breathlessly, and my heart raced with all four rhythms singing in my chest.
I looked up and saw them.
Korr stood near the edge of the altar circle with his arms crossed, and his fire barely contained beneath his skin. His bronze eyes scanned me like he was counting breaths, and confirming I still existed. Nox lingered a few steps back, and still had his hands folded loosely. His expression was unreadable but intent. Concern sat on him differently. Almost quieter, and sharper.
Both of them waited. Did not push. Did not intrude.
Rhett’s laughter broke through the noise, warm and victorious. Before I could say a word, he scooped me up, ceremony robes and all, cradling me against his chest like I weighed nothing.
The wolves went feral.
“No one approaches our tent,” he announced, and his voice carried without effort. “The king needs to claim his queen.”
The response was deafening. Whistles. Howls. Someone shouted something deeply inappropriate that made me snort. As Rhett turned toward the exit, I caught Korr’s gaze. Then Nox’s.
“You’re welcome to stay,” I called, still laughing. “Find a tent. Don’t burn anything down.”
Nox inclined his head slightly, amused. Korr gave a short nod, but his jaw was clenched tight, as always.
Rhett leaned closer, lips brushing my ear. “Five gold says they’re prowling around our tent when we’re finished.”
I scoffed softly. “You think they’ll wait until we’re finished?”
He laughed, low and wicked. The night air hit us as we stepped outside. It was cool and electric. Fires crackled. The moon hung heavy and full overhead, watching.
A thrill ran through me, sharp and dangerous. The awareness of those two kings nearby sent heat spiraling through my belly. The idea flashed through my mind, unwanted and very much wanted all at once.
I purred. Rhett stopped mid-step.
He looked down at me, with his brows drawn. “Do you want them with us?”
My cheeks burned. “No. I mean, not tonight. Tonight is about us. Our bond.”
He studied my face like he was measuring truth, then dipped his head to nip my ear, and a possessive growl rumbled in his chest. “We sealed our bond already, my Luna. If you want them, they can come.”
The restraint in his voice hurt more than any jealousy would have.
I touched his face, softening. “Just us tonight, my love.”
The way he preened should have been illegal. He walked faster.
The tent barely stood a chance. The moment he ducked inside, he dropped me onto the furs and reached for the fastenings of my ceremonial gown. Silver fabric tore softly under his hands, pooling away to bare skin.
His breath hitched.
“Fuck,” he muttered reverently.
I watched him strip, piece by piece, and the moonlight carved him into something unreal. Solid, scarred, sexy as fuck, and Mine.
I slid to my knees and crawled to the edge of the bed, slowly, and deliberately. My fingers traced the old marks along his thighs, his hips, and his stomach, every story written into him. I followed with my mouth, tasting him, and running my tongue along his rough skin.
He groaned, and his head fell back.
I smiled against his skin, my voice low and certain.
“I love the taste of you.”
Rhett’s hands were on me before the last word left my mouth, and his rough palms slid over my bare skin as he tore the last scraps of the ceremonial gown away. I let him. For the first time, I did not fight for control. I did not tease or push back. I simply surrendered, sinking to my knees on the thick furs, and looked up at him with open trust.
The change in me hit him like a physical blow. His pupils flared, and his chest rose sharply. A low growl rumbled out of him, it was almost feral.
"You’re giving it to me," he rasped, and his voice was thick. "All of it."
I nodded, soft and certain. "Yes."
That single word broke him.
He hauled me up, spun me around, and bent me over the edge of the bed. His palm cracked across my ass, sharp and perfect. I gasped, arching into it. Another spank landed, harder. The flesh jiggled under his hand, and he groaned deep in his throat, watching the ripple.
"Look at that," he muttered, with his voice ragged. "This gorgeous ass bouncing for me. Fuck."
He spanked me again and again, alternating cheeks until they burned hot and pink. Each impact sent heat straight to my core. I moaned openly, pushing back, begging without words.
Rhett dropped to his knees behind me. His hands spread me wide, and his thumbs parted my cheeks. Then his mouth was on me, hot and hungry. His tongue dragges through my soaked folds in one long lick. He groaned against my pussy, and the vibration made me shudder.
"You taste so fucking good," he growled, burying his face deeper. His tongue plunged inside me, and he fucked me with it before moving up to circle my clit. He sucked hard, and relentless, his teeth grazing just enough to make me cry out.
I came fast and hard. My thighs were shaking, and I squirted right onto his face. He drank it down greedily, licking me through every pulse, and his hands gripped my hips to hold me steady.
When he stood, his cock was slick with my release. He lined up and slammed into me from behind in one brutal thrust. I screamed his name, and my fingers clawed at the furs.
He fucked me like a man possessed, with his hips snapping, and his balls slapping my clit with every drive. "Take it all Luna," he snarled. "Take every inch of your Alpha."
I came again almost immediately, and my walls clenched around him in waves. He did not slow down, pounding me through it, chasing his own release. My third orgasm hit just as he buried himself deep and unloaded. Hot pulses flooded me, filling me until it leaked down my thighs.
"Thank you, Daddy," I panted, and my voice was wrecked.
His cock twitched inside me, hardening again almost instantly. I turned, laid on my back, and slid my hand between my legs, rubbing slow circles over my swollen clit. Cum leaked out of me with every touch.
"Fuck me like this, Daddy?" I whispered, holding his gaze. "Look me in the eyes while you fuck me."
Rhett lost it completely.
He fell over me, sliding back inside in one smooth stroke. His eyes never left mine as he started thrusting, deep and steady at first, then faster and harder. The intimacy of it, the raw connection, undid us both. He fucked me stupid. His pace was relentless, and he hit every single perfect spot until I was babbling, coming again and again, and had tears of pleasure streaking my temples.
When he finally pulled out, he stroked himself twice and came all over my tits, in thick ropes that painted my skin, and dripped down my curves.
I lay there spent, covered in his cum, with my chest heaving, a vision of complete surrender.
Rhett stood at the foot of the bed, admiring me with dark, possessive eyes.
"You can come in, you know," he called loudly, his voice carrying through the tent walls.
"I smell you both."