Chapter 77 BONUS SCENE 2
Aria’s POV
The "Official" Solstice celebration in the village square was a roar of music, dancing, and communal joy, but Lucian and I had made a pact years ago: the day after the festival belonged only to us. No children, no guards, no ambassadors. Just the mountain, the sun, and the bond.
We had ridden out to the High Meadows, a place so elevated that the air felt thin and sweet, like chilled honey. The grass here was waist-high and dotted with Alpine lupines—shimmering stalks of violet and blue that swayed in a synchronized dance with the wind.
"I think we've gone far enough," Lucian said, his voice dropping into that low, gravelly register that always made the fine hairs on my arms stand up.
I turned my mare, watching him dismount. Even after all these years, the sight of him moving still hit me like a physical blow. He didn't move like an aging man; he moved like a force of nature. His shoulders were broad, his movements economical and powerful. As he reached up to help me down, his hands spanned my waist, his thumbs tracing the line of my ribs through the thin linen of my summer dress.
"The triplets are going to drive Orion mad," I whispered, my breath hitching as he pulled me flush against his chest.
"Orion has lived through three wars and two famines. He can handle three pups for a weekend," Lucian rumbled. He leaned down, his nose skimming the sensitive skin behind my ear. "Stop thinking about the pack, Aria. Stop being the Luna. Just be my mate."
He didn't wait for an answer. He took my hand and led me toward the center of the meadow, where a natural depression in the earth was filled with a thick carpet of moss and soft clover.
The frolicking started as it always did—with a challenge.
I shoved him, a playful burst of strength that caught him off guard, and then I bolted. I didn't shift; I wanted to feel the wind on my skin, the sun on my face. I heard his laughter behind me—a deep, booming sound that echoed off the surrounding cliffs. It was the sound of a man who was finally, completely free.
"You can't outrun a wolf, Aria!" he called out.
"I've been doing it since the day we met, Alpha!" I teased, looking back over my shoulder.
He tackled me gently, his weight pressing me down into the fragrant grass. We rolled, a tangle of limbs and laughter, the scent of crushed clover rising around us. He pinned my wrists above my head, his golden eyes burning with a light that had nothing to do with the sun.
"I caught you," he whispered.
"I let you," I countered, though my heart was hammering against my ribs like a trapped bird.
The playfulness shifted then, the air between us suddenly heavy and electric. Lucian’s gaze dropped to my lips, and the bond flared—a molten, golden tide of desire that swept away everything else.
He kissed me, and it was a slow, deep exploration. It tasted of the wild mint we’d had for breakfast and the heat of the afternoon. His hands, usually so careful, moved with a desperate hunger, tracing the curves he knew by heart yet still explored as if they were new territory.
"Aria," he groaned against my neck, his teeth grazing the mating mark.
It was a claim. A prayer. A promise.
He stripped away my dress, his eyes devouring me in the bright mountain light. There were no shadows here to hide the scars, but in his eyes, I saw only perfection. When he moved over me, his skin was hot, a living furnace that melted the last of my inhibitions.
We made love there, under the infinite blue of the sky, with the lupines as our only witnesses. It was visceral and raw, a celebration of the bodies that had survived so much. Every thrust was a testament to our life; every gasp was a song of victory. There was no shame, only the profound, soul-deep connection of two halves of a whole.
Afterward, we lay tangled together, the sun baking the sweat onto our skin. Lucian pulled a long stalk of grass and ran it lazily along my collarbone.
"I could stay here forever," he murmured. "Just me, you, and the sky."
"The pack would come looking for us," I said, rolling onto my side to face him. I reached out, tracing the silver hair at his temples. "They'd find the Great Alpha napping in the weeds. It would ruin your reputation."
"My reputation is that I am completely under the thumb of my Luna," he joked, catching my hand and kissing the palm. "I think they already know."
We spent the rest of the afternoon in a state of blissful laziness. We swam in a nearby glacial pool, the water so cold it made us scream and cling to each other for warmth. We ate bread and sharp cheese on the bank, feeding each other bits like we were teenagers again.
As the shadows began to lengthen, Lucian pulled me back into his arms, his chin resting on top of my head.
"Aria?"
"Mmm?"
"Thank you."
"For what?"
"For not running away," he said seriously. "For looking at a broken, angry wolf in a cellar and seeing a man worth loving. My life started the day you walked into it. Everything before that was just waiting."
I looked up at him, the man who had been my captor, my protector, my king, and my heart. "We rescued each other, Lucian. That's the best kind of love there is."
The ride back to the Citadel was slow. We held hands between our horses, the bond a warm, humming presence that connected us across the small gap. As the lights of the city came into view, I didn't feel the usual weight of responsibility. I felt recharged.
Because I knew that no matter how many councils I had to lead or how many crises we had to face, I would always have the meadow. I would always have the heat of his skin and the gold of his eyes.
We were the survivors, yes. But more than that, we were the lovers. And as the moon rose to greet us, I knew that our fire would never, ever go out.