Page 68 of Secret Twins for the Orc

“Wait,” I say, stopping her with a squeeze against her arm before I turn and stride towards Rowan, and scoop him up.

When I come to stand before her again, Ella’s grin stretches. “We’re ready.”

“Yes, yes.” Ismelda puts on an air of exasperation, but she’s smiling as much as the rest of us. “You may kiss the bride.”

And with both our arms full, Ella and I step together and kiss, and the crowd cheers.

My body fills with warmth, and my heart tug, tug, tugs in the way that tells me it’s syncing with Ella’s beat. I’ve never felt so full, so brimming with love, and a surge of emotion completely overtakes me as I lean further down and wrap my free arm around my woman, with our two children between us. I close my eyes and prolong the kiss, simply because I can.

The warmth within me surges and an odd, pleasant tingle trickles down my spine.

Then Ella gasps, “Rhokar,” and pulls back, and I hear the crowd begin to murmur. “Look!”

I open my eyes, and blink. Strangely, there’s a warm golden glow surrounding us, slowly brightening as it expands from its center where our bodies meet—mine and Ella’s and the two children we hold pressed against us.

“What the?” I begin, but Ismelda gently shushes me, a look of wonder in her eyes.

“Watch,” she says reverently, and the crowd goes quiet.

Suddenly, with a woosh that sounds like a thousand whispers in a thousand languages, the light shoots up from between us in a bright golden beam, before bursting like a fountain at the tip and spreading. But instead of raining over us like a golden shower, the strands keep moving, searching, whirling through the air and shooting towards every tree in the grove to connect us in hundreds of golden threads. I feel them pulsing, and I see Ella press a hand over her breast.

“It’s beating in time with our hearts,” she whispers.

Then the light shoots away from us, absorbed into the trees and down to the earth, and for a moment I can see the intricate network of roots below us, glowing gold and spreading out over the town, before finally fading.

There’s a long, stunned silence.

Then a loud, Russian voice bellows, “THIS I DID NOT EXPECT.”

Another murmur starts up through the gathering, surprised and mystified, and I turn to see Oskarr, the troll who cooks at Silver Spoon, leaning down as his werewolf boss whispers something agitatedly in his ear. Presumably, telling him not to shout at wedding ceremonies.

A buzz of wings has me turning back around as Ismelda’s niece touches down beside us, her lilac dress fluttering and her brows pulled in concern.

“Uh, is this something we need to worry about?” she asks Ismelda, wringing her hands and sending us furtive glances.

“No, dearie,” Ismelda replies, which frankly I’m glad to hear, because I wasn’t sure what to be thinking myself. “It’s a good thing. A blessing from the Fates.”

“Oh.” Nib’s uncertainty drops, and then she smiles. “Really?”

Beside me Ella shifts, leaning into my shoulder, and I wrap my arm tighter around her. “It definitely felt like a blessing.”

“Aww,” Nib cries, clasping her hands together under her chin as she rises back into the air. “This is the cutest wedding ever! I’ll go explain it to everyone and get them to disperse towards the tables. Auntie Isme?”

“I’ll organize the witnesses for the signatures. I’ll meet you two by the table in a minute with the marriage certificates.”

“I guess we don’t need to walk back down the aisle,” Ella says, as we watch everyone trail off. “Bit anticlimactic after all that!”

“Shame,” I mutter, leaning down to brush my lips over her forehead. “I was going to throw you over my shoulder and everything.”

“Barbarian!” Ella gasps, ginning, as she smacks at my chest. “Rowan, smack daddy! He’s being naughty!”

Rowan’s already huge eyes widen further, and he shakes his head, before gently patting my cheek. “Daddy,” he mumbles quietly, with another little pat, pat.

It’s the first time he’s called me that, and my heart swells in my chest as I meet Ella’s surprised, happy blue gaze. But then Rylah immediately squeals in delight and begins to smack at my chest with both hands, and I laugh and grab her in one hand, throwing her over my shoulder and holding her wriggling, giggling body firmly, as I turn to walk down the now empty aisle.

“At least I got one of my girls down the aisle like this,” I say, shooting a mischievous look over my shoulder at the most beautiful woman I’ve ever laid eyes on. My future. “Are you coming, love?”

“Yes, sir!” Ella lifts her gown and comes to walk beside me down the aisle, the four of us striding together towards our future.

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