Page 154 of The Vampire's Bride

The wolves howl and slam their massive forms against the barrier, desperate to save me. But they don’t understand. I’m not afraid for myself. I’m protecting my husband.

Valaric groans, his wings curling around us as he pulls me to the ground. His powerful body covers mine, his eyes glowing a deep red as he stares down at me.

“Valaric,” I whisper, wrapping my arms around him to pull him closer. “I trust you. I love you.”

As his fangs pierce my flesh his growl is low and animalistic even as his arms cradle my form as if I’m something precious. He holds me like a lover, his body trembling against mine, his fangs buried in my neck but gentle, almost tender.

I know, even now, that he would never hurt me.

His wings tighten around us, blocking out the world, the cold, and the danger. There is only him. Only us.

But then, just as suddenly as it began, he pulls away. His head snaps up. The feral look leaves his eyes only to be replaced by sheer horror as they go to my neck, where his fangs pierced my skin. Blood trickles from the two puncture wounds.

“What have I done?” His voice is hoarse, broken.

I kneel in front of him. “It’s all right. We’re fine.”

His eyes search mine, full of guilt. “I could’ve killed you.”

“Never.” I cup his face with both hands. “You would never do that.”

He lowers his head in defeat. “I can scent your fear,” he says, trying to pull away, but I won’t let him go.

“Of course, I’m afraid. I thought you were dying.”

His monstrous form shudders under my hands and his head snaps back to mine, his expression morphing into something akin to disbelief. Hope flickers in the depths of those twin pools of darkness as he blinks up at me. “You are not scared?”

“No.” I stare at him unflinchingly. “You are my husband, and I love you.”

Shock ripples across terrifying features, the raw, unguarded look of a man unprepared for such absolution. “But I am a monster.”

“So you have warned me. Many times before.” I take his hand, careful of his sharp talons. Turning it over, I press a tender kiss to his palm. “Your outer appearance may be altered,but inside, you are still you,” I whisper as I thread my fingers through his. “And I am still me. I love you, Valaric. Nothing will change that.”

He draws in a shaking breath. “I thought I would lose you once you saw.”

“I’m still hurt that you kept so much from me,” I admit, and his eyes grow dim. “But I understand now why you did.” I trace my fingers over the sharp line of his cheekbone. “I bound myself to you in a temple of the old gods on the night we first met… the evening that you saved my life. And I accepted you as my husband.”

He clenches his jaw. “You did not have a choice. The bargain had already been made.”

“You’re wrong.” I touch his face again because I want him to know that his appearance does not matter to me. I fell in love with his heart and his soul. “I chose you then, and I choose you still.”

A wave of love and warmth ripples across the bond as he stares at me in awe-filled reverence.

He drops his forehead to mine and I cup his cheek. “You are mine, and I am yours.”

Valaric closes his eyes and leans into my palm. My breath catches as his face begins to change again, returning to its previous appearance. I look down at our joined hands, watching in wonder as his talons shrink back into short, black claws.

“I don’t understand. How is this happening?”

“You’ve broken the curse, Juliet.” A handsome smile spreads across his face, and he lifts me into his arms, and spins me around. “My beautiful, wonderful wife.” He captures my mouth in a searing kiss.

The warded barrier begins to dissipate. Valaric pulls back, his expression a strange mixture of disbelief and wonder. “You accessed my blood magic through our bond. But how?”

“I don’t know,” I reply. “I just knew I wanted to protect you. And when I reached for the bond, it’s as if… I suddenly just knew how.”

Eben and Cole walk over to us. Cole claps him on the shoulder. “Glad to have you back, Val.”

“Thank the gods,” Eben adds. He embraces Valaric like a brother. “I was afraid we lost you.”

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