Page 114 of The Mentor
It was mid-September and my favorite season had fallen upon us. The beautiful symphony of yellow, red, purple, and green colors of the forest made the surroundings perfect for a small, intimate wedding.
The twenty children stood in a half circle around us with Finn, Shelly, Marco, and Magni, who had been there at the tournament yesterday and insisted that he wouldn’t want to miss the wedding.
“I told you, didn’t I?” Magni had told me when he found out Kya and I had fallen in love. “A good spanking arouses women; I’m sure that’s what did the trick.”
Pearl stood next to Christina and Boulder, and they all looked so happy for us.
I wanted to smile and enjoy the moment, but every nerve ending on my body was on alert, expecting Kya to back out at any second now.
Despite the chill of the morning, I could feel sweat running down my spine and my palms were getting clammy.
If Kya refused me now, I didn’t know what I would do.
“We are gathered here today to marry this man and this woman,” Khan said and looked more regal than ever.
My eyes were locked on Kya, observing her much as I would observe a skittish deer. Any moment now, she would run. I just knew it.
“Do you, Archer Rex, take Kya Janae as your wife?”
“I do!” I said loud and clear.
“And do you, Kya Janae, take Archer Rex as your husband?”
Kya cleared her throat and my heart rate jumped to two hundred. This was it, she was going to say no.
“Yes, I do,” she said hoarsely and I closed my eyes in relief.
Opening and closing my fists to release some of the tension that had built in my body, I visibly blew out a deep breath and heard laughter from our audience.
“Then I now declare you man and wife.” Khan’s deep voice sounded like the sweetest music when he spoke those eight words.
Pulling Kya close, I forgot about the children and didn’t hold back when I kissed my beautiful bride.
Our audience was cheering, and soon we were surrounded by well-wishers pulling us apart to congratulate us.
Kya
“Now don’t get any funny ideas and run back to the Motherlands,” Magni told me. “A wife is supposed to support her husband and be with him – not go chasing after some idiotic dream in another country.”
“I’m sure Laura will be back soon,” I said and opened my arms to hug him.
Magni took a step back with deep frown lines on his forehead. “Are you trying to get me killed?” His eyes flew to Archer, who stood surrounded by a group of the boys. “I can’t touch you without your husband’s permission.”
“You used to be my protector; I’m sure Archer knows he can trust you.”
Magni still held up a hand to keep me away. “Nah, I think it’s better if we keep this platonic.”
“I would say a hug still qualifies as a platonic relationship.”
“Yeah, well, I wouldn’t feel right about it,” he said and kept his distance.
“Archer,” I called to my new husband. “Does Magni have your permission to give me a hug?”
Archer narrowed his eyes at Magni before he broke into a grin. “How the tables have turned, my friend.”
“Very funny, but I already told Kya that it’s better if we don’t hug. I don’t share the Motlander fetish for touching.”
Archer’s grin told me he didn’t feel threatened, and I had no more patience for their territorial games. “Just give me that hug already,” I said and flung my arms around Magni.
