Page 95 of So I Won a Werelion

“I don’t know…let me think about it.” The crowd went absolutely apeshit and the monitor came back on, focused on Wendy’s bare shoulder.

The one with my mark.

“Yes. Gabe, if you’re down for forever, I will be your plus one.”

“You’re not my plus one, you’re my only one.” I walked over to the other side of the stage and took her in my arms. Damn did she look gorgeous in a purple dress with a slit all the way up her thigh. She melted against me. “My everything.”

“Thank you for being patient with me,” she whispered.

I brushed my lips against her cheek and whispered in her ear, “You’ve always been the one.”

The crowd was cheering so loudly they’d never have any idea why Wendy drew away from me, brow furrowed. I kissed the confusion away, giving the audience exactly what they wanted.

“Stay tuned for the announcement of Wendy and Gabe’s mating ceremony!” Bibi said. “We still have a few surprises in store for you. In the meantime, I need to get these two off the stage because we have a ceremony to plan.”

Wendy pulled me aside as soon as we made it backstage. “What did you mean? You always have been the one? Am I reading too much into this or did you find something new about the Hudaknocker?”

“I leave all research to you. But since I’ve claimed you, the visions have gotten more intense.”

She quirked a perfectly groomed brow. “Is there a reason you waited until now to tell me about them?”

“It might be hard to hear.”

She bit her bottom lip and nodded.

I motioned for Lars to come over. “I want the big guy to listen in, and he can tell me if I’m full of shit or not.”

He nodded. “Let’s see what you got.”

“Have you seen anything different since we were together the other night?” I asked.

Wendy squeezed my hands. “My mark feels like it’s on fire right now.”

Bibi happened to walk down the stairs at that moment, and her mouth formed an O. “Don’t tell me there’s trouble in paradise after the two of you were absolutely adorable on that stage. I’m already thinking about selling merchandise with ‘you’re my plus one’ on it onThe Mating Gamesite.”

“This shouldn’t get in the way of your merchandising plans.” I chuckled and then took a deep breath. “As I was saying, you’ve been in all my visions. Until the other night, they all ended right before I claimed you, like that was all I was allowed to see until I lioned up and made you mine.”

“Oooh, I like that too. Lion up,” Bibi said. “Don’t worry, you’ll get a cut.”

“Ever since I claimed you, it’s opened a whole new world of visions. I see us—”

“At that village when it’s thriving? Like everyday life?” Wendy finished the sentence for me. “There were no prides or packs. Everyone lived together because we all needed each other?”

“Yeah. No shit. You’re seeing it too?” That made it even more real.

“I hadn’t seen any of it until I wore your mark, either.”

I nodded. I glanced at Lars, waiting for him to refute anything, but he didn’t.

“Claiming you angered the shifter king.” That was the part I thought would upset her. “You had been brought to us as a prisoner.”

“You were supposed to be sacrificed,” Lars added. “Things would be a lot different today if we’d gone through with the original plan.”

Wendy’s mouth dropped and she grabbed my hands. “You saved my life, didn’t you?”

“I knew you were my mate, and I thought claiming you would be enough to make things right. That he’d drop the charges against you. But it wasn’t. The shifter king—”

“Chased me out of the village and made it so I could never come back.”She closed her eyes and shook her head like she was trying to make the vision go away.

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