Her Forever
(Book 3)- Chapter 24

Orion’s POV

I didn’t want to leave her. Every day she grew more and more beautiful in my eyes, her confidence in herself was growing and her trust and me was not far behind. She was opening her heart bit by bit and I was going to make sure she saw how much I loved her and wanted to take care of her tonight.

With my day filled with nonsense of meetings, social gatherings and plan to overthrow the court with several trusted parliament members. On top of it all I needed to woo my mate. Sadie wasn’t kidding when she told me not too long ago that I would have my work cut out for me. Willa is a stubborn little human but precious and worth it all.

Today, I gave her a cape that matched my attire. Even though she may not realize it, it is a fae tradition to dress alike when courting to symbolize our proposed mating intentions if one mate is reluctant. Outside of the fae kingdom, many may thing of a delayed mating would be a recipe for disaster, but in actuality is shows strength and the seriousness of a bond.

I was reluctant letting Willa go out into the marketplace, however with my personal guards plus two boisterous fairies I’m sure she would be fine. No one would know who she is and be none the wiser. I also had a willing sprite that took a liking to Willa the night she ran from me, Leah. She agreed to be my little spy to watch Willa as she traveled through the marketplace and report back to me quickly if there was a need be.

“Your highness!” I rolled my eyes internally. “I’m glad your back, I’m sure your trip to the Moon Kingdom was fruitful?” Onyx, the Court speaker, as well as father of Sibille strolled up to the throne. He has been hassling me for decades for me to marry his daughter and I have never swayed in my decision.

“Yes, Onyx it was. The Faes and the Shifters are now at peace for at least 500 or so years,” I said facetiously. I popped a grape in my mouth, only to keep my mouth shut about his w***e of a daughter.

“Good, good, now that is settled, why don’t we talk about you finding a queen? It has been too many years of you being a lone and my own daughter is holding out for you. The perfect match you both would be!” He smiled brightly. “In fact, the Court even approves it! It’s match made in paradise!” I continued to munch of my grapes absent mindedly.

“Thank you for the concern, but I’ll hold out for my mate. If you will excuse me but there are other people in line wanting to speak with me.” Annan snorted back a laugh as Onyx gave a leery eye.

“You can’t be single forever you know,” I raised my eyebrow at the hellion.

“There is a law by your 820th birthday if the king has not found a mate that he would marry one of his court member’s daughters,” he smiled radiantly. The dark fairy thinks he has the upper hand on me, doesn’t he?

“Thank you, Onyx, that will be all,” I waved my hand for the guards to step in if needed but he bowed graciously with a smirk on his lips.

“The man doesn’t give up, does he?” Annan spoke aloud.

“That he doesn’t. Luckily for me my birthday isn’t for another two years and I don’t think my mate will wait that long.” I popped another grape in my mouth and savored the taste.

Several other court members brought me their problems, issues, proposals as well as some of the subjects of the kingdom arrived for help of their own. I paid more courtesy to them than to the court and tried to help direct them the best I could. There was a lull in between the next appointment when Leah tinkled silently in my ear. “Your highness,” her sweet bells rang in my ear. I slightly grunted or her to continue while she was on my shoulder, not to bring attention to us.

“Willa has found the orphanage; it looks like the funds you have been sending have not been going to the children. She promised Nana, the head of the home she would be sure to take care of them only to be insulted. They called her a meaningless concubine and she didn’t reject the name calling.” My hands tightened around my chair. Annan put his hand on my shoulder in warning.

“Anything else, Leah?” I whispered.

“Sibille was there, she might be the one intercepting the monies and taxing them on top of it. She was very degrading of her highness.” I snarl left my lips. “They are heading back to the palace now, your highness.” I nodded my head and she flew out the near by window.

That damn woman, Sibille is going to be hard to get rid of. I can’t hold her in the dungeons once we take over. She will either be banned from the city or death itself will rein on her. No one will talk to the future Queen in that manner.

I’ve only got to keep her secret a little while longer. If word gets out now, it would be over. Assassins would storm the castle to try and kill her. If we were mated, no one would dare touch her because to touch her would be to kill me and the next in line of the throne would ascend and there really would be a war outbreak. Thousands would die in the process and my plan has the least amount of fatalities. Protect the queen, protect the kingdom. My brothers are not as sympathetic as I am, even though I act tough to the court. They trained with the warriors in Sadie’s pack, they can be brutal when they want to be, but they were not fit to run a kingdom.

Speak of the demoness herself, Sebille saunters up to the throne. She does an obnoxious curtsey. She starts blabbing nonsense about Willa, she must have gotten under her skin if she came right away after seeing her at the orphanage. Half listening, half daydreaming of feeling Willa’s skin on my fingertips, she asks a question that irks me.

“Is she your concubine?” was the general question. She had danced around with her words and now she wants me to come out and say what Willa means to me. I had to protect her but saying these words alone made my own heart ache because she was far from it.

“Yes, she is my concubine, a woman to warm my bed and let me say this she gives me more pleasure than you ever did. I keep her so I can keep you out of my damn hair!” The words hurt my heart, the pounding in my chest as I spoke it, I knew it was all lies. I have to protect her. Just a little longer.

“I see, just a tumbleweed in the wind,” she said cunningly.

Walking away, anger flared in my eyes. How dare that woman. She will be he first to go.

“Your Highness, we have a problem,” Fionn walked up behind the throne. “What is it? Where is Willa?” I stood up, causing the entire room to go silent. Fionn leaned in and whispered in my ear. “She came to see you, to tell you something important but she heard your conversation with Sibille.”

A deep grow that reverberated in my chest and echoed into the room. I felt my fangs starting to grow, but I shook my head and felt my nostrils flair. “Where is she?” I whispered.

“I’m sorry, she ran. I don’t know where she went! Please have mercy!” Fionn got on one knee and lowered his head. The crowd saw my distress as I looked around the room. I looked at Annan for support and he quickly stepped up. “This will conclude our meetings for the day. His Highness has other matters to attend to. Please leave any important documents by the door with the servants. Thank you.”

Annan was still talking as I heard his voice fade away. My steps were heavier than normal as I untied my cape and it fell to the floor. “Where would she go? Where did she go today?” Fionn continued to run beside me as I unbuckled my cuff links to roll them up my sleeve.

“We went to the market and the orphanage. She was too upset after what happened at the orphanage to do anything else. Brenden and Eamon are out scouting those areas.” We continued walking to the East side of the palace while Molly and Eudora flew up beside us.

“Your Highness,” Eudora bowed while still hovering in the air. “Where is she,” my voice was deep and not a hint of playfulness resignation in it. Eudora shuddered and bowed again. “I’m sorry, I have looked in your chambers as well as the dining room and library and she is not there.”

Changing my direction, we headed to the stables. She couldn’t have gotten far in the amount of time this all transpired. To know where she would go, a land she is unfamiliar with and unsure of would be the challenge. Walking up to my shining white horse, “Asland, I need you to concentrate.” Asland perked up his ears. The one-time Willa rode with me, should be enough for Asland to pick up on her smell just a bit. “Find my mate, Asland. A bushel of apples and oats will be in your stall waiting if we find her by sundown.” Asland grunted in approval as I mounted my steed bareback. I adjusted my sword and dagger. No time to saddle, we were going to find her.

Willa’s POV

I ran until I couldn’t run anymore. The trees started to diffuse and the houses became far between. Running until I finally hit the East coast. The past two mornings I had watched the suns rise above the water giving a beautiful purple, blue and pink glow. Many times, you could see dolphins and fish jumping through the waves but right now the waves were gone. It was peaceful, somewhere I could rest my weary mind.

The whirlwind I had been put through and the emotions that I have felt made the ocean even more inviting. There were dark rocks that adorned some areas that looked dry and fairly flat like its own pier into the ocean. I stepped on a few stones, slipping a few times since my slipper like shoes were not meant for the terrain. I hopped over several pools that stood still in the crevasses until I reached the end of the natural pier. It was flat, bits of sand still dusted over the rocks, but it was fairly flat.

Taking off my cloak, I laid it down on the rock and my body with it. The run felt good, the pain was stronger in my legs than in my heart. He’s trying to protect me. I know he is; I know he wouldn’t lie. The pain from my parents is what is keeping me from going to him. They rejected me and hearing him say words so strongly like that only reminded me of them. “I didn’t want her, we didn’t her.” My Mother’s voice rang in my head. “She’s just a tumble weed in the wind.” I understood why he said I was a concubine but hearing it come out of his mouth only made my memories rear its ugly head.

I sighed heavily. Minutes ticked by and the ocean began to rise. I was able to lay my head on my arm and put my hand into the water. It was cool and refreshing to touch. Closing my eyes, a small tear escapes me, it runs down my cheek, onto my chin and drops in the water below me. Then I do the one thing I’ve always done when I’m upset and that was to sing. It started when I when my own parents wouldn’t sing to me when I was a young child. Not even, Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.

“You’re the light, you’re the night

You’re the color of my b***d

You’re the cure, you’re the pain

You’re the only thing I wanna touch

Never knew that it could mean so much, so much

… You’re the fear, I don’t care

‘Cause I’ve never been so high

Follow me through the dark

Let me take you past our satellites

You can see the world you brought to life, to life”

The tears are free flowing, I can’t even sing anymore. I let out small sobs into my arm. I’m letting it go, I’m letting all the pain my parents have caused because they are just dragging me down after all these years. I am going to be happy; I want to be happy with Orion. Why didn’t I go to therapy when Violet’s parents suggested it?

I dabbed my eyes with my cloak and sat back on my legs. Taking a large breath, looking up at the sky, and breathing out slowly, I felt a cold hand on my wrist. Whipping my head at the person that was submerged in the water from the nose down, I let out a petrified scream.

It was a man, his dark hair wet from swimming. His skin had a blue green tint to it and his eyes were a tad yellow. He slowly rose out of the water without letting go of my wrist as I tried to pull it back. My heart was beating erratically, my breathing had picked up, I had never been more scared in all my life. This creature before me was something I had never seen. Once I finished screaming and stopped struggling from the tight grip, he held on me and rose so the water was just below his h*p bones.

“Took you long enough to stop screaming, gods,” he said sarcastically as he whipped his hair back to take care of the excess water. He had a bright white smile, a few fangs dangled. “I’m Luke.” I continued to look at him in confusion as he held onto my wrist.

“C-can you let go?”

“What if I don’t want to? Besides, you might run away,” Luke gave a grin. “Come on now, I just wanted to hear you sing some more, I thought you were another siren but low and behold, it was a land dweller.”

“Huh? What?”

“You aren’t a very smart one, are you?” Luke gave a flick of his tail and launched himself out of the water to sit next to me with out letting go. I gasped at the sight. His tale was a gorgeous blue and green that led right up to his six pack that turned into skin. He had gills underneath his ears yet lungs to let him breathe air. “Are you done staring, precious?” He wiggled his eyes at me.

“I’m sorry, I’ve never seen anything like you.”

“That’s what all the ladies say. Now, I never got a name from you, what is it?” Luke leaned in and puled on my arm so I could get closer. I started to pull back but heard a loud, shing, and a pointed metal object pointed right at Luke’s jaw.

“Damn, forgot you fae are stealthy little shits,” Luke chuckled as he glanced up at Orion.

“Let go of my mate, siren,” Orion spoke deeply. Sitting on the rock, looking up at Orion he looked imperial. The way the wind blew in his hair, his sword tickling the neck of the siren, his commanding voice, it gave me chills how magnificent he looked.

Wait, he called me Mate, in front of someone else?

“Do I need to say it again, Luke?”