A Royal Heartbreak (23 page)

Misty turned back to Lysander, her heart aching at the ashen look on his face.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I’m so, so sorry.”

~~~

The High Circle – what was left of it – met at the edge of the realm, where the shields once stood. But they were broken, had been so ever since Ivory chose to betray her race by inviting the vampires in. It was a loophole that she had accidentally discovered when she managed to take the vampires into the Midways.

Misty was doing her best not to cry as she listened to Magenta saying the names of those who were confirmed dead, but she couldn’t control the tears when she heard Sir Belfast’s name among the dead.

Magenta choked, too. “He had been very…brave, sacrificing his life to save as many of our people as he could when the vampires attacked. He had been a hero during the Great War. And in this war he had become a legend.”

When Magenta finished the final count, 645 Faeries had lost their lives, a fatal blow to the race. The shields were also down, and would be so until a month-long ritual using the blood of fallen heroes was completed.

Lysander spoke in the end. “I withdraw my offer of betrothal to Misty Wall.”

Cries of protest ensued, with Arabella strangely being the most vocal. “How can you be so selfish, Lysander?” she demanded hoarsely. “It is now that we need something to seal the alliance more than ever.”

Misty bit her lip, wanting to defend Lysander but knowing he wouldn’t appreciate it. This war had changed him, made him even colder and more aloof and she despaired of ever seeing his light-hearted side again.

“We will still seal it,” Lysander said quietly. “But I will choose another princess and not someone…who already belong to someone else.”

Domenico’s arm tightened around her waist.

“There will be no delay. Tomorrow we will set for Lyccan Hall.”

~~~

Domenico and Misty went to visit Daryl and Milo after the meeting, with the latter bedridden and sporting a broken arm after having it nearly torn off by a vampire.

“They were incredibly smart,” Milo said with a faraway gaze, his lips tightening as he remembered those bloodstained hours that had nearly demolished their entire race. “They used fire to create chaos and when people started running, that was when they started biting and trying to turn us into one of them.”

Milo turned to Domenico. “They will never stop, won’t they?”

“No. They won’t.”

“What the fuck do they want?”

Domenico said grimly, “The whole fucking world.”

They left when Milo was starting to yawn, Daryl thanking them for their visit and inviting them to come again. Outside, the moon appeared serenely beautiful but for the first time it failed to comfort Misty.

The walk back to her home was filled with troubled silence. Misty was the first one to speak. “We have to talk.”

Domenico only nodded.

She turned to him, cupping his face, and when their gazes met, she started to cry. There were still doubt in Domenico’s wonderful green eyes, and it hurt to know that she had been the one to put them there.

“I love you, Domenico,” she said fiercely.

He smiled sadly. “Do you really?”

“Yes.” She took a deep breath. “When they made me choose between marriage or becoming a Faerie, I could never choose the latter because by then I knew I’ve always been in love with you – I’ve never stopped. And I didn’t want to risk choosing to become a Faerie because that would have been irreversible.”

“But to belong to another man,” Domenico growled. “Did you think I would ever forget the pain---”

“Yes. You can. Because it wasn’t true. I never loved Lysander, never loved any man but you. I knew I could do something about the marriage. I wanted Lysander to be the one to back out instead and give me some time to find another way to help the Faeries without turning or marrying one of them.” She twisted her hands. “Also, by then I had a really bad feeling about Ivory. I wanted to make sure that she wouldn’t guess I was on to her. So that was why when we…”

“Fucked?”

“Domenico!”

“You didn’t want her to risk overhearing us say anything?”

Misty nodded. She closed her eyes because what she was about to say next was difficult. “When I approached Lysander, he made me promise to…to be his slave for the day and in return he would listen to me. That was when you saw me…on his lap.”

His jaw clenched.

Misty kissed him on the lips. “Please don’t be mad?” she whispered.

“Go on,” he gritted out.

“Then Jayme came and told me Lysander couldn’t be gay. I thought he was because of what Daryl said and then…” She sighed. “It turned out he was being sarcastic when he told me Lysander was gay.”

“I told you he was not fucking gay, didn’t I?” Domenico snapped.

“But I thought you were just…”

“Jealous?” he asked silkily.

“Y…yes.” She was too afraid to meet his gaze but forced herself to.

His eyes were filled with quiet exasperation. “Believe in me next time. Trust needs to go both ways, Misty.”

“I promise,” she said fervently.

He sighed. “And then?”

“Umm…”

His eyes narrowed. “Don’t leave a fucking thing out, Misty. Just…don’t.”

She said in a rush, “HetriedtokissmeandIstoppedhim.”

Domenico scowled. “Did you think just by saying it so quickly I wouldn’t be able to understand that you just fucking told me another man kissed you?”

“It was very short and I totally rejected him,” she defended herself.

“And the scene that I encountered in the forest?”

She said painfully, “Ivory sent us both fake messages. And then she threatened me. If I didn’t let you catch us…like that…she would have made those traitors kill us.”

“And you think she can kill me just like that?”

Misty didn’t know if she wanted to laugh or cry at his arrogance. “Domenico, there were
twenty
of them.”

“There could be fifty and I still wouldn’t have let any of them take you from me,” he said simply.

She threw herself at him upon hearing those words, and Domenico laughingly caught her, lifting her up so she could wrap her legs around his waist.

“I love you,” she whispered.

Domenico’s eyes closed. “You don’t know,” he whispered back, “you just don’t know how much I had dreamt of you saying that, Misty.” He opened his eyes, saw her crying silently, and slowly licked the tears away. He said fiercely against her skin, “I don’t think love is enough to describe how I feel about you, Misty. You’re my life. You’re everything to me and trust me…trust me when I tell you that I will never, ever hurt you again.”

Jeering laughter and a lot of booing greeted them when they entered Lyccan Hall, where virtually every member of the race waited for them. Misty hadn’t wanted to come, feeling she would only bring him down, but Domenico had been adamant.

“If it’s not the Moretti fuck slave and his---” The Lyccan couldn’t say anything else, with Domenico knocking him down with one swift punch on the face. He did the same with three other men before the crowd realized he meant business. They fell silent, their uneasiness and confusion making the atmosphere heavy as Domenico and Misty stepped up on the platform in front with Lysander slowly following from behind.

“My name is Domenico Moretti and I am the heir apparent to the Moretti pack.”

Shock coursed through the crowd at the realization that Domenico had again taken the reins to the Moretti pack.

He stood there calmly, waiting for the furor to die down.

“I stand before you today to ask for you to vote in sealing our alliance with the Faeries with my intended mate, Misty, and one of the members of the High Circle, Lysander Allard, to represent the other race.”

“Why should we still ally ourselves with them?” a Lyccan from the back demanded. “Their race is dying. And Misty is useless!”

Chaos followed that controversial statement. Misty did her best to keep calm even though her heart twisted painfully because there was truth in those words. Domenico squeezed her hand, his tight comforting grip communicating his love for her.

“SILENCE.” The command in that voice could not be ignored, and it was as if the world somehow shifted with Domenico’s command. A shiver skittered across her spine and like the entire crowd, she found herself staring at him in awe.

Tall, dark-haired and gorgeous with the most beautiful pair of green eyes. Impeccably dressed, poised and articulate. He was the same Domenico Moretti she had fallen in love with over a year ago and yet somehow he was different, too.

This Domenico standing in front of her was a hundred times stronger, more powerful, and somehow – more human, too.

Tears stung her eyes as Misty realized that Domenico had fulfilled his destiny as the one prince to bring all Lyccan packs together.

When he spoke again, it was as if a god was speaking, the silence almost reverent. “We are Lyccans. We are true to our word – it is who we are and we are no cowards who turn tail and run, abandoning our allies at the first sign of trouble. We fight for the weak. We fight for our lives, for our heritage.”

Domenico gazed at her, and Misty choked back a sob at the emotion in his eyes.

“The woman standing next to me is the most precious thing to me. Without her, our packs would have remained divided. Without her, there would have been no alliance not only with the Faeries but also the Caros and other races.”

His tone became steel, as if daring the crowd to challenge him as he said, “You cannot win a war without heart and Misty is my heart. The heart of my pact, the heart of our race, and so now I ask you – will you stand with me when we fight side by side the Faeries and our allies to defeat those who seek to destroy our world?”

One by one, the Lyccans shifted. The very last one to shift was Domenico, and suddenly she found herself staring at thousands of Lyccans with their bright eyes fixed on hers.

Domenico howled, and the crowd responded with howls that caused the walls to shake.

Three Weeks Later

It was Misty’s greatest dream and nightmare come true. Her second wedding, followed by a reception ball, and the Lord knew – as well as every Lyccan in the world, and perhaps 99% of non-human races – how lucky she was when it came to balls.

Not.

Women were suddenly screeching outside her room, making Misty frown in confusion.

“Stop!” That was Estrella’s voice if she was not mistaken.

“Go!” That was Esmeralda.

“Uh-oh.” This was followed by a giggle, and that was definitely Kelly.

Her door flew open and Misty stared in open mouthed shock as Domenico came striding in.

“What---why---you can’t come here!”

But he kept moving forward, his green eyes intensely focused on her.

Domenico was dressed in a formal suit that bore the colors of the Moretti pack – black blazer and silver tie. The suit made him look taller and more powerfully built, or maybe that was just because she was even more head over heels for Domenico than she had been in their first wedding.

His hair appeared freshly showered, and Misty ached to run her hands through it just to remind herself she really had the right to touch it – for as long as she wanted to. Sometimes, she still had to pinch herself just to make sure that he really was hers. And that he truly loved her---with no ulterior motive.

When he reached her side, she froze without knowing why. “Misty.” He was scowling.

She gulped. “What?” Oh dear God, was he going to break up with her? Was he---

His scowl darkened. “I could smell your fears miles away.” Domenico’s voice softened. “What’s wrong, sweetheart?”

She burst into tears.