I smiled, wordlessly slipping my hand in his. The crowd parted as a slow, beautiful melody started up and Iannis gracefully led me onto the empty dance floor. The world fell away as I looked into his eyes, and as we swirled and glided across the room, volumes seemed to pass between us without either of us saying a word. After the first minute or so, other couples joined in, and soon we were at the center of a happy throng. Rylan was swinging Annia around with great energy, and Com was smiling at Elania as they danced. Fenris and Mina were pretty lively on the floor together, I noticed with approval. It was like we were all one big, happy family.
The song was just winding down when something odd flickered at the limits of my vision. Frowning, I looked over Iannis’s shoulder at the ballroom and activated my mage sight.
“What is it?” Iannis asked, sensing my tension.
“It seems that Deryna and Drawe aren’t our only unexpected guests,” I murmured. “Nalan and Alara are standing by those pillars behind you.”
I looked at the Tua twins directly, and they both smiled and waved. They had glamored themselves to look human, but beneath the magic, they were just as gigantic as they had been in the Tua realm. As I stared, Broghan popped out from behind Alara and soared across the room in baby dragon form. The guests gasped as he let out a thin stream of flame, forming a heart that blazed directly above us.
“What a charming illusion,” I heard somebody gush. “It will soon be the rage at every wedding, I’d bet.”
“We have come to learn more of the human world,” Broghan said to me in mindspeak as he did a few somersaults. He was stealing the show, but he was way too cute for me to care. “My father has given his permission, as long as my cousins accompany me.”
“Do you think you might act as a guide for us?” Alara asked. “Once you come back from your honeymoon, of course.”
“We have a number of experiments we’d like to perform,” Nalan added, “and could use a native guide to help us minimize the damage.”
I held back a snort. “I’ll think about it,” I told them, then relayed what they’d said to me to Iannis in mindspeak. “I’m kind of torn,” I told Iannis as the song came to an end. “On the one hand, I don’t love the idea of them running around doing ‘experiments’ in our world, but I shudder to think of what havoc they could wreak unsupervised.” Not that I had a chance to control even one of them, but hopefully they would listen to their expert in local culture. They had all my memories, but would they be able to make proper sense of them? Did they have a true idea just how vulnerable Recca’s people were when faced with the might of the Tua?
“The mind boggles at the possibilities,” Iannis said, though he did not sound too worried.
Inspired, I flagged down Rylan and Annia, who were still together on the dance floor. “You complained that your life was too boring,” I told my cousin with an evil grin. “I have just the remedy for that. You and Annia are going to look after some foreign guests while I’m gone.”
They glanced at each other. “I happen to be at loose ends,” Annia said, shrugging. “Why not?”
“What’s the catch?” Rylan asked suspiciously.
“Just that they’ll keep you on your toes,” I said airily. “You get to babysit someone far smarter and more powerful than you, which will be excellent practice for whatever you choose to do afterwards. If you can get through this, you can do anything.”
“Gee, thanks,” Rylan said sarcastically, but Annia looked intrigued. I wondered just how powerful that amulet had made her, and if she could hold her own against Broghan. Amused, I lost no time introducing Rylan and Annia to our interdimensional tourists. They were all eyeing one another curiously and getting acquainted when Iannis pulled me away for one last dance.
“That’s some challenge you set Rylan and Annia,” he commented. “But in our absence, the best you could do. Let’s not worry about what happens until we get back.”
“Right. With any luck, Solantha will still be standing.”
When the dance ended, we turned to face the crowd as one, and Iannis wrapped his hand in mine. “Thank you all for celebrating with us,” he said to the crowd. “Sunaya and I are off to our honeymoon now. Please enjoy the festivities, and drink to our good health while we are gone!”
He pulled out a gulaya from his sleeve and activated it amongst cries of protest from the crowd. The last thing I saw was Director Chen and Fenris’s knowing smiles as we disappeared, and the next thing I knew, we were standing on a sandy beach, looking out at a spectacular sunset. I felt a momentary queasiness, but it quickly passed.
“Holy shit,” I said, looking around. Chills ran up and down my spine as I took in the familiar surroundings. “This is the island where we first made love, isn’t it?”
“Indeed,” Iannis said, scooping me up. He carried me up the beach to where a charming seaside cottage sat, its white stone walls sparkling in the dying sun. “I bought it in your name and had a few improvements made,” he said as he waved the front door open with a bit of magic.
“I can see that,” I said as he carried me inside. I craned my neck, trying to get a good look at the small but cozy space. Everything was done in shades of blue and white, and the smell of salt and verbena and fresh paint permeated the air. “Are you going to give me a tour?”
“Maybe later,” he said, setting me atop the bed. He made my clothes vanish with the snap of a finger as he crawled on top of me. “For now, I believe you promised me a feast,” he said, a wicked glint in his eye.
I let Iannis cover my naked body with his own, savoring the feel of his warm skin and hard muscles against me as he kissed me deeply. His scent seeped into my very pores, and I took in a deep breath as I wrapped my arms tightly around him, deliriously happy at the thought that this man was finally mine. I could feel his raging lust and passion as his tongue tangled with mine, as he skimmed his hands down my curves lovingly.
But just as he was about to slip his hand between my legs, I flipped us over and straddled him on the bed. “What do you think you’re doing?” he asked a bit breathlessly, though the grin on his face told me he knew exactly what I was about.
“Remember,” I said as I slid down his body to take him in my hands. “I promised that I would feast on you first.”
And so I did, until Iannis finally yanked me away from him, then pinned me to the bed and sank himself deep inside me. As the orgasm took me, a ferocious wave of pleasure that had me crying out his name and tearing the bedsheets with my nails, I imprinted the memory into my mind forever.
No matter what happened next, I would always have this. Our first night together as husband and wife, and many more to come after. It had been a long, bumpy ride to get to this point, but I wouldn’t trade any of it for the world.
We finally had our happily ever after.
THE END