Heartless

Epilogue

Epilogue

I stood in the mirror once again admiring Lumea's keen eye for detail in the white dress I wore. Just this once, I'd told her, would I ever wear a dress. Just once. She prided herself for the small victory, remarking on how long she'd spent working on my wedding gown— "Three months and sixteen days." Just one month after I'd arrived at the palace. Now, three months and sixteen days later, her hard work was complete. The gown was fitted perfectly in all the right places, a little too snug in others. But Lumea had started it long ago, back when I'd looked like a rat with not an ounce of meat on my bones. A lot had happened since then. For one, I was getting married tomorrow.

Exhaustion slowly flowed into my veins. I was reluctant to take off the dress, surprisingly, but I knew the longer I kept it on the more likely I was to have an accident and ruin it. Slowly, I stripped it off and laid it out on the desk. I draped a dark curtain over it, tracing the patterned cloth a moment before turning back to the mirror. In nothing but my night dress, I studied each curve of my body, noting every detail into memory. To imagine I'd been so thin before this place, to ecall how underfed and starved I'd actually been— it haunted me with every glance. I frowned at my reflection. They had saved my life without even knowing.

Something wet touched my cheek. Swiping a hand under my eye, I went back to the bed and began to pull back the sheets to get ready for sleep. My frown deepened even more when I glanced at how empty the bed looked. There wasn't a warm, firm body waiting to hold me under those thick blankets— just cold, empty space.

A chill suddenly swept along my spine. The hairs on my arms stood perfectly erect. "Missing me already?" said the voice I craved so much.

I was too exhausted to be startled. I merely closed my eyes with a deep sigh and let my shoulders sag. "Yes," I whined tiredly, barely containing a yawn. I heard him chuckle as his feet closed the distance between us. "You shouldn't be here, Beast. Lumea will kill you if she finds out you're here. She was very adamant that the groom wait in the city, along with all the other eligible bachelors." I laughed.

His arms closed around my hips, his warmth slowly overtaking me as he drew me in. I leaned back against him, unable to resist the magnetic pull that beckoned my body to get closer to his. "Let her," he said roughly, his voice deep and low and so soothing I was ready to fall asleep here in his arms. "There isn't a place on this earth where I won't follow you." His fingers brushed the hair away from my neck to allow his lips to caress the burning skin above my quickening pulse. "I'll always find you, Adaira. No matter what I have to endure, I will come back to you. Always."

My heart kicked wildly in my chest. I swallowed around the hungry need growing inside me. "You should save your vows for tomorrow." I turned slowly in his arms to lay my head on his chest.

He laughed brightly, and the sound weakened my knees so much that his arms became the only things keeping me standing. He pressed a brief kiss to my forehead, smiling down at me. "I suppose you're right. Doesn't mean they aren't true." His feet slowly guided my steps back until my thighs brushed the edge of the bed. Carefully, he lowered me to sit and knelt down before me. "Tomorrow, we will be bound for the rest of our lives, and believe me when I tell you I couldn't be happier. I've wanted you since the day I saw you. But that's not enough for me. Life is unpredictable, and I want you to know that I will love you for eternity. You are my life, Adaira Young, and I will not, cannot, live without you. But if you are unsure or are having seconds thoughts..."

I swallowed, keeping my eyes averted to my lap. "Actually, there is something I need to tell you." I lifted my gaze to meet his.

A flicker of unrestrained panic flashed across his face. His jaw clenched tightly as if he were bracing himself for a blow. He nodded tightly, but his eyes never left mine as he waited patiently for me to go on. "Okay," he said, his voice soft and quiet.