“We will go with you, Owen,” Phillip said.
“We all will,” Ena said.
Owen was surprised that they would continue to work with him. Maybe they were worried his father had plans to assassinate him as soon as he met with him, rather than step down from his lofty position as king.
“We’ll be meeting in the throne room. The men are still working on rebuilding the roof to his solar, and then had to stop because of the war,” Lord Benton said.
“What have you decided? Are you with him or with me?” Owen asked, concealing his wings, needing to see a healer right after this business was over.
Sigrid looked so pale that Owen lifted her in his arms and carried her, though all the dragons had offered to fly them to the castle. He could have transported them to the gates, but he didn’t want to. This was his home, the land smoldering, the battering rams and catapults in ruins, injured, dying, and dead men being carried off. He had to walk among those who had bravely carried out their kings’ orders and pay tribute to the fallen.
Lord Benton cleared his throat. “I stand by the ones who vanquished Malcolm, who had brought death and destruction to our home. Through you and your wife’s leadership, you have made numerous alliances. Your dedication to dealing with Malcolm at great risk to yourself, and even after your own people denied you the right to return home, shows great leadership. I pledge my loyalty to you both.”
“That is good. Will my father step down peaceably?”
“That remains to be seen. The people will back you after you saved them. They know you will protect them if we have to face another fight.”
When Owen entered the throne room, still carrying Sigrid, who insisted she walk in on her own, but he truly didn’t want to see her collapse, he saw his father seated upon his throne, four guards protecting his flanks. He wore a bloodied bandage around his head, but his eyes were clear, and he was sitting straight, not leaning over in pain.
Everyone else in their party, and Lord Benton, followed them into the room.
“I only wished a word with my son and his wife,” the king said crossly to Lord Benton.
“Aye, my lord, but Prince Owen wished otherwise.”
“So, you are siding with my son now?”
Lord Benton inclined his head.
“Seems you have saved us from Malcolm’s wrath. Now what is it that you plan to do?” the king asked Owen.
“Now, you step down from the throne like we agreed upon. You are welcome to live out your days here with us, to be a grandfather to our children someday, and to enjoy your regal status. You’ll no longer rule, but we would be happy to receive your counsel.” Owen had decided that he couldn’t banish his father. This was his home and would be until the end.
“You trust me to keep my word, if I do this?” his father asked.
“I do. Prince Phillip and Princess Arana have agreed to peace between our kingdoms, and Sinbad, the mage, is now king of the griffin fae, and has also agreed to be our ally.”
“You have been busy.” King Yarrow rose from his throne. “The kingdom is yours to rule. I’ve already spoken with Lord Benton about having the coronation once hostilities had ended. Don’t take too long with providing an heir, and a spare. I will need to have something to do with all the time I will have on my hands.”
Owen was glad his father had finally come to his senses.
After the wounded had been seen to, and Owen’s injuries had been taken care of, and Sigrid was feeling more herself, they had a quick coronation ceremony, nothing lasting for hours. Everyone was still wearing the clothes they’d worn in battle, dirty, smoke-smudged faces, bloodied, but it felt right to do it this way.
Phillip and Arana only stayed for the ceremony, but once Sigrid and Owen had been crowned and they wrote a peace treaty between the two kingdoms, they had to leave, to see to their own people, and arrange for their own coronation.
Sinbad would need to also, but he had so far to travel, he and his men were happy to stay here and feast and rest before they left early the next day. He also signed a treaty with Owen and Sigrid.
Halloran and Kiernan had retrieved all their belongings from Castle Butte while all the treaties were being negotiated.
Afterward, everyone cleaned up and dressed for the celebratory occasion, Ena and Kayla having to borrow gowns to wear to the ball.
Sigrid, Ena, Kayla, and Tanya met in the queen’s chambers.
Sigrid wore her golden gown, the gift from the dark fae queen, and Tanya her blue gown. Kayla wore a lavender gown. Sigrid swore she wouldn’t recognize her if she wore anything else. Ena wore a fiery red gown, which looked great with her nearly black hair. She was glad she hadn’t worn black, her usual color, to the ball.
Tanya said to Sigrid, “I will miss you. First, Kayla left for the dragon fae territory. Now you’ve left to come here.”
“You may live here with me, Tanya. I have plenty of rooms for you to stay.”
“I will think on it.”
“Or you can stay with me,” Kayla said. “I never offered before because you were close to Sigrid too.”
“I don’t know if I could live in a castle when I’m so used to enjoying my little cottage. But I will think on it.”
“The invitation is for anytime. And if you want to just visit for a long while, you could see how it suited you first,” Sigrid said.
“Okay.”
But Sigrid thought Tanya preferred her flower gardens and little cottage, weaving dreams for the golden fae.
“And remember you have a dragon ball to attend in a couple of weeks,” Kayla reminded Sigrid and Tanya.
“Only now I’ll have my mate with me.” Sigrid smiled.
“And the queen will have a visiting queen and king. So exciting,” Kayla said.
That was something that Sigrid hadn’t really given much thought. She was used to being just a falcon fae living among the golden fae, a magic user. But now, everywhere she went, she would be a queen of her own people. She loved it. Just think of how all the people who had snubbed her for being a witch would see her now!
At the celebration that followed, everyone was having a delightful time dancing and eating. King Yarrow danced with a couple of the ladies of the court. Now that he was no longer ruler, it appeared a great weight had lifted off his shoulders. He even danced with Sigrid and she was delighted.
“You are okay?” she asked.
“Yes, my physician says I have the hardest head than any he’s ever taken care of.”
She smiled. “Your son is a good man.” She wanted him to know that. They could have banished him, they’d talked of it even, but in the end, her mate had chosen to allow him to stay with them forever. And she was all for it.
“He has chosen well, and has already led our people to victory. With your help, of course. We will always be in your debt.“
“I’m glad it all worked out for everyone concerned, though I was saddened to see so many die in battle. I hope we can avoid that in the future.”
“With your magic, I believe we will. The two of you complement each other rather well. I know the dark fae queen had you married at her castle. But I want you to have all the pomp and ceremony here, for our people.”
“That would be nice.” Though she didn’t really feel the need, she understood the need of the people, to feel the connection, and it was nice to have another celebration. Sigrid wanted to allow Yarrow to remain in his own bedchamber, but she needed to discuss it with Owen first.
After dancing with Yarrow, she even slipped away to fix the solar roof for him.
Then she was dancing in Owen’s arms again, and again, and again. “I’m happy with your father staying in his bedchamber, if you are,” she said, loving him for wanting to dance with her so much, though she suspected it was because when he wasn’t dancing with her, others kept asking, like Halloran, Kiernan, and Amerand.
Owen smiled. “If that’s what you wish, I’m happy to oblige.” He motioned to Lord Benton and told him to let h
is father know he wasn’t to move from his bedchamber. Owen hadn’t quit dancing with Sigrid, and he didn’t let go of her again, until she was ready to retire.
When the celebration finally wound down and everyone said their goodnights and they went to their guest chambers, Sigrid and Owen entered his bedchamber and saw the empty place where his bed once stood. It was still at Castle Butte.
“Should we just go there for the night?” Sigrid asked, tired and wanting to make love to her mate.
“No. We just took over this castle. This is our home now. We can just move the bed back.”
“Not through your father’s solar though this time. I just replaced the roof.”
Owen chuckled and pulled her into his arms and hugged her. “Thanks for being so kind to my father after all that he said and did.”
“I think he’s beginning to warm up to the idea that I might be all right as a daughter-in-law.”
“And queen of the realm, after you saved the kingdom.”
“We all did. When your father danced with me, he said he wanted to see us married here, at your castle.”
“Our castle, and I think that’s a noble idea.”
She still couldn’t get used to the idea that she was no longer just a magic user—to some, a witch—living in her cottage in the woods, exiled by her own kind, but now was the queen who helped to rule over them.
Ena poked her head into their chamber and smiled. “Lost your bed? Brett and I were talking about it and figured you’d be missing it about now.”
Sigrid smiled at her. “We were just going to fetch it.”
“Don’t bother. The guys are all carrying it here, along with the king’s table.”
Then they heard grumbling, a couple of oaths, and a few banging noises.
The dragons carried the bed into the room and set it down. Sinbad trailed behind them.
Halloran said, “Sinbad said he would have helped, but that he is a king now.”
Sinbad smiled. “I supervised them so they wouldn’t run your bed into quite so many walls. Furniture moving isn’t their strength.”
Halloran laughed. “Never claimed that it was.”
Then they all said goodnight again and went to their chambers.
Sigrid said to Owen, “I need to move all my potions and other belongings from my cottage.”
“You are a queen now.” He pulled her into his arms and smiled down at her. “My beautiful queen.”
“You mean I shouldn’t be using my magic to help others any longer?”
“You will do whatever you want to do. You are a queen. It’s completely up to you.”
“When we first met, what did you think of me?” Sigrid recalled his words—that she was beautiful, but had he really meant it? Or had he been trying to convince her to help save his kingdom?
“I hadn’t expected you to be so beautiful. But what impressed me the most was your curiosity about Tarrant’s and my wings. And you liked mine the best.”
She laughed. “That’s true, partly because you were so eager to show them off, just like you were courting me. Tarrant did so only begrudgingly.”
“His mistake. I love you, Sigrid,” Owen said, then leaned down and kissed her.
“Any prince who thought he could take me hostage had to be pretty bold—”
“Or plain desperate.”
She smiled. “I love you right back, Owen. May peace settle over the kingdom now and forever.”
Sigrid had never believed in fairy tales, the dreams of humans to live a life out of the ordinary, yet, she was living one with Owen and couldn’t be happier. She just hoped the unseelie never found a way into their world because of using her magic to create the portal between their planes of existence.
Owen couldn’t believe the whole turn of events, from being unwilling to bring the granddaughter of a traitor into their kingdom, to loving her unconditionally. She was the fae of his dreams and the two of them could accomplish anything they had their hearts set on.
And they would.
Acknowledgments
Thanks so much to my wonderful beta readers who worked so hard to get the corrections to me while I was at conference at Disney World! You all are the greatest! My Mad Hatter hat is off to you: Sandi Carstensen, Terri Edeen, Rhonda Esakov, Georgeanna Wahl, and Pat Idleman.
About the Author
Bestselling and award-winning author Terry Spear has written over sixty paranormal romance novels and seven medieval Highland historical romances. Her first werewolf romance, Heart of the Wolf, was named a 2008 Publishers Weekly’s Best Book of the Year, and her subsequent titles have garnered high praise and hit the USA Today bestseller list. A retired officer of the U.S. Army Reserves, Terry lives in Spring, Texas, where she is working on her next werewolf romance, continuing her new series about shapeshifting jaguars, writing Highland medieval romance, and having fun with her young adult novels. When she’s not writing, she’s photographing everything that catches her eye, making teddy bears, and playing with her Havanese puppies. For more information, please visit www.terryspear.com, or follow her on Twitter, @TerrySpear. She is also on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/terry.spear. And on Wordpress at:
Terry Spear's Shifters
http://terryspear.wordpress.com/
Also by Terry Spear
Heart of the Cougar Series:
Cougar’s Mate, Book 1
Call of the Cougar, Book 2
Taming the Wild Cougar, Book 3
Covert Cougar Christmas (Novella)
Double Cougar Trouble, Book 4
Cougar Undercover, Book 5
Heart of the Bear Series
Loving the White Bear, Book 1
The Highlanders Series: Winning the Highlander's Heart, The Accidental Highland Hero, Highland Rake, Taming the Wild Highlander, The Highlander, Her Highland Hero, The Viking’s Highland Lass, His Wild Highland Lass (novella)
Other historical romances: Lady Caroline & the Egotistical Earl, A Ghost of a Chance at Love
Heart of the Wolf Series: Heart of the Wolf, Destiny of the Wolf, To Tempt the Wolf, Legend of the White Wolf, Seduced by the Wolf, Wolf Fever, Heart of the Highland Wolf, Dreaming of the Wolf, A SEAL in Wolf's Clothing, A Howl for a Highlander, A Highland Werewolf Wedding, A SEAL Wolf Christmas, Silence of the Wolf, Hero of a Highland Wolf, A Highland Wolf Christmas, A SEAL Wolf Hunting; A Silver Wolf Christmas, A SEAL Wolf in Too Deep, Alpha Wolf Need Not Apply, Billionaire in Wolf’s Clothing, Between a Rock and a Hard Place, SEAL Wolf Undercover (2017), Dreaming of a White Wolf Christmas (2017), Flight of the White Wolf (2018), Billionaire Wolf Christmas (2018)
SEAL Wolves: To Tempt the Wolf, A SEAL in Wolf's Clothing, A SEAL Wolf Christmas, A SEAL Wolf Hunting, A SEAL Wolf in Too Deep, SEAL Wolf Undercover (2017)
Silver Bros Wolves: Destiny of the Wolf, Wolf Fever, Dreaming of the Wolf, Silence of the Wolf, A Silver Wolf Christmas, Alpha Wolf Need Not Apply, Between a Rock and a Hard Place (2017)
White Wolves: Legend of the White Wolf, Dreaming of a White Wolf Christmas (2017)
Billionaire Wolves: Billionaire in Wolf’s Clothing, Billionaire Wolf Christmas (2018)
Highland Wolves: Heart of the Highland Wolf, A Howl for a Highlander, A Highland Werewolf Wedding, Hero of a Highland Wolf, A Highland Wolf Christmas
Heart of the Jaguar Series: Savage Hunger, Jaguar Fever, Jaguar Hunt, Jaguar Pride, A Very Jaguar Christmas
Romantic Suspense: Deadly Fortunes, In the Dead of the Night, Relative Danger, Bound by Danger
Vampire romances: Killing the Bloodlust, Deadly Liaisons, Huntress for Hire, Forbidden Love
Vampire Novellas: Vampiric Calling, Siren’s Lure, Seducing the Huntress
Other Romance: Exchanging Grooms, Marriage, Las Vegas Style
Science Fiction Romance: Galaxy Warrior
Teen/Young Adult/Fantasy Books
The World of Fae:
The Dark Fae, Book 1
The Deadly Fae, Book 2
The Winged Fae, Book 3
The Ancient Fae, Book 4
Dragon Fae, Book 5
Hawk Fae, Book 6
Phantom Fae, Book 7
Golden Fae, Book 8
Falcon Fae, Book 9
The World of Elf:
The Shadow Elf
The Darkland Elf (TBA)
Blood Moon Series:
Kiss of the Vampire
The Vampire…In My Dreams
Demon Guardian Series:
The Trouble with Demons
Demon Trouble, Too
Demon Hunter (TBA)
Non-Series for Now:
Ghostly Liaisons
The Beast Within
Courtly Masquerade
Deidre's Secret
The Magic of Inherian:
The Scepter of Salvation
The Mage of Monrovia
Emerald Isle of Mists (TBA)
Note to Reader—Yes, I have another fae book coming. Not sure on the title yet! Hope you have enjoyed the fae series as much as I enjoying writing them! And hope the fae haven’t been creating as much mischief for you as they have me!
Happy reading! Terry
Terry Spear, Falcon Fae
(Series: The World of Fae # 9)
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