“What about her?” Nick asked, his voice a low growl.
“She…she saved Zac from Stefan. She asked that I tell Cady she loved her.”
Nick’s face was inscrutable, but he nodded. “Cady will want to know Zac is safe. I’ll call her now.” He pulled Zac closer to his chest and left the hut.
Meredith looked down at the empty cot, her hands running lovingly over the wood. Daric walked to her, wrapping his arms around her from behind.
“This was yours, wasn’t it?” But she posed it like it was a statement, not a question.
“My father made it himself,” he confirmed. He pushed her hair aside and nuzzled her neck, letting the scent of wildflowers tickle his nose.
“Can we come back here, another time?” she asked as she turned around to face him. “I’d like to explore the area. Maybe you can show me where you grew up.”
“You only have to ask, min kjære.”
Epilogue
One month later…
“This is definitely the Disney Princess wedding to beat all Disney Princess weddings,” Jade said, her eyes wide as she took in all the decorations. “Where did you find a 10-foot tall stuffed unicorn? Wait, never mind.” She shook her head. “Your demented ideas and Daric’s powers are a dangerous combination. I’m only glad he can’t change living things. Who knows what creature you’d come up with.”
“Oh, give me a break,” Meredith retorted. “It’s my wedding day.”
“Did you really have to have me dress up like Belle?” Jade asked as she twirled in her yellow maid of honor ball gown.
“Hmmm…” Meredith narrowed her eyes as she looked at Jade. “Do you think Sebastian would mind if I had Daric whip him up a new outfit? He’s getting really good at creating clothes.”
“Don’t even think it,” Jade warned, knowing what Meredith was thinking. “Not after the last time.”
There was a knock on the door, and Lara walked in, looking gorgeous in a blue Cinderella-inspired ball gown.
“At least Liam was game to dress up as Prince Charming,” Meredith grumbled and turned around. “How do I look?”
“Beautiful, Mer,” Lara said, her eyes shining with tears.
“Yes,” Jade agreed. “You look stunning.”
Although Ariel was her favorite Disney Princess, Meredith nixed the idea of copying her wedding gown. So, instead, she decided to go with an Ariel-inspired gown. It was a fitted bustier mermaid dress in white, but studded with sea-green Swarovski crystals and sequins shaped like scales. Not only did it look gorgeous, but the color reminded her of Daric’s eyes.
“Thanks!” she replied, snorting back the tears threatening to spill over. “Oh dammit. Thank God for waterproof mascara.” Lara and Jade, already used to crying at a drop of a hat when all of them were together, pulled out their handkerchiefs and offered it to Meredith. Once the tears were dried, the three women composed themselves. Jade helped Meredith with the veil and Lara brought over her shoes so she could slip them on.
“Ready, Meredith?” came a voice from the door. Killian peeked in, his face breaking into a smile as his gaze landed on Meredith. “You look beautiful,” he beamed.
“Aww, don’t get me started again,” Meredith moaned as she felt the tears welling up again.
“We’ll give you some privacy,” Jade said, walking towards the door.
“Be ready in five, though,” Lara reminded them.
Killian entered the room, moving aside so the two ladies could pass. He looked handsome in his black tux, but then again, Killian always looked striking in formal wear.
“Well, do I pass?” he asked jokingly.
“Yeah, you’ll do,” she answered with a smile. She walked up to her brother and touched his arm. “Are you okay, Killian?” she asked with a frown.
“Yeah, I’m good,” he replied with a smile, but Meredith saw that it didn’t quite reach his eyes. Something was wrong with her brother, she knew it. The leader of their little family had always been laid back, smooth, and charming, especially with the ladies. Meredith used to joke that he was James Bond in real life, and not just because of his skills. Ever since he came to New York, she could feel something was different. He hadn’t even given any of the Lycan women at Fenrir a second glance, even though half of them were throwing themselves at him.
“If you need to talk about anything—”
“I’m fine, Mer,” he insisted. “Let’s get you hitched, okay?”
She nodded and took his arm. She wanted to know what Killian was hiding, but she knew better than to pry. He would tell her when the time was right.
“God, I can’t believe you’re getting married,” Quinn moaned. He and Connor were waiting just outside the door. “Who the hell would want to tie themselves to one person? How stupid. Plus, neither of you have a last name, did you realize that?”
“Oh, shut up,” Meredith replied. “I hope you fall in love with a girl who won’t take your shit and make you work for her. I don’t think I’ll be able to stop laughing when that day comes.”
“Never gonna happen.”
“Sure.” She turned to Connor. He looked uncomfortable in his tux, and was tugging at the collar. “You look great, Connor.”
“I look stupid in this monkey suit,” he growled.
Meredith laughed and walked over to him, adjusting the tie that had gone crooked. “You look amazing. The ladies’ll go crazy for you.”
Quinn guffawed. “Or at least you won't scare them away too much.” Meredith shot him a warning look.
“Yeah, sure,” Connor shrugged.
“I wish Archie were here,” Meredith said quietly.
“I know,” Killian added. “But I’d like to think he’s around, somehow.”
They buried Archie next to his wife at their family plot a few days after the confrontation with Stefan and the mages. It was a small memorial, attended only by the four Lone Wolves, Daric, and a few people from the Portland clan, including their Alpha.
“C’mon, everyone’s waiting for us,” Quinn said, turning around quickly, but not before Meredith noticed his eyes getting misty.
She linked arms with Connor and Killian as they followed Quinn down the end of the hallway that led to the outside lawn.
It was a beautiful day for a fall wedding in Portland. The leaves had fully turned, and the woods outside the mansion where the four Lone Wolves grew up in were bursting in golds and reds.
As the quartet began to play, Lara and Jade walked down the aisle. Guests filled up all the chairs on either side, most from New York, but a few of the Lycans from the area had been invited too.
Then, the music changed, signaling for everyone to stand. The bride came down the aisle, escorted by her three brothers and everyone clapped and cheered.
When they got to the end, Daric was waiting for them, with Sebastian and Liam standing next to him. Meredith thought he looked super hot in his gray tux and his shortly-cropped hair. After they came back from Norway, she nearly jumped out of her skin when she walked into his bathroom and saw Daric from behind, his hair newly chopped off. She joked that she thought he was someone else and that now she had a new boyfriend. When he asked her later that night if she still wanted him to regrow his hair, she giggled and said she’d think about it.
Vivianne Chatraine was waiting for them at the altar and performed a traditional witch binding ceremony and blessing. Once it was all over and she declared them man and wife, Meredith quickly wrapped her arms around Daric and pulled him down for a kiss. She didn’t even stop when Quinn loudly said that she was supposed to wait for the signal that groom could kiss the bride. Daric, on the other hand, was startled, but eagerly returned his new wife’s kiss. When they broke away, Daric saw Alynna in the front row fanning herself, and she gave him a wink.
The reception was in full swing, with a full band playing classic tunes and Meredith dancing with all her brothers, even Connor, who seemed strangely graceful on the dance floor. Daric took his mother for a couple of dances as w
ell, and she beamed proudly the whole time. She also shyly introduced them to her date for the evening, a handsome older gentleman named Merrick, who was old friend of Graham and Vivianne’s.
“Well, min kjære,” Daric said as their dance ended and he guided her off the dance floor. “Did I give you the wedding of your dreams?”
“Yeah, it almost made up for your proposal,” she said dryly.
“I suppose I’ve learned my lesson to never be romantic,” he replied.
“Ha! I love that you brought me back to your village, like I asked,” Meredith began.
“But now I know never to take you to exotic places when the season premiere of Game of Thrones is ‘dropping’.”
“At least not someplace without Wi-Fi. We’re not savages,” she joked as they sat down at their table, where a chocolate fountain was set up no more than an arm’s length away from Meredith.
“Have you both gotten enough chocolate?” Daric said, slipping a hand over her stomach. “I swear, our child might come out made of chocolate at this point.”
“Not nearly, no,” she said, as she took a bite of a chocolate-covered strawberry. She offered Daric the remaining piece, and he swallowed it in one gulp.
“This is amazing, baby,” she said as she looked around them, surrounded by their family and clan. Grant had given her a full pardon, as her reward for saving Zac Vrost, but as soon as he released her from her bond to the New York Clan, she pledged to them. They were now hers, as much as she was theirs.
“I’m glad you’re happy,” he said. He turned to the left and saw his new brothers-in-law walking towards them. “I think you’re about to be even happier.”
“What?” she asked. She looked at the three men approaching them and then back at her new husband. “Something going on? What did you see?”
“Nothing,” he said. “Just a conversation I overheard today.”
The three Lone Wolves came up to them, shaking Daric’s hands and giving their sister a hug.
“Meredith, we wanted to wait until after the ceremony to tell you something,” Killian began.
“What is it?”
Her brother could hardly contain his smile. “Sebastian offered us all jobs. Back in New York.”
“What?” she asked incredulously. She looked at Connor and Quinn, who both nodded.
“We’ll be running an offshoot of his company. We’ll be doing special ops for Creed Security, using our skills to help his clients.”
“And, when we’re not going on ops for him, we’ll be helping those Lone Wolves find their families,” Quinn added. “And make sure it doesn’t happen again. To anyone.”
“Oh my God!” Meredith cried, hugging all her brothers. “That means you'll be living in New York?”
“The Alpha is granting us special permission to stay in the city,” Killian continued.
“Yeah, well, we can’t miss our first nephew or niece’s birth, can we?” Quinn said.
Connor nodded. “We gotta make sure he or she has all the right skills.”
“Not that you’ll need our help raising the pup. You’ll both be great parents.” Killian’s face softened, and Meredith didn’t miss the hitch in his voice.
“Aww…you guys!”
“Ow, Mer!” Quinn complained when she hugged them again. “Watch the suit. I got ladies I gotta go meet!”
“Ha!” she laughed. “Fine. Go then. I guess I’ll be seeing more of your ugly faces soon.”
With a last nod to Daric, the three men left.
Meredith turned back to her new husband. “I hope you’re okay with them staying.”
“What? Of course, I am. If it makes you happy, it makes me happy. Besides, I think Connor doesn’t hate me as much now that I’ve made an honest woman of you.”
“Right,” she giggled. “And are you happy?” she asked quietly.
“Of course.” He drew her onto his lap and pressed his lips to her neck, making her moan. “I once thought that you would be a weakness, a distraction.”
“And now?”
“Now, you are my world.”
“Daric,” she whispered. “I love you.”
“I love you too, Meredith.”
Extended Epilogue
Five Years Later…
“Oh my God,” Alynna exclaimed as her eyes grew wide and her gaze landed at the women in front of her. “None of you breathe on me. I swear, if I have to spend another Christmas pregnant, I’m going to scream. Dr. Faulkner has come up with some sort of Lycan True Mate birth control. STAT.” She put down her youngest, 6-month-old Knox, in the bassinet beside the couch.
Daric laughed, and Meredith giggled as he rubbed her growing belly. Beside them, Jade was talking to Lara over video chat on her phone. The Lycan scientist was about five months along with her third child, while Lara was in the hospital, already in labor with her and Liam’s second. Cady was patiently waiting for her turn on the phone with Lara, sitting comfortably on the couch with a plate of half-eaten cake on her very pregnant stomach. She would be giving birth any day now too, to her and Nick’s fourth baby. The twins came after Zachary, and now everyone was betting that Lara would be having twins as well. Meredith may or may not have had a little bit of help from her husband when she placed her bet.
It was a long summer weekend, and as such, they all ventured out to the Anderson mansion on Long Island for a barbecue. Daric enjoyed weekends like this when he could just relax and spend time with his family. His work with Jade in the lab at Fenrir was satisfying and kept him busy, but he wanted nothing more than to just spend time with his wife and their two children (soon to be three). Meredith was now one of Grant's head lieutenants, effectively 2nd in command of the Lycan security force, after Nick Vrost.
“What’s wrong, Alynna?” Grant asked as he and Frankie sat down next to Cady on the couch. The Lupa was the only other female currently not pregnant. She and Grant already had three of their own, twins and a young daughter who was two-and-a-half years old. “Aren’t you happy to be doing your duty to the Lycan race?”
“Oh, I’ve done my duty alright, I’ve done it four times!” she exclaimed, referring to her and Alex’s four children.
“Four times?” Alex interjected as he joined them. He was sweaty from playing with the children who were now being watched over by Sebastian. “I think we’ve done it more than that.” He bent down to kiss his wife. “Not that I’m counting.”
“Not that, pervert!”
Grant groaned. “I don’t want to hear this.”
“Grant, your sister is a married woman with four kids,” Frankie said playfully. “You know she has sex. Lots of down and dirty sex with her hot husband. This can’t be a mystery to you after all this time.”
“La la la,” Grant stuck his fingers in his ears. “Not listening.”
“Oh yeah, Mr. and Mrs. Super Alpha Lycan Pheromones?” Alynna quipped. “I would say half the time, you guys trigger us and,” she nodded to her kids, “at least two of those are a result.”
“And maybe this,” Nick said as he came over, rubbing Cady’s belly affectionately.
“Hey, we got those special seals installed in our apartment and Grant’s office after we got married!” Frankie said. “You guys,” she said pointedly at Alex and Nick, “did that on your own.”
“I’m hungry, baby,” Meredith said to Daric, her eyes pleading.
“You’re always hungry,” he retorted. When Meredith gave him a pout, he kissed her forehead. “I’ll get you some burgers.”
“Yay!” she said, raising her fist in triumph. “With mayo and ketchup—”
“And extra pickles,” Daric finished. “I know.” He stood up and walked over to the grill, where the burgers and hotdogs were keeping warm. As he piled a plate with food, something hit him on the ankle. Looking down, he saw a red ball by his feet.
“Oh, hello Zac,” he greeted the young boy as he bent down.
Little Zachary Vrost looked up at him and smiled. “Hiya, Unca Daric,” he greeted, his li
ght blue eyes sparkling and chubby little cheeks pink from running.
Daric picked up the ball and held it out to Zac. As he reached for his toy, the little boy tumbled forward, and Daric quickly caught him before he hit the ground. As his hands touched Zac, he was taken aback by the vision that came to him. A tall, handsome man with ice blue eyes dressed in a tux. A young woman with long blonde hair and amber eyes in a white gown. The man whispered something in the woman’s ear as they danced under fairy lights and her face broke into a familiar smile. He couldn’t hear what the man said, but he caught one word. A name. Her name.
“Hey, you alright, bud?” Nick said as he stood over them. “Sorry about that,” the Beta said sheepishly. “I swear, you can’t take your eyes off them for a second, right?”
Having two boys of his own, Daric agreed. “Yes, indeed.” He picked up Zac and then handed him to his father.
“Thanks,” Nick said as he took Zac. He gave Daric a grateful nod before walking away to join the rest of the children, who were now piling on top of Sebastian as they played their favorite game, catch the dragon.
Daric wasn’t close friends with Nick and Cady, but over the years, they had come to some peace and understanding, and they all treated each other with respect and kindness. He accepted that there would always be some distance between him and Vrosts, but he didn’t mind because he was plenty happy with his family and circle of friends. He wondered what the Beta would think if he knew what Daric had seen in little Zac’s future.
“Hey, what took you so long?” Meredith asked as he sat down.
“Sorry, min kjære,” he apologized. “I had to make sure I got all your condiments.”
“Oohhh!” She made grabby hands at him, and he gave her the plate. Grabbing the hamburger, she took a big bite. “Hmmm…so…hmmm good…”
“Slow down,” he laughed. “I don’t want you to choke.”
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