Roar of the Lion : Celestra Forever After 7

by Addison Moore

  “Yes, well, it’s safe to say you owe me one.” She eyes those brownies on the ground, and I quickly scoop them up and flush them down the toilet. If I’ve learned anything with Chloe, it’s that it’s best to remove all temptation from her. And when I come out of the bathroom, she’s gone.

  I take a look at myself in the mirror and quickly fix my curls by way of spraying them down. I wash the horror of cosmetics off my face and apply a little mascara and a swath of lip-gloss.

  “Today is the day I marry my soulmate.” I bite down a painful smile.

  “Well then”—a deep voice strums from behind—“you’d better get the heck out there.”

  I turn with a laugh caught in my throat.

  “Daddy!” I close the distance between us and wrap my arms around him with a powerful embrace. He feels solid in every way, and I swear on all that is holy I can smell his familiar cologne. Tears pump from me as I pour out all of my emotions.

  “Whoa, hold it there, princess.” He pulls back and wipes my tears away with his hand, his blue eyes glowing with tears of their own. He looks so very dapper in his celestial-issued suit. “You’ve got a wedding to get to. And rumor has it, you’re the bride.”

  A dull laugh wobbles through me. “Well, I almost wasn’t.”

  He gives a sure nod while frowning at the thought. “Trust me, kid. I know all about it.”

  I take him in, with his dark suit and his tie that gleams like a spirit sword.

  “I’ve missed you so much.” I hiccup my way through the words.

  “Lucky for you, I’ve decided to stick around for a bit tonight. I call dibs on the father-daughter dance.”

  “Does that mean people can see you?”

  He winces. “Only the dearly departed. Sector Marshall has agreed to stand in as the body.” He gives a little wink, and a laugh bubbles from me.

  The sound of music comes from a distance and my mouth rounds out.

  “It’s time.”

  He gives a slight nod. “I’d say this was long overdue.”

  We head on out, and Marshall threads his arm through my own on one side and my father does so on the other. Ezrina hands me a pom of hot pink roses, and then together, my father, Marshall, and I crest the threshold of Whitehorse and make our way down to Silent Cove where Cooper Flanders belts out a moody tune that sounds like heaven.

  A throng of bodies turns to look my way. The white ladder-back chairs are festooned with hot pink balls of flowers, and a large floral arch sits just before a gazebo where my handsome groom awaits. Logan turns to look at me, our eyes meet, and it feels electric, like lightning, magnetic, necessary as air and water.

  Mom quickly ushers Nathan, Barron, Misty, and Ember down the aisle in their dark suits and pink frilly dresses as they pepper the pale runner with rose petals, and the air is suddenly perfumed with their scents.

  “Skyla,” I hear the whisper of my mother, the one I’ve been searching for, begging to speak with for weeks. She passes before me, chanting something that sounds like a song as she makes her way to where my true mother stands, but I don’t pay her any mind. All thoughts are on the here and now—on the man waiting for me at the end of this petal-strewn aisle.

  Logan Oliver.

  He’s so very arrestingly handsome in his dark gray suit with a simple white rose sitting on his lapel.

  I see him there. His eyes flooded with tears, his lips quivering as he commands himself to hold it together, but that is one war he is not winning.

  I take a step forward and the fog begins to lift, another step and the sun pierces through, the clouds roll back like a scroll, blue skies stretch out overhead, and a thrill rides through the crowd as the day brightens around us. The fog flees the scene as the warmth of the sun wraps its arms around us and it feels holy and right.

  “Logan,” I whisper as I make my way down the aisle. My feet begin to quicken, and I break free from my father, from Marshall, and bolt straight for the man I love.

  With a leap I wrap myself around his entire body and he spins me as we laugh, tears streaming down our faces like rain.

  “Skyla?” He pulls back to get a better look at me. “Is it really you?”

  I give a frenetic nod before our mouths crash over one another, hungry for kisses we could never get enough of. We’re all tongues and teeth, panting with ecstasy, our victory applauded by those around us.

  “Dearly beloved”—Marshall’s voice booms over the crowd—“perhaps we should all go home?”

  The crowd roars with laughter, as do Logan and I.

  Logan helps me to my feet, wipes the tears from my eyes, and leans in.

  “Welcome home, Skyla. We have gone around the mountain too many times, but today we reach our final destination—you in my arms for good.”

  I give a solemn nod. “I don’t care about until death do us part. I declare forever with you.”

  His lips meet mine with a much sweeter exchange.

  Marshall takes his place at the front of the helm, and Logan and I exchange our vows, our solemn promises, but more than that, we create a holy covenant before man and God, we are grafted together as one—and no man, no celestial being, will ever tear us apart again.

  Marshall has us exchange rings, and Logan kisses my hand as he lands the sweet simple circle of diamonds on my finger.

  Marshall grunts, “And yet again, you may now kiss your bride.”

  Logan pulls me into his arms, and it feels as if every crooked path has been made straight and everything in our lives has finally clicked into place as he blesses me with a tender, lingering kiss.

  This is only the beginning, he says.

  “I know,” I whisper as I look into his eyes. “This is it—the very start of everything good.” I press my lips to his again as Marshall clears his throat.

  Marshall raises a hand. “May I present to you Mr. and Mrs. Logan Oliver.”

  A thunderous cheer breaks out, and it feels as if all of Heaven is shouting along for us.

  I head over to my mother and scoop Jaxson up in my arms and Logan picks up Nathan and Barron, and the five of us walk down the aisle as a family.

  I wave to each of our friends and blow them kisses, on this, the happiest day of my life.

  Everything I’ve ever wanted and dreamed of has settled in and taken root. Logan and I aren’t fighting to be together anymore. We don’t need a front to protect us from the Fems. We have armed ourselves with each other as we swim through the depths of our love.

  Logan and I pause at the foot of the stairs leading up to Whitehorse and I kiss the faces of my three sweet sons.

  “I love you,” I whisper to them. “Please know that Mommy loves you so very much.”

  Nathan wipes the kiss I gave him off, and I laugh.

  Logan gives a quick wink. “He’s just rubbing it in.”

  “I want cookies.” Nathan kicks his way down, but Barron reaches over and pulls me in, landing a sweet, sloppy kiss to my cheek.

  “Mommy is a princess.” His little dimples dig in and he sparks another round of tears as he jumps to the ground.

  “Two cookies for you,” I tease.

  Logan kisses my forehead then Jaxson’s.

  “Together at last.”

  I sigh up at my handsome husband just as Jaxson reaches over and grabs his nose.

  “Whoa.” Logan kisses his tiny hand. “I think he sensed I was having impure thoughts about his mother.”

  “Excuse me,” a deep voice calls from behind. My eyes widen a moment, and my heart gives an unnatural thump as Gage stains the landscape before us. “Hey.” His dimples invert. He’s donned a dark suit, black tie. His hair is slicked back, his face clean-shaven. He’s almost unrecognizable. “I wanted to be the first to congratulate you.” His features soften as he looks to me. “I’m genuinely happy for you both.” He swallows hard as if fighting back tears.

  “Thank you.” Logan slaps him on the back then pulls him in, and the next thing I know we’re locked in a three-way embrace wit
h Jaxson bucking between us. It feels warm and loving and right. And for a microsecond, it feels as if we’ve been transported back in time and we are all one, on the same side, full of dazzling light and love.

  And just like that, the spell is broken and he pulls away, drifting quickly into the crowd as our friends and family swarm us with their well-wishes.

  The music starts up once again, and my mother takes Jaxson as Logan pulls me to the middle of the dance floor installed right over the sand and we’re wrapped in one another’s arms for our first dance as husband and wife.

  “I love you so much, Skyla,” he breathes the words hot into my ear. “How do you feel?”

  “Amazing.” I pull back and nod to affirm the fact. “I’m fine, I promise. And I don’t know where she went—I don’t care. Today isn’t about her. It’s about you and me.” Logan and I move to the rhythm of our hearts, and just as the next song starts up Marshall taps me on the shoulder.

  “May we have this dance?”

  I look behind him to see my father.

  “Absolutely.”

  My father pulls Logan into a quick embrace. “Welcome to the family, son.” He gives a sly wink as he wraps his arms around me. Marshall steps in and does the same, and it’s a euphoric feeling to see the two of them enmeshed as one.

  “Skyla,” my father sings my name like a love song. “Promise me you’ll go easy on her.”

  “It depends which her you’re talking about.” I blink up at him, feeling defiant against my father for the first time in years.

  “The one who bore you.” He takes a deep breath, and I can feel his chest press to mine. “I love you. Know this, it will all work out. I’ve seen a little glimpse into the future. My wedding gift to you is letting you know that the surprise of a lifetime awaits you.”

  “That’s the gift?” I tip my ear his way. “Are you sure there isn’t more? It sounds an awful lot like a teaser.”

  He chuckles. “That’s the gift.” He plants a kiss to my cheek. “You’re the gift.”

  We dance until the songs pick up speed. Soon Ellis, Giselle, Bree, Drake, Em, Ethan, Michelle, Nat, Lexy, Ezrina, Nev, Laken, Coop, Wes, and even Chloe Bishop join Logan and me as the dance floor swells with the gyrating crowd.

  Dinner is a buffet, serve yourself, when you want, as often as you want. We’re not following any tradition. I toss the bouquet right here on the dance floor, and it rises high, spiraling back down and right into Mia Landon’s wedding-hungry hands.

  We laugh. We cry. All night we have a riotous party until the stars spray over the sky like the silent glittering witnesses they are.

  Laken is one of the last to leave as she pulls me in and gives me a hug.

  “Congratulations.” Her lips quiver.

  “Thank you. Hey? Are you okay?”

  She looks back where Coop and Wes are locked in a heated discussion, their voices hushed.

  “I’m fine.” She warms my arms with her hands. “Enjoy the night.” She gives Logan a sharp look before the three of them take off.

  Logan slips his arm around my waist as he looks to Coop and Wes who stalked off with a meager wave.

  “Logan, you know something.” I give his tie a yank. “No secrets.”

  “I’m not the one with the secret. But don’t worry. I’ll make sure we get to the bottom of this after tonight.”

  “Tonight.” I bite down on a smile.

  My mother took the boys home, and it’s just Logan and me here at Whitehorse.

  We make our way to the porch, and Logan scoops me into his arms as a bubbling laugh expels from me.

  “I love you more than the heavens love the sun and the moon,” he whispers the words directly into my ear—the same words he painted over the front door of this very house all those years ago.

  Logan carries me up the stairs, across the threshold into the home he built for me with his love, and all the way up to our bedroom.

  He makes slow, sweet love to me, and we are lost in all of our bliss.

  This is perfect love.

  This is bliss.

  In the morning—correction, late the next afternoon—Logan and I rouse to life, still tangled in a fleshy knot, our shared satisfaction written on our faces.

  My hand slaps over the nightstand for the phone.

  “Really?” He gives my hip a slight tickle and I buck.

  “Yes, really. What if the boys need us?” I pull the phone close so we can both see the screen, and I’m a bit surprised to see that my messages have blown up. “Wow, I’ve got a text from just about everyone we know.”

  I click into Marshall’s first. We’ve got trouble.

  Logan and I exchange a glance.

  Something tells me our stay-cation honeymoon is over before it ever began.

  13

  Gage

  The sound of explosive knocking thunders through my head.

  “Shit.” I moan as I peel my eyes open. I fell asleep as soon as I came home. It was daylight out, and judging by that luminescent crack in the window, it still is. Different day, I’m guessing.

  The knocking persists, and by the sound of it, my brand-new door is about to blow right off its hinges.

  “All right,” I growl as I fling my legs over the side of the bed and head downstairs. If I didn’t think there would be a chance this could concern the boys, I would demand they go away. But before I utter those two words, I need to make sure it’s not my parents, or God forbid, Skyla and Logan in some hellish emergency.

  A brief vision of Skyla and Logan naked entangled in one another’s arms flits through my mind, and I push the thought away.

  I yank open the door, only to find Demetri at the other end, an angry hard look on his face.

  “You lied,” he growls as he barrels on past me.

  “Of course, I lied. I take after you.” I slam the door shut and meet up with him in the living room. “Sit down. Stay a while. You want a beer?” I head for the fridge. “What the hell did I lie about this time?” I yank a cold one out of the fridge and snap the lid off in haste. I’m not big on liquor, but with everything that’s transpired, it seems like a good idea.

  He knocks the drink out of my hand before I can turn around and glass shatters at my feet.

  Demetri pushes his hand to my chest so hard you’d think he were trying to bore a hole into it.

  He pulls me in by the shirt and lands my face next to his ugly mug.

  “You knew Skyla’s spirit has been inside Chloe this entire time. You pig.” He loosens his grip on me before taking a step back, that half-smile returning to his face. “Did it please you to know you were holding something over me?” His dark eyes sharpen over mine. “But now I know, son. I am apprised.” He takes a breath. “I’ll forgive this grievance.” His lips harden. “But don’t you ever think about doing this again. Skyla is holding a Faction meeting.” He tips his head. “And Logan. Did he know? Does he know that he’s married to a virtual stranger?”

  I inch back. “Wait. You said she’s holding a Faction meeting? This morning?”

  “Right now.” His brows jumps as if he’s amused. “She’s screaming it from the highest mountain. She has been possessed.”

  “Skyla is screaming it?” I glance out the window as if I might garner a clearer answer that way.

  “Yes. Skyla claims she’s in Chloe Bishop’s body. Logan has married Rory.” It comes out more of a question. “I don’t buy it.” His lips twist. “Candace would never allow it. What the hell is going on, Gage? Who is who? I’ve dispatched Barnabas, Belshazzar, and Micah to look into it, and they’ve come up empty. Tell me now. I demand it.”

  “Freaking hell,” I pant as my gaze pings around the room, unable to settle anywhere at all. “I don’t know what’s going on.” I rake my fingers through my hair. “Skyla, she was killed and she left. The next thing I knew she claimed to be in Chloe Bishop’s body.” Logan assured me that farce was over last night. And by the looks of the way Skyla greeted Logan as she ran down the aisle, I bel
ieve it.

  “And you didn’t think I needed to know this because?”

  “Because I didn’t care enough to spread the news,” I growl. “What we have going is between us and the Fems.”

  “Wrong!” he barks. “It’s us against the universe, and if you haven’t figured that out by now, you are in for a rude awakening. They were playing with your head, boy. And now you’re so turned around, you don’t know which way is up.” He steps in close, his anger seething through his coal black eyes. “So it wasn’t Skyla who led her people to make the gravest error of all.”

  I nod. “The pledge—that was all Rory.”

  “The covenant,” he corrects. “Once they break faith with Celestra, there is no going back. We hold the power to shut down Celestra once and for all. You know what needs to be done.”

  That backward serum of Wesley’s flits through my mind. We will singlehandedly be infusing a limelight over Nephilim DNA, not hiding it. An anti-savior to our people, for the greater good, of course. And right about now, I’m not entirely sure it’s good at all.

  “Heaven or Hell, Gage. You hold the keys to your destiny. As the king, you must grant permission. No legitimate move can be made without it.”

  My jaw clenches as I grit my teeth so hard it’s a miracle they don’t crumble to dust.

  Demetri lands his hand on my shoulder. “It’s the only way for you.”

  I bow my head and close my eyes because, damn it all to hell, he’s right.

  And I’m about to do just that—damn it all to hell.

  Only I won’t be headed in that direction.

  “You have my permission. Find a way to make this work. Get on with it.”

  14

  Logan

  Skyla and I shower, dress, and speed over to Nicholas Haver’s old place all in the span of fifteen minutes. I’m groggy, exhausted, and you can add very cranky to that list. We should be in bed, sleeping and screwing for the next few days. And instead, we’re cleaning up a pile of Chloe Bishop’s shit. I am not amused. I could almost forgive her for chopping off my head in the Faction war, but for pulling me out of bed the day after my wedding to Skyla? Unforgivable.