* * *
“Congratulations cub,” slurred Pierce.
He leaned on Taylor’s shoulder and tried to leer at Michael. Michael tried not to laugh as the leering expression slid sideways into cross-eyed.
Taylor felt the need to inject his own opinion, “Good bride.”
Selene wrinkled her nose in distaste and Michael reached out to touch her hand beneath the bar table. She turned to face him, the wrinkle smoothing away. Her eyes were dark and large.
Michael couldn’t suppress a giddy smile. Those eyes were his now. All of her was his wife and all of him was her husband. It was difficult to believe that she’d let him own any part of her – least of all her heart. He kept waiting for her to turn her cold-hearted disdain in his direction. He was still young in her world and he rarely carried guns. Despite the incredible strength of his hybrid body, in his heart he was still a doctor and not a warrior.
It was beyond his understanding but the look never came. Sometimes Selene would look at him in bewildered confusion when they were alone and she was feeling vulnerable. It was as if she didn’t know why herself. That vulnerability was in her eyes now but there was a fierce desire that she no longer bothered to hide. Michael had to remind himself to breathe.
He leaned forward to kiss her in the dark, sleazy bar while a dying light bulb flickered overhead. It wasn’t much of a wedding reception but Michael decided that he’d prefer celebrating with Selene and a handful of Lycans in a low-grade bar than marrying some freckle-nosed girl in pastels who was only after his surgeon’s salary.
She kissed him back firmly until he wondered who had really begun the kiss. As her hand slid up his arm to cup the back of his head, he could hear Pierce and Taylor whistling in approval. Then the two Lycan warriors stumbled away to find a corner of their own to collapse in.
Selene pulled away from Michael’s lips and began to kiss her way down his jaw line and to his neck. He sighed at the sensation, his hands pulling her closer. He looked over the top of her head, trying to count their companions. At least three other Lycans were sprawled in hysterical mirth in the booth next to Michael and Selene’s. Raze had disappeared and Pierce and Taylor seemed to have passed out in a tangled heap in another booth. Lucian sat alone at the bar, hunched over and nursing a glass of neat rum. Michael had jokingly suggested that whiskey was more appropriate for a lone wolf. Lucian had sighed and told him to go back to his bride.
Michael felt Selene drag her fangs along his neck. He jumped and looked down to find her looking at him somewhat reproachfully.
“Distracted?” she asked casually.
There was a thinly veiled intensity in her eyes that warned Michael not to ignore the question.
“Only momentarily,” he told her.
He immediately set to making amends with kisses and wandering hands until she let her head flop back to expose her neck. He was touched by the display of trust as neither of them knew whether his bite might prove fatal to her.
He was busily kissing the offered neck when Raze appeared at his elbow. Selene’s head snapped up so quickly she nearly hit the top of Michael’s head with her chin.
“Come with me,” said Raze bluntly, smirking at some unknown humour. “We have a surprise.”
Michael looked around at the word ‘we’ and saw Lucian had turned from the bar and was watching the conversation. Michael stood, dragging Selene upright with him. He approached Lucian and the Lycan leader smiled at him as he approached. The smile was meant to be genuine but the melancholy never quite lifted from Lucian’s eyes.
“Where are we going?” asked Michael.
“My dear Michael,” said Lucian smoothly, and Michael was worried by the cultured demeanour. “It’s a surprise.”
Lucian and Raze turned and walked out of the bar. Michael and Selene followed, stepping over several drunken Lycans on the way. Michael could almost see Selene calculating all the potential outcomes of this unexpected development. For her the world was a battlefield and there was no worse sin than inattention to detail.
They were led to Lucian’s car where Raze ushered the three of them in. While Raze climbed in the driver’s seat, Lucian made a point of sliding along to the opposite end of the backseat. He stared out of the window and deliberated ignored the newlywed couple as they joined him.
Michael and Selene sat uncomfortably on the expensive seats. At first, Michael could not fathom why Lucian was ignoring them. He reached for Selene’s hand and curled his fingers around hers. Selene squeezed his hand and then pulled him close for a kiss. Michael hesitated and shot a sideways glance at Lucian. Lucian was still staring out the window, inviting the couple to do what they wished during the short drive. Raze kept his eyes on the road. Michael returned Selene’s kiss.
When they reached their destination shortly after, Raze’s amused grin could be seen in the rear-view mirror. Michael suspected he had not been as scrupulous as Lucian in ignoring them. Michael frowned disapprovingly at Raze which simply amused Raze more.
Lucian climbed out of the car and held the door open for the couple to exit. Michael was worried by the uncharacteristic display by the normally proud man.
“Lucian, are you okay?” said Michael quietly, leaning forward on the car seat.
As he watched Lucian preparing a smooth response, Michael added, “Seriously.”
Lucian’s eyes softened, “I’ll be fine, cub. I’m depressed, not drunk.”
“Why?” said Michael.
“I don’t enjoy weddings.”
“Oh.”
To counter any other response Michael could have made, Lucian dangled a set of keys in front of Michael’s face. Still holding Selene’s hand, Michael climbed out of the car and took the keys blankly.
“We booked you a motel room,” explained Lucian, his usual haunted look lifting slightly at the absurdity of the situation. “We thought it would be nicer than spending your wedding night in the new lair given its lack of doors – lockable or otherwise. Your room has heavy shutters to keep the sunlight out so the two of you can stay there a full twenty-four hours if you wish.”
Michael blinked, “Lucian… I don’t know what to say.”
“Thank you,” said Selene.
It wasn’t a suggestion or a gushing seal of approval, just a statement of fact. Lucian nodded in acknowledgement of Selene and handed Michael a scrap of paper.
“This is Raze’s mobile number,” said Lucian. “Ring him when you’re ready to come home.”
Michael held the grubby piece of paper like it was a precious lifeline.
“Lucian,” he said, finally finding his voice. “Thank you, and take care of yourself.”
Lucian smiled bleakly, “Don’t worry about me, cub. I’m off to get properly drunk now that the two of you have been seen to.”
Lucian’s tone was light but his gaze shifted to Selene and the haunted look returned. Michael turned away but Lucian seized his arm with a sudden grip.
“Michael…,” said Lucian, for once uncertain of his words. “Look after her. Don’t let anything or anyone tear you apart.”
“I won’t,” promised Michael.
“Oh good,” said Lucian, regaining both his composure and the bittersweet smile. “Enjoy yourselves and go easy on the furniture.”
“We’ll be fine,” said Selene quietly, tightening her grip on Michael’s hand and leading him towards the motel room.
Michael only looked back over his shoulder once before they reached the room. It was long enough to see Lucian respond to Raze’s call and return to the car. The Lycan Master and his bodyguard drove away and left the lovers to their own devices.
As Michael buried himself in his wife, he held her tightly in his arms.
“I won’t let anything happen to you,” he told her.
Her face creased into a wry smile, “It’s not me I’m worried about. You’re the push-over.”
“I am not,” said Michael irritably.
She raised a disbelieving eyebrow at him and he pounced, tickling and kissing mercilessly until she laughed. It wasn’t wry or sarcastic or bittersweet but a full-bellied, unrestrained laugh and the sound told Michael all he needed to know. They would be all right.
THE END
