Page 64 of His Noble Savior

“I can’t wait to be one with you.” Richard placed his right hand on Lilian’s lower abdomen.

The touch was possessive in the best way. Only Richard was allowed to put his hands on him. Lilian longed to be claimed by him for good. He was giving himself to Richard, holding nothing back. That familiar scent of sandalwood and leather engulfed him, and every part of him let go. He moved his hand next to Richard’s in anticipation of the placement of their wedding marks.

The fae officiant stepped forward and spoke the ceremonial words. “Today, you will bear witness to the wedding of Lord Richard Dalton of Somerdale and Lilian of the Spring Court. The magic of the spring forest shall bind their souls.”

Anticipation fluttered through Lilian. What would it feel like to connect with Richard on the deepest level? How would their relationship change when the last barrier came down?

“Richard of Somerdale,” the fae officiant said, “do you vow to honor and protect your husband and stay by his side in life and death?”

Pride straightened Richard’s back. “I do.”

“And Lilian, do you vow to honor and obey your husband and stay by his side in life and death?”

That and more. “I do.”

The officiant nodded at an attendant, who stepped forward with a light pink silk cushion, upon which sat the biggest cherry blossom Lilian had ever seen. Had it been enlarged by magic?

The fae officiant scooped up the blossom—it was almost thesize of her palm. The flower erupted in a peachy glow. When it subsided, the blossom had turned into flattened, wafer-thin copper. Light skated off the curved petals. The fae took the flower between her palms, and when she parted them, she held two identical copper blossoms.

“May your souls unite and your marriage be blissful,” the fae officiant said and cupped the backs of their hands.

The copper was hot as embers, but it didn’t hurt when she pressed it to Lilian’s hand. It sank into his skin, and when the officiant withdrew, nothing remained but the copper outline of the cherry blossom on the back of his hand. The metal glistened in the light, resting flat in his skin.

The bond came onto Lilian like a wave rolling toward the shore. It rose as a presence in the distance, grew as it approached, and when it washed over him, it carried him out to sea. He floated in an ocean of love. Warmth engulfed him. Lilian sank into it, euphoria bubbling up. The ocean embraced him tenderly, and that was when he recognized it. The ocean was Richard. He was all around him, inside him, and Lilian dissolved in his presence, becoming one with him.

They pulsed, and nothing existed but pure, unadulterated love and bright rapture, a climax of the soul. The sensations reversed, and Lilian enwrapped Richard, cradling his innermost being. His soul made love to Richard’s before they blended again, two people becoming one. They fused, merging until nothing could separate them.

Their eyes snapped open, and for a split second, Lilian saw himself from Richard’s point of view—lying splayed on an altar for him, a silver-embroidered, white robe covering his body, his blond locks slung over one shoulder. Lilian snapped back into his body and found Richard staring at him, eyes wide with wonder and full of adoration.

The deep feeling of comfort stayed. Richard was around him,his soul penetrating Lilian’s. His sandalwood scent intensified, and where his hand rested on Lilian’s lower stomach, a heat drenched with love and lust dropped into his core. They irrevocably belonged to one another.

Lilian placed a hand on Richard’s nape. “You’re mine.”

“Yes.” Tears of joy pooled in Richard’s eyes.

Someone cleared their throat, and only then did Lilian remember that they weren’t alone, that an entire wedding party was looking at them. Oh. The world was easy to forget when Richard was with him and in him in ways Lilian had no words for. He sat up and glided into Richard’s arms. Richard helped him off the altar, every touch reaching deep into his soul.

The fae officiant drifted into the background, and the priestess stepped forward. Richard kneeled on a cushion that an attendant had brought in his and Lilian’s momentary mental absence. Following Richard’s lead, Lilian sank to his knees for the priestess. Fae weren’t brought up in the faith of the Lady, but it was of enormous importance to humans, and Lilian had nothing but respect for the beliefs of hishusband. Damn, he loved that word.

“The Lady has witnessed the creation of a bond and she approves,” the human priestess said. “You have accepted the eternal terms of this union, and thus you are married in the eyes of the church, the Lady and the people. I pronounce you husband and husband. May the Lady bless your marriage; may you live under her shield.” She lifted her hands to signal Lilian and Richard to stand. “Let this union be sealed with a kiss.”

They rose as one, Lilian sensing Richard’s every move a split second before it happened. Turning toward each other, Lilian lost himself in Richard’s eyes, and once more, their surroundings faded.

The bond didn’t reveal each other’s thoughts to them, but emotions flowed freely. Lilian had known Richard loved him,but he couldn’t have imagined the depth of those feelings. Or how all-encompassing they were. When Richard had said he’d do anything for Lilian, he’d meant it. He’d doanything. It was as terrifying as it was awe-inspiring.

Lilian felt the same. He gathered his protective, caring feelings and clad them in determination before sending them to Richard through the bond. Lilian saw the moment they hit him. Richard’s jaw slackened. Oh yes. Richard wasn’t the only one who’d burn down the world for their love.

In a heartbeat, Richard’s hands were on his waist. The touch felt so good, Lilian’s knees buckled. He sank his hands into Richard’s curls, and his lids closed as he pressed up against him.

The moment their lips brushed was like a lightning bolt hitting them. They were on fire. They were the wind. The strength of their connection robbed them of their senses. In each other’s arms, nothing and no one else mattered. The world couldn’t touch them. In this bubble of their own, everything was in harmony.

Their lips parted at once, and sweet mercy, all of Richard wrapped around him, his soul embracing and caressing Lilian’s. He responded, penetrating Richard’s core, and they melded.

Their tongues met, and that wet, hot slide was going to be their end. In an unimportant corner of their minds, a small voice said that they should keep the kiss polite, but their freshly bonded souls were far too hungry for each other, yearning to unite. They kissed like starving men ate food: ravenously and uninhibited.

Urgency slammed into Lilian, and it ricocheted through Richard. He needed Richard, and he needed him now.

Lilian tore away at the last minute before losing all restraint. His fingers had slipped into Richard’s waistband while Richard’s leg pressed into the space between his thighs, his hand fisting Lilian’s robe. They separated with reluctance, Lilian catching aglimpse of the furiously blushing virginal priestess before she quickly scuffled through a side door. The poor woman.

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