Page 55 of Amaris Rejected

“So, I ask you now—will you marry me, not just in this life, but also for the next? I promise to cherish every moment, to be the man you deserve, and never to take you or this love for granted again."

“Devon,” she laughs, “we’re already married!”

“Yes, my love, we are,” I remind her. “But we never had a bonding ceremony. “Do you know what today is?”

“No?”

“It’s the anniversary of the day we met, the day we signed those bonding papers, became husband and wife, mates, and created our pups.”

Tears well in my eyes and trail down my cheeks. “Ugh!” I growl. “My makeup.”

“You’re still beautiful,” he says, capturing my mouth with his and pulling me against him as he stands. “So, what do you say? Want to do this tonight?”

“Tonight?” I repeat breathless.

“It’s all set up.” He gestures behind him, and that’s when I see the altar, draped in roses with fairy lights weaving a canopy overhead. The moonlit lake glimmers in the background.

“It’s beautiful,” I sob. “You did all this for me?”

“Yes, love. Now say you’ll marry me,” he pleads.

“Yes,” I whisper, pressing my lips tenderly to his. Shocked, he hesitates only for a moment before eagerly responding.

“Yes,” I sigh, pulling him closer and deepening our connection to get a better taste of him.

“Yes!” I moan, my lips meeting his again, lost in the sensation, making promises I want to keep.

“She said yes!” Devon shouts joyfully.

Laughter and applause, along with a few wolf whistles, erupt around us, and I take in the sight of our friends, family, and packmates gathered in the clearing.

Devon takes the ring from the box and slips it onto my finger; it fits perfectly. “Amaris,” he begins, his voice quiet and almost reverent, “this ring is more than just a symbol of my love for you. It’s an heirloom, passed down through my family from mother to daughter, from one strong woman to the next. It was my mother’s, and before her, it belonged to her mother, and so on for many generations. I was hoping you would wear it, and one day pass it down to our Zoe."

“It’s lovely, Devon,” she sighs. “I’m speechless.”

“So, let’s get married, my love.”

“Um, Devon, there’s something I need to share with you,” she says, her gaze filled with apprehension as she looks at me.

“What is it, baby?”

“You know I’d been on an extended course of Amra, the drug that helps with Rejected Mate Syndrome, right?”

“Yes?”

“Well, I’ve discovered another negative side effect,” she says, looking up at me guiltily.

“What’s that?” he asks, worriedly.

“Recent trials show that in some females, it stays in the system long after discontinued use.”

“And why is that a problem for you?”

“It negates birth control,” I admit.

“What exactly does that mean?”

“You know, we became intimate again about a month after getting back together.”

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