Page 59 of November Reign
“We do. It’s more than friendship. I want to protect him. We didn’t plan on having kids. We can have more biological children, but it felt more important to make Barr family. His siblings gave their permission now that their parents are gone.”
Judging by Barr’s face, I didn’t want to ask why. It was none of my business and I didn’t want to open old wounds.
“Congratulations!” I said, folding Barr, then Damon, and of course, Mori, into hugs. “I’m happy for you all.”
“What about the other question, Mama?” Mori asked Dessi. She was taking photos of the occasion.
“They said yes!”
Barr pinned those liquid brown eyes on his new fathers. “Can we go now? All of us?”
Damon looked at Mori before answering. “You’ll have to ask the others, but we’ll come. Wouldn’t miss it.”
“What’s happening?” Parker demanded. “First Damon is a dad, so I’m now an uncle, and now we’re going somewhere? What’s happening?”
“The kings and queens of our realm have agreed to give not only Barr royal status, but his chosen mate too.”
“Do you want to come with me to ask Jorgoth to be mated? If he says yes—“
“Of course he’ll say yes,” Dessi cut in. “He’s smitten with you! Becoming royal will be a plus of course, but he’ll do it because it’s you asking.”
Barr’s smile was bashful. “Okay, do you want to be witnesses for the first part?”
“Of course! Can’t miss our son getting mated, can we?” Damon grinned. “We’ll just go celebrate while you two… consummate it.”
Damon may have become a father, but he would never be serious.
Making a stop at my room was important. There was no way I was going to a bonding ceremony in training gear!
“Here,” Damon said, waiting for me when I got to my room. Damn he was fast. He handed me a suit bag. “This should fit you.”
“How?”
“I had it made for you. Mori and I have been waiting for this news for a few days now, so we had time to prepare. I knew Barr would want us all there, so took the liberty of arranging proper clothing for us all.”
“Damon… that’s so sweet!” my brother/son, yeah, I hadn’t decided on a title for him, flushed with pleasure at the compliment.
“Oak has one too. Try not to pass out at the sight of him in a suit, we have a bonding to get to.” There was the Damon I knew and loved.
“Right. Won’t be long.”
To keep up appearances, Oak’s clothes were in his room, so he’d headed there to change.
The suit Damon had picked out for me was navy blue with a subtle silver pinstripe. The shirt was a pale blue so light it was almost white and there was a silver silk tie. As I expected with Damon’s love of suits, it was impeccably made, cut to flatter every line of my body. Somehow it made me look taller.
My black boots, the ones I escaped the last coven house in, looked great with the suit, which was just as well since I didn’t have anything else. Either Damonhad forgotten about shoes, or he intended for me to wear the boots.
Nerves hit me as I walked towards the foyer. I’d only been to the demon realm once, and we’d only stayed at Toth’s castle for a little while before returning to Northarbor, so I wasn’t sure how I’d be received there. Cody was half demon and Damon had been human at first. Now he was mated to a demon, so demonkin were more inclined to treat him well. Me and Oak? We were witches through and through. Our kind enslaved demons in contracts. Would we be welcome there?
Seeing Oak in a suit made my brain go offline temporarily. Instead of his usual half up style, he’d gathered all of his hair into a messy bun. I wanted to touch it. His suit was charcoal in color with the same pinstripe as mine. Like with my suit, his shirt was so light gray it was nearly white. He also wore a silver tie. Damon had gone to efforts to match us but also make us individual enough to match our personalities. In Oak’s colors, I would have looked like I was going to a funeral. The navy brought out the blue of my eyes and made me look less pale. Charcoal would have washed me out.
Oak’s suit emphasized the width of his shoulders and his slender waist. His golden skin looked luminous. His dark gray eyes met mine. They filled with heat as he took me in.
“You look—“
“Alright, keep it in your pants! We’ve got a bonding to get to.” Damon waltzed into the foyer in a very snazzy jacquard suit in a lovely blue color, a mid blue with a light pattern overlay. He and Mori matched. Barr’s suit was the opposite of Damon’s with the pattern in the darker color that dominated their suits, with the lighter base.
“Photos!” Dessi demanded. “You all look so wonderful!”
