Eternal Promise (Between Worlds Book 3) (22 page)

“Yes. My cousins make special fruit you eat and it gives you the ability to see the faery realm.”

“Angela, you’re okay with our underage daughter getting married?”

“She’s happy, Max. That’s all I ever wanted. Of course I would prefer that she finish school and have a career, but we both know she’s special—and she obviously loves Kallan.”

“Dad, I want you to walk me down the aisle. Please?”

Dad’s eyes glistened. “Okay.”

“Okay? You’ll come?”

He didn’t respond for what seemed like hours. Finally he nodded, resigned. “It would be an honor to walk you down the aisle.” He looked at Kallan. “And to have you as a son-in-law.”

“When is the ceremony?”

“Tomorrow.”

Both their eyes widened. “Are you pregnant?”

“No! We haven’t even—” I took a deep breath. “I’m not pregnant. We just can’t wait to be married.” That wasn’t a lie.

Dad was muttering under his breath. “Unbelievable…seventeen…married…”

I waited patiently, trying to give them a few minutes to digest what I had just told them.

“So I don’t even have a few weeks to let this sink in?” Dad asked.

I shook my head. “No. You have to come tonight.”

My father glanced from me to Kallan. “It’s not that I don’t like you, Kallan. I just think this is too fast and you’re both too young.”

“You love Mom, right?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“If you could’ve married her sooner, would you have?”

“Absolutely, but how do you know this will last?”

“We know.” My eyes locked with Kallan’s.

Dad blew out a long breath before finally nodding and said, “Fine. We’ll be there.”

I grinned and took out the fruit Nessa and Violet made and placed it on the table. “One for each of you. Eat it within the hour and someone will be here to escort you in. Dad, you’ll see everything. All sorts of creatures. Please try not to be weird.”

He nodded. “I’ll do my best.”

I stood up. “I need to tell Sierra.”

Mom hugged me again. “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

Drake had waited for us outside and the three of us got in my mom’s car and I drove over to Sierra’s. I texted when we got there.
Come outside.

She didn’t respond, but a minute later the door flung open and she grinned seeing the three of us.

I held out the fruit in my hand. Sierra’s face lit up. “Am I going to the faery realm?”

“It’s not a permanent solution. Just for the day,” I explained.

“Better than nothing.”

“Sierra, there’s something I want to ask you.”

“What?” Her hand played with Drake’s.

“Will you be my maid of honor?”

Her eyes registered confusion then surprise. “You’re getting married?”

“Yes.”

“When?”

“Tomorrow.”

“Oh my God! Yes! Yes! Of course I will!” She flung her arms around me and squeezed. “I can’t believe it. I mean I can…but wow! We need to shop. And get our hair done.”

“No. No. No. All that will be taken care of. I just need you to eat so we can go.”

Sierra grinned and shoved the fruit in her mouth.

“We have to get back. Why don’t you guys take your time, but could you pick up my parents on the way?”

“Sure.”

“Don’t be too long. We have to get ready. The ceremony is at dawn.”

Sierra hugged me. “We’ll be right behind you…after a little lip action.”

Drake’s face turned bright red and I laughed. We drove back to my parents’ home and walked off into the forest. We spent the next hour listening to faeries give us ceremony and party ideas, helping pick what we wanted, and I finally said, “I just want to marry this guy. I’m sure whatever you pick will be perfect.” I smiled sincerely and walked away.

Kallan followed. “You okay?”

“Overwhelmed. Making decisions about all that stuff is already hard when you have months to plan for it, but then at least you have time and can make it fun. The little details aren’t as important to me as having my parents and Sierra there. That’s all I need.”

“Here come your parents now.”

I followed his gaze. Drake and Sierra walked out of the forest with my parents. The looks on their faces were priceless. My mother was in awe and my father was…speechless. When she saw me, she opened her arms and I ran to her. “Hi, guys. Welcome.” I hugged my dad too. “You doing okay, Dad? You look a little pale.”

“I’m taking things one step at a time.”

“Literally,” my mother said. “It took us a long time to get here.”

I laughed. “Just open your mind, Dad.”

“I’m trying…for you.”

We had a feast for dinner. Apparently a tradition. My dad ate every food he could get his hands on. He was gobbling it up like there was no tomorrow.

“You’re going to gain a hundred pounds, Max!” Mom teased, poking Dad in the gut.

“But did you taste the food? It’s delicious!”

“Are you saying my cooking is bad?”

“No! No! Not at all.”

“Bet if you were a faery, you wouldn’t be able to say that.”

Dad’s face turned red and I interrupted. “The food here is incredible. The best restaurant in the world couldn’t compare.”

Azura saved the day by introducing Móraí and Maimeó to my parents. I mouthed a thank you to her and she nodded.

Kallan stayed as long as he could before taking me in his arms and whispering in my ear, “Tomorrow we will be married. Tomorrow I will take you home. Tomorrow is the first day of forever.”

His hot breath tickled my ear. “I hate waiting.”

“One more day, my love. I will let you get ready in peace tomorrow. If you need me, just tell me.”

“Be careful. I still worry about Satine.”

“Maybe she did die in that twister?”

“Maybe…” I shivered. I highly doubted that Satine was dead.

I scanned the perimeter one last time before going inside. I knew the guards were keeping watch, but I still felt vulnerable.

That night Violet insisted I sleep in curlers. She was the one in charge of doing my hair for the wedding. Sierra was sleeping with me and my parents had the guest room. The arrangements were a little on the odd side, but it worked. I could hear my parents’ voices, so I knew they weren’t sleeping.

I only had a few hours to sleep. The wedding was to take place just before dawn so the moonlight and sunlight would hit the stone at the same time. I closed my eyes and tried to sleep. I tossed and turned, and counted sheep. Nothing helped.

Sierra propped up on her elbows. “Did you really think you’d sleep the night before your wedding?”

I laughed. “Guess not. You think it’s normal to be excited, scared, happy, and anxious at the same time?”

“Yes. Think of all the Lifetime movies we’ve watched.”

“It’s different when you’re the one going through it all.” I listened to the sounds of the night and then said, “I’m glad you’re here.”

“I wouldn’t be anywhere else.”

“I’m sorry I haven’t been around lately.”

“And I’m sorry for being jealous and acting out. I’m happy for you. You’re following your heart.”

“I haven’t forgotten about my promise to you.”

“I know. Focus on your wedding and honeymoon. Do you get one of those?”

“I don’t know. Probably not like humans do.” I still found it odd to not refer to myself as a human.

“Maybe you should. Go to Hawaii or something.”

“Maybe. We need to put the stone back in some temple first.”

“After that then.” She paused. “Just don’t forget about me.”

“Never.”

I fell asleep for an hour tops. Azura woke us up and said, “Rise and shine! It’s time to get ready.”

It seemed ridiculous getting ready in the dark, but we had to be ready with the stones at dawn.

“Would you like something to eat?” Azura asked.

“No, thank you. I’m too nervous.”

“I can help with that.” She disappeared and came back quickly with a small bottle. She dabbed something on her finger and placed it behind my ear. “Just a faery oil that will help with your anxiety.”

A sense of calmness washed over me. “Thanks.”

“Violet will be up shortly. I’ll get everybody else moving.”

I rubbed my eyes and stretched out my wings before jumping in the shower just to rinse off. I didn’t get my hair wet. For the first time since I put Kallan’s necklace on, I took it off.

Dressed in a robe, I walked back to my room where I could hear Sierra and Violet laughing.

You holding up okay?
Kallan’s sweet voice popped up in my head.

Yes. It’s time for me to get ready.

You’ll let me know if you need anything?

Of course. See you soon.

Violet waved me in. “Quickly.”

“I’ll go find Nessa and get ready,” Sierra said, walking out the door.

Violet guided me into a chair in front of my mirror, stood in back of me, and took the curlers out. Taking just a small part of my hair, she put in a headband braid. “Wearing a braid on your wedding day is a symbol of power and luck.” Then she pulled the hair on the sides of my head back and pinned it. She picked up a strand of flowers and weaved it into the curls she left flowing down the back of my hair.

Sierra stepped into my room dressed in a strapless teal dress with a high to low bottom and a sweetheart neckline. Her hands flew to her mouth. “Oh, Rylie! Your hair is perfect.”

“Thank you. You look gorgeous.”

“Nessa did an awesome job on me.” Sierra twirled so I could see everything. She had flowers throughout her hair too.

“Time to get dressed.” Violet helped me step into the soft-pink dress and pulled it up. There were no straps and the back was low to fit around my wings. The dress had cascading layers. The train was transparent pink and rosettes were bunched in the middle of my back as well as spread out down the train.

“My work here is done,” Violet said. “I’ll see you downstairs.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

Violet shut the door behind her. I stared at myself in the mirror. Even though, I hadn’t changed much physically, I almost didn’t recognize the girl staring back. I turned from the mirror and looked at Sierra. “I think I’m in shock. Is this really happening?”

Sierra smiled. “It is. You are getting your happily ever after.”

“I am.” I held out my hands and she took them. “Thank you for being my best friend and for sticking by my side.”

“Always.” She squeezed my hands. “Rylie, you really are heart-stopping beautiful.”

I laughed. “Thanks.”

“Can I take a pic on my phone?”

“Sure.”

Sierra stood next to me and held out her phone. We smiled and she snapped the picture. Standing there next to her made everything seem so right. Foreheads together and eyes closed, I said, “I love you, ya know?”

“I know. I love you too.”

There was a knock at the door. “Come in,” I called.

Both my moms walked in and their faces lit up. “You look absolutely beautiful,” Azura said.

“Stunning,” Mom agreed. “I have your something new.” She handed me a good-sized jewelry box. Inside was a stunning handcrafted sterling silver torc with white moonstones, diamonds, and pink Swarovski crystal teardrops.

“Oh…Mom…it’s gorgeous.”

Mom beamed and put it around my neck. “Perfect.”

Azura said, “I have something for you as well. These are a tradition to wear on your wedding day.” She handed me a box.

I opened it and found two black and blue strings of beads with a sun in the middle of each. I wasn’t quite sure what they were. “Where do I wear them?”

Azura took one out and bent down to my feet. “They’re barefoot sandals.” She slipped the small circle around my second toe and clasped the big part around my ankle. “The sun represents the light faery magick.”

“These are so neat. And it’s my something blue.”

Sierra interrupted, “I’m going to slip downstairs and check on things.”

I knew she was just giving me time with my moms. I faced them and said, “Thank you both so much.”

Azura smiled, tears in her eyes, and said, “You look exquisite. I’m so proud of you, everything you’ve done, and everything you will do.”

“You don’t know what I’ll do.”

“It doesn’t matter. I know you have a good heart and whatever you do will be for the good of things.”

“Thank you for having faith in me.”

“I can see how much you and Kallan love each other. Hold on to that love. “Cherish it.”

“I will.”

“I’ll take care of getting the stones to the ceremony.” Azura kissed me on the cheek and left me alone with my mom, who was sitting on my bed looking around my room.

“This room is perfect for you,” she said.

“Yeah.”

“You would have loved growing up here.”

“I loved growing up with you and Dad.”

Mom smiled. “I’m so happy for you, Rylie. Don’t think that I’m not. I’m sad that you’ve grown up so fast and that I won’t see you much—”

“You can see me whenever you want.”

Her eyes filled with tears. “You truly are beautiful, especially with those wings. I love being able to see you like this.” She reached out and took my hands. “I’m going to give you some motherly advice. Although I never thought I’d be saying these things so soon.”

I smiled and waited for her to tell me what she had to say.

“Live freely, don’t let others control you. Don’t put your dreams aside for anyone else. You are just as important as the rest of us. Love deeply, completely, with all your heart. Find the good in people. Don’t hate. And don’t forget to laugh.”

A tear fell down my cheek and I nodded. “I’ll remember.”

“You can always come home. You understand that?”

“Yes.” I threw my arms around her. “I love you, Mom.”

“I love you too. Don’t mess up your hair.”

Laughing, I sat back and wiped the tears away. “This feels like a dream.”

There was another knock at the door. Sierra peeked her head in. “Ready?”

I took a long, shuddering breath. I had no doubts about marrying Kallan. I just had the jitters. “Is it time?”

“Yes. Something about getting finished before the sun rises.”

Nodding, I stood up and glanced in the mirror. “Ready.”

Sierra ran in and grabbed my train. “After you,” she said.

I followed my mother out of my room and down the stairs. Both my grandmothers, my aunts, cousins, and Sierra filled the living room. The blood rushed to my cheeks.

“So…how am I getting to the waterfalls?” I asked.

“Abrax.”