He was about to say something to contradict her, but the pure joy on his mate’s face made him stop. Instead, he put one arm around his grandmother, and another around his mate, then looked up to the heavens to watch a true Christmas miracle happen.
Epilogue
One year later …
The snow-covered grounds of Blackstone Castle were the perfect setting for a Christmas wedding, as if it was all laid out and planned, and not even the season and weather could go against the bride’s wishes.
“Are you ready—hey, stop peeking!” Damon admonished. “Cam is out there, he’ll see you.”
J.D. let out an impatient sound and whipped around. “Aww, I just wanted a peek. I didn’t have time to look at the setup because Anna Victoria had me up at the crack of dawn to get me ready.”
Gabriel pulled her away from the window of the second-floor anteroom right above the patio. “You’ll see it in five minutes when you walk down the aisle.”
“Aww, this sucks. I can’t even watch you all walking out.” She put on a pout.
“Yeah, well, you’re the bride. Comes with the territory.” He dragged her to the sofa. “Now sit and behave.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “Fine.”
The wedding coordinator, a bespectacled young man named Finn peeked his head in. “We’re about to start, if you wouldn’t mind following me downstairs …”
“Er, I need a minute!” she cried.
“A minute?” Gabriel said incredulously. “You’ve done nothing but complain the last couple months that this moment couldn’t come soon enough, and now you need a minute?”
“It’s uh … a girl thing! Please. I swear, I just have to adjust … something.” She glanced down at her breasts.
Gabriel rolled his eyes. “Fine. Don’t be too long, okay?”
Damon sent her a warning look as he walked toward the door with Gabriel. “You behave now, okay?”
“Yes, mom,” she mocked. “Go. I’ll be down in a sec. Finn will make sure I’m there, right?”
“Once you hear the music, start making your way down, and that should leave you plenty of time,” Finn said before he and the two other men left the room.
Once they were gone, J.D. shot to her feet. Finally! Picking up the skirts of her gown, she rushed back to the window to look out onto the patio again. She was so glad Matthew Lennox had agreed to let them have the wedding and reception here in Blackstone Castle. But then again, as the dragon shifter had said, they were family now.
God, she still couldn’t believe that she was getting married. But here they were.
Pushing her nose up to the window, she peered down into the garden. The decor was holiday themed, of course, with red, green, and gold as the main colors, and the castle was bedecked with ribbons, holly, evergreen, and wreaths inside and out. Chairs were laid out in rows on the great stone patio, leaving an aisle in the middle. At the end of the aisle was a raised dais, and instead of a typical arbor, two Christmas trees flanked the black-robed judge waiting for the bride and groom. And of course, the spectacular Blackstone Mountains stood as the perfect backdrop for the scene.
The orchestra began to play Canon in D, and everyone settled in their seats. Cam, looking abso-fucking-lutely hot in his formal tux, came out first, followed by his best man, Anders. It was hard to think that a year ago Cam and Anders were the most bitter of enemies due to their opposite natures. But somehow, they met in the middle, shared many patrols together, and were now the best of friends. Cam had said that in their time together, he’d learned that Anders truly was an honorable and admirable man. Though if anyone were to ask the tiger shifter, he would say that it was mostly because Cam had finally gotten that stick out of his ass.
When they finished their walk and stood at the dais, it was time for the three flower girls and ring bearer to make their appearance. The more senior flower girls, Temperance and Her Highness, Princess Natalia of Zaratena, walked hand in hand as they scattered flower petals on the aisle. However, since the last two of their party, Aiden Stevens and Lila Cooper, were still only a few months old and couldn’t walk, they were carried in by their mothers.
They were followed by the two bridesmaids, Sarah and Dutchy, who were, coincidentally, both in the advanced stages of pregnancy. Their mates, who partnered