to him.
The rest was just vocabulary—and a little fun and games with some daggers and salt.
Well, and also, thanks to Bitty and the fallen angel, what looked like some really good frickin’ cake.
It was a blur, a total blur—
“Qhuinn?” Blay whispered. “You there?”
“What? Oh, sorry.” With a much louder voice, he said, “I do!”
Laughter rippled through the crowd, and Blay leaned in again. “We already did that.”
“We did?” Qhuinn flushed. “Then let’s get to it with the blades!”
They passed the young back to Xcor and Layla, and then they went to the two black mats that had been laid out in front of the table.
“You have chosen two to assist you,” Wrath said in the Old Language. “I would ask them to step forward at this time.”
John Matthew and Zsadist broke ranks and walked around the table. Both were smiling as they each picked up one of the black daggers.
Qhuinn and Blay sank down onto their knees. As they planted their palms on the mats, they were facing each other.
And yup, Qhuinn was very aware of the shit-eating grin on his face. God, he wanted this so badly.
“Blaylock, son of Rocke, I ask you, what is the name of your hellren?” Wrath said.
Blay’s eyes were so beautiful as he spoke. “He is Qhuinn. My beloved . . . is Qhuinn.”
“And Qhuinn, blooded sire of Rhampage and Lyric, what is the name of your hellren?”
Qhuinn had to clear a sudden lump in his throat. “He is Blaylock. My one and only love is Blaylock.”
John Matthew stepped up to Blay. Z did the same for Qhuinn.
Qhuinn and Blay held each other’s stare without wincing as the carving happened, the letters of their names inscribed in the flesh across the tops of their shoulders. And then Tohrment poured the salt, first on Blay and then on Qhuinn.
Not once, for even a moment, did either of them look away.
As their names became permanent in their skin.
And their hearts, already paired forever, swelled with love.
“Oh, thank you, Father,” Blay said as he embraced his dad. “And Mahmen, I’m so glad you’re here!”
As Lyric threw her arms around him, she squeezed the air out of his lungs. “As if we would ever have missed this! Finally! Now, where are my grand-babies?”
“Over there, by the Christmas tree in the library.”
Lyric hooked her hellren’s elbow. “Let’s go! I have to hold my young. And I think I want one of those.”
Rocke blanched. “A young?”
“No, silly. A Christmas tree. They’re awfully pretty, and when the kids come, I want them to feel at home.”
As Rocke rolled his eyes and kissed his mate, he winked at Blay. “Whatever you want, darling.”
“That’s the right answer, my love,” Lyric said as they walked off through the crowd. “You are such a smart male.”
All around the foyer, people were talking with animation, drinking spirits, eating—
“Bitty!” Blay called out. “Hey, Bitty—”
The girl came skipping over in her bright yellow party dress, all flounces and smiles. “You’re mated!” she exclaimed as she threw herself at him. “I’m so happy!”
Blay hugged the young and set her back down on her patent leather Mary Janes. “I just wanted you to know, I think you did a great job with the planning of all this.”
“And Uncle Blay, we have a wedding cake!” She pointed to where the five-layer, chocolate- and vanilla-frosted creation had been set on a platform. “This is your wedding, and that’s the cake, so that’s a wedding cake!”
Blay smiled. “You are awesome, do you know that?”
“My dad tells me that all the time.” She frowned. “And I better go make sure Lassiter’s okay. He was worried about the cake—that you wouldn’t like it because of the two-colored frosting. So I’ll let him know it’s just fine.”
“It’s perfect. Tell him it’s perfect.”
“Roger that.”
The girl danced off, skipping around Phury and Cormia, dashing by Manny and Payne, dodging past Wrath and Beth, who were sharing a kiss over L.W.’s head.
“Hey, hellren.”
Blay started to smile even before he turned his head. Qhuinn had come up right next to him—and it was weird. Even though nothing had changed, the formality, the carvings in the back, the whole process of confirming their love in front of their community, made it all feel so different. In a good way.
“Hi, hellren.”
And then they both smiled like idiots.
Absolute idiots.
“Hey listen, can you come over here,” Qhuinn said. “You know, to the bathroom—and no, not for nookie.”
“Yeah, right.”
“No, I mean it. It’s not for . . . you know.” As Blay laughed, Qhuinn tilted