Time was flying so fast these days—it seemed like I’d just heard my heartsong yesterday, and yet six months had gone by with him at my side. Every moment with Nathan was a gift, made better yet by the strength of our bond.

Our heartsong connected me to him in ways I’d never dreamed possible—it felt as though we’d always been together, and yet like every day was a new and refreshing experience with him at my side.

What was surprising was that time was flying so fast when we’d been living with a yard full of unicorns. There had been a time in my life when I would have scoffed at the idea, but now, it was second nature to me.

And, best of all, my brothers-at-arms had slowly become used to them, too—not that Mama Vee gave anyone a chance to do otherwise. These days, they truly felt as though they belonged here with us—an idea that would have had us rolling on the floor from full-out belly laughter not all that long ago.

I looked out the window as Sana adjusted my tie, bemused by the idea that we’d somehow formed a large mixed community with Nathan’s clan. My eyes flashed down to Sana, while these thoughts ran through my mind.

“Does it bother you and the others that they’re still here? Nathan’s family? I was just thinking that we’ve been living with them here for over six months, and they don’t bug me. Even if they are… unicorns.”

Sana chuckled. “I’m pretty sure we all got past that the first week they arrived here. Good thing, too, because I don’t think they’re planning to leave any time soon. Although, to be fair, they do have several very good reasons to stay.”

“That’s what I was just thinking! Do you think they’ve settled in to stay for the long term, or is Mama Vee just waiting for her grandson’s birth? Is the threat Orris presents playing a role in their decision to stay? They do have a son who’s given himself to the cause. But these days, Mama Vee seems less concerned about Beepee, and more concerned about Nathan.”

“I’m not sure which is the larger motivating force. Beepee’s secret mission and the baby are the obvious top choices, but between them? It’s hard to tell. Either way, don’t let it worry you. The rest of us are fine. We’ve long ago accepted your mate’s family, and honestly, now that I see how small-minded we’ve been, I’m glad that we’ve had the chance to know them. They’re good people, Brick. From what I’ve been able to gather, they don’t keep physical roots—that’s why they live in those old RVs. Their roots are in each other, and they all just move around whenever they fancy. For now, that means being here, where Nathan lives.” Sana shrugged and stepped back to take one last look at my outfit.

I turned and looked in the long mirror that stood by the dresser. The formal style for men in this time was strange, but I couldn’t deny that I looked good.

The dove-gray and white clothing I wore molded itself to my body and showed off my build in all the best ways. It would please Nathan to see me like this, I was sure.

“I look just like one of the men in those magazines that Vivian keeps around. How did you learn to fasten this tie, anyway? I must have fought with it for an eternity before you came in here to check on me.”

“You can thank Peter for that one—he went over it with me carefully until I had it down. Since Mama Vee wanted us all dressed up, he wanted to make sure we did it correctly. Blaze had no problems, naturally. He’s downstairs helping to set up the rest of the chairs with Nate’s brothers while Mama Vee rides herd over them all.”

I grinned over at Sana. “Rides herd? Was that a unicorn joke?”

Sana shrugged. “I don’t know—I’m quoting Mama Vee. She said if she wasn’t riding herd on them, nothing would get done right.”

I shook my head and headed for the door. “I’m glad she took over this whole wedding affair. I know that Nathan wanted to plan it himself, but he’s been so tired from the pregnancy.”

Sana frowned slightly. “Speaking of that, I’m going to pop in and check on him now. I want to make sure his iron levels aren’t dipping again. I wish they’d have let me get him on a supplement. I don’t understand their issue with medications, or what exactly is in that powder Mama Vee keeps on hand. Although—and I hate to admit this—the stuff has worked well to keep Nathan healthy.”

“Nathan told me that Mama Vee had problems with human doctors when she was younger, and that she doesn’t trust them. That’s the only hang-up, I think.” I stepped out into the hall, looking wistfully toward the guest suite where Mama Vee had insisted that Nathan spend the night before our wedding.

She had a superstitious belief that if we spent it together, it would have brought us bad luck. My dragon and I hadn’t cared for that at all. I’d thought to sneak in and join him after everyone was in bed, but my plans had been ruined when I’d discovered that Mama Vee had spent the night with her son, just to ensure that didn’t happen.

Sana clapped me on the shoulder and pushed me toward the stairs. “Go on, head down and report to Mama Vee. You’ll see him soon enough, Daddy. In the meantime, I’ll go check on him and make sure he’s good for the wedding. If need be, I’ll revitalize his blood to give him temporary extra strength, but I doubt it will be necessary.”

Reluctantly, I nodded and went downstairs, choosing to ignore Sana’s Daddy remark. There were other things to focus on. The next half hour was a blur, and I was pulled in one direction and then the other, until finally I was standing out in the back yard while Stanley played music on an instrument that I’d been told was called an accordion. His new mate stood at his side.

I stood beneath a large arch that had been erected in front of the rows of rented chairs. The arch was practically dripping with a large variety of yellow flowers and low-hanging vines, the different shades of green and yellow breathtaking. A long yellow carpet ran over the green grass, creating an aisle between the seats that led straight toward the house.

Almost every unicorn shifter was in their beast form, arranged in a circle around us, while their human mates, the children, my draconian family, and their mates were all seated.

Mama Vee sat in the front row between Vivian and Nana on the left side of the aisle, while Cory and Emery sat on the right with Blaze, Sam, Sana, and Peter.

Their babies were all in a large playpen off to the side, being watched over by a pair of young teens—likely another of Mama Vee’s ideas so their parents could enjoy the ceremony.

Everyone stood and turned as a brilliant white unicorn came strutting around from the side of the house, Nathan sitting sideways on its back. He wore a dove-gray suit like my own, but where I was in a tie and what I’d been told was called a cummerbund, Nathan had a vest under his suit coat with its small pearl buttons straining against his large belly. His golden curls shone in the sunlight, making him look every bit the angel that I already knew him to be.

By the time the unicorn made its slow walk up the short aisle, I was already blinking away tears of joy. Cory stepped forward and helped Nathan down from the unicorn’s back, escorting him the few short steps to my side.

After giving us both a quick hug, Cory went back to his seat while Mama Vee led the unicorn, who I now realized must have been Ernie, around behind the the arch, just out of sight.

Annie Lee, as Saint Anley was now known, began to sing the most beautiful song about time being put into a bottle, while her new man, Stanley, played his accordion in accompaniment.

By the time she’d finished the song, Ernie stepped through the arch from the back side, dressed in a long red satin robe, while Mama Vee ducked back around to her seat.

“Alright, then. Thank ya, Annie Lee and Stanley, that was a right nice song.” Ernie nodded to the pair so they could take their seats for now. “Dearly beloved, we be here today to bear witness to my boy Natty here as he takes his man fer a husband. Anyone got a problem wit that?”

I smiled as Ernie took a moment to look around, then nodded before continuing. “Natty, yer mama and me are right proud of ya. Yer a good boy, and ya picked a good man. We don’t care none that he’s a dragon, since these ones ain’t been uppity a’tall. Do ya promise ta love him ferever?”

“I do, Pappy.” Nathan smiled happily as he nodded so hard, his springy curls bounced around his head.

“Alright then.” Ernie turned to me. “Brick, all’s I want ta hear is that ya love my boy with all yer heart, and that ya plan to be good ta him ferever. And a good pappy ta my granbaby, too.”

“I promise to do nothing less, sir. I love Nathan with every breath I take, and every beat of my heart. I will love our children with all that is in me as well.”

I knew the unicorns didn’t fully understand the depth of our dragon’s heartsong. If they did, he’d never had to have asked that question. Either that, or it was part of the ceremony—a custom I didn’t understand. It didn’t matter. My vow was the same. I would love Nathan forever.

“Alright, then. By the power of the state of Californy and the blessin’s of the inter-webs that gave me that power, I pronounce y’all married. Go on and kiss, but don’t make a spectacle of yerselfs. They’s kids present.”

I bit back a chuckle at Ernie’s words and turned to pull Nathan into my arms. I looked into his deep green eyes and once again felt what I always felt when I looked at him—like I was home.

I pressed a tender kiss to his forehead, a soft one to each cheek, and then rubbed the tips of our noses together before finally tilting my head just enough to capture his lips with mine.

Nathan stiffened as a loud cheer broke out, accompanied by a chorus of “yee-haws.” I pulled back, breaking our kiss as I smiled knowingly. “You forgot to wear your earplugs, didn’t you?”

“Mama Vee didn’t think they’d go with my suit,” he sighed.

I winked and reached into my pocket. I pulled out one of the spare pairs that Sam and Vivian had made for him and carefully put one into each ear. He stood there while I did it, beaming at me like I was his savior. I shrugged shyly as my cheeks flushed.

“I’ll always take care of my precious boy.”

“Alright, then,” Ernie said firmly, making everyone quiet down again. “I want y’all ta recognize our Natty and his husband, Brick. They’s legal now, so don’t nobody give ‘em no hell. Y’all can go ahead and head on over ta the tables we got set up fer the party now, I think our Natty prob’ly needs ta git off his feet anyhow.”

When we turned to make our walk down the aisle together, I had my angel tucked securely under my arm. I sucked in a breath and blinked away another round of hot tears when I saw my friends—Cory, Blaze, and Sana—bend their heads in unison and pound their fists over their hearts in a warrior’s sign of respect for our union.

I bent and swept my other arm beneath Nathan’s legs and lifted him to my chest. He curled right into me, filling my heart. When he was secure, I made my way over to where the party would begin. Everyone followed right behind us.

No sooner had we sat down than two of Nathan’s brothers plopped down beside us, wooden boxes in their hands. Mama Vee stood there approvingly as they each opened their box and began putting some strange device together while another brother cleaned first Nathan’s, then my left hand with a wet wipe that smelled of disinfectant.

“Nathan? What’s happening now?” I asked curiously. I wasn’t too concerned, I just wanted to know what these unicorns had in store for us now.

One never knew what was happening next with this clan, and with all of the elastics snapping into place and metal pieces that were being joined together, I had a feeling that whatever was about to happen was serious.

Nathan smiled at me. “Now we get our wedding rings. We’ll each get the signature scroll of my clan. Mine will be with your initial in the center, and you’ll have mine on yours. We can’t do wedding rings like the regular humans do because we change forms—that’s why we do tattoos instead, so that we’ll always have the symbol of our unity without a pesky ring to worry about losing.”

Sana and Peter came to join us then, little Laurus tucked in the crook of Sana’s arm.

“Oh, that’s interesting,” Sana said softly, watching as one of Nathan’s brothers laid my hand flat on the table, then positioned the machine over it. I knew about tattoos as they had been done in Novis—painstaking, hand-done works of art in which ink was infused beneath the skin one jab of a needle at a time—but I’d never seen the modern-day equivalent.

I watched in awe as the machine buzzed to life, its tiny needles moving so fast, I couldn’t imagine the tattoo would take long to do at all.

Nathan’s brother quieted the machine, dipped it in a tiny capful of ink, then brought the needles to my skin and began to freehand the design onto my ring finger, right where a traditional ring would have sat.

Sana turned to his mate after a moment. “I like that idea. You know what? We should do that, too, Peter.”

“Won’t it be a bother to worry about those healing on their wedding night, though?” Peter asked logically, his eyes moving back and forth between Nathan’s hand and mine.

Both brothers worked in tandem, giving us our tattoos at the same time. “It was a bitch and a half the first week or so after I got any of mine done. You’re going to spend your honeymoon wanting to scratch your finger off.”

“Not with me around.” Sana grinned. “I’ll fix them right up and accelerate the process… just like I’ll do for us. What do you say, Peter? Will you wear my name on your finger, and put yours on mine?”

“Sure,” Peter agreed immediately as he leaned over to kiss Sana. “I’m not going anywhere. I already carry your name in my heart—I may as well have it inked on my skin, too.”

Mama Vee had already moved on to see about the food while the rest of my group came to join us around the big table that she’d set up for us. By the time our tattoos were finished, the rest of my friends had all decided to get similar ones done, too.

Nathan’s brothers never said a word, just silently moved on to Cory and Emery while Sana took a moment to heal Nathan and me.

While my dragon family lined up for tattoos, select members of Nathan’s family wandered around taking pictures of everything. One of them stopped by to photograph our hands, Nathan’s smaller one posed over mine to show off our new tattoos.

I took the chance to examine the swirling ink now on my skin. The work was impressive—a perfect depiction of a unicorn horn stretched to my first knuckle with a large N in the center.

I thought about pointing out the horn to my friends, in case they wanted to stipulate something different for their own, but I decided to stay silent. If they wanted to copy us, they could damn well be honorary unicorn clansmen, too.

By the time the food and cake had been consumed, the crowd was getting rowdy. Stanley had broken out the accordion again while various couples jumped up to dance on the grass.

I watched as Nana and Vivian helped Emery and Sam get the babies inside for baths and bed. Sana began to take Laurus in, but Emery smiled as he reached for the baby and told Sana to take the night off to be with his friends.

Freed from tending to his son, Sana headed back to be with Peter and the other dragons. Peter passed him a red plastic cup filled with something the unicorns had made called moonshine.

While they drank and laughed, I sat and plotted my escape. I figured now that everyone was busy partying, I could sneak my angel boy away for some much-needed alone time.

As if reading my mind, Mama Vee came up and leaned in between us, her arms on our backs. “Y’all go on now and get outta here, ya got yer weddin’ night ta git to, and we’s gonna have us some fun down here. Congratulations, babies. I love y’all.”

Nathan looked at me as his mama made her way over to where Ernie stood smoking off to the side. He tilted his head and smiled coyly up at me through his lowered lashes.

“I hate to say it, but we really need to listen to my mama. I’m partied out now, and all I want is to be alone with you, Daddy.”

As always, all it took was that one word from his lips to make my cock jerk and plump. I looked around to make sure that nobody was within earshot before I grinned at him.

“You’re a very naughty boy, angel. Look at you, getting me excited in front of everybody. Do you know what Daddies do to their naughty boys?”

Nathan’s pink tongue poked out to skim over his full bottom lip before replying saucily, “I don’t know, but I really hope it involves a spanking like the one I got that night after I ran off half-dressed the day that Mama and them all got here. That was hot, Daddy.”

His eyelashes fluttered as he smiled up at me provocatively. The little minx.

I bit my lip to hold back a moan, then stood and picked him up bridal-style. He squealed and wrapped his arms around my neck, and I held him close to my chest to let him know that he was safe.

Together, we threaded our way through the already drunken crowd and headed inside. Neither of us spoke a word as I carried him up to our room, pausing long enough to close and lock the door before I brought him to the bed and laid him down gently.

Nathan’s arms released from around my neck, and he looked up at me with bedroom eyes the likes of which I had never seen before. My cock throbbed again.

My boy.

“You have approximately thirty seconds to get out of those clothes, boy,” I told him, my voice already raspy. My hand moved up to the knot of my tie, and I started to tug it free. Nathan watched, enraptured.

“What’s going to happen if I don’t do it, Daddy?”

I met his gaze and held it so he knew I was serious. “If that happens, then Daddy’s going to have to rip them off you. But you wouldn’t let that happen, would you, angel? Good boys do what they’re told.”