The smell of fresh water and wet earth rose up with the dry wind and whipped across my face. With the air, a wave of tranquility washed over me. As the yacht swayed back and forth with each gentle push of the waves, I stole glances at Tristan from across the table.

We were out on the lake all alone. The marina was still and calm. I picked at the bits of uneaten food on my plate. He'd cleared the entire place out so that we could share the night with each other.

“You seem particularly thoughtful this evening,” he said, and then lifted his glass of scotch to his lips. “Would you like to talk about it?” he asked.

“I do have a lot on my mind. My work at the museum, my studies, our wedding, this thing about the Converted.”

“I told you not to worry about anything. I thought your research at the museum took your mind away from all of this.”

“It did for a little while, but the other matters are more pressing,” I said. “Like our wedding.”

“We have two wedding planners at our disposal. Are they not giving you what you want? Should I look for replacements?”

“No, that’s not it. I just…I’ve never done this before. Being with you feels so natural. This mating thing feels so natural. But the wedding…”

He nodded. “I know. It’s a big deal. Hundreds of guests from both packs.”

“And it seems like the ceremony is more for the packs than us,” I told him. “They want to know that what we have is true. Your pack has been through so much.”

Tristan leaned in and placed his palm on top of my hand. “Yes. Our union is important to them. But we don't have to prove anything to anyone but ourselves. What do you want, Elisa? If you'd rather call everything off and we have a private ceremony—just the two of us and a select few others, we can do that.”

”No.” I swallowed down my apprehensions. ”We should proceed as we planned. Plus we can bring back the tradition of mating ceremonies to the Arnou pack.”

”That's what I thought too,” he said. ”These ceremonies were never popular with my grandfather and great-grandfather obviously.”

“It wasn’t their faults. They played the hand they were dealt.”

He smiled. “And just so you know, I’ve never done this either. Nothing of this caliber. I don’t like drawing much attention to myself.”

“I sensed that, but this will be good for our people. Believe it or not, they like being in your presence.”

“I don’t think I can ever be as great an Alpha as your brother Devin. He’s so personable. I was in awe of how much he knew about his people. He knew of all the families who have continued to pledge to his pack through the decades,” he said.

“You can have that too,” I replied. “That’s why we’re doing this. We’re letting our people know that we’re one big family now. A pack. It all begins now. With us. With our future children.”

“Do you really believe all of my people would approve of my businesses outside of the pack?” he asked.

”I think you already know the answer to that. And to that, I ask…who's in charge? You or your people?” I countered. ”You of all people must know that everyone won't approve of what you do. But then, they won’t approve of something they can’t begin to understand. And many will never understand no matter what you tell them.”

He grinned and brought my fingers up to his lips. “You’re good for me. You know that?”

“I’ll always be good for you. Nothing you do can ever turn me against you. You understand that, don’t you?”

His expression shifted to stern and worried, but only for a brief moment. “I want what’s best for you. I don’t want to ruin your life.”

I shook my head. “No. You can never ruin my life. I’m strongest when I’m with you. I don’t need visions of the future to tell me that. I feel that way now. Before you, I was lost. I almost didn’t know what my purpose was. Now I know…”

“I keep thinking about what you said. About inviting our pack members into our lives, so they feel like they’re a part of something more than just an organization running for the sake of saying that we were here. I thought if I focused on my pack instead of everything else, I could be a better Alpha. I did that for a while after I met you, but then my network sort of fell by the wayside.” He sighed. “I’m still cleaning up that mess now.”

“As a result of the fallout between you and Jovan and Jovan’s father, you learned who your true allies were. Sometimes things must fall apart so that better things can fall together. Why do you think this pack still exists? It’s not by accident. You held this pack together when things around you were falling apart,” I said. “That’s what leaders do.”

“Mate and Kingdom. That’s what I want. That’s all I’ve ever wanted.”

“And you can have both. I’m not going anywhere Tristan, so cut the crap about how you’re not good for me just because you’re a big, bad Alpha and I’m the young, evil witch. Yes, I’ll do anything necessary to keep you happy, but that’s what I want. I don't want you to give up your kingdom for your pack or vice versa. I want everything. I want you to have it all, and I'll be right by your side.”

Tristan grinned, a glint of satisfaction glowing in his eyes. “You enchant me, little witch.”

“Then my work here is done for tonight?”

“The work is never done,” was his reply.

I rose walked to his side of the table. My long black dress clung to me like a second skin as the winds continued to push past us. By the way Tristan’s gaze danced up and down the length of me, I knew he was pleased.

I picked up his scotch glass from the table, shot him a teasing look, and helped myself to the rest of his liquor. When I was done, I slid the empty glass back on the table and slid between him and the table.

Tristan sat back in his chair with a wicked grin on his face and a big hard-on in his pants.

“Well, well…” he drawled.