Chapter 55

Thorn toasts his goblet to Gorina's and a raucous cheer rises for the newly forged alliance. The new Wolfbone Clan chief stands tall, with black hair swaying behind her. She grins, making the crescent scar below her left eye wrinkle. She's even more muscular than Ursha and the gold bracelets she wears around her biceps catch the flicker of torchlight as she raises her drink.

"To new beginnings!" she bellows.

The hall erupts in cheers. Eirik gurgles in my arms, his tiny hands clapping along.

Gorina leans closer to us, a huge smile on her face. She offers me her goblet. I clink mine against hers. We take long swigs of the sweet mead.

"If it was up to me," she says, turning her red-brown eyes toward me, "this alliance would have happened long ago. That old Shagrat should have stepped down to Krax; may the ancestors keep him."

"Would that make Eirik the prince of both clans?" I ask, bouncing the boy in my arms.

"Yeah," Gorina replies with a smile. "It would join clans, wouldn't it? Orcs should stick together. I've always disliked this enmity between clans." A playful smirk dances on her lips. She glances over at someone standing right behind us. "Maybe we could think of a mating between clans." And she winks.

Arching an eyebrow, I glance behind me. By the look on Ursha's face, she's as surprised as I am. She stares back at Gorina and I see a hundred different feelings going through her face in a second.

Whatever Thorn sees, it makes him open a slow but huge smirk.

Ursha takes one look at him and rolls her eyes. "You're so annoying," she tells Thorn. "I'm off for some air." She downs her drink, picks Eirik up from my arms, and whirls around.

Thorn laughs beside me. "It's about time I confess my plans for another alliance." His dark eyes lock with mine.

My eyebrows arch. "Really? With whom?" Did I miss that? A second alliance?

I mean, it's great. But I would love to have been part of it.

"Silence, everyone!" Thorn's command slices through the din, the hall hushing. The sheer power of his presence sends a shiver down my spine. I see Ursha pausing in the back of the hall with Eirik in her arms.

Thorn offers me a hand. I tilt my head in doubt but I take it. He helps me up into a chair, holding me around the hip to steady me.

It's a bit humiliating to stand on a chair, but it's nice to be at eye level with him for a change.

"Violet Green has proven herself to be as brave as an orc, if not braver. Few have acted so fast and so strongly to protect a child that's not theirs. She has shown admiration and respect for our culture. She is selfless and she cares deeply about this clan." He takes a breath, his eyes crinkling in the corners with a smile. "I cannot imagine a better mate to spend my life with."

Gasps weave through the cheers of the crowd. My heart flutters, and my eyes widen. No way. This can't be…

Thorn tugs on my hand so I meet his eyes. There's so much love in him that I tear up.

"Violet, will you join your future with mine? Will you become my mate and my queen?"

The crowd hushes, the tension growing inside the hall.

I grin. There's no other answer.

"Yes."

The cheers explode. I laugh. Thorn's arms fold around me. My head spins. Gorina is pushing another goblet into my hand for her to toast.

In the back of the hall, I find Ursha's eyes and she smiles. She moves her lips. I can read them just fine.

I told you so.

Morga barrels in my direction and engulfs me in an embrace as soon as Thorn lets me go. She squeezes me so hard that I lose my breath.

"We'll create feasts that'll be the envy of every clan from here to the Great Divide!" she bellows, her laughter vibrating against my ribs. She pulls back to look at me. "I'm so happy you're going to stay! We're going to create the tastiest dishes ever!"

"I can't wait," I manage to gasp as I catch my breath.

Nell, the only other human in the clan, trails behind Morga, her gentle presence so at odds with the other orcs, still cheering. "Congratulations," she says, with a huge smile. "You were truly sent by the Sacred Woods to us."

"Thanks, Nell." I brush away an errant tear—half from emotion, half from Morga's bone-crushing hug.

Thorn looms over us, his hand on the small of my back. He dips his head towards Nell.

"Violet showed me to see past race," he tells her. "I owe you another apology for suspecting you earlier. It goes to show I've got much to learn."

"Water under the bridge," Nell replies, waving away his concern with a gentle hand. "I'm just glad it's over."

Morga intertwines her fingers with Nell as they step back. Thorn reaches for me, his fingers curling around my hip.

"Shall I send for more mead so we can slip away unnoticed?" he whispers, the warmth of his breath fanning my ear.

Heat rises inside my belly. A naughty smile curls my lips. "Absolutely."

Thorn straightens his spine. "Morga! Bring the rest of the mead! Let's make it the greatest feast this clan has ever seen!" And he meets my eyes with this glorious, beautiful smile on his face.

I push on tiptoes. Thorn bends to brush his cheek against mine.

"I love you," I whisper, just for his ears.

He holds my arm gently and brings my wrist up to his face. He kisses the inside, his eyes locked with mine. "And I love you, Spitfire. More than anything."