CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

W illow stood staring up at the three royals. Imposter syndrome roared to life as she wondered what the actual fuck she was doing here.

“Babe, you’ve got this.”

She heard the brief whisper to her right and gave Brianna a nervous smile.

“Willow Moretti, kneel before me,” the king roared.

To be fair, he roared most days, even when asking someone to pass the salt, but today it felt louder. Probably for the cameras, but this was different.

It felt... kinglier.

Because when Vincent Moretti wanted, he could be very kingly.

Every day, she witnessed the two brothers taunting each other—even Craig and Vincent had their moments. But to everyone else, there was no question he was the powerful King Moretti of the vampire race.

And she was about to become a princess. Not quite how she had seen her life going, if she was being honest.

She flicked her eyes over to Brayden, who was fixed on her as if his life depended on it. Those silver eyes of his didn’t move an inch, and they said a million things, but none more important than I’m here and I’m yours. Forever.

He was her everything.

And the best thing about loving him back was that she hadn’t expected him to show up in her life. She’d been so independent and doing her own thing. So when she had chosen him, it had purely and simply been because she wanted him. Every damn inch of him.

And on that, she’d been blessed because there were a lot of inches.

Giving up her humanity? Well, that was taking some adjusting to, but he was worth it.

Drawing in a breath, she leaned down and collected her layers of silk before taking the four steps required to reach the king before kneeling onto the purple cushioned stool. No floor kneeling for any Moretti’s, God forbid.

The king plunged his sword deep into the floor between them.

Hell, she hadn’t been expecting that. She flinched, and so did Brayden. A glance his way and her eyes told him she was okay. He sat back.

“Willow Moretti, is it your will to pledge your immortal life to the Moretti royal family as a faithful and true member?”

“It is.”

“Do you pledge your blood allegiance to me, Vincent Frances Moretti, as your king?”

“I do.”

“Do you promise to protect the vampire race to your best capacity, including upholding our laws?”

“Yes, I do.”

The king shuffled, and she looked up. He had removed the sword and sheathed it at his side.

“And do you accept this crown and the lifelong role of princess of the Moretti royal family?”

Her heart thumped wildly in her chest. She heard Brayden draw in a breath and could see his hands gripping his chair. She knew he wished to be at her side, but this was not about them; this was her pledging her allegiance to the king. And to the race. This was hers alone to do.

“I do.”

A moment later, the platinum and diamond crown was lowered onto her head. It felt heavy, as she’d expected, but strangely comfortable. It fit well, as if molding to her head.

“Stand up, Willow,” Vincent whispered.

She did, doing her best not to grab the new sparkly accessory and hoping it didn’t fall off. The king smiled, and with a gentle but strong hand, turned her and addressed the crowd, hundreds in the room and millions behind the cameras.

“I present to you Princess Willow Moretti.”

They all stood and bowed their heads. Her face flushed, and she looked at the king. She hadn’t been prepared for this. Overwhelmed with the subservient action, she fish mouthed. The king gave her a...well, kingly smile, and then the room exploded into applause, whistles, and cheers. She relaxed, and Brayden suddenly appeared beside her and wrapped a strong, protective arm around her lower back.

“My princess,” he said, leaning in and kissing her neck. She wanted to giggle at the complete craziness of the entire situation.

She was a princess.

A real fucking goddamn princess.

She glanced over to grin at Brianna, but instead of finding her best friend beaming at her, she saw her staring across the floor, fire in her eyes. At Craig.

She turned to Brayden, who knew exactly what she’d seen. He held her eyes for a second, expressionless—which in Brayden terms said a lot—then turned back to the cameras. His hand, though, squeezed her hip, silently instructing her to let it go.

If there had been any doubt left in her mind, it vanished when she looked over at Craig. The male’s eyes were blazing at her best friend. She’d seen that look before, from the prince standing beside her. How could she have let this happen?

Correction. She would not let this damn well happen.

There was no way she was going to let her best friend lose her life and humanity because she had begged for her to be present at her bonding ceremony.

Fuck.

The confusing thing was that she had been told Craig had lost his mate. That vampires couldn’t love again. Maybe it was just lust. They all knew the two of them had been shagging. Brianna had confessed, not that it had been necessary; it was written all over her face.

First thing tomorrow, Brianna had to go home. She needed her friend to live. To grow old. To live her human life and thrive. She wouldn’t be the reason her friend lost her life, just as she had.

Suddenly, she felt herself being turned to face her mate. He leaned down and took her lips while the room cheered. Against her mouth, Brayden murmured, “Willow, let it go. We’ll deal with it later.”

He pulled away and gave her the smile their guests expected.

“You have my word,” he added.

Of course he had anticipated her reaction. He knew her better than anyone.

“Thank you.”