Spider Game (GhostWalkers, #12)(148)

“He’s here,” she said softly to Joie. “He’s waiting for me.”


Joie hugged her again and kissed her cheek. “You’ve never been more beautiful than you are at this moment, Gabrielle. I hope you always stay this happy.”


“I’ll be with Gary. How can I not be happy?” Gabrielle asked, and hugged Joie back.


She turned toward the door, a lump in her throat. She wanted to see his face when she stepped through. That would tell her everything. She would know if he felt the same way. Joie, staying to one side of the door, pulled it open for her and Gabrielle picked up the sides of her dress and stepped outside. Her crystal shoes and ivory gown were all lace and crystals, so that the moment the beams of light from the moon hit her, she sparkled like the stars overhead.


Gary turned toward her and she drew in her breath. He was gorgeous. Every time she looked at him, she felt as if she were seeing him for the first time. He looked older than when she’d first met him, but it suited him. He had a few scars, but they suited him as well. His hair was long and thick, growing like the Carpathian’s hair seemed to do. That gave him a more primitive, ancient look, but she found she liked it. There were a few streaks of gray spun into his dark hair.


Gary was a few inches shorter than Gregori, but no less commanding. She’d never seen that in him before. He’d always been a man to slip into the shadows and let others take the spotlight. She couldn’t imagine him in the shadows now. His eyes were glued to her. He no longer wore his glasses. In any case, because he was so often in battle, defending the children against vampire puppets, he’d long since settled for the contacts Gregori manufactured for him. Now he was fully Carpathian and didn’t need glasses or contacts, and she could see the amazing green of his eyes.


She loved the expression on his face. She couldn’t have asked for a better manifestation of his love. His entire face lit up. His mouth went soft. His face went warm and his eyes went hot. Really hot. A million butterflies took wing in her stomach. Her lungs felt a little as if they couldn’t quite get enough air. She moistened her lips with the tip of her tongue. He was so beautiful to her. Inside and out. Everything about him. Especially his mind. She loved his mind, although, right at that moment, when he was looking so handsome in a dark suit, so appropriate for a wedding, she thought maybe she could love his body even more. Well. Equally.


He held out his hand to her. “You look beautiful, princess.”


He always called her princess when they were alone. Never in front of others. He made her feel like a princess in a fairy tale. Always. No other person in the world was so gentle with her in the way that he was. When violence swirled around them, Gary was always her rock.


“Thank you. I think you’re quite handsome tonight as well,” she said a little shyly. She felt shy with him. She didn’t know why. Gary knew her better than anyone else did, but still, it was their wedding, and after tonight, they would be bound together in the Carpathian way. Not just in their hearts, but in their very souls. She secretly loved that idea. Being his other half. She loved it, knowing it was better than any fairy tale.


Gary drew her to him, his eyes still drifting over her face. Over her body. Slowly. Taking her in. Appreciating the time she’d spent getting ready. Human time. Not Carpathian. She had carefully put on every article of clothing manually. Taking her time, making it right. Wanting this night to be a mixture of both cultures, human and Carpathian.


Her hand was trembling and he knew it. He immediately enveloped her hand in both of his.


“You’re safe with me, Gabrielle. Always.”


She knew that. She had always known it. She loved the timbre of his voice. So gentle, like a caress. He was such a good man. As much as Gregori intimidated her and she didn’t want Gary to be anything like him, she couldn’t help but admire the flashes of Daratrazanoff in Gary. The confidence. The ability to keep her safe.


Maybe it wasn’t so bad that he was a Daratrazanoff, especially if they could move away from the Prince. Always Mikhail Dubrinsky and his family would draw vampires and now, rogue Lycans. To eliminate the Prince was to eliminate the Carpathian people. Mikhail now had a daughter and a son. Both were threats to the vampires and rogues.


The attacks would never stop and Daratrazanoffs protected the Prince. If they remained, no matter that she was his lifemate, even putting her first, Gary’s life would always be in danger, and she didn’t want that. She couldn’t have that. And that made her so not a Carpathian. It was ingrained in every man, woman and child to protect the Prince and his heirs. Even she felt it. Gary, as a human, had always taken on the protection of all the Carpathians, from unborn children to the Prince himself. Now, as a member of one of the most powerful families of Carpathians, he would be twice as much in demand.


“Gabrielle?” Gary prompted softly. He didn’t tug on her hand or try to hurry her in the least. He never did. He was never impatient with her. She knew he was capable of impatience because she’d seen him giving orders to some of the other males and he did it in a voice that meant business – and they obeyed him.


“I’m ready.” She lifted her chin, pushing aside the weird urge to run that kept getting in the way of her happiness. Run where? To what? Everything she wanted or needed was standing right in front of her. She just had the vague, persistent feeling of dread, as if something terrible was going to happen any minute. The feeling was growing stronger every day. Another war? Another moment when Gary would save a life at the expense of his own? In saving Zev Hunter, Gary had been eviscerated by the rogue Lycans. He waded in where no other human – well, except her brother – would dare to go.