You can read A Fairy-Tail Marriage free below.
Blurb:
A paranormal, werewolf shifter, arranged marriage romance book. Fairies and werewolves shouldn’t mix. At least that’s what fairy princess Althea thought before her marriage to the werewolf king Braxton.
But their kingdoms depend on their union, and Althea will never turn her back on her people. As they embark on this unexpected journey, their marriage evolves from mere convenience to a passionate romance.
However, lurking in the shadows are evil forces plan to destroy everything Althea and Braxton hold dear… Will their love prove strong enough to survive the danger? Or was their marriage of convenience doomed from the start? Find out in this fairy and werewolf romance story by Mary T Williams.
Chapter 1
From afar, the castle in the center of the werewolf kingdom was gloriously, beautifully, frightening at night or during a storm. The turrets reached the sky and were topped with howling wolves rather than snarling gargoyles. The walls were formidably thick and impassable, gray and strong, and the gate impressively decorated with the symbol of the werewolf, a circle representing the full moon with the vague outline of a wolf howling inside. When the gate opened, the circle was halved, but when closed, the shape impressed visitors with the dangers that may lay inside.
The gates were rarely closed; werewolves had few natural enemies. A long bridge across a deep culvert led from the road to the castle’s gates and was more often than not, filled with travelers visiting the castle for various reasons. If under attack, the castle would be impossible to enter, and those inside could live for quite some time without leaving. The self-sustaining interior was a source of pride for the werewolf society, which is why so many traveled to it.
Inside, large tapestries covered the walls depicting the history of the lycanthropes, including the most popular story of all: Romulus and Remus, the twin sons of the god of war who were suckled by a wolf and who were considered to be the first werewolves. Other tapestries depicted stories from this kingdom’s history. One in particular drew the eye for its violence: the famed battle with the fairies, won by the werewolves, who had taken over the larger portion of the kingdom. Beheaded fairies lay on the ground with werewolves snarling at the few survivors huddled against a wall of gray stone. Bright red thread dominated the lower section of the tapestry, representing the fairy blood spilled and the wolves’ triumph.
The king of the werewolves, Braxton, paused as he walked through the hallways from his room to his office and stared at the tapestry, frowning. Now that he was king, he could have the horrible thing removed, but there was not another to replace it. He had always hated the reminder of the werewolves violent past. He made a mental note to commission a new tapestry, something more pleasing to the eye. He ruminated on the subject of the new tapestry as he continued his journey to his office and found Blake, his best friend and head advisor, waiting for him.
“We’ve much to discuss today,” Blake informed him gravely before he’d had the chance to pour himself a coffee.
“Could I have a sip of caffeine before you bombard me with terrible news?” Braxton asked in an irritated voice Blake knew was mostly bark, little bite.
“I know you’ve already had coffee this morning with your breakfast. Therefore, we can begin our day before you’ve laced that cup with so much sugar your eyes should pop out,” Blake replied as he opened the folder sitting in his lap.
Braxton raised an eyebrow at him as he spilled three spoonfuls of sugar into his coffee. “Am I the king? I forget sometimes. Specifically when you speak.”
Blake chuckled at the joke he’d heard more times than he could remember in the last six months. “You are. But as your advisor I have the right to remind you of your duties.”
“I feel as if I’m being henpecked,” Braxton grumbled as he took his sweetened coffee to his desk and plopped down in the over-sized chair, careful not to spill a drop of the precious liquid. “I don’t need to get married. You’ll peck me to death before a wife ever has the opportunity.”
Blake rolled his eyes. “One day you’ll have to come up with a new metaphor.”
Braxton sipped his coffee calmly as he looked at the maps laid out on his desk. He gestured to them with his empty hand. “What is all this?”
“Boundary disputes are beginning to cause a serious issue, specifically in the east,” Blake told him, not bothering to point. Braxton’s uncanny intelligence was why he’d been chosen of the three candidates as king. His brother and sister, while both intelligent, were not up to the task of running this kingdom.
Braxton’s mother had ruled the werewolf kingdom with an iron fist for twenty years after her husband had died. Many had expected her to take her three children and walk away from the castle, but she had wanted her children to have the opportunity to rule, regardless which one was eventually chosen by the people. As they had grown, she had watched them, as had the public, and when her death was near, she had supported Braxton’s ascension to the throne. His sister, Jasmine, had no interest in being queen, wanting instead to marry and be with her children, so she hadn’t been considered. His brother, Jonathan, had a violent temper and a love of fighting, neither of which were good assets for a king to possess. Smarting from the rejection of both his mother and the people, when Braxton, the youngest of the three, had been chosen king, Jonathan had left the kingdom, promising to return eventually when his younger brother asked him not to go.
“The east, huh? Near the fairies,” Braxton mused as he rose to bend over the maps so he had a better vision of what he was looking at.
“Always the fairies,” Blake told him. “Their numbers have grown in the last decade, as you know, and they want more land. Because their land ends at the sea, of course they want to expand in this direction.”
Braxton pulled a writing utensil out of his drawer and marked the fairy castle, the werewolf castle, and drew a long line where the border divided the two kingdoms. He frowned and looked up at Blake. “Have you seen how little land they possess?”
Blake nodded, a small smile on his face as he prepared himself to listen to an example of Braxton’s sense of justice. “I have.”
Braxton narrowed his eyes. “We stole their land a century ago, weakened them by lessening their numbers. Is that correct?”
“Yes,” Blake nodded. He waited in silence.
Braxton straightened. “Are there werewolves on this section of land here?” He pointed to a region due west of the fairy castle.
Blake rose and looked at the section, considering for a moment. “As far as I know, that’s mostly woods.”
“If no one lives there, or if there are very few, we could offer this area to the king as a sort of peace offering. I know there have been a few skirmishes that have led to violence,” Braxton added, pointing his finger at Blake.
Blake nodded his agreement. “There have been, and from what I understand, these skirmishes have been escalating and becoming more prevalent. But just handing over land? The people won’t like it.”
Braxton sat back in his chair, coffee in hand, and wondered how he would be able to appease both his own people, who trusted him to care for them and their needs, and the fairies, who were causing problems up and down the border. Parceling out land was probably not the best idea, but the fairies needed space for homes just like werewolves did.
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“What a nightmare,” he murmured. “Do you have anything more pleasant to deal with this morning?”
Blake chuckled again. “Sorry, boss, this is the most pressing issue we have at the moment.”
“No criminals to try, beheadings, or punishments to dole out?”
“We could begin planning your birthday celebration,” Blake pointed out.
Braxton groaned. “Let’s deal with the border crap.” Blake laughed loudly as a knock sounded on the door. “Come in.”