From Here to Ecstasy

Recap

“Yes, Royal Beta, I do,” the man told her.

My mate looked at me. “Do you know him and do you think he is okay? I’ve read his mind and it looks good, but I want your opinion too.”

I nodded my head and told him we would talk to him later. I heard her whisper to him, letting him know he might be our warrior if it pleased him. I had never seen him smile before and it was a little imitating. My mate was good at letting people feel special and needed. She was amazing and I was so thankful she was my mate. I didn’t think I could thank the Moon Goddess enough.

Ares POV

I pulled my head from the clouds and followed my mate down to the lower cells - one of the ones I was held in. I shivered at the thought, causing my mate to turn around and hug me. I knew she was upset she had brought me here but we had a job to do. I nodded at her, letting her know I was okay. I wanted to be stronger than the ghosts and the pain of this place. I bucked up and put my game face on, a face so blank it looked cold to anyone who saw me.

When we got to the cell Darla was in I smirked at her as she was trying to yell at my mate. It was nice to not hear her whiny voice. We weren’t really my cousin, well, we were cousins thrice removed. I knew she had a crush on me since we were little, but I never acted on her stupid fantasies. I hardly looked at her.

Nasty Woman.

Oh, I knew she told everyone I was her mate to make her friends, who wanted me, jealous, but I never gave any of them a second or first glance. I had always heard a voice whisper about me having a mate, about saving myself for her only. I now know it was the voice of the Moon Goddess. I was very thankful I had never touched a woman or let any of these women seduce me. I was completely pure, now I wasn’t, thanks to my beautiful mate.

I watched as my mate used power to spell the cell. I couldn’t wait for my powers to come forth. I could feel the pull of our power as she did spells. I even knew what the movements of her hands meant. It was freaky at first, but now it felt as if it were something I knew my whole life.

My mate dusted off her clothes. “Now, aren’t you more comfortable?” My mate sarcastically asked Darla. “My mate and I will be seeing in court. You can count on our testimony.”

We walked out of the cells as Darla’s mouth gaped open in horror as she tried to speak. I didn’t feel bad about her being locked up tighter than Fort Knox. She did this to herself. I couldn’t believe how stupid her actions were. How did she think she was going to get away if she killed us? Instead, she was caught by my mate - the Royal Beta. She wasn’t strong enough to go against Royalty and she never had been in her life. My mate, Windy, could lift one finger and lay her flat on her back for months. She was an idiot to listen to Dean and I was glad she had been caught. My mate was a fighter.

An amazing fighter.

I couldn’t believe my mate had been through so many assassination attempts. I was almost positive they were when she was human. I knew she had more power in her pinky than I had in my body. And, I was humbled being her mate. I only hoped I could be a helpmate to her.

“Are you okay, Ares?” I heard her soft voice ask.

I cleared my throat. “I’m great. I was thinking about you and was hoping I could help you weed out the traitors. You were already more powerful than I was when we were both humans. I want to stand by your side and help with everything we need to do, even if it means fighting by your side.”

“You and I will be getting our next power as soon as we walk in our room,” my mate said as if it were going to happen as she laughed. “Mine may hurt worse than yours though. So, please remind me not to tense up.”

“Wha-” I tried to say as she put up a hand and held her finger to her mouth. I nodded at her as we made our way back to our room. I wasn’t sure why she didn’t teleport but I figured she had a reason not to and she would share why she didn’t with me when we got back inside our room.

As soon as we walked into the door, my mate went to her knees as I shut the door. I wanted to remind her not to tense up. I wanted to help her in any way I could.

“Help mate, please,” my wolf begged. “Put up a soundproof spell around the room. I will help you do it right. My mate, Star, will show me and I will guide your hands, but do it quickly and help our mate.”

My wolf, Antares, came forward and used my hands to spell the room quickly. As soon as I was done I moved to mate. I knelt down and put a hand on her back. “Don’t tense up, Windy. You told me to remind you. Please, don’t tense up.”

I noticed Windy’s breathing was getting easier. I left my hand on her back, drawing circles to calm her down. I didn’t like to see her in pain, it made my heart ache and my breath to get caught in my throat. I knew this wasn’t a pain I could take for her but I could help her through it.

I continued my actions until my head started to ache. It felt as if someone was stabbing me in the head with an ice pick. I was trying not to yell out in pain. I didn’t want Windy to tense up, but I should have known better. Windy moved over to me and took me in the arms while I looked at her in surprise. I could only surmise that the pain she was in was gone and now she was helping me. It was all I could think about at the second. I didn’t want to tense even more than I was.

“I got you, Ares. Don’t tense up and it will go away soon. You can do it.” Windy stroked my back and arm as she held me.

I released the rest of the tension from my body, making me feel as if I were a deflated balloon. It was as if the care of the world was lifted from me. As if I could relax and let my mate help me with anything I needed. I knew at that moment we would work as a team, never to let anyone separate us. This was the love I heard from the wolves. This was my soul and her hers merging together. I could feel all the love and affection my mate had for me. This was our hopes and dreams coming together to bind us to one another.

I looked at my mate as the headache went away with her loving embrace. “I love you. Thank you for helping me to understand the concepts of mates. Oh, I knew we were a team to start with but I understand a lot more than I did before we walked into our room and it was because of you. I love you, Windy, to the moon and back.” I leaned in and pecked her lips, hugging her to me.

“I love you too, Ares. I never understood the mate bond before I met you. I thought all the hype about mates was stupid, but I was so fucking wrong. I’m excited to know you want to stand beside me and not in front of me. It’s how my mom and dads’ treat each other. I always wanted to find a mate who was like my parents, not thinking I would ever have a mate. I love you so much and I’m happy we found each other,” I confessed to him as I kissed with the pent up passion in me.