Total pages in book: 162
Estimated words: 165618 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 828(@200wpm)___ 662(@250wpm)___ 552(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 165618 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 828(@200wpm)___ 662(@250wpm)___ 552(@300wpm)
Tanyn was Tanyn, that was to say, completely unaffected.
“She will be far safer at the other end of the realms,” Cormac stated. “Far from the bullshit that keeps occurring up here.”
Another good point.
“And with me,” he added.
That was debatable.
“I must see her,” he pushed.
“She is sister to me,” I shot back. “And as such, you must know, my male will not let anything happen to her. But she can’t hear you shouting. You say you’re her mate. Well, she’s yours too and hearing your distress distresses her. So, like I said, chill.”
For some reason, that got to him (and if I wasn’t wrong, it was around the time I shared he was distressing her).
He drew breath into his nose and scowled at me.
But he chilled.
“Come with me, Mac,” Tanyn said. “Let’s get you a drink.”
Cormac hesitated, then he took off with Tanyn.
Nayden followed them.
Uly followed me.
“Well done,” he murmured.
“Do you have someone?” I asked.
“Someone?”
“Someone special.”
“Yes. I’ve been seeing a female for some time. Her name is Estra.”
I stopped, he stopped, and after I ticked my head in the direction we came, I inquired, “Do you understand that behavior?”
He seemed to be weighing something.
He weighed it and I understood why he had to when he replied, “I wasn’t here. But Nayden told me Tanyn was coming out of his skin when you two were separated after you had your tiff.”
An unexpected bolt of electricity shot through me at this revelation.
“I love Estra. I’m thinking of asking her to marry me,” he carried on. “And yes, it’s difficult to be away from her. But it’s not like that.”
“Thank you for answering,” I said, now distracted by what he’d shared about Tanyn.
When I began to walk again, he stopped me by catching my arm. “Did you hear me? About Tanyn?”
“I longed for him when I thought we were over,” I whispered my confession, and watched Uly’s eyes darken to black. “I honestly think it’s a miracle I was able to get out of bed in the morning and face the day like a normal person.”
“You must know, I’m heartened to hear this,” he replied.
“I’m glad for you. But there’s something going on here, Uly.”
His lips tipped up. “Yes. You and my brother are falling for each other.”
Yes.
We were.
But I had the sense it was more than that.
A good deal more.
Aleksei and Laura weren’t the first fated mates I’d been around. And yes, the connection was always palpable. Yes again, they always seemed more at ease when they were in each other’s company than when they were not.
But this was…
Fucking crazy.
“I need to get back to Gayle.”
He nodded.
I hurried back and found she’d taken off her shoes and was curled up in the bed much like how Laura and I had found her all those weeks ago, the morning after the Midnight Masque, when we learned that Cormac had rejected her.
I climbed into bed and pulled her in my arms.
“I calmed him down,” I told her. “We’ll all talk tomorrow. I’m going to contact the medi-unit to mix you a sleeping draft. Are you okay with that?”
“I think that’s the only way I can sleep, so…yes.”
I gave her a squeeze and got up to pull the cord to call a member of staff (the castle still had the old-fashioned bell pull system).
A staff member came up, I made my request, she told me she’d comm Drydyn at the steward’s cottage and have her come in and mix the draft, and when it was ready, she’d deliver it.
“Before you go, what’s your name?” I asked.
She seemed startled by the question before she said, “Yorna.”
She was one I’d seen before, so I said, “Nice to finally meet you properly, Yorna.”
She bowed her head (thank gods, no curtsy), blushed prettily and took off.
I went back to Gayle. “We’ll wait until Laura gets here with your things to take the draft. You sure you don’t want a snack or something?”
“I couldn’t eat anything. My stomach is in knots.”
Farging Cormac.
“Okay, honey,” I said gently, got back into bed with her and held her.
Fifteen minutes later, the draft arrived along with a beautifully carved glass pitcher of water and a matching glass.
I asked for this to be put on her bedside table.
Twenty minutes after that, Laura was let in and trailing her was a large hover case.
I didn’t get into asking why she and Aleksei were there.
After we exchanged hugs, we got down to helping Gayle get ready for bed, giving her the sleeping draft, and I told her where Tanyn’s chamber and Laura and Aleksei’s chamber were if she needed us.
When we got her tucked in, and her eyelids were drooping, we extinguished the lights and headed out.
That was when I got into it with Laura.
“I’m sure Gayle’s Denti-Clean didn’t need the True Heir and his True Bride bringing it personally,” I noted on the way to her room.