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"I'll drink to that." Vlad clinked his glass with his father's and then turned to clink it with Richard's. "To my father and to my mother's mate. Thank you for making our family complete."
Richard clapped him on the back. "It's not complete until you and Wendy have a kid, and hopefully, your mother and I will give you a little brother or sister as well."
"I'll drink to that too." Vlad clinked his glass with Richard's again. "And I hope to get another sibling from Vrog and Aliya." He clinked his glass with his father's.
"It's a happy day." Jackson wrapped his arm around Vlad's shoulders. "Who would have thought that you would be standing here today, with your father on one side and your stepdad on the other?"
Vlad chuckled. "Not me, that's for sure. The saying that life is stranger than fiction proves to be true once again." He smiled at his childhood friend. "When are you and Tessa going to tie the knot? And will you invite Mo-red's sons to be your groomsmen?"
Jackson sighed. "I should, but then I'll have to disappoint some of my good friends, so I probably won't. But there is plenty of time to think about that. Tessa and I are not in a rush."
"Do you know what sucks about these cruise weddings?" Gordon asked.
Everyone turned to him with frowns on their faces, but it was Leon who asked, "What?"
"No strippers."
Vlad was glad to hear the chorus of boos. "I wouldn't have strippers at my bachelor party even if Wendy and I were getting married in Vegas. The whole idea is repulsive."
Gordon lifted his hands in mock surrender, a cigar in one and a glass of whiskey in the other. "You are all a bunch of prudes, but whatever."
"We don't need strippers to celebrate," Jackson said. "Good friends, good whiskey, and a good cigar are good enough for me."
"Wise words." Bhathian raised his glass. "Let's drink to that and to many more happy occasions to celebrate with family and friends."
15
MARGO
Negal is a freaking god.
What did that even mean?
After dropping that grenade at her feet, Frankie and Mia had kept talking, telling her that they were both mated to gods, and the enormity of that explosion was still reverberating in Margo's mind, screaming that one word over and over again.
Gods! Gods?
Like Thor and Loki? Zeus and Poseidon?
"I need to lie down," she interrupted something Frankie was saying. "I don't feel so good."
"She's in shock," Mia said. "Perhaps I should have suggested coffee instead of having her mix us drinks."
"You think?" Frankie glared at Mia.
"It was your idea to give her alcohol."
"And you always listen to me?"
"Stop." Margo lifted her hand. "I'm fine, and there was barely any alcohol in any of our drinks. I put mere drops in. It's just that I've had enough excitement over the last twenty-four hours to last me a lifetime, and now you are telling me that the two of you are mated to gods and that Negal is a god as well, and it all sounds like something from a fantasy novel. I don't know if it's real or I'm suffering from some sort of weird withdrawal symptoms." She rubbed her temples. "If Jasmine is going through the same thing, she shouldn't be alone. I'd better go down there and stay with her."
Frankie reached for her hand. "You can't tell Jasmine anything. You need to stay here and try to process what we've told you. Then, once Toven wakes up from his nap, he will come over and compel you to keep everything we told you a secret."
"Compel me? What do you mean by that?"
"It's the damn drugs," Mia murmured. "Come on, Margo. Try to focus that sharp mind of yours. That's what Kalugal did to Modana and his men to make them put down their weapons. You were there when he did it."
It took her a moment to connect the dots. "You mean Kevin? He hypnotized them. Is that what you mean by compulsion?"
