“Oh, thank you. I just need a moment; Zadkiel and Jack are going to be the death of me!” the woman screeched. Then she was gone as quickly as she’d arrived.
Bemused, Astraea didn’t know what to do with the baby that began grabbing at her. Clothing, hair, jewelry. Auster’s chuckle as she held the babe at arm’s length made her snap her eyes to him in a plea for help.
“Just relax,” he said, his voice coated in mirth as he watched her struggle.
Astraea held the child like the woman had, using her other hand to play with the tiny pincers that constantly wanted to grab. After a moment, the feeling was quite special. The small bundle had big blue eyes and soft blond hair, and her silver wings were so small Astraea’s heart squeezed. She wouldn’t be able to fly until she was into her teens.
She bounced the child in her arms, feeling an infectious joy spread withinher, the likes of which she’d never experienced. When she glanced toward Auster, he was staring at her fondly, and Astraea stopped moving.
“You would make the most amazing mother,” he said.
Her sparks of warmth cooled as her eyes searched the room, eager for the woman to return to take the child back.
“What’s wrong?” Auster asked, reading her shift of mood.
“I need to talk to you about something.”
“I’m all yours.”
She swallowed hard.
“Can we go somewhere private?”
To her immense relief the woman came rushing back, taking the child from her. The way Auster had looked at her moments ago churned the guilt she harbored over her bond with Nyte.
His expression slowly firmed, and she could hardly bear her racing anxiety.
The woman rambled to Auster while Astraea was antsy to leave. “Will you speak with him again? Zadkiel has been having a hard time here lately.”
Auster promised to visit again soon, and they left.
He pulled her to a stop by her elbow when they’d only gotten a street away.
“You’re going to wring your hands dry; tell me what’s wrong.”
“You’re my best friend and I can’t bear to lose that,” she blurted.
His expression turned guarded.Shit, how was she supposed to tell him?
There was no sequence of words that formed right in her mind. Every delivery was a bomb she would have to throw between them and hope they could survive the explosion.
“What have you done?” he asked, but it was like he already knew.
His features darkened in the way she’d seen his loathing at the mere mention of Nyte. He stared at her now as though the imprint of Nyte unveiled before his very eyes.
“I didn’t have a choice,” she scrambled, but that was a lie. Nyte might have forged their bond to save her but she’d known… long before then she’d chosen him.
Astraea shook her head, trying again. “I need you to listen to all I have to say. To try to understand.”
She gasped when he crossed the few steps between them and grabbed her arms. Auster pulled them through the void, taking them to an edge of a cliff overlooking his province as the sun was beginning to set.
“You’re not about to humiliate me where my people can hear,” he said sourly.
Astraea blinked. Her heart pounded wildly.
“You already know?” she asked in disbelief.
His eyes cut into her. “You haven’t done a very good job of concealing that vile mark on your neck.”
