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I softly caressed the pulse point battering away on her throat and pressed a soft kiss on the side of her mouth to give her courage. Her comment about me being a stranger rankled a little, but I knew she hadn’t meant it hurtfully. Clans were very protective; we constantly spied on one another for the very purpose of digging up damaging information to use as bargaining chips.
“I swear on my mother and sister, the two people who mean the most to me in this world, that your secret is safe with me,” I vowed.
My promise seemed to appease her.
Going limp in my embrace, she began, “Adrian, my brother, is technically my half brother. My mother had an affair with my father’s consilier and best friend. Of course, he was disposed of immediately for his treachery. She was spared because she was pregnant. My father was humiliated, but he also blamed himself because he’d neglected her. Since he came to America, he’s spent every waking moment making sure our clan survived and prospered.”
Her eyes pleaded with me for understanding.
Please, as if I’d judge her. If she only knew of my father’s crimes.
“He accepted Adrian as his own to hide the fact that he’d been cuckolded. Of course, Adrian, being Adrian, was too good not to love. We both fell in love with him, and I know my father regrets having resented him when he was first born.”
“He loves Adrian as his own,” she said vehemently.
This was a significant confession, and the very last point was crucial. Adrian meant the world to her, to her father, and her clan. She was making sure I comprehended the full extent of her love and loyalty toward her brother.
“He loves Adrian as his own son,” I confirmed, proving I grasped her explanation. “As do you.”
She nodded her head, the spiral of her eyes wide with relief.
“Yes, I would protect him with my life,” she concurred.
“It’s not my place to condemn your father. I know something about betrayal, and in my experience, it’s an insidious snake that leaks poison into every crevice of your life. You start to question everything. It breeds fear, and fear is a powerful force. But, let me be clear, it’s his fear. He was wrong to infect you with it.”
Her eyebrows arched.
“I’ll say it again because you need to understand me, to believe me. With me, you can have it all,” I promised.
Hope slipped into her eyes, tilting the color toward the moss green I loved so much. My chest puffed up in pride seeing the effect I had on her. I’d do anything to keep that strain of hope alive. I’d have to prove my sincerity, my willingness to do anything for her, including trying to convince her father or fight him, if it came to that. The point was, I was willing to do whatever was necessary to bring my pledge to fruition. I didn’t know the details yet, but I’d have to start with facing my guilt-based relationship with Alex.
Her pearly white teeth pressed down into her luscious bottom lip. “You think so?”
I tightened my hold around her throat, feeling the thump, thump of her calmer pulse beneath my hand.
“I know so,” I replied solemnly.
