AllFreeNovel
Share Us
It made sense, as much as anything about magic was making sense for me. “It was right after the light disappeared that the first bomb went off.”
“There was no bomb. That light was your magic waking, and when it did, it set off the chain of events which roused us from our slumber.”
My stomach dropped to my toes. “That would mean I was kinda sorta at fault for pretty much everything at the museum.” Except there was no way for me to explain it to the police without sounding like I needed a self-hugging jacket. I had to stick to my amnesia story, because it was far more believable than the truth.
“You are not at fault. There is no way you could have known your magic was going to activate there. It was simply an unfortunate location for that chain of events to play out.” Rez tried to assuage my guilt, but it didn’t help much.
Rubbing my temples, I moved to the last question I had at the moment. There would be many more questions to come, but my brain was on the verge of a nuclear meltdown. “Is there a chance I could avoid activating any more gifts from my grandmother? Maybe we can let the other men keep sleeping?”
Rez rested his chin on his hand, deep in thought. “No. I do not see any way it can be avoided. Now that your power is activated, your proximity is all it will take to activate other gifts the priestess left you. But why would you want to wait?”
“Just freaking fantastic,” I mumbled.
“Why are you so stressed? You did not have complaints last night. Are we unacceptable as mates?” Zon asked.
“No! It was fantastic.” I laughed. “It was better than fantastic; it was the best sex of my life. But there’s a lot of judgment that we’re going to face if we choose this.” I motioned to the three of us.
“We have already chosen, but we will honor any decision you make.” Rez’s eyes had shuttered over, hiding his emotion from me.
My heart ached. I hadn’t meant to hurt him. “I want you guys! I don’t think you understand how badly,” I cried, clenching my hands until I felt my nails bite into my skin.
“What is the issue? If you want us, and we want you, why do the opinions of the world matter? Aren’t we enough? You can send us away, and we will accept your decision. But it will not stop the rest of your gifts from activating, and we won’t be here to answer your questions or guide you in the things of the past. You will still have to deal with the other mates who will eventually awaken,” Rez explained.
“Yes. I mean, no. Oh! I don’t know.” I ran a shaking hand through my hair, making it stick up at odd angles. “It’s not strangers’ opinions that worry me.” I hesitated. “Fine, maybe I’m a little worried about them. But my parents made it clear that they don’t want to see me again if I am going to continue this relationship with you both.”
Zon and Rez’s faces twisted into twin masks of horror. “Your parents would do this you?” Rez choked out.
“They seemed pretty determined about it.” I picked at one of the recliner’s seams.
Zon’s mouth fell open. “You live in a terrifying world! Do adults here also eat their young?”
It was my turn to be horrified. “Of course not! We’re not cannibals!”
Rez didn’t look convinced. “So your adults do not eat them, but they toss their offspring away if they no longer amuse them?”
“It’s not like that, okay?” I wanted to defend my parents. “They love me, and they are great parents. But they are embarrassed at the thought of their friends finding out about our relationship.”
“Why should strangers care what you do in your home? It does not affect them,” Zon interjected.
“It’s just the way things are. People love to share juicy gossip about others and judge them if they make choices different from what the majority does.”
Rez stood striding to me. Kneeling in front of me, he caught my hands in his and placed featherlight kisses across my knuckles. “I do not want to cause you pain. It distresses me to think of you losing your family. I will leave if you wish.”
My heart throbbed in panic. “No. I want you to stay. I want you both to stay. I’m an adult, and I can make my own decisions.” Good grief, I’d been living on my own since my eighteenth birthday, which was more than a few years ago.
“I am not questioning your ability to make decisions on your own, but I know it is hard to face disappointment from one’s family and to be shamed by them. I wish there was a way we could avoid this.”
Pulling one of my hands free, I brushed the back of my fingertips along his jaw. “So do I, and who knows? Maybe they’ll come around, eventually. Maybe the idea just shocked them, and when they see this isn’t a fling, they will grow to accept us.”
“Yes, we will hope for that.” Rez nuzzled his cheek into the palm of my hand before leaning forward to place a featherlight kiss on my lips.
“So, how will this work? Are we married now?” My cheeks grew hot.
Rez rested his chin on the recliner’s arm. “No, more like engaged or promised to one another. We have not performed a claiming ceremony to complete the bonding. Until then, we are engaged.”
“There’s so much that we’re going to have to figure out. There’s barely enough room here for Albert and myself, let alone for the two of you. I was due for a raise at the museum soon, but I doubt that’s going to happen now that I’m a suspect.” I chewed on my bottom lip.
There were so many decisions to make. They didn’t have ID, they couldn’t drive, and I couldn’t even trust them to not panic and shift in the street. Which meant they couldn’t work a job. How was I going to support the three of us on my measly museum salary?
