Trusted Bond

furrowed.
    ―Doing what?‖
    ―Speaking to the priest.‖
    ―About what?‖
    His eyes locked on mine. ―It‘s Koren.‖
    My heart was in my throat. ―What?‖
    ―No, not like he‘s hurt,‖ he said, exhaling sharply. ―Koren, like…
    since I found you and accepted you as my reah, all my father‘s dreams for
    grandchildren, for an heir, moved to Koren. And he‘s been supportive in
    public and even told your father that he was sure everything would work
    out, but in the back of his mind, he always had his safety net.‖
    ―Koren.‖
    ―Yes.‖
    ―But now that Koren chose Domin…,‖ I sighed. ―Now your father
    wants an absolute.‖
    ―Yes.‖
    ―And he wants the child to be yours.‖
    ―He‘s demanding it,‖ Logan said, combing the hair back from my
    face with his fingers. ―And as guardian of the line until he dies—‖
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    Mary Calmes

    ―He can make you take a yareah to your bed.‖
    ―No.‖ His voice rose ominously. ―He can petition the priest to—‖
    ―I understand,‖ I said, cutting him off.
    He took a deep breath. ―I‘m so sorry, baby.‖ He eased me into his
    arms, tucking my head under his chin. ―But I swear to you that I will never
    be in bed with anyone but you ever.‖
    ―Unless I die,‖ I breathed over his skin. ―Then—‖
    ―Never,‖ he promised, clutching me tight.
    I thought Logan‘s father and I were past him not believing that I
    really did want what was best for my mate, his family, and his tribe, since
    everything that was his was mine as well.
    ―You can‘t blame him for how he feels, Logan,‖ I told him, listening
    to his heart, feeling the warmth through the dress shirt he was wearing. ―I
    do understand, and I get why he‘s not here to see me now. I was
    wondering.‖
    ―I told him not to come; I told him I didn‘t want you to see him.‖
    ―You should lift your ban.‖ I smiled, moving my head off his chest
    to look up into his eyes before I yelled, ―Delphine!‖
    I startled the hell out of my mate, which was funny. He let me go,
    and I was laughing when his sister appeared on the balcony.
    ―What the fuck?‖ Logan barked at me.
    He was funny, all flustered, and I started laughing.
    Delphine looked back and forth between the two of us. ―What‘s
    going on?‖
    ―I have no fuckin‘ clue,‖ Logan growled at her. ―One second I‘m
    telling him about the damn yareah and—‖
    ―But I‘m the damn yareah,‖ she told him.
    His eyes got huge, and he went white, and it was hysterical. I put my
    head back and howled.
    ―Jin!‖
    Christ, it felt good to laugh. Really, really good. The relief, the calm
    that washed over me, I lost myself in the feeling of utter joy. And when
    everybody came bolting out onto the patio from the room while Logan
    stood there sputtering, I dissolved into tears. I was wheezing, not even
    able to breathe, I was laughing so hard.
    Trusted Bond

    189

    ―What the hell are you talking about?‖ my mate roared at his sister.
    ―God, you‘re loud,‖ she said with a chuckle, patting his arm.
    My sides hurt.
    ―D!‖ he snapped at her.
    ―Okay, okay, so listen, Jin asked me to be his yareah,‖ she told her
    brother. ―Not yours.‖ She gave him a smile like he was slow. ―His. Not
    yours, his.‖ She giggled as she repeated it. ―Did you hear me, semel-re?‖
    He just stood there staring at her, mouth open.
    ―His‖—she did it again—―not yours, because that would just be
    eww.‖
    He looked like he wanted to say something but was at a complete
    loss.
    She placed her hand on his chest, over his heart, and looked up into
    his eyes. ―My dear sweet brother, Jin and I, we went about a month ago
    and froze some of my eggs and some of his little swimmers, and when you
    guys are ready, we‘ll mix ‘em all up in a margarita shaker and make a
    really cute baby.‖
    The room went silent except for me trying to catch my breath.
    ―The baby will be half you, you through me, and half Jin. He will be
    your child because it‘s your bloodline, and Jin‘s because, well, it‘s
    obvious.‖
    Logan was stunned, looking at his sister and me and then again at his
    sister.
    ―Jin asked me to do it, asked me for my eggs, and I said yes, because
    Jin deserves to be a father, to pass on all his brooding and passive-
    aggressiveness and his gorgeous hair. And you‖—she smiled at her
    brother—―are pretty great too.‖
    He swallowed hard, the muscles in his throat constricting, those in
    his jaw clenching,