Total pages in book: 84
Estimated words: 79587 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 318(@250wpm)___ 265(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79587 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 318(@250wpm)___ 265(@300wpm)
The car finally jounced to a stop and Mattie heard Luke kill the engine. Then he murmured to Amanda,
“Hey, want to come inside? I’ll make us a fire and you can have a look at my art collection.”
“Art collection? Well, aren’t you just full of surprises? I’d love to,” Amanda said brightly. “Er…what about Fatty Mattie?”
“Oh, she’d get her turn.” The anticipation in Luke’s voice made Mattie’s blood run cold. “But for now, I just want to concentrate on you.”
“Well…I’m flattered,” Amanda purred and Mattie could almost see her preening. “You know, we played so many games back in high school but we never really got together like I thought we might.”
“Well, we’re together tonight,” Luke pointed out. “Come on—I have so much to show you.”
Mattie couldn’t stand it any longer. She put her mouth to the small hole and shouted,
“Don’t go with him, Amanda! Can’t you tell it’s a trap?”
“Did you hear something?” Amanda asked, the sneer back in her voice. “For a minute, I thought I heard a rat squeaking from your trunk. A fat rat.”
“Nope—didn’t hear a thing,” Luke remarked. “Come on—I’ll take care of any rats later, but for now, it’s your turn darlin’.”
Then the doors to the car slammed and Mattie heard two sets of feet crunching on snow as they made their way to the cabin.
FORTY
GRATH
The Mouthpiece of the Goddess went back inside the silver long-range shuttle and Grath felt he had no choice but to follow. Commander Sylvan came after him and soon the three of them were sitting in the compact food prep area at the small but well-designed table which folded out from the wall. Grath sat beside his Commanding Officer, and Nadiah sat across from them.
“Now then,” she said, rising to punch some commands into a beverage replicator. “Start from the beginning and tell me everything—when did you first realize you were in love with the human woman you’re meant to be protecting?”
Grath stared at her in surprise but Sylvan only laughed softly and nudged him with an elbow.
“Go on, Grath—and don’t be surprised. Nadiah has a direct line to the Goddess, after all.”
“Er…all right.” Grath took a deep breath. “I knew it the moment I first took her hand and felt that familiar tingle…
“And then she threw the ring at me and told me she never wanted to see me again,” he ended, some time later. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “Not that I fucking blame her—forgive my language, Your Holiness. I knew I was doing wrong, leading her on when I could never bond with her. But I couldn’t seem to help myself. Because…”
“Because you are in love with her,” Nadiah said gently. Reaching across the small table, she put a slim hand on his. “But what makes you think you couldn’t bond with her, Grath?”
“First because I’m a Triple Hybrid. And second, because I tried bonding a female I thought was right for me before, and it ended in a failed bonding,” Grath said miserably. “I’ve never known such fucking pain—I didn’t want to put Madeline through that. I care for her too much to hurt her that way.”
“I see.” Nadiah nodded. “And did it ever occur to you that the first female you tried to bond with might not have been the one the Goddess had in mind for you?”
Grath frowned.
“But…I felt the tingle! All the males of my tribe feel it when the female they touch is right for them.”
“I would say maybe that tingle means the female has an affinity for you—but that doesn’t mean she’s the one the Goddess intends for you to be with forever,” Nadiah told him. “But I think maybe Madeline is the woman the Goddess wants for you.”
“You think?” Grath asked, skeptically. “Can you tell me for sure? Can you promise me that if I try to bond her to me, it won’t end in a failed bonding?”
Nadiah shook her head.
“I’m sorry,” she said gently. “But sometimes you have to step out on faith and trust that the Goddess has a plan for your life. There are no guarantees except that she loves both you and Madeline and wants what is best for you. And right now, it sounds to me like what’s best is to go back and find her and make things right between the two of you.”
“Which means you might need this.” Sylvan handed him back the diamond ring.
“I don’t know…” Grath said, frowning and squeezing the ring in his fist. “She was pretty fucking mad at me. She said twice that she never wanted to see me again.”
“Oh, I don’t think—” Nadiah began. But she stopped mid-sentence and suddenly froze. Her blue-green eyes began to glow a deep, emerald green and then a powerful feminine voice that was not her own began to issue from her lips.