Total pages in book: 131
Estimated words: 118860 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 594(@200wpm)___ 475(@250wpm)___ 396(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 118860 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 594(@200wpm)___ 475(@250wpm)___ 396(@300wpm)
He could tell her the truth and hope she understood, or he could brush off her concerns. He gave her truth. “My brothers do not have lifemates. Luiz has a lifemate, but she is too young to anchor him. That means that all three could, if the circumstances were right, cross the line and become the very thing we hunt. Dominic and Solange will be acutely aware of it.”
Her lashes swept down and then back up. “If your brothers share your memories, can’t you anchor them? Keep them safe until they find their lifemates?”
“I try. I have been sharing color and emotion as best I can. It is you providing those things for me.”
“You’re saying I can give them those things, share with them enough to keep them safe? Can I do the same with my cousin?”
Tomas nodded slowly. “You have a gift, Sarika. You aren’t aware of how special you are. Not just because you’re my lifemate, but you seem to be able to ease any ancient when you’re close to him. To my knowledge, there are only a few women who can do such a thing.”
“How would I make it easier for Lojos, Mataias and Luiz?”
He took a deep breath, pulled her away from the entrance to the cave and gave her the truth he knew she wouldn’t like. “In our world, everything is about blood. Luiz took your blood in order to better communicate with you from a distance so he could ensure your protection, but he didn’t give you his blood.”
Her lashes fluttered again, removing his ability to see her reaction. It took discipline not to look into her mind. She had a very real abhorrence to anyone taking her blood. It had to be worse to think she would have to ingest blood herself. She was silent for so long he almost interfered to tell her it was simply information.
No one expected her to or would want her to think she needed to aid the ancient warriors. They didn’t think in those terms. They were solely there for the purpose of protecting her. To Luiz, she was his family. To his brothers, she was their little sister. They would give their lives for her.
“When I dreamt that day, I dreamt that you not only took my blood but you gave me yours. We haven’t yet discussed it because I wasn’t ready, but it wasn’t a dream, was it?”
He shook his head. “No.”
“But I was unaware while you did it, right?”
“Yes.” They were in uncomfortable territory for both of them. He didn’t like the fact that their first blood exchange had been without her consent. He would have to address that, along with his reasons, soon. His explanations for trampling on her rights had to be getting old.
“If I could actually agree to such a thing, would you be able to be with me? In my mind, I mean. Where I could feel you and not them? Could you keep me from knowing what they were doing? What I was doing?”
His heart reacted with physical pain. Sarika surprised him at every turn. Just the fact that she would consider such a thing when she was so terrified of having them take her blood astonished him. He especially loved that she wanted him to buffer her. He didn’t deserve her faith in him, not yet. He needed to earn that.
“What you’re offering is amazing, Sarika. A gift beyond any price, but you aren’t ready for it. My brothers and Luiz will endure because that is what they do. You haven’t yet come to terms with being my lifemate. You’re asking far too much of yourself.”
“The point is this, Tomas,” she said, tilting her chin at him so her eyes met his. “I had no choice when it came to being a lifemate. There doesn’t appear to be a way out, so I have a couple of choices. One is to fight you every step of the way, and the other is to do whatever I can to understand your customs and your needs to give us a better life together. I choose the second one. The more choices I make for myself, the more I feel in control of my life.”
Every word of every letter she’d ever written to him was engraved in his mind. This was the woman he’d come to know through the many years of posts she’d sent to him. She always took time to process a situation, and then she came up with solutions. She was willing to learn and change her opinions if things made sense to her.
“Your brothers mean everything to you. They are good men, and they’re willing to put their lives on the line for me. My cousin is the same. Annoying and intimidating, but he’s my family, and he would have risked fighting with you for me even knowing he was outnumbered. If I won’t have knowledge of it while it is being done, the blood exchanges, I mean, and you’re there with me, my protection, I think it would be a good thing.”