Legend of the Inero Dragon (13 page)

Almost perfect wasn't what she wanted. Not
that she expected him to be flawless. She enjoyed his flaws more
than anything because they felt real. That's what she needed the
most from him—something real. If she could only get him to break
out of his shell more, then she could really get to know him. He'd
done it briefly at the picnic and every so often at home as well.
She'd work on him, figuring out a way to get him to crack, because
she found herself liking him a lot.

Their moment at the park had been extra
special. Ever since then, she found herself wanting to spend more
time with him. She'd never experienced anything like it before with
a guy. He took such good care of her, and it was time for her to
return the favor. She was going to learn to cook more and spend
more time keeping the attention on his needs. He deserved it. And
she wanted to give it to him. The past three months had done a lot
for them. While she wasn't ready to give herself to him completely,
she did want to have something with him. More than anything, she
wanted to explore her feelings. She couldn't quite figure out what
it all meant, but it was good. Perhaps in the next nine months, she
could truly give herself to him without it being awkward, messy, or
dramatic.She hoped so. Jason would be easy to fall in love
with.

Chapter
Twenty-Five

Kat lay next to her husband. The term finally
felt real to her. For the first time since they'd made the
covenant, the two were acting like a unit, like companions. Things
had been up and down since they'd had their talk about their
relationship, and she could tell it frustrated him to not have
everything resolved right away. With hard work and effort on both
of their parts though, she could see the fruit of the labor finally
starting to show. She watched as he grabbed a piece of cheese and
nibbled on it.

Maybe I should listen to you
more often. Eating dinner in bed is kind of fun
. He briefly stopped chewing so he could smile before focusing
on eating.

"I have a lot of good ideas. I'm glad you're
starting to see this," Kat said with a smirk.

When he finished chewing, he leaned over to
kiss her cheek while he roamed his hand over her stomach in slow
circles. "I don't say this enough: I love you."

"You're awfully cuddly today," Kat murmured,
turning her face so she could kiss his lips. He'd been extra
attentive the past couple of weeks. Ever since she had told him the
big news, he'd hardly left her side. She liked it, so she told him
to wait on telling anyone else until later so she could keep
enjoying it. Maybe that was selfish of her, but she needed him.
She'd do whatever it took to make sure he stayed.

"I feel like I don't appreciate you like I
should. You'll be okay while I'm away, right?"

She gave him a reassuring smile and stroked
his cheek. "I'm a big girl. I know where to go if I need anything.
I don't want you to worry about us while you're gone. You should be
focusing on staying safe, so you can come back to us soon."

"I'm not worried about my safety. The Oceina
don't scare me. But I'll use you for motivation to do the job
quickly. My only concern is making sure you'll be okay on the off
chance that something goes wrong," he said, flashing her a coy
smile.

She leaned into him. "Well, don't worry about
that either."

If, Heaven forbid, something did happen to
him, Kat felt confident in her friendships to know she'd be okay.
Lenora and the others would not abandon her. Nor would his father
or brother. She couldn't wait to tell the big news to her new
'mother.'

Kat frowned as she reflected
on his words.
If something went
wrong...
What kind of a mission was he
going on?

"I know you're the best at
what you do," she said, trying to keep up her support, but now she
was worried. "If anyone can do the job, it'll be you. What
are
you doing
exactly?"

He kissed her lips. "What I have to. I don't
want to talk about work. I'd rather kiss you, or hold you, or love
you. Take your pick."

"How about all of the above?" She kissed him
back, closing her eyes.

"I'm fine with that."

He placed soft kisses along her jaw line,
moving a strand of her hair away from her eyes. She gazed into his
beautiful, dark chocolate eyes. Instantly, her stomach felt warm
and calm. Not only did she feel happy, but the baby did as well.
Every so often, the baby would tell her how it felt or what it
needed. Kat loved feeling so connected. Whenever she felt lonely,
the baby reminded her to keep staying strong. She only wished she
could share the experience with Matt.

Kat placed his hand on her stomach, wanting
to will the baby into being more vocal, but it fell silent.

"Promise me you won't try to be too brave if
something does go wrong. Promise that you'll do everything you can
to come back," she whispered.

"I told you. I'll be fine. Please don't ruin
the moment."

"Just promise me this one thing, and I'll let
it go," she said, gave him a small encouraging kiss
on his nose and her hand squeezed his thigh.
"It will
make our baby feel better as well."

"When you put it that way," he said with a
laugh. He shifted his body so he was now speaking to her belly. "I
promise I will come back." Then he kissed her skin. She felt a jump
of energy inside of her in response.

"It liked that."

"He, darling. It is a he."

She laughed, shaking her head. "You never
know!"

"Actually..." he started,
but stopped. Instead he leaned up to kiss her again, much deeper
than before.
Let's not waste time arguing
over something so silly.

Chapter
Twenty-Six

Navi and Gwen had created a routine of sorts.
Three times a week, Navi came down to Gwen's home and picked her up
so they could go to the wives' pool together. While Navi went to
the pool every day, Gwen could only stomach it a few times a
week.

On the days she didn't go, she stayed home
doing chores or reading. Ideally, she preferred not to go to the
pool, period, but both Navi and Jason advised her against this.
Part of proving her worth as a woman was being there to socialize
with the other high-class wives. It gave her more credibility in
the city. She needed that since she and Jason had yet to consummate
their marriage.

She did a lot of reading at the pool as well.
It gave her something to do while she waited for Navi to finish
making her rounds amongst the small groups of women.

Per usual, Chris trailed behind the two young
women as they walked through the city. He waited outside the gate
for them all afternoon until they finished.

"What does he do all day while you're in
here?" Gwen asked as they walked into the pool gardens.

Hardly anyone spent time in the pool itself.
She didn't understand why. It was always hot and dry outside. The
garden itself must have been specially watered because it reminded
her of an oasis in the desert. She stopped to admire a new bloom of
small, purple flowers.

"He waits," Navi answered. "He's known to
keep a book on him. If he goes anywhere, it's never so far away
that he couldn't get to me quickly."

"Now
that
is devotion," Gwen said with
awe. The two went to their usual grove of trees and sat in the
shade.

"Yes. And I'm sure he'd be here if it were
allowed. He takes his job seriously."

"He takes
you
seriously. How long
have you two been in love with one another?"

Navi gave her a side-glance, her eyes opened
wide. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"You know I won't say anything," Gwen said,
waving her hand. "It's not obvious if that's what you're worried
about. I don't think even Jason can tell, but I see the way you
look at each other. How long has it been going on?"

Navi shook her head. "Nothing is going on,
nor will anything ever happen because Lynx would know. He'd be able
to smell it. And the minute he found out, he'd send both Chris and
I off to be executed for treason. Because it's okay for him to
cheat on me, but not for me to cheat on him. He only let one wife
get away with that."

"Who?"

"Lenora, his first."

Gwen nodded. "I see."

"Yes, she is the reason why he won't hold on
to a wife. He'd rather move on before she decides to. It's a
philosophy he's passed on to his children."

Gwen frowned at this. She didn't think Jason
would abandon her on a whim for anyone else. Hopefully, he trusted
her to not do the same. They were in this together—at least that's
what she thought. Why would he invest so much time in making sure
she was comfortable and safe if he were going to ditch her for
another? It didn't make sense.

"He still loves her," Navi added. "They have
a strange relationship. She's trying to earn back his trust and
affection. He likes to watch her beg for forgiveness. Naturally,
I'm a threat to her."

"When really, you'd like nothing more than
for him to go back to her. Then you could be with—"

"Yes." Navi cut her off. "I'd rather not talk
about this again, especially not here."

Eyes were watching them and ears were
listening. Showering and getting dressed especially made Gwen
paranoid. She didn't want to think about who could be watching her
and when. Back on the farm, she'd had all sorts of freedom to do
and say what she wanted. All of it was gone now. While Jason
assured her it probably wasn't as bad as she was imagining, he also
stressed the need to be careful.

She pulled out her book to start reading
again. Navi fixed her hair, preparing herself for her morning
social obligations. She got this out of the way first thing. Then
she returned to Gwen for some peace and quiet.

When Gwen had first arrived, the story of her
marriage to Jason had spread like wildfire. Several of the wives
came to try and be friends with her, but she blew off their
attempts. None of them came across as genuine. Their desire for
friendship was done solely for their political gain. They soon
learned it best to avoid her, and this created a safe haven of
sorts for Navi. Gwen was more than happy to help.

She had just started the next chapter of her
novel when she noticed Kat walk by. She did regret blowing her off
because of the stress it put on Jason's relationship with his
brother. He tried hiding it whenever they spoke about Matt and Kat,
but she could hear the tension in his voice and see the sadness on
his face. Now she wasn't sure how to fix it because she wasn't the
type to go out of her way to make nice with anyone. Plus, Kat
irritated her. A lot. There was no way for her to win in this
situation.

"I feel bad for her," Navi said with a
sigh.

"Why?" Gwen raised an
eyebrow.
Because she's vapid, shallow, and
boring?
But she held her tongue.

"Because she's going to lose her
husband."

Gwen paused her reading. "Jason said his
brother is on some kind of a mission, but he didn't say anything
about it being dangerous. It's been about three days, and I know
for a fact he's been checking in."

"That's not what I mean. She's losing him
because he's changing."

"That happens when you grow up," Gwen pointed
out.

Navi nodded. "He's turning into his father,
though, which is too bad because he used to be so sweet."

Gwen rolled her eyes. "I don't feel any pity
for her. I'm sure she'll adapt accordingly. She certainly knows how
to play the same political games he does." She went back to reading
her book.

"I think they're both being manipulated."

She shrugged. Even if they
were, what was
she
supposed to do about it? She watched as Kat laughed at
something Lenora said. It disgusted her even more. "I don't think
you need to worry about her. She fits into this world
perfectly."

"She's pregnant, you know."

"Actually, I didn't."

"I don't think anyone does,
but I've seen enough of them in my time here to know. She has 'the
Glow,' as everyone else calls it. I wouldn't know from experience,
but I do recognize it when I see it. Lynx always told me that when
the twins have children, it's going to change the world." Navi
paused. "I just hate the idea of two people so innocent being used.
Matthias thinks its love. Lynx talks about him like he's a tool. If
I'm right and she
is
pregnant, she will be one too."

Gwen admired Navi's huge heart. She didn't
have it in her to tell the woman that nothing they did would make a
difference. If Navi couldn't make Lynx stop whatever he was doing,
she didn't see how she or Jason could make a difference either.

"What kind of a tool?" she asked. She
promised Jason she would try and be more helpful. For him she'd
make an effort.

"I know you know about the upcoming war,"
Navi said, lowering her voice. She kept her body language light,
though, to throw off anyone who could possibly be watching them.
"Matthias will be the force which ignites it. I don't know why his
offspring will be important, but it has something to do with the
twins being Touched. I think Lynx will use them as a weapon to
win."

This is getting scarier
everyday.
For the first time since coming
to live with him, Gwen wished she could have the telepathic
connection the other wives had with their spouses. She wanted to
tell him everything
now
while it was still fresh. Plus, she could use his
reassurance.