Page 67 of Excess

I snorted. “Actually, Leo—my twin—gave me a crash course on the drive over to your house. It didn’t even occur to me to ask him, but I guess when it came to Ella, Freya’s mum, he’d tried really hard to be a good mate.”

Inika gave my hand a gentle squeeze, not offering me any useless platitudes which I appreciated. My complicated relationship with my brother was something I’d have to come to terms with on my own, but for the first time it seemed possible that we’d find common ground. Or maybe it was just the happy post-heat hormones making me see the world through rose-tinted glasses. Who knows if Leo had actually kept his word while I was away?

I was going to have to confront that, but I had some questions I needed to ask here first.

“What happens now?” I asked, nudging the bottle again.

Her lips twitched as she lifted it up, taking a sip. “What do you want to happen?”

Surely, it couldn’t be that simple?

“I want to keep you.”

Inika’s expression didn’t give much away, but her scent did. She liked that idea. I might have expired on the spot if she hadn’t.

“You don’t want a mate,” she pointed out, her voice a little less certain this time.

I banded my arms tightly around her waist, keeping her close. “I didn’t want a mate until I met you. I didn’t see how I could make room for someone in my life until I saw you in it. To be honest, my family gave me a bit of a kick up the arse on that front. Maybe I was making sacrifices that no one had asked me to make.”

“I’d never want to take you away from Freya, or the rest of your family,” Inika said solemnly. “I adore Freya.”

“She adores you too.” I hesitated, rubbing my thumb restlessly over her thigh. “There’s still… I don’t know. Everything else, princess. We come from different worlds.”

“So we do.”

“I’m never going to fit in your world, Inika.”

She leaned in to kiss my cheek. “I don’t even fit in my world. And I won’t fit entirely into yours either. But—perhaps I’m being naive—I kind of feel like if we have each other, we could tackle anything.”

Inika adjusted her position so she could tuck her face into the crook of my neck. “I’m not saying it’ll all be smooth sailing, but I am saying that it will be worth it.”

“I think so too,” I murmured, scarcely daring to breathe, afraid that this moment would slip between my fingers. “I love you. I think I have for awhile now.”

“Oh, I know I’ve loved you for awhile, Blake Alwis.” Inika nuzzled into my skin, sticky and sweaty and perfect. “We’re going to be good together, right?”

“We’re going to be amazing, princess.”

Chapter 21

INIKA

I’d messaged Maia instructions from bed while Blake had coordinated with his family, so by the time we made it downstairs two days later—showered, dressed, mostly rested—it was to a beautiful breakfast and Blake’s family sitting around the dining table.

“Inika, this is my dad, David, and my brother, Leo,” Blake said, watching fondly as Freya threw her arms around my waist, hugging me like she hadn’t seen me in years. “And Freya, you already know.”

“I missed you,” Freya said, squeezing me tightly.

“I missed you too, Freya. Shall we sit down and have some breakfast?”

Leo and David looked terribly uncomfortable, and I did my best to make small talk, asking how they liked their tea and pouring it for them in the hopes that I could make them feel more at ease.

Maia had arranged for a full English to be set out on the table, and I encouraged everyone to help themselves while piling food onto my own plate at Blake’s insistence.

“You, uh, feeling alright then, Inika?” David asked, clearing his throat. “After your… Well. You know.”

“Fine, thank you,” I assured him, squeezing Blake’s leg under the table as he choked on his tea.

“Is Uncle Blake your mate now?” Freya asked, which had the effect of making all the alphas start choking and spluttering.

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