Page 131 of Mama Si's Paradise

“Out. Hunting and tending to the people. They build everything themselves. Catch fish in the nearby waters. Make sure they’re all fed and clothed and satiated,” Rachel said, like she did all those things herself and she was proud of it. “The people live well in the Whispering Woods.”

“When will I get to see the town?” I said, and for some reason it didn’t even occur to me to tell them about Grey. I just wanted to know what the Evernights built andhowthey hunted and how the people felt about them themselves.

“After the Blood Call, I assume,” she said with a shrug.

After the Blood Call, the one thing that was going to give me both the freedom to do anything I wanted in this place and enough magic to protect myself with, and the final link that would practically chain me to one of the brothers forever.

Romin, Emil, Grey, Tristian,all impossibly beautiful, all looking forward to tasting my blood, while I tried not to throw up every time I thought about it. I tried not run blindly and as fast as I could just to get away from the very idea that one of them was going to eatme.

Maybe noteatme but feed off me.

“Oh, don’t look so grim,” Lucinda said, and I immediately straightened up in my seat. The brides said those words to me often when I forgot to control my expressions, or when I was too overwhelmed to care—like tonight.

“I’m not, I was just—” I started to lie, but she cut me off.

“I was talking to Cynthia,” she said, nodding her head across the table, at Cynthia, who was indeed pushing the food on her plate around, looking…well, as grim asIusually did.

“Oh.” How had I even missed this when Cynthia was usually very chatty all the time? “Is everything okay?”

“It’s Master Grey,” said Rachel from the seat next to her.

“Or rather, theabsenceof Master Grey,” Lucinda corrected, grinning ear to ear.

Cynthia looked up at her. “You’re a brat.”

“I didn’t even say anything!” Lucinda said, but she winked at me as soon as Cynthia looked at her plate again. I widened my eyes at her—she really was a brat, but that was a damn compliment to Lucinda so all she did was shrug her shoulders.

With a loud sigh, Cynthia put the silverware down and satback on her chair. “I just don’t understand. I don’t get it—why?!”

“Why…what?” I asked, feeling even more guilty. I’d been so locked up in my own head with my own thoughts that I hadn’t heard a single thing they’d talked about all day.

That—and last night. Why the hell did I want to keep what happened last night from her? She was Grey’s bride, wasn’t she?

Ugh, that word…

“He won’t come to us at all,” Cynthia said in a whisper, looking behind her at the doors to make sure they were still closed. “He hasn’t even spoken to me in weeks, and I don’t get it. Weknowhow to please him!”

“Yep, yep, mhmm—and Amita is devastated,” said Lucinda, nudging me with her leg under the table as she tried to keep a straight face but failed. It wasn’t that she wasbador heartless or anything—on the contrary. She just claimed that trivial drama made for the best entertainment for her. As long as it wasn’t serious, she could laugh and have fun with just about everything.

“Oh,”I said again because what the hell else could I say? I had no clue how to even have a conversation with a bride about why her Master wasn’t fucking her. I didn’twantto, especially since I felt so damn filthy for not telling them about last night.

“Yes, Fall. That’s a very bad thing,” Rachel said bitterly. “I mean, where is he even getting blood—animals?”

“Exactly!” Cynthia cried.

“I’m sure he’ll come around,” I muttered. It was the best I had, and I stuffed my mouth with food so I didn’t have to say anything else.

“He will,” Cynthia said with another exasperated sigh. “Thank you, Fall—of course, he will. He always does.” Her eyes were actually filled with tears. Fuck, itmade me so uncomfortable, even though I meant what I said.

“Butwhy? What are his reasons?” Lucinda asked. “I’m sure he has a few.”

Cynthia shook her head. “He’s either busy or tired or says he won’t be around for the night,” she reluctantly said.

My mouth opened—he really is busy,I wanted to say.He really is hunting—I saw him last night in the kitchen. I cleaned the blood off him myself. He took me to see the cougar he saved…

I clamped my mouth shut again. No, I would not be telling anyone anything simply because I didn’t want to beinterviewedabout it all night long. I didn’t need their attention on me, not today.

At least that’s what I told myself.

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