Page 46 of Dragon Rivals of New York

“Or if she just mates one of them?” Adrianna asks.

“Mating just one of you isn’t an option. The law of the goddess is clear. You must enter the pool with the ones she gives you or suffer the consequences.” The priestess gives a firm shake of her head. “Either they all mate and the hordes combine, or they don’t and...” The priestess shares a look with thepriest.

“Tell them,” he urges.

“Well, we don’t know exactly what will happen if a double-mated human rejects her mates, since there are no records of it occurring, but we believe it could have… ramifications for the hordes.”

“Negative ramifications,” the priest adds, as if that wasn’t clear already. The priestess glares at him, but he goes on. “There’s some speculation that’s what happened to the Citrine and Agate Hordes.”

The dragons in the room suck in their breaths while Jeslyn and Sora look at each other in confusion.

“Two hordes that were wiped out through plague,” Midas explains to his mate.

“We don’t know that for certain,” the priestess says.

Adrianna’s frown draws deep lines down her face, and I know what she’s going to say before she says it. “You have to mate.”

“We can’t risk the hordes,” Midas agrees. “I’ve seen the kind of leader you are over the past year, Adrianna, and if the goddess wills it, I’ll submit to your rule.”

She only nods, but there’s more in the dip of her head than just acknowledgement. There’s respect, and it’s clear she’d do the same if Midas ends up keeping the goddess’s blessing.

“You have to mate,” Midas repeats, looking at us now.

“We have to.” Sora’s words come out as a defeated exhale, and she lowers her eyes to the floor.

That’s not how I want my mate to feel about going into the pools with me. Jethro and I share a look over Sora’s head.

“Can we have till the end of the week?” I ask, seeking Midas and Adrianna’s approval to wait at least that long, to have a little more time to bring our mate around to the idea.

“Till the last day of Goddess Week,” Midas agrees.

“In the morning,” Adrianna says. She gives me a long look, like she’s trying to ask something. She’s known me a long time and knows my history.

But right now, I’m surprisingly unconcerned about having to share a mate with Jethro. What concerns me is Sora. I hate that she’s being forced into this. We have four days to convince her that this arranged mating is good. We’ll make it good. She’s everything I ever wanted, and I’m going to make sure she feels loved and cared for every day for the rest of her life.

I know Jethro will, too.

Chapter 22

Sora

Adriannaleaveswiththepriest and priestess along with the others from the Silver Horde. The woman I recognize as Cyrus’s grandmother slowly stands from the couch and takes Damian’s arm for support. She doesn’t look old, but she seems frail. Considering that Cyrus and Midas are both well over a hundred, this woman must be much older than that.

She fixes me in her gaze. “Have you ever heard the metaphor of the dog and the cart?”

I shake my head. “I don’t think so.”

“Marcus Aurelius said ‘man is like a dog tied to a moving wagon. If the dog refuses to run along with the wagon, he’ll be dragged by it. Yet the choice remains his: to run or be dragged.’” With that, she shifts right there in the living room, with no concern for the dress she just ripped in two.

Damian gives me a sad look before following her out to the patio.

Left with just Jeslyn and her small family, the reality of our situation truly sinks in. My knees feel wobbly, and I’m trying not to cry, grateful for the support of the two men beside me.

“Are you okay?” Jeslyn asks.

I nod, then shake my head. Jethro kisses my temple. Kyro tightens his grip on my hip. I’m grateful for their support, but it still feels like there are chains wrapped around me, squeezing tighter and tighter, trapping me in a reality I never asked for. Like it or not, I'm tied to this cart, and I'm not sure yet whether I want to embrace what's happening or fight it.

“You’ll be fine.” Midas stands. I can’t tell if he’s just that confident that I’ll be happy with Jethro and Kyro, or if he’s commanding it to be so with just his words.

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