Page 114 of Bitten

When he fell back against the mattress, he was exhausted.

He remained deep inside Ralnur, too tired to move.

Caelian cuddled against Ralnur, Kane held the warlock tight, too. A jumble of hands, legs, and feet, they were knotted together.

Forever linked by blood.

“I love you, Caelian,” Kane murmured, reaching across Ralnur to cup the elf’s cheek. He pressed a kiss to the side of his warlock’s head. “And I love you.”

“I love you both more than I ever knew I had the capacity to love another,” Ralnur whispered.

Caelian stared between them, his hands linking with Ralnur’s. He turned to kiss Kane’s palm before returning to gaze at them. “We’re a family. The three of us. Maybe we’ll even get a happy ever after.”

“Shhhhh,” Kane said, caressed Caelian’s jaw. “Don’t jinx it.”

Caelian and Ralnur chuckled.

Kane lowered his hand from the elf’s face and rested his hand over their entwined ones. He closed his eyes, exhaustion taking over.

“You know, we should’ve used condoms,” Caelian whispered.

“We can’t spread disease,” Kane mumbled.

“No, but I read that a dhampir can impregnate his mates.”

Kane lifted his head and looked at Caelian.

“Female mates?”

“Any mate,” Caelian said, his eyes wide. “Just like a shifter.”

“Now you tell us?” Ralnur asked, chuckling.

“I forgot,” Caelian said. “But it just slid through my mind.”

Ralnur sighed before turning to his back to look at them both. “I suppose if we’re fated to have a child, we’ll have a child.”

Kane had never imagined fathering a child. But the thought of seeing either of them large and full with his babe? It drove him to distraction.

“Although, I didn’t do very well with the child I already have,” Ralnur said, his face falling.

Kane was thoughtful a moment, trying to think of the right thing to say. “Chris has suggested putting a plant into the Suns.”

“Oh?” Ralnur asked.

“Maybe Varian could win his freedom back,” Kane said.

Ralnur’s eyes widened. He shook his head vehemently. “No. Absolutely not.”

“You’d rather see him imprisoned or killed?” Kane asked.

Ralnur continued to shake his head. “It would be a suicide mission, Kane.”

“Or a chance for him to step up and show the king how sorry he is for his actions,” Kane said. “A chance for him to prove himself.”

“Varian isn’t like other people. His mind works in different ways,” Ralnur said.

“Different isn’t always worse,” Caelian offered. “Like Kane says, it could be a chance for him to win his freedom back. We all know how it feels to be imprisoned.”

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