Page 25 of Fated Exile

I choke a little. "I don't think anorgyis a requirement."

Finn quips, "I can think of a few ways to make that multi-tasking happen. You just have to be a little creative. For instance—"

"Didn't we already know that?" Roarke thankfully interrupts, a little frown on his face. "About the... well, hybrids having multiple mates, and..."

Lance says, "We knew that theycouldchoose multiple mates. But Delilah hasn't made it clear what it is that she wants, now that the Summit is approaching. Once you're alpha, what else happens?"

"I..." Roarke trails off a little, glancing down at the table, his green eyes shadowed. "I was hoping she would want to be with me."

"I do!" Anxiety is like a ball in my chest. "It's just that I don't want to choose between you. And apparently, neither does fate, which makes things complicated."

"Five?" Finn points a finger at himself, then looks around the table. "One, two, three, four..."

"Coming up a little short there on numbers," Kieran points out, clearing his throat a little. He looks over at me with hope in his eyes as he asks, "Are you talking to all four of us because you think that we're your fated mates? Does this mean you might... I mean, I don't want to pressure you, but..."

"Are you going to choose five werewolf males to be your mates?" It's Lance, of course, who asks directly. "And if so, are four of them sitting at this table?"

"And the fifth—is it Bastian?" A troubled expression crosses Roarke's face. "Because after what happened yesterday..."

"I know. I don't want to push anything." Placing my hands on the table, I do my best to calm my racing heart, even though I feel like I'm going to fall apart. "The thing is, though, I've seen mating threads between me and Bastian. And if what Vivia says it right—and I think that she's the one most likely to have the answers—then Ihaveto mate with him in order to lift the curse and defeat Delphine once and for all."

There's a heavy silence around the table. I can't quite read each of the guys' expressions; they're too closed off for that. Skimming around with my awareness, I get a sense of their states, like a little flavor at the back of my tongue.

Kieran is hopeful and excited, his new, healed soul and improved wolf lending him optimism about the future. Finn doesn't care about the multiple mates thing—he's buried deep in his thoughts, but the scorch of heat I get from him suggests they're sexual in nature.

Yanking back before I find myself sunk in whatever fantasy he's imagining, I feel along Roarke's edges, and sense his anxiety and panic. He's worried about becoming alpha of the pack, and holding so many fates in his hands. But he doesn't seem too concerned about the thought of sharing; despite all his natural leadership and influence, or maybe because of it, he's secure that as long as he mates with me, everything will be okay.

It's Lance who's most put out at the thought of sharing. Mostly, I think, with Bastian. He wants me; that much is clear based on the way he's looking at me now, heat in his eyes. But he wants me all to himself, and while it was one thing to share me with his friends, the thought of a strange werewolf male being with me sexually is anything but thrilling to him.

So it's no surprise when he's the first to clear his throat and speak up. "How, exactly, is someone that broken inside going to be safe to form a mate bond with, Delilah? Because let me tell you right now—if you think Bastian was dangerous yesterday, you haven't seen anything yet. Letting him into your mind, soul, and body, could destroy you."

"It's the only chance we have," I point out, even as frustration rises inside me at his tone of voice. "I'm going to do my best to heal his mind before... before anything goes further. But even if I can't, there's no choice but to go through with the mating ceremony with allfiveof you. Right away. Even now, the Mating Circle is falling apart, and it'll crumble if we don't do something."

Lance eyes me for a long moment. I try to get a sense of his emotional state, but he's buried whatever he's thinking and feeling deep inside. A wall has gone up between us, one that's never been there before, and it hurts to bump up against.

"And if I say no?" His voice is a deep, rumbling growl, his hands curled up into half-fists on the table and a possessive look on his face. "If I tell you that I won't mate with youandwatch you mate with that broken traitor, too?"

"Then you'll doom us all."

It's Roarke who says the last sentence, his tone calm and clear. Despite whatever turmoil he may or may not feel at the thought of Bastian becoming one of my mates, he doesn't let it show in his voice.

Getting to his feet, he turns towards Lance and calmly tells him, "Whatever you're feeling, I get it. The last few weeks have been a lot—hell, I nearly thought I'd lost it yesterday. And I'm not prepared at all for what will have to be done tonight to save the pack. But the last thing we need right now is to act jealous or competitive. And the absolutelastthing Delilah needs is you being possessive over her."

Though Lance's brows draw together and his mouth pinches in frustration, his voice is calmer and the growl is gone when he responds. "What if I'm just being protective? Bastian could hurt her. Hell—once she's mated with all of us, we'll be connected too. He could hurtusas well."

"What?" I frown, looking between Lance and Roarke. "Is that true? Will the five of you be connected if you mate with me?"

Finn quips, "Only if there's sword crossing." At Roarke's irritated look, he sighs. "Fine, fine, we'll warm up to that sort of thing. As for the mating connection—I don't think any of us knows for sure, Delilah, but that's typically how it works. Even when a mate bond is broken, by betrayal, death, or witchcraft, some of it remains. More than one blended werewolf family complains about passing thoughts or emotions leaking through. If we're all actively mated to you? I imagine it'll be like a constant game of telephone."

"Not that bad." Kieran clears his throat, and we glance at him for clarification. "My parents were still mated for a bit when my dad took a new mate. Mom formed a connection with the other woman, but she could mostly ignore it unless something big and emotional happened, like pain or... pleasure. She had to learn how to shut it away until they were able to get things sorted."

Finn snorts. "What he's saying is that we'll be able to tell when one of us is fucking you, and we'll probably get hard when it happens."

I can feel a blush from my hairline to my collarbone. It's hard to look anyone in the eyes, though I can tell that Finn is grinning.

Lance is grave when he says, "Let's hope that Delilah is able to fix what's wrong in Bastian's mind, then. Because otherwise, it'll become what's wrong in all of ours as well."

No pressure or anything.

---