Page 54 of Mated to the Kings

“I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you. I wanted to, and it was really hard to not blurt it out,” she says.

“It’s okay. I understand why you couldn’t say anything,” I say as we both pull away.

“I almost slipped up a few times,” she says.

“You did better than I would have,” I laugh.

“This is your Aunt Sana,” Dad says as he gestures to a woman who looks a lot like my mom, only older. “She is your mother’s younger sister.”

“It’s so nice to finally meet you,” she says softly as she hugs me.

“This…” Dad starts to say. “This is your grandmother, Arieana.” I look at the older woman who is smiling but has tears in her eyes. I step closer to her, and she holds my face between her hands.

“You look just like her, the last time I saw her alive,” she says softly, making tears surface again. “She is proud of the woman you have turned out to be.” She hugs me as tears slip down her cheeks.

“I’m sorry you lost her,” I say quietly.

“We both lost her, sweetie. I just wish you had been able to know her in life. You are just as strong as she,” she says as she pulls away.

“I saw her in my dreams right after I found out they were my mates,” I say.

“Your father told me you mentioned that,” she says.

“I saw her just now when I got off the plane. Did you see her?” I ask Dad.

“Yeah,” he says, wiping tears from his face. “I think that was her finding peace now that you are here.”

“I’m glad we were able to give her peace. I got the feeling she watched over me a lot from how she spoke,” I say. “She looked the same age as me, though.”

“She was your age when she disappeared,” Dad says.

“That’s unsettling,” I admit.

“See,” Leli says as she hugs Dad. “I told you it was weird.”

“You did good, Leli,” Dad says softly, cupping her face. “Thank you for bringing your sister home.”

“I won’t lie. I wish I had found her before getting raped repeatedly, but to see you two meet like that… All of that was worth it,” she says.

“And I will make him pay for what he did; I can promise you that,” Dad says, glancing up at me. I walk closer, and he puts his arms around Leli and me. “They will all pay for what they have done to my girls.”

“Do they treat you okay?” Volis asks me, gesturing to Daemon, Callum, and Kael. “We can take care of them if not.”

“Volis,” Dad sighs.

“Hey… King or not, I’ll still kick your ass if you hurt my little sister,” Striker says to the guys.

“They are good to her,” Leli says. “It gets pretty loud when they are really good to her.” I instantly blush at her joke, making the guys smirk, but they stay quiet.

“Leli!” Striker gasps as he covers Sylvie’s ears. “A child is listening.”

“Dude… Given what our father is… Don’t act like you’re innocent,” Leli laughs.

“Well, I was going to wait a second to bring that up,” Dad says. “I am an incubus, which makes you half witch and half succubus.”

“Ah, yeah,” I say. “That’s what the guys were guessing the day I met Leli.”

Dad clears his throat before responding to me. “This means your power is strengthened by the energy your mates provide.”

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