Page 2 of Primal Bonds

The Darktime. That was what the clan called the bloody civil war that Leron Savonett had sparked when he’d set out to become alpha no matter what the cost—and the gods knew, the cost had been tremendous, year after year of killing and dirty deeds.

Things had become so bad it was all they could do to survive. Food was scarce, which meant the few cubs that had been born were sickly or died.

His lungs clenched as he stared down at the infant.

Takira kissed her tiny nose. “Meet Uncle Jace, sweetie.”

“Hello, love.” He lifted the child from his sister’s arms. “She’s so light. Can’t weigh much more than a feather.”

Takira chuckled weakly. “She’s a newborn, idiot.”

“Mm,” he said, all his focus on the precious bundle in the crook of his arm. He pressed a kiss to her soft forehead. Her scent was milky-sweet, not a whiff of the graveyard stench that emanated from most night fae. He detected a hint of silver and iron, though—silver from her fae blood, iron from the human.

My niece. I’m an uncle.

It struck him like a punch to a gut.

The cub gazed unseeingly up at him with wide, catlike eyes. Then she gave an adorable little stretch like the unfurling of a flower before settling back into the tightly curled position of a newborn.

Jace swallowed hard—and just like that, his heart was hers.

“Her name is Merry,” Takira said. “Because it’s Christmas—and it’s a happy name.” As followers of the old gods, the fada celebrated the winter solstice, but their Jamaican mom had made a big deal of Christmas, too.

“It’s perfect,” he said. “She’s perfect.”

“I just wish Mama could’ve seen her.” A tear leaked from the corner of Takira’s eye.

Jace’s chest squeezed. “She would’ve loved her, and Dad would have, too.” Their father had been a mix of Cherokee and Scottish, with a deep, fierce love of family that he’d passed on to his two offspring.

“Yeah.” Takira smiled through her tears.

Silver hovered protectively nearby. He touched Takira’s shoulder. Their eyes met, and Jace guessed he was sending reassurance through the mate bond. Takira rubbed her cheek against Silver’s palm.

Merry’s tiny brow furrowed.

Jace rubbed a finger over it. “Don’t worry, little one. I’ve got you safe.”

“Thank you,” said Silver.

Jace gave Merry a last kiss and handed her to her father. Night fae were stunning, with pale skin and black hair. Silver might be half-human, but he looked all night fae—mesmerizing as a glittering cobra. Jace could barely tolerate being in the same room with him; the man made his skin crawl. Night fae were the energy suckers of the fae world. They fed on dark thoughts and emotions.

How the hell had Takira fallen in love with the man, and worse, taken him as her mate?

Still, Silver’s expression was tender as he looked down at his new daughter.

Takira moved restlessly. “You can’t tell the alpha. He thinks I lost the baby last month. Promise you won’t tell.”

“The alpha doesn’t know?” Jace pulled a chair up next to the bed. “How the fuck did you manage that?”

Takira flicked a glance at Merry, then lifted her chin. “I lied.”

“The hell you did. With a cub inside you?” He scowled. Fada couldn’t lie, not without making themselves violently ill. And since she was pregnant, the cub would’ve been affected as well.

“I had to.” His sister’s expression was fierce. “It was the only way to save her.”

“She was sick as a dog after,” Silver interjected. “That’s why she’s so thin—for two weeks, she could barely keep food down. But she had no choice. Your friend Adric told us that Savonett was going to force Takira to abort the baby. He doesn’t want the clan to be saddled with a fae bastard.” His mouth twisted.

Anger flared in Jace. “When you were seven months along?”

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