Page 268 of Primal Bonds

“Cat’s balls.” Adric looked a little sick. “I told her not to go to Iceland. But you can’t stop my sister when she gets an idea in her head.”

“I noticed.” They exchanged a very male look of commiseration.

The younger man dropped onto the couch. Resting his forearms on his thighs, he interlaced his fingers and stared down at them. “I scented the mate bond. I know it’s real.”

“Yeah.” Fane took a chance and sat on the other end of the couch.

Adric shot him a glance but allowed him to remain. “I thought I’d lost her,” he said lowly. “She was going feral on me.”

“I know. But I saw her shift multiple times. She was always in control.”

“Yeah? That’s good. And her scent has changed. It’s not just the mate bond. She’s calmer, more in control.” He shook his head. “If that’s due to you, then I owe you one.”

“You don’t owe me a thing. Maybe I can take a little credit, but she did most of it on her own. She killed your cousin Corban, you know. A mercy killing. Poor bastard was half-dead and locked in an iron cage.”

Adric nodded. “She told me he’d died, but not the details.”

“He was going to die anyway. She didn’t have to kill him—she could’ve let him suffer.”

“The prick deserved whatever he got.”

“Yeah. Anyway, he begged her to do it. And when it was done, she cried her heart out.”

The alpha’s throat worked. “Jani never cries.”

“I think,” Fane said softly, “that was when she began to find her human side again.”

“Tell me.”

And so Fane sketched out the story of what had happened in the ice fae court.

When he was done, Adric shook his head. “Holy mother. I had no fucking idea.”

“I’ll tell you one thing. The ice fae are going to think twice before messing with the earth fada again.”

“Because of Jani.”

“Yeah.”

Adric’s lips curved. “That’s my sister.” He was silent for a few seconds, and then he sighed. “This mating. It comes at a bad time. The clan—I’m trying to bring us into the current century, but we were raised not to trust outsiders. Told that earth fada should stick with earth fada. When Jace mated with your daughter, there was grumbling, but Evie is hard not to like. And on top of that, she has a Gift that’s useful to our healers, and that makes her an asset. You, though.” The alpha shook his head. “A male, and one of the ice fae king’s envoys? You’re going to be a hard sell.”

“Former envoy,” Fane corrected. “And I may have more to offer than you think. I know details about every fae court, and most of the fada clans. I can give you a run-down on the people, who has the power, what their pressure points are…that sort of thing.”

“Yeah?” Adric pursed his lips. “You’re right, maybe we could use you. But you’ll have to lay low for a while. The clan knew Marjani was struggling to stay in control of her animal. This could help—or be the final straw.”

“Say the word and we’ll leave.”

“But Jani will go with you.” The younger man scraped his hands down his face. “Fuck. I don’t want that.”

“You’ll have to ask her, but—” Fane moved a single shoulder.

“You’re mated. I know.”

“It would tear her up to leave the clan—and you. I can tell you that much.”

Adric jerked his chin in acknowledgment. “Then they’ll just have to accept you.”

He rose to his feet, and suddenly, Fane saw why Adric had won alpha at such a young age. His face was steely, his body language that of a man used to command.

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