Page 11 of My Pucking Mates
“This isn’t some kind of trick, is it? You’re actually”—I look at each of them—“asking me out on a date?”
Dolos nods theatrically, which makes me smile, but my eyes move over to Eris, who looks to be searching for his words.
After what feels like a century, he speaks cautiously with a hopeful look in his eyes, “We’ve learned much from our Luna,” he begins, thinking far too hard about his words as he says them. “Watching the way she and Roman courted each other before completing their mate bond was eye-opening. We thought we didn’t want a mate…” Eris trails off.
My heart drops into my stomach.
“But we decided now that we have one, she should feel just as loved and cherished as our Luna. If we’re going to try to do this…” Dolos continues.
My heart retakes its place in my chest where it belongs.
“We want to do it right,” Eris says with a gentle finality. “It’s gonna be all or nothing with us, Precious.”
“Precious?” I whisper out loud, more to myself.
“Mmhmm,” Eris grunts to confirm.
I’m standing here processing everything they said while they wait for an answer. As much as I want to scream “yes” and jump into their arms, I still feel the need to leave a small protective layer around my heart. There’s no reason for them to go from zero contact for weeks to taking me on a date in a complete one-eighty so unexpectedly…
There’s got to be something they still haven’t told me.
Their energies shift from optimistic to something more like worry.
“On one condition.” The words leave me far more confidently than I expected. I thank the Goddess for loaning me some courage and calmly cross my arms over my chest with a calm and accepting expression on my face. “First, I want to know everything.”
12
Well, shit.
This is not how this was supposed to go.
The plan we carefully concocted was to take her on a date, get her all buttered up, andthentell her everything.
What do we do now?Eris grouses through our link. Clearly irritated with me that our plan didn’t go according to plan. Like I had any idea this would happen.
My shoulders slump as I consider our options.
The most logical option to most people would be to give her a half-baked version of the truth to pacify her until we’re comfortable telling her the whole thing. The alternate—and I think most responsible—option is to rip off the proverbial band-aid and give the lady what she wants.
Her dispute from when she laid us all bare to Roman come to me. “If I’m going to be getting to know my brother and creating a life here, I won’t start it with half-truths…”
We have to tell her,I elaborate my internal dialogue, explaining my reasoning, and I can see the moment he knows that’s what we have to do.
He rebuilds the wall around his heart brick-by-brick for fear that after we tell her, she’ll reject him. What he doesn’t know is that…if she rejects him over this…she’ll be rejecting me too.
I won’t take a mate that rejects my twin brother. No matter how badly it hurts. We’re a package deal. In my heart, I believe that we’re two halves of the same soul, and I will not allow him to be cast aside for doing what he felt was right to protect those he loved.
13
Well, fuck.
All that time we spent planning…for possibly nothing.
This whole mess is one spark away from going up in flames, engulfing the three of us in an inferno, along with our chances of her accepting us…and by us, I mean me.
After Dolos insists we tell her the truth with sound reasoning, I offer her a curt nod.
She seems to have deflated a fraction as she leads us to the strangely quiet living room. It’s weird to be here while everyone is gone.
