I shook my head.
And Callum said, “Rys, we were just…” Only to abruptly cut off again.
“Did they explain to you that the twins and I are maul-bonded? That three years ago, we agreed to share a mate and wife?”
What? What? Whaaattt?
My heart thundered like a racehorse as I slowly shook my head.
And Rys glanced toward our periphery were Callum and Gideon where standing with a raised eyebrow, before bringing his hard dark brown gaze back to me.
“When they so gallantly agreed to help you with your baby request,” he went on, “did they mention they had no intention of letting you go back to Vancouver to raise our baby alone? That itwould be physically impossible for them not to stay glued to your side while our cubs grew inside you?”
This time, I turned my head to Callum and Gideon. Looked at them with wide eyes.
And maybe they were identical, but that guilty look? It was exactly the same on both of their faces.
“Don’t be angry at them, sweetiebird,” Rys said. His voice gentled but remained unbending.
“They don’t have your fairness switch. And they didn’t have restraint. All they saw when they looked at you was the mate they’ve been waiting for all their lives. And under those circumstances, they couldn’t be ethical. No bear could.”
Rys bowed his head, but then brought his eyes back to mine. “Not unless he put a system in place that let him see you while honoring your boundaries. Do you understand?”
I didn’t. But now, looking at the harsh honesty on Rys’s face… I started to.
So, I nodded.
“Do you understand that Gideon and Callum consider you their maul mate—and that they’ll bond bite you as soon as you give them the go-ahead?”
My brain clogged. Too much. Too fast.
But eventually, I nodded.
“Do you understand thatI’mdone giving you choices?” His voice cracked. He dipped his head, swallowed. “Done repressing… all the feelings I’ve had for you? Done hiding that I’ve loved you from the start?”
His gaze locked on mine.
“That I will bond-bite you as soon as you ask? And marry you? And give you babies? And love you back for the rest of our lives?”
I shuddered. But this time, it had nothing to do with shame.
I held his gaze and nodded.
His hard face crumpled—softened. “Good girl,” he choked out.
Only then did he withdraw his fingers from my mouth.
“Now ask me again.”
I blinked. Confused.
“Make the same request you did on Christmas Eve.”
Oh.Oh.
With Rys staring straight into my soul….
With the taste of Gideon and Callum still in my mouth…
