They ate for a while in companionable silence, then Gabriel slid his plate across the table again. “It’s delicious. Was it hard to make?”
“Not at all.” She dished him up another serving. “But you’ll have to bring me more ingredients before I can make it again.”
“Understood.” He attacked the second helping with less urgency than the first.
“Why is Patrick avoiding me?” she asked the question she’d been pondering all day.
“You’re the personification of his abuse, but you’re also our mate. He desperately wants to hate you, but he has loved you for years. He has no idea how to reconcile the two, so he just stays away.”
She shook her head, unnerved by his casual mention of such monumental concepts. There was no way Patrick still loved her. “I killed whatever affection he once had for me.” She’d realized Gabriel considered her a potential mate, but this was the first time he’d come right out and said it.
“Are you still in love with him?” Gabriel’s assessing gaze locked with hers as he waited for her answer.
“I’m in love with his memory. The Rydarian Patrick is a dick.”
Her candor made Gabriel laugh. “He has not been on his best behavior, I agree.”
“Is there something I can do to help him resolve the conflict? I’d much rather be his mate than his prisoner.”
“He’s not ready to forgive you. You’re too closely related to all that pain. Still, I might be able to convince him to stop tormenting you.” He scooped up the last bite and savored it before adding, “We’ve got to get you off this mountaintop. I’m tired of flying back and forth.”
“What did you have in mind?”
He started to answer, then shook his head. “I don’t want to give you false hope. Give me three days to convince him to stop being an ass. If nothing has changed by the end of day three, you’ll know he refused to participate.”
Heather braced her emotions for the longest three days of her life, but the following afternoon Patrick and Gabriel arrived at the cottage together. Neither male removed his coat and Gabriel remained by the door. Heather’s heart began to pound, and hope bubbled up inside her.
Patrick ambled toward her, his eyes narrowed and bright. “You’re the most frustrating person I’ve ever encountered, and fate thought it would be funny to also make you a potential mate.” He took a deep breath and gazed deep into her eyes. “I spend half my days thinking up new ways to punish you and the other half planning our future. I’ve figured out the best way to expand our cabin, so you’ll be more comfortable. I’ve started collecting supplies and bartering for clothes. And each time I give in to these impulses I’m filled with rage because you’re the enemy. It’s confusing to say the least.”
He hadn’t asked a question, so Heather just waited for him to continue.
“This dynamic is further complicated by the fact that Gabriel is determined to claim you. I owe Gabriel my life and will do nothing that endangers our friendship.”
She glanced at Gabriel and allowed herself to smile. If it weren’t for him, the past two weeks would have been unbearable.
“I cannot properly court you while you’re being punished for your involvement in my captivity. However, there’s a custom on Earth that blends the two mindsets.” Patrick reached intothe pocket of his jeans and pulled out a thin metal band. “Some call it voluntary slavery, others sexual servitude. The crucial characteristic is that the ‘slave’ offers their submission willingly.”
She tensed and her momentary hope sputtered out. “If I become your willing slave, how does that improve my situation?”
“If you agree to willingly submit to us, I will shift my thinking—and therefore my behavior—from punishment to courting. It might not sound like it, but this would be a significant change.”
“Will I be allowed to return to the village?”
“Eventually. I think we both need a period of transition. I will increase your boundaries and offer you privileges as you demonstrate your willingness to obey.”
It was a compromise, a middle ground, just as Gabriel had promised. She couldn’t rebuild trust with Patrick until she found a way to defuse his anger. She wasn’t sure this would work, but anything was better than continuing as his prisoner.
She licked her lips and chose her words carefully. “I want the conflict between us resolved. If this is what you need to move beyond the past, then I’m willing to give it a try. I take responsibility for my role in your torment and believe I will benefit from this arrangement as well.”
“Undress and kneel before me,” Patrick ordered. His features were locked in an expressionless mask, but his gaze began to smolder.
Heather wore a calf-length dress of forest green. The wraparound style was effortless and comfortable, so the dress was quickly becoming her favorite. She unknotted the belt andopened the sides, allowing the short sleeves to slide down her arms. Gabriel caught the dress before it hit the floor and draped it over a nearby chair. Naked now, except for the thick wool socks on her feet, she knelt in front of Patrick.
Gabriel moved to Patrick’s side; both men looked intense and serious. Patrick was Gabriel’s second, so she wasn’t surprised when Gabriel began, “It is our intention to claim you as our mate. Do you agree to be courted by Patrick and me?”
A sudden rush of emotion tightened her throat, so Heather nodded.
“We need to hear it,” Gabriel prompted.
