“No more secrets between us. I promise to always tell you everything from now on if you promise to tell me everything. Idon’t want you thinking I’m not your best friend because Derrick is my cousin. You’re just as important to me.” He winked as his lips curled upward.
“You’ll tell me anything?”
“Yes. And if there is something I can’t say, I’ll tell you it’s something I’m not permitted to talk about. That way I’m never lying to you.”
“Likewise. That sounds reasonable. Okay … I promise.” Lucie smiled.
“I promise, too.” Jasper lifted his head and looked down at her. “Now that we got that out of the way … how does your leg really feel? The effects of the injection might still be affecting you.”
“Tricked.” Lucie laughed. She should have known better. But still, it was a relief to know he would tell her the truth, and she trusted him to do so. “It feels tight. Maybe a bit sore. It just needs to be worked out is all. The wound is healed but the muscles are stiff.” She could see the relief in his eyes, and a faint smile reached his lips.
“Okay, good.” Jasper draped his arm around her shoulder. “Let’s go raid the fridge.”
Lucie walked beside Jasper back to the house. They rummaged through the cabinets and fridge, making a little smorgasbord of food. Afterward, they headed to the couches and sat on the floor, cross-legged, in front of each other.
“Justice will fit in well with us. The four of us are going to always be best friends, and soon, you will officially be my family too,” Jasper said as he popped a grape into his mouth.
“It probably won’t always be the four of us, though.”
“You planning on getting pregnant right away?”
Lucie started coughing and quickly grabbed her cup, downing the water. She looked up to see Jasper smirking. “I was talking about you and Justice finding your mates.”
“Maybe Justice. The thing is that vampires don’t usually find their fated mates this early in their lives. Look how long my dad had to wait. What happened in your case is rare, almost unheard of. It’ll be a while for me, but I don’t mind. I don’t need to settle down anytime soon … or want to for that matter. I don’t live my life the same way as your mate has. I enjoy the experiences. Most vampires do. What if it takes you centuries to find your mate? I can’t live like a monk until then. It’s like our unspoken thing. Some of us even date and take on a companion, but it is common knowledge that we’re just passing the time until our mate shows up. So yeah … it will be just the four of us for a while, or until Justice finds his mate. Or until you pop some puppies out.”
He looked up at the ceiling. “What do you think they’re talking about?”
“Knowing Aedan, he’s probably just giving him tips on how to ‘handle’ me. As if I am supposed to come with a manual.” Lucie rolled her eyes.
Jasper chuckled. “They’ll get along well. Aedan loves you and just wants you taken care of. He wants your happiness more than he wants his own. He’s a really good guy. He’ll make a great king.”
“I think so too. I hope he finds someone amazing to be by his side. I won’t accept anyone who isn’t. I’m stricter than he is. His mate will be amazing or I’ll beat the amazing into her.”
“You must be really relieved. I can’t imagine how you felt when you first met your mate and it wasn’t actually Derrick.”
She rolled her eyes. “I was so conflicted. I hated it. I hated that I would have to reject Ryan. I didn’t want to, but I couldn’t let our two species down.” A faint smile reached her lips. “I was a mixture of so many feelings after our … talk,” she said, still maintaining a sense of vagueness in the details just as a precaution. “But I would be lying if I said I wasn’t relieved. It waslike a huge weight was lifted off of me. And for once, I was able to see happiness in my future.”
“You always bury your feelings, Lucie. I don’t like it. Don’t put yourself second, even to your people. You deserve to seize your own happiness.” Jasper’s brown eyes fixed on Lucie’s. It worked out for her this time, but from now on, he wanted her to think about herself, too.
“Hmmm … I think the same should go for you,” Lucie said, raising a challenging eyebrow at him. “How often did you want to do or say something but didn’t because you were thinking about your sense of duty and not yourself?”
“Touché, Lucie. Touché. We will work on it together then.”
“Good. Now, ready for the challenge?” Lucie said as she grabbed the bowl of grapes. “First one to miss has to drink one of Aedan’s power juices.”
“Eww, sick. That stuff smells like the bottom of a troll’s foot,” Jasper said, scrunching his face up.
Lucie giggled. “I know. But he thinks it’s going to help make him stronger.” She rolled her eyes. “Well?”
“Hope you enjoy troll feet.” Jasper chuckled and grabbed a couple of grapes. “No unreasonable tosses either. You have to serve them up.”
“Alright, deal.”
“I’mglad we’re on the same page. I just needed to know that she is more important to you than your own life. Because if she isn’t, you don’t deserve her.” Aedan stood up from the chair he was sitting in.
“There is no life without her. I’d rather be dead if she didn’t exist.” Derrick’s amber eyes were fixed on Aedan’s. He was serious. Lucie came before everything.
“Lucie can be feisty, but she’s also really forgiving. Apologize quickly and often to save you from staying in trouble.” Aedan laughed and rubbed the back of his neck. “That’s what I do.”
