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Smoky nodded "It is randfather’s more than Hyto’s Hyto did not deserve it--he carried the shield out of obligation rather than honor Over there, on the other wall, is my mother’s crest"

On the opposite wall, the crest was set in silver and onyx In the center, a dragon coiled, etched in the onyx To the left, five sparkling silver stars To the right, four stars faceted froasped at the size of the dia as on Below, so had been written in silver, but I could not read it Instinctively, I could tell that this crest outweighed the other in i ways

"What does this say?" I asked, kneeling down to look at the writing

Senuflection toward the crest His voice was low "It says, Drea honor to breath It meanson Reaches I a my people We are looked to for roleon honor--which is why she married Hyto in the first place Her father had promisedshe could not break his promise"

I nodded "I think I like your on, a woman who values truth over treasure She does what needs to be done and does not flinch froh, you should bathe and prepare yourself for the Council"

A shiver of fear ran throughinto?"

Smoky paused, then shook his head "You will be fine I cannot prepare you because it is expected that you come to Council as who you truly are If I coach you and you act according to what I say, the elders will know"

Oh yeah, that made me feel better I swatted him "Fine, then Givethat will fitcha, stealedthe whirl of froth that iainst thethe tension soak out of my body After aand was crawling into the tub with , aze over the six-foot-four icy drink of water His hair coiled and curled, sure signs that he was ready for playti He was standing at attention, engorged and rigid A swell of desire broke throughso as e that we had Hyto strapped down and preparing to face trialmy arms over my breasts "What makes you think you can crawl into my bath unasked, sir?"

"Because, you are ot that look on your face that says you’re hungry for sex I’m sorry the others aren’t here Well, I’m not, to be honest, but I know you like to play with all of us I’ll just have to be enough this ti

"You think so? What if I say I have a headache?" But at the sight of his puppy-dog face and pleading eyes, I relented Truth was, they were all enough, at any one time But for keeps, I did need all three of my husbands I loved theether I couldn’t iine any other combination that would make me this happy

I pulled his in the spacious tub, as I leaned back against the warue enteredatop me, my breasts pressed to his chest

And then I pushed him back, just a little, my hands on his shoulders "We need to talk first We really need to talk"

He looked a little hurt and his expression stabbed into ? Are you not ready yet? I know Hyto’s attack" His voice drifted off and he stroked one?"

"No, no, my love It’s not you, and I do want you But we need to discuss a couple of things first I want there to be no secrets between us" I slid up to a sitting position and took his hands in ht Then what?"

As I gazed into his eyes, I couldn’t help but smile "I love you so much I love youAnd Trillian and Morio You are my chosen mates, as you would say I am a better woh, know that what happened with Vanzirthere was no choice It wasn’t his fault It wasn’tto protect ry at him I would never have let him touch me like that if there had been a choice"

Sers "I realize that, noanted to kill him at firstbut then you disappeared and Trillian and Morio convincedstupid They wanted Vanzir to help find you And he did I won’t hurt him, my love I’ll even be nice to the demon Just don’t think badly of me"

"I could never think badly of you You are not your father, Son" I stroked his face, feeling the sers "Don’t you ever have to shave?"

He shook his head "I seldoons tend to have facial hair--but silvers and whites, rarely Is there anything else on your mind?"

I nodded "Yes, love Your father and what he did to et rid of the memories, but the Moon Mother helped ree--and I know that I’ll corips with his attacks eventually What hu at his feet--I will never bow to any n where custole" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true"></ins>