Accidental Surrogate

Cora

“It’s all right,” Roger says, his eyes going wide as he takes in my pale face, my scared expression and realizes that he’s freaked me out for the third or fourth time today. “It’s not – it’s not bad, I was just kind of a dick – it was a misunderstanding –”

“What?” I ask, more confused now than ever.

–

“Listen,” he says, leaning in towards me. “Just let me tell you, all right? II was going to tell you at some point, definitely not like this but…” he sighs, looking into my face and then down at my stomach, and then back up into my eyes. “I think that… if we’re going to start on this new part

–

–

of our lives – this parent thing – well,” he says, giving me a charming little half–smile and a

shrug. “We should be on the same page, right?”

I nod, agreeing, but looking at him a little askance. “Did you not think that we should…go into our mating? On the same page?”

He sighs and runs a hand through his hair. “It’s a little different, Cora – because it didn’t matter – I didn’t think we could have kids

་་

I frown at him – not mad or angry, but confused…

“Listen, let me just tell it,” he says, leaning forward and looking at me with pleading eyes.

“Okay,” I say, quite simply, taking his hands and leaning even closer to press a kiss to his mouthr letting him know that I’m listening with an open heart.

“Okay,” Roger says again, taking a deep breath before he begins. “Do you remember… when you and Ella went into the desert with her mother, Regina?”

“Reina,” I correct softly, and he laughs.

“Right,” he says, shaking his head. “Those names are so easy to mix up. Anyway – you three were out on your girls trip, and my choice was either to hang out with those priests in the temple, or go back on to the ship all alone.”

Ismirk at him, knowing precisely which one he chose. He sees my smile and laughs a little.

“Yeah,” he says, grinning at me. “I chose solitude. Or at least…I thought I did.”

the ship?” I

the bow looking out at the desert – honestly, a little pissed off at being left behind. Sinclair sent me to protect Ella,

when I hear this, but I

looking at the sky, staring at the moon, it started to grow…brighter and brighter. And at first I thought that I was just

to focus,

his voice faltering a little, looking down at our joined hands, “she was there.”

a little breathless, but some part of me

by the experience. “Your mother,

keep my face steady but honestly…some part of me is a little jealous. We all met the goddess that night in the temple with Ella – Roger met her, and me, but she had only spoken to

that I know that she’s my mother too? And that she only spoke to Ella in the temple, and then went to Roger later that night for a little

little through my nose, disappointed. Why does she want

brushing my cheek with his thumb. “It’s half of why I didn’t want to tell you, Cora,” he continues, his face all sympathy. “I knew

I ask, pushing past my jealousy and truly

sighs, looking off into the distance a little as he continues his story. “She didn’t come in her bodily form,” he says, “like she did in the temple. Instead, it was just…a vision of sorts, more like the baptism but…not quite.” He shakes his head a little, at a loss to explain it. “But

letting him know that it’s okay. That he can tell me. So Roger turns back to me and looks at me

me,” he says, “that I was chasing the wrong destiny. That my future was not in war and politics, as my brother’s was – and you have to realize, that that was

concentrating on nothing else but

little, concentrating. “It’s hard to know how to phrase it – because it wasn’t precisely words – but that for the future of the world, I had

children, and being a dad, and raising my

surprise. And then I lean forward, finally getting it. “Oh,

I didn’t think we could have kids, Cora…” he whispers, clutching my hands tightly. “And it fucking broke my heart to do it because I loved you I was obsessed with you, you

при

7

before she said anything to me I didn’t even care about kids – didn’t even really want

–

it was always Dominic who was dying to be a

I say again, my eyes

goddess told me to be. I want –” He pauses He pauses his confused language

ensure that I hear him, “and I can’t wait to build a family with

–

Honestly, I’m kind of in the same boat – I was likewise unsure if I wanted kids. But the moment I really understood

I wanted in

calling me,” I whisper, “because you thought…my mom told

–

out I didn’t want to, but when a goddess tells you to do something you feel compelled to do it – and I thought she was