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.”

someone on the ship?” I ask, curious.

honestly, a little pissed off at being left behind. Sinclair

this,

first I thought that I

him to focus, and he looks

suddenly,” he says, his voice faltering a little, looking down at our joined

little breathless, but some part of

now, his eyes wide and still a little startled by the experience. “Your mother, Cora. Except…at

Roger met her, and me, but she had only spoken to Ella beyond a brief introduction that Ella insisted on giving us. And at

And that she only spoke to Ella in the temple, and then went

a little through my nose, disappointed. Why does she want to talk to everyone

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 ask, pushing past my jealousy and truly wanting to know.

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

That he can tell me.

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

she said,” he twists his mouth a 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 to focus on family.

-on finding my mate, and having children, and being a dad, and raising my kids well to be

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

it fucking broke my heart to do it because I

при

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

–

was always Dominic who was dying to be a dad, not me

again, my eyes going wide.

not just because the goddess told me to be. I want –” He pauses He pauses

ensure that I hear him,

–

the same boat – I was likewise unsure if I wanted kids. But the moment I really understood that this was our

I wanted in the

“because you thought…my mom told you

–

but when a goddess tells you to do something you feel compelled to do it – and I thought she was telling me to