Accidental Surrogate

“In here!” she calls, peeking out from the living room and giving me a big smile.

“Also, sorry,” she adds, grimacing a bit. “We were very rude, bursting in here like that, weren’t we?” “I’ll forgive you as soon as you give me my little nephew to hold for a few minutes,” I say, smiling and reaching for Rafe, who my sister happily hands over to me. I’m instantly gratified when he gives a squeak of happiness and reaches out his own hands, clearly recognizing me and wanting to see me as much as I want to see him.

“Yes,” Ella sighs, crossing her arms as she observes me with the baby.” Rafe makes everything better.” “That can be his slogan,” I say, grinning at the baby, “when he’s King.” Ella laughs and I turn to smile at her as Roger comes into the room after me. I shift my gaze to Sinclair, who stands behind Ella, quiet with his arms crossed over his chest.

“What’s wrong?” I ask, looking between the two of them. “First you tell Roger not to come to the palace this morning, and then you’re bursting in here this afternoon? What’s up?” “We had kind of a crazy night,” Ella says with a grimace, moving to the couch and sitting down on it. Sinclair moves to stand by her, clearly tense and still not adding anything to the conversation.

“Oh?” I ask, sitting across from my sister. Roger sits behind me on the arm of the couch, paying close attention and sending a little pulse of wonder and curiosity down our bond. He, too, is very intrigued by this.

Ella sighs and then begins to tell me all about her evening last night – first the dinner with Calvin, and then his claim to being her mate, and then Sinclair turning into a wolf and bursting out the door, seeking to hunt him down.

My eyes go wider and wider as Ella continues.

with a shrug. ” Honestly, I don’t think he’s my mate, Cora. I am not…into him, in that way that mated pairs are supposed to be.” “Really?” I ask, turning my

can’t wait to hold my baby just like that. “It’s not like that, Cora – I mean, I feel a very interesting pull towards him? And there are like, literal sparks in the air between us

her eyes moving between me and Roger. “Is that what it…was like? For you?” “Well,” Roger says, his voice unusually serious. “We have a bit of a different story because Cora’s wolf was so tucked away for so long. But as soon as her wolf…woke up? For the first time?” I look over my shoulder to see him nodding vigorously. “Yeah, Ella. We knew. Immediately we knew. I mean, I knew before because of the intensity of my feelings and my attraction to her, but when our wolves found each other…” “There was no denying it,” I finish, giving my sister a little shrug. “But Ella,” I say, frowning a little, “why did you come here? I mean, it’s a crazy story and I’m glad to know it. But why rush across town when you’ve clearly had a rough night and very little sleep?” “Because,” she says, biting her lip a little. “We were kind of hoping that you could…ask mom.” “Oh!” I say, blinking in surprise a little. “How…how do I do that?”

couch. “You come sit here with me. It was just a joke, Dominic.” Roger just grins but Sinclair scowls, clearly stressed, and slips in behind Ella, wrapping his arms around her. My heart goes

I say as I breathe out a steady breath,

I want it, but I just want him close. “So, like, inside? Where the gift is? I just…call to her?” “Yeah,” Ella says, giving me a little smile as she leans into the man

little baby closer and I give her a sad smile, thinking about everything that my sweet sister has gone through in the fight for her family. And suddenly, all I want to do is contact mom even just to give her a piece of my mind for giving Ella such a

and then a pulse within the gift, and then it burns brighter. And when I open my eyes…she’s suddenly there. The goddess, transparent,

jumping a little

Because she’s just there.

Cora,” she says, giving me a delighted