Chapter 143

My dad sits quietly by me as I finish telling him what Jackson and Luca have asked of me, as I wipe a few stray tears from my eyes. Dad is strong and stoic as I speak – the rock in my life that I always need him to be, letting me feel my pain and sitting quietly by me as I do. And when it passes, he’s still there, holding my hand.

“What do you think?” I ask, my voice a little shaky, wanting to know.

He sighs. “Well, I’m not surprised,” he says, tilting his head to the side. “The possessiveness I feel towards your mother – there was a moment when we thought she had a second mate too, and I…completely flipped out –“

“What!?” I gasp, shocked. Why – why are there all these things about my parents’ past that I had no idea about!?

Dad laughs a little, squeezing my hand. “I ripped the door basically off its hinges, went tearing through the Palace looking for him, fully intending to murder him, scared poor Conner nearly to death.” He laughs again, like it’s a fond memory, as I stare at him with wide eyes.

“But he wasn’t her mate?”

“No,” dad says, shaking his head. “Just…a misunderstanding. We checked with the Goddess, who confirmed things.”

My eyes go wider. “How does one check with the Goddess!?”

“Cora can do it,” dad says, waving a passive hand before reaching for his coffee. “Just summon her up – the rest of us can’t see her, but…”

He goes still for a second, staring into space and collecting his thoughts, as I just gape at him. Aunt Cora can just summon the Goddess? God, and I thought it was impressive that she could control the weather.

“Actually,” dad says, turning his green eyes back on me and gently taking his hand from mine while he takes a sip of his coffee, sensing that my sadness has passed fully now. “You should consider asking Cora to call the Goddess for you, or see if you can do it –“

“If I can do it!?” I gasp, appalled.

“You’re a little demigoddess too, Ariel,” dad says, grinning over his coffee at me. “I mean, we avoided saying that to you as much as we could when you were a kid because we didn’t want you getting a big head about it. But being the grandchild of a goddess – the first girl, too? It…might have some perks.”

I just stare at him, completely baffled, before I blink myself out of my shock and concentrate on his words. “Wait, so, why would we summon the Goddess? To ask what?”

“To ask if you need to choose between Jackson and Luca,” dad says, nodding slowly to me. “I mean, I’m not saying that you should break your word to your mates. But, I think it’s worth realizing that if the Goddess gave you two mates, she probably had a reason for it. After all, she gave me Lydia, I think, so that my loving her, and then rejecting her, would make me become the man who was worthy of being her daughter’s mate.”

I grin at dad now, seeing where this is going, and very warmed to think that my dad really is the best – that if anyone on earth deserves mom, who is so amazing, only he can fit the bill. So, maybe his first mate really was part of the Goddess’s plan – that she made him go through a trial by fire to create the only man who was good enough for my mom.

“So,” I say quietly, “you think I should talk to her?”

Dad nods slowly. “And I think Jackson and Luca should be there. Just to…get things on the same page. I think she has her reasons,” dad continues contemplatively, “and she gave you two mates at once for one of those reasons. If you ask, she may tell you why, or give you advice on how to proceed.”

I exhale a deep breath and look down at my plate of food, suddenly not hungry anymore as I contemplate the fact that I’m adding “summon a goddess” to my list of things to do.

My dad laughs a little, gently, turning my attention back to him. “Don’t let it scare you, Ariel,” he says, his voice a little growly as he leans forward and smiles at me, fond and loving and warm. “If anyone can handle this, it’s my brave girl.”

I burst into a grin and then I’m out of my chair, reaching for my dad, who pulls me into a warm bear hug as he laughs. I hug him back, likewise laughing, so grateful that he always knows the right thing to say. “Thanks, dad,” I murmur, tucking my face down against his neck.

“I love you, baby trouble,” he murmurs, holding me tight. “Don’t let those stupid boys walk all over you. You’re a Princess and a Sinclair, after all. You’re in charge.”

“I won’t,” I promise, sighing happily. And as my dad releases me and gives me a little shove towards the door, telling me to get a move on with my day because I’ve got in-laws to meet, I’m grateful again that I’ve got absolutely the best dad in the world.

As I move towards the door and smile at him, he smiles right back.

And I know that he feels just the same about me.

“Love you, dad!” I call, grinning as I push the door open.

“Love you more, baby,” he says, heaving a happy sigh.

I’m not at all surprised when I find Captain Conner waiting outside the door to the breakfast room. He pushes himself up off the wall when he sees me, his eyes crinkling with his smile. “Ready to go, Princess?”

“Yup!” I say, grinning up at my old friend. Conner – he feels like so much more than a bodyguard. I’ve known him my whole life, and I know that mom and dad basically consider him family at this point. “Dad was just telling me about how he scared the hell out of you one night when he thought mom had another mate and he hunted him down with the intent to kill.”

“Oh, that old story?” Conner says easily, raising an eyebrow at me that makes me burst into laughter.

“How can you talk about it like it’s so simple!?”

“It was a long time ago, Princess,” Conner says with a grin, gesturing down the hall and then walking at my side as we get started.

“What other stories about my parents do you know,” I ask as we walk, narrowing my eyes at him.

“Oh, what I know about your parents could fill a book. A couple of them, actually,” he says, giving me a wink. “Did they ever tell you about the time they lived in a bunker for a few months because they were being assailed by Priests of the Dark God?”

“What!?” I nearly shriek, laughing in my shock.

“Oh yeah,” Conner says, nodding and grinning as we make our way down to the garages beneath the palace, where a town car is waiting to take us to Luca’s gym. “Buckle up, Princess,” he says, gesturing towards the car. “I’ll tell you on the way. This one’s a good one.”

By the time we get to the gym, I’m absolutely gaping at Conner, who is clearly enjoying himself with the telling. “Wait,” I say, shaking my head in disbelief, “mom’s estranged uncle was trying to kidnap Rafe and take the throne for himself!? But that’s…that’s insane!”

“It was a wild time, kiddo,” Conner says, unbuckling his belt as he puts the car in park. I nod like that’s one hell of an understatement, and he smiles at me. “You ready for this?” he says, raising his chin towards the gym.

“Um,” I say, looking over towards it, a little anxious now. Because for the first time, I’m walking into Luca’s turf, which I’m very aware is a world filled with big tough Alphas who are all trained to beat each other up. And while I guess that’s not very different from the Academy…I’m walking into it as a girl now, aren’t I? And a princess. And Luca’s mate.

I bite my lip, looking back at Conner. “Will you come in with me?” I whisper, wanting our family’s old friend by my side.

“Of course I will,” he says, bursting into a grin. “Besides, I’ve been wanting to get a look into the Grant Gym for a long time now! This will be fun.”

Captain Conner gives me a wink, and together we get out of the car and head inside.