Claimed by the Elven Brothers: Decision (An Elven King Novella Book 1) (7 page)
Read Claimed by the Elven Brothers: Decision (An Elven King Novella Book 1) Online
Authors: Cristina Rayne
Locien seemed frozen as he stared at Seren as though his younger brother
had been speaking in tongues.
Then he slowly turned to look at me, his expression now unreadable,
before he said, “It seems I missed quite the conversation.”
I shook my head. “I pretty much had made up my mind last night. Seren
just eased my mind on one of my remaining worries.” I flashed him a lopsided
grin. “You two were more persuasive than I could have ever imagined.”
Finally, his lips quirked up a bit. “I am glad you enjoyed yourself.”
“Now that has to be the understatement of the century,” I said with a
laugh. “‘Enjoyed’ doesn’t quite describe how phenomenal the experience was for
me, but don’t worry. That was only part of the reason I decided to accept your
proposal. What you two are offering me is more than I could ever have in my
world.”
“It is deep into the night within the realm, currently,” Locien said,
“but I am certain His Majesty and one of the mages from our House would be able
to come meet us for the final approval in the morning before the first court is
held.”
“Will I be changed right then and there?” I asked nervously. Seren had
confessed earlier that the procedure would be excruciatingly painful for a
short moment, and I had been dreading it ever since.
“No,” Locien replied. “A transmutation as complex as this can only be
preformed by one particular mage and only within the realm.”
I frowned in confusion. “But you said—”
“A minor alteration can be done that will at least allow you to
completely cross into the elven realm,” Seren interjected. “It will, however,
render you blind, and you will be unable to move around very much without the
effort draining your strength until the full transmutation can be preformed.”
“Okay, I can handle that as long as one of you stays with me until I
can see again,” I said, relaxing minutely.
“Of course,” Seren assured me quickly.
“I know it’s still dark in my world, but do you think I’ll have time to
go to my apartment to pick up something, then talk to at least one of my
friends to let them know that I’ll be leaving town?”
The brothers exchanged one of their weighty glances which immediately
had me on high alert. It seemed every time they shared that kind of look,
something bad had or could happen.
“We think it would be best if you do not return to the human realm
again,” Seren said cautiously.
I stiffened. “Don’t tell me that you’re still afraid that I’m going to
bail on you or something?”
“It’s not that,” Seren replied. “We have yet to identify the culprit
responsible for your lost memories. At this point, we would not risk something
worse possibly happening to you. We do not know how closely we are being
watched as we come here. You could perhaps stumble through another doorway as
soon as you leave this space.”
“No, you’re right,” I said with a frustrated sigh. “Even if it wasn’t
so risky to leave on my own right now because of all the possible
human
predators wandering around the park in the dead of night, if I’m going to do
this, then it’s probably better that I just disappear now. I’m really not sure
if I could handle saying goodbye to my friends in person knowing that I’ll
never see them again.
“Also, I fed my friend Jenna a story about a French lover who wanted me
to move to his country. For a while at least, they’ll all think that’s where I
ran off to. Hopefully, they won’t hear about it when my landlord eventually
chunks my stuff out to the curb, and they’ll just chalk it all up to me simply
losing touch and not that my new mysterious lover murdered me and dumped my
body in the ocean.”
“I am truly sorry, Megan.”
I shook my head. “This is what I chose, so I’m okay with it. I just
wish that I could have at least brought my old photo album with me into the
elven realm,” I said wistfully.
“Photos are something that can easily be brought across the threshold
of both realms,” Seren said. “I shall pick them up myself once your
transmutation has been completed.”
“Would you even be able to
find
my apartment building if I gave
you the address?” I asked skeptically.
“Normally, no, but in this case, I know exactly where you live.”
“How could you possibly know that?” I demanded.
“Because I followed you home the last time you left here,” he replied,
sounding completely unconcerned.
“You were
stalking
me?” How could I have not known that there
was a creepy shadow following my every move? “Were you actually in my car?”
“Of course. We may not fully manifest within the human realm, but we
are still somewhat subject to its natural laws. If I had not gotten into your
vehicle, then it would have been impossible to follow you on foot.”
“I can’t believe I didn’t even sense you there,” I said with a grimace.
He shrugged. “As I recall, you were very preoccupied with your
thoughts.”
“Lucky for me you weren’t a serial killer waiting for me in my
backseat,” I said dryly, “but thanks. I really appreciate you doing this for
me.”
Seren stepped forward and cupped my face between his hands. “You have
gifted Locien and me with perhaps the most precious thing in existence.
Retrieving an important memento for you is the absolute least thing I could do
for you.”
He leaned forward and kissed me tenderly on the forehead.
“Tomorrow, your life will start anew.”
A scary thought, but as I looked between my two elven lovers, I couldn’t
have been more excited.
—
CLAIMED
BY THE ELVEN BROTHERS: FATE
After transitioning smoothly into the elven realm and settling into a
routine of various social engagements and a new-found hobby, it’s easy for
Megan to forget that a pregnancy could soon throw her world into disarray.
However, when months turn to years, she soon learns that the lack of a
pregnancy can be equally as disruptive, especially when it’s so easy to forget
that not everyone is happy with her arrangement with Seren and Locien and
tinkering with her memories is the least they are willing to do to ensure its
failure.
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Also by Cristina Rayne
Claimed by the Elven King
Urban and Epic Fantasy, writing as C.G. Garcia:
The
Supreme Moment (A Fractured Multiverse Novel)
The
Ties that Bind the Soul (Old Souls Book 2)
Cristina Rayne lives in West Texas with her crazy cat and about a dozen
bookcases full of fantasy worlds and steamy romances. She has a degree in
Computer Science which totally qualifies her to write romances. As Fantasy is
her first love, she feels if she can inject a little love into the fantastical,
along with a few steamy scenes, then all the better.