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24
Her eyes snapped to his. “Your mother? I didn’t even know you had one!”
They’d stopped at the tub, and he whisked off her robe with quick efficiency. “Didn’t want to jinx the deal.”
Loathe to stand around naked in front of him, she slid into the water. “Yeah, but you could have dropped a clue! How am I supposed to face the woman, knowing that I just found out about her hours before I met her?” Knowing what she’d just spent the night doing with the woman’s son. Yikes!
“I wouldn’t worry about it. She’s been nagging me for years to marry, so she’ll be delighted about you. Oh, she’ll scold me, but she&rsq
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Golden Bell 25
They didn’t make love before the party. She told herself she hadn’t been looking forward to it, anyway. Instead, they talked, and Fallon massaged her feet until she fell asleep on the couch. He woke her with a kiss that almost made them late and then hurried her into a striped sarong of olive, burgundy and black. While not what she would have chosen, together with the sleeveless black top, it looked far better than she expected.“You know, these clothes keep appearing in my closet…” she said tentatively as Fallon helped her dress her hair.“Do you like them?” He closed a hairclip over the back of her hair and brushed the loose ends off her shoulders.Fe
Golden Bell 26
The laughter attracted his mother. Rain wasn’t sure if that was bad or good, because while she at least knew that Portae liked her for her good sense in marrying her son, she also proceeded to introduce her to everyone in sight, dragging her around the room with dizzying speed. Her traitor husband quickly found a group of friends to hide behind, chatting with them while his mother showed her off, occasionally gesturing to Fallon for emphasis.To Rain’s relief, she got to sit down at a table reserved for Portae, herself and Fallon while those being honored, including Fallon, took turns making speeches at the head of the room. Grateful to be in the shadows, Rain sat back and studied the two elders who were also retiring.Elder Azion took his turn at the pulpi
Golden Bell 27
Fallon wasn’t going to give her the chance to do something stupid. The minute they entered his rooms, he summoned Rykarr. Rain listened with interest as Fallon brought his captain up to speed.Rykarr heard Fallon out and started issuing orders over his com unit.Rain slouched in her chair and walked a coin through her fingers.Fallon felt a burst of anger as he watched her. She was willing to put herself at risk for the sake of revenge. Justice, she called it. Maybe it was, and overdue at that, but she didn’t need to get herself killed to obtain it. They had plenty of time, and he was patient. They could see this thing resolved easily enough.
Golden Bell 28
“Just as well, as you were going to use it to leave me!” Fallon’s eyes glowed gold.“Ah…you said there was a second reason?” Jayems said, interrupting a doozy of a brewing quarrel.A little abashed, she looked at him. “I haven’t tested it yet.”“Ah.” He set the Bell carefully on his desk.Fallon picked it up and looked at it. “So this is what I spent so much frustration trying to figure out.”Rain shrugged. “If it makes you feel better, it frustrated Azion for year
Golden Bell 29
She’d hurt him tonight; wanted to hurt him. Part of her was angry with him for making her come here, for railroading her into a relationship she wasn’t ready for. They were both going to cross some rough roads to get to a place where this marriage he’d started could work. He’d taken advantage of her, but she was to blame, too.She hated admitting that, but she was nothing if not fair. Now, they were stuck. She was stuck, because she’d willingly given up her ticket off this planet. For what? To soothe Fallon’s fear. Why had she done that?Maybe it was because she understood fear. He had been kind to her. Maybe the only thing he felt for her was desire, but he’d been generous about sharing that, too. He didn’t make her feel
Golden Bell 30
The park was too crowded, though by no means full. She felt exposed as curious eyes tracked her progress. It was as she entered the orchard and achieved the seclusion she’d hoped for that she began to worry. Something wasn’t right. Shouldn’t her bodyguards have said something by now, questioned her choice of wandering in the woods? She expected someone to appear, ready to chew her out.A familiar pain gripped her as the change came over her, lengthening her nails, sharpening her teeth and her senses. This time she rode it out, using her nose to test the wind before the change dulled it, blessing the ears that picked up sound unavailable to mere human ears. She stood still, looking, scenting as shiny red fruit swayed gently in the breeze. Something…
Golden Bell 31
“My lord, later,” one of the medics snapped at him. “Let’s make sure she lives first.”“I’ll live,” Rain muttered, but it was clear she wasn’t fully sensible.They wouldn’t let him inside the operating room, so Fallon paced. Keilor joined him, keeping silent vigil as they waited for news.“Maybe a flashback?” Fallon offered, when over half an hour had crawled by. “She has panic attacks around Haunt.”While Keilor had not yet met Rain, he’d listened just that morning as Fallon had spilled his guts about his wife. “Maybe.”
Golden Bell 32
Rain opened her eyes and found that she was alone. Lovely. She’d had unpleasant dreams and would have welcomed a distraction, even if it were Fallon’s scowling face. Not that she could blame him. She felt a creeping embarrassment that she’d thrown herself over a four-story waterfall without a good reason. She shifted and winced. She must have hit every rock in that blasted river.The current had been fast, and she was amazed that she’d survived. There had been a couple of times she’d been sucked under and nearly drowned. Maybe somebody upstairs was watching out for her, because there was no way she should have made it out of that river.If a higher power had saved her though, she couldn’t fathom why. Fallon was mad at her, for one. Y
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