Chapter 233

Jackson nods, and to Jesse’s surprise, lets him walk by his side.

They walk for a long time. Jackson is surprised, after a while, at how quiet and stoic Jesse is. Jesse doesn’t sigh or moan that he’s bored, like Jackson thought he would. He doesn’t complain, or fuss, or anything. He just walks quietly at Jackson’s side as they circle the castle, losing themselves in the woods and then along the cliffs that border the northern edge, that overlook the candidate barracks below.

When Jackson pauses at the edge of the cliff, looking far, far north, peering into the dark, Jesse clears his throat.

Jackson scowls, looking over at him. “I thought you said we could not talk?”

“Listen, I tried,” Jesse says, bursting into a grin. “You called my bluff on this one, Jacks. That is the longest I’ve ever been quiet in my entire life.”

“And wasn’t it nice?”

“It was horrible,” Jesse groans, tilting his head back. And Jackson can’t help but smile, because Ariel does that too when she’s being dramatic.

It’s a lot less cute when Jesse does it…but he smiles anyway.

“So,” Jesse says, looking north in the same way Jackson does, into the dark. “I’ve been thinking about it, Jacks, and I gotta say…I’m kind of disappointed in you.”

“What?” Jackson seethes, turning on this guy who just professed to want to help him.

Jesse doesn’t flinch, just continues looking north. “I mean, is it really all that bad?”

Jackson groans, lifting his hands to his face and pressing the heels of his palms lightly against his closed eyes. “Unbelievable,” he mutters, starting to get pissed for real.

“No, but seriously,” Jesse says, “think about it this way. What is so good about being mated to my stupid shrimp cousin, anyway? I mean, she’s not that great.”

Jackson drops his hands, gaping at Jesse, “She’s not a stupid shrimp, Jesse,” he bites out, furious. “She’s amazing, that’s what was so great about it! She’s smart, and she’s funny, and she’s nice – and she’s beautiful – and she…she gets me! She’s pretty much the only person in the entire world who gets me. And she’s brave, and I like being around her, even though I hate everyone else – you included!”

“See?” Jesse says, breaking into a grin and pointing a finger at Jackson’s chest. “That was a test, and you passed. Ari is all those things, and if you didn’t recognize how amazing she is I wouldn’t let you date her.”

Jackson’s mouth drops open. “You can’t…not let me date her.”

“Yes I can,” Jesse mutters, waving a dismissive hand, “I can do anything, I’m a Duke. But that’s not important. What is important is that you recognize how great it is that you get Ariel as your mate – you’re the luckiest bastard to ever walk to earth, to have had the Goddess tie her to you. Now.” Jesse nods, moving on like they’re figuring out a math problem. “What’s so bad about sharing her with Luca?”

Jackson pauses, looking for the trick in Jesse’s question.

But even as he looks for it, he knows what the answer is. He stays quiet, not wanting to say it.

“May I venture a guess, as I suspect you ran through your daily quota of words with your last answer?”

Jackson just scowls at him.

“No, you’re right, your weekly quota,” Jesse says, nodding and clapping a hand again on Jackson’s shoulder. “Jacks, what sucks about it is that you have to share her. With Luca, of all damn people. But having to share her – does that mean you lose any of the good things?”

Jackson takes a long moment before he sighs, looking down at the ground. “No,” he murmurs, rueful, “I don’t lose any of the good things just because he’s her mate too. But I…I might lose… her…”

God, the thought of it. Tears prick at Jackson’s eyes again, and he grits his teeth against them, getting sick of all this damn crying. What the hell is with that, anyway? He never cried this much in his life, and now he’s mated for three days and spends half the time wiping salt water off his cheeks. noveldrama

Jesse, to his credit, pretends not to notice Jackson’s manly sniff, the way he brushes beneath his eyes with his wrists. Instead, Jesse pretends to look at a particularly interesting star for precisely as long as it takes for Jackson to pull himself back together.

“I get it, Jacks, I really do,” Jesse says, quiet, still not looking at Jackson. “The idea of losing her… it’s probably killing you. But there’s no faster way to lose her than to storm out of rooms and let Luca have all the time he wants with her. Luca is charming as hell, man. He’s going to wrap Ari around his finger without you there to stop him.”

Jackson’s jaw drops as he stares first at Jesse and then up at the castle, realizing that Jesse is right.

“I know you’re scared you’re going to lose her,” Jesse says quietly, “but Jackson - you’re acting like you already have. If that’s your girl, Jacks? Then go and get your girl. Don’t let Luca take her. But also, why are you so afraid that Luca’s going to get her, anyway!?”