Born of Betrayal (28 page)

“You're all right,” he breathed raggedly in her ear as he held her with trembling arms. He laid his head against her shoulder and held her so tightly that she could barely breathe.

“Fain, you're hurting me.”

He loosened his hold, but still didn't release her. “I thought you'd been attacked … I-I didn't know what I'd find.”

Melting at his obvious fear, she pressed her cheek to his head and buried her hand in his braids. “No,
keramon
. I'm fine. Just waiting for you.”

Fain pulled back at that to see the dimly lit room where she'd set out a full service for them, along with snacks and warming towels. And a low, slow song from their youth. It was only then he realized she was dressed in a long maroon gown—Hauk maroon—and a robe that left very little of her lush body to his imagination. Instantly hard, he smiled at her. “You're seducing me?”

“Am I?” she teased.

Closing his eyes, he kissed her and let the taste of her lips soothe his ragged nerves. The warm, rose scent of her body lotion filled his head. He began to relax as he finally heard the words of the song. It was the same one that had been playing the night of their dance when Galene had last told him she loved him.

Unable to believe this was real, he pulled back to stare down at her. “Is this a new torture where you're about to kick me out and send me to my room?”

Cupping his cheek in her warm palm, she rubbed her nose against his. “I know better than to tease an Andarion male. I wouldn't do that to you.”

He frowned at her. “I don't understand.”

She laughed bitterly. “Neither do I. I still want to claw out your eyes and leave you bleeding on the floor.”

“Mmm, I love when you sweet-talk me like that.”

Laughing, she nipped his chin, then opened his shirt and slowly peeled it from his body. Her fingers lingered over the scar on his shoulder that Keris had given him during his Endurance when his brother had kicked him with his spiked boots on their ascension while Fain had been drilling anchors to the side of the mountain they were scaling. That “fun” action had almost sent Fain plummeting to the ground. Galene had been so angry when she found out about it, Fain had actually been forced to disarm her and keep her from Keris for weeks.

After his unwillingness to allow her to physically harm his older brother, she'd finally “poisoned” Keris in retaliation with a concoction that had left his brother sick and cursing her for a solid week. But she'd been completely unrepentant.
“You ever hurt or endanger Fain again, and next time, it'll be coming out both ends,
and
your nose!”

No one had ever taken up for him the way Galene had. Gods, how he loved this female.

She kissed the faded scar. “Do you ever think about Keris fondly?”

“Sometimes. Then I remember what a bitter, jealous asshole he was and how often he used Dancer for target practice.”

“I know he was hard on you, but he loved you.”

“I would emphatically disagree.”

She fingered his scar with a frown. “And I sat with him in the stands during your fights. Every time you hit the deck, he'd rise to his feet and clutch his prayer beads, whispering a prayer under his breath until you were back up again. Then he'd take my hand and pretend to be tough. But I could feel him trembling in fear for you.”

“Really?”

She nodded. “I know he never told you, but he was so proud of you. Every time you won, he'd jump up and scream as loud as I did.”

“And then criticize my skills as soon as he got near me.”

“Only because he wanted to please your mother.”

Fain ran the backs of his fingers along her jawline. “You were the only one who ever made me feel strong and capable. Wanted. I weep for every second of my life that I've lived without you by my side.”

A beautiful smile lingered on her lips as she undid his pants. He held his breath, praying she didn't stop. If she did, he might very well die on the spot. Her gaze held his as she slowly slid her hand down to cup him.

Fain moaned out loud at the sensation of her stroking his cock. Tears choked him as tenderness and guilt overwhelmed him. Of all the beings in the universe, this was the one he should never have caused harm to. Yet he'd done more harm to her than even his worst enemy. For that alone, he wanted to kick his own ass.

Galene bit her lip as she saw the tender emotions playing across his face. She leaned in to kiss the scars that marked almost every inch of his chest. Some were from claws, knives, or blasts, and others were from wounds she could only guess at.

So much pain and suffering.

And always alone. Her poor Fain had never had anyone to love him and see him through his tragedies.

As she glanced up, she saw his eyes turn vibrant red. At first, she thought it might be from his neurolink with the ship. But as she studied them closer …

“Fain?”

He fingered her cheek. “I was always stralen for your touch, Stormy. Like Talyn, I hid it as a boy out of fear. It was why I left so suddenly after we made love that rainy afternoon. I was terrified that if your parents found out we'd been together before our unification, they'd punish you for it.”

She buried her hand in his braids and tugged at them. “You've lied to me so many times. Kept so many secrets.”

“I know, and I'm sorry. But I was so scared they'd hurt you and I didn't know what to do or where to turn. I had no one I could rely on, other than myself, and we both know what a piss-poor Andarion I am. Keris treated me like shit and never listened to anything I had to say. My parents were always disappointed in me, and told me to figure everything out for myself. And Dancer had no one else to protect him. Since Chrisen and Merrell couldn't touch Keris until Dariana got her claws stuck in his heart, they came for me from the moment I started school until our graduation. I had no quarter from any of them and their scheming hatred.”

He squeezed his eyes shut. “Then when Chrisen crashed and trapped Dancer inside their pod to prove to me how easily they could kill him and get away with it, unless I agreed to break up with you … I felt so helpless and lost. I didn't know what to do. Chrisen said if I told anyone, Jullien would have me jailed and Dancer would be killed instantly. I knew they meant it and that they'd carry out those threats without reservation or hesitation.”

Galene pressed her cheek to his as old memories surged. Fain had cut school the day of the accident to be with her. They had snuck into her parents' pool house to be alone and had spent the entire morning planning their unification ceremony and where they'd live while she went to school and he did his military service. They'd practiced their vows and dreamt of a future that would never be theirs.

Fain had just left the bathroom when his link had gone off. Even from across the room, she'd been able to hear his mother shrieking at him. Hanging up, he'd grabbed his backpack frantically.

“What is it?”

“Dancer.” It was all he could choke out.

Galene had gone with him to the hospital. His parents had looked at him as if he was the most repugnant creature alive. But it'd been Keris who'd grabbed him by his throat and shoved him against the wall.

“Where were you?”

Fain had slammed his hand down and broken Keris's grip. “What happened?”

His mother had raked him with a sneer. “Dancer was burned and will be deformed for the rest of his life. Which, if the gods have any mercy, won't be much longer.”

Horrified by her callousness, Fain had scowled at them. “How was he burned?”

“He crashed the pod he was flying,” his father snarled. “Almost killed Tahrs Jullien and Tiziran Chrisen Anatole. We'll be lucky if the tadara doesn't demand my life and Dancer's for it! You were supposed to be in the pod, you worthless bastard! Where were you?”

Keris had punched him so hard, Fain had staggered back. “Hope you're happy,
brother
. Your little adventure today cost Dancer his life and entire future. Good job, you selfish asshole.”

Unable to listen to any more, Galene had stepped forward and pulled Fain back. “It wasn't Fain's fault. He was with me because I needed him.”

Only then did they back off.

Endine had shaken her head. “I hope for your brother's sake, for all our dignities, he doesn't survive surgery.” She'd stalked off.

His father had limped toward Fain. “That hybrid bastard is the one who dragged him out of the wreckage and ruined his future. If you're the warrior you should be, you'll kill that rank bastard tomorrow and save what little family honor we still have.” Then his father had stormed off after his mother.

Keris had spat at Fain before he followed his parents and left Fain alone in the waiting room with his guilt and pain.

Aghast at their actions and aching for him, she'd rubbed his back, trying to offer a solace she knew she couldn't. “I'm so sorry, Fain.”

The raw agony in his eyes had been excruciating. “It's all my fault. I did this to Dancer.”

“You didn't do this. Had you been there, you'd have crashed, too, and been scarred.”

He'd looked at her as if she was repugnant to him. That expression was what she would spend the rest of her life believing had sent him into Omira's arms. “I should have been there. I should be the one in a coma, not Dancer!”

Galene had stepped forward to hold him.

Hissing at her, he'd run down the hallway, into the bathroom. She'd followed after him and paused, knowing she couldn't go inside.

Through the door, she'd heard his rage and temper as he trashed the facilities. An act of desolate agony that had caused them to call for security. Her parents, who'd been doctors at the hospital, had responded to the call instantly, and her mother had forced her to go home while her father had gone into the bathroom to talk to Fain.

Over the next week, Fain had stayed by his brother's side, only leaving long enough to take his finals and attend obligatory graduation functions. Abandoned by his parents and Keris, who'd forsaken Dancer, Fain had refused to speak to anyone.

Even her.

She'd felt completely helpless in the aftermath. Yet on their graduation day, Chrisen had told her that Fain had wanted to see her. That he had something important he wanted to tell her about their future.

Knowing she was already pregnant, and eager to share her own news, she'd rushed to the locker room where Fain had shushed her and brushed her aside so that he could shower and dress for the ceremony, “without any more stress on my back.” That was what he'd coldly said to her.

Since Dancer's crash, he'd been avoiding his home by staying at the hospital, and had decided to dress at school instead of his mother's house where he'd have been subjected to her constant insults and tirades. If not actual physical abuse.

Wounded by his callous words, Galene had left him. But as she stepped outside the locker room, she'd found Merrell lurking by the door. As she tried to brush past him, he'd grabbed her arm.

“Fain doesn't want you, Galene. Dear gods, how blind are you?”

“What do you mean?”

“He's been screwing Omira Antaxas for weeks now. Ever since the accident, she's been with him at the hospital and everything.”

Snatching her arm out of his grasp, she'd sneered at the smug prince and that utter stupidity. Fain would never do anything like that. “You're lying!”

“I saw them together. So did Jullien. Just ask him, if you don't believe me. All the Hauks are twisted. Didn't you know? Their entire lineage is chromosomally damaged. Keris is a drug addict. Dancer's deformed, and Fain's a human-lover. Before your unification, you might want to check his DNA. I've heard his own father knows that Fain isn't his. It's why his skintone is so much lighter than his brothers'. And they doubt Dancer's paternity, too.”

Galene had wanted to deny it, but she'd heard those rumors. And she'd seen Keris high on several occasions, even though it was strictly forbidden, and could mean his life if he were caught.

Shoving Chrisen away, she'd gone to Fain, only to have him break her heart by denying nothing.…

“Galene?”

She blinked as Fain's deep, melodic voice pulled her back from the past, into the present.

He cupped her face gently. “Where did you go?”

“Back to a boy who gave up everything he had to save his brother's life.” Tears gathered in her throat as she placed her finger over his lips to keep him from speaking. “Shh, Fain. I know the dirty politics Chrisen and Merrell practiced. The lies they told and crimes they committed. I can't imagine having to make the choice you did. Especially alone, at that age.”

“I should have killed them.”

“No. If you'd done that, Talyn would have been the bastard son of a felon. A traitor who murdered royal sons. It would have been even worse for him. But had you told me then, I would have run with you, and never looked back.”

“And they would have killed Dancer … just as they killed Keris. The only thing that saved Dancer's life was my leaving. It forced my parents to keep him, even though he was scarred.”

Because it would have been the highest mark of dishonor for them to disown two sons. One child was an acceptable loss. That meant something had been wrong with that child. Disinheriting two meant that the parents had failed in their roles. And since Keris was dead, it would have ended the Hauk dynasty on Andaria. Something his proud father would have never allowed to happen.

For Dancer, Fain had given up everything he cherished.

Her hand trembling, she brushed the braids back from his face. “My noble warrior.”

Fain shook his head. “There's nothing noble about me. I'm just an Androkyn.”

“No, you were never so simple a creature, Fain Hauk.”

Smiling, he picked her up to whisper against her lips. “My precious Storm Dancer.” He slid her down his body so that her gown caught on his pants and exposed her to his questing hands.