Claimed by the Elven Brothers: Decision (An Elven King Novella Book 1) by Cristina Rayne Page A

introduced him to us,” Jenna groused. “All
this just seems so sudden that I can’t quite wrap my head around how I feel
about it.”
    “Sorry. I just don’t want any more regrets,” I said.
    Jenna nodded and then reached over to hug me tightly. “Can’t argue with
that.”
     

CHAPTER EIGHT
     
     
    It was almost scary how normal it now felt to step between two trees and
see an entirely different landscape appear around me in the blink of an eye.
This time I had traded my work clothes for a loose-fitting, cobalt-blue cotton
sundress that fell to just above my knees and a pair of heeled sandals that
were totally inappropriate for a jogging path as the many strange looks I
received by several joggers continuously reminded me.
    As before, Seren was waiting for me at the entrance. His eyes
immediately swept the entire length of my body, but all he offered me was a
friendly “hello” as he cautiously offered me his hand, obviously not expecting
me to take it. He was still walking on eggshells with me, and that had to
change today.
    I smiled and accepted his hand without a hint of hesitation, giving it
an affectionate squeeze. Surprise flashed in his eyes briefly.
    “I hope that I didn’t keep you waiting long today.”
    “No, not long,” he replied, though he probably would have said that if
I had kept them waiting for days.
    “Is it just you again today?” I asked.
    The ever-present fog was particularly thick today, and I squinted a bit
as we walked, trying to see into the distance without much luck.
    “Locien is here as well,” Seren replied. “He awaits us in the usual
place.”
    “Why is it so foggy today?”
    “The Inbetween reflects our moods,” he explained. “Things have been
quite—turbulent today.”
    I frowned. “You two didn’t get into a fight, did you?”
    His lips quirked up slightly in amusement. “No, nothing like that. We
were just very anxious,” he admitted. “I hope the Royal Wife was able to answer
your questions to your satisfaction yesterday.”
    “I enjoyed talking with her,” I replied sincerely. “She brought up a
lot of important things I hadn’t even thought to ask, so I’m really grateful to
her.”
    “Emily will be relieved to hear that. She said you were upset when you
left and was worried.”
    “I was overwhelmed,” I corrected. “I just needed some time to myself to
think about all of this rather than just react to it.”
    I could now make out the faint outline of a person seated on a very
familiar blanket of white silk just a little bit ahead of us. Seeing him was
like a switch that triggered a sudden nervousness within me. I had come here to
meet them today with a very specific agenda, and now that the moment of truth
had come, it was all I could do not to start shaking with nerves.
    As we stepped up to the edge of the usual blanket, I noticed that Locien’s
eyes were staring at our joined hands with a thoughtful expression. It made me
relax a bit. Maybe if the brothers saw that I was no longer being so
standoffish and suspicious, what I was about to ask them wouldn’t be so
shocking.
    Seren released my hand so that I could sit down across from Locien. I
made a big show of stretching my legs out and arranging my skirt to give myself
time to calm down. I wanted to be able to speak without my voice shaking with
nerves so that there would be no doubt as to my sincerity.
    “I am pleased that you decided to visit with us today,” Locien said,
flashing me the smile that made him look so much like Seren.
    “I have a lot of things I want to talk about, a lot of things I
realized we need to talk about,” I said.
    “Ask us anything,” Seren encouraged as he settled down next to his
brother.
    I took a deep breath and just went for it. “There’s one issue that we
all have kinda been ignoring, one that, at least for me, is really important.”
    “Ah, the change,” Seren said with a nod.
    “Huh?” I said, momentarily thrown off my game. “Oh—well, yes,