a Pleasure Rites, #1 by Ines Johnson (top ten books of all time TXT) 📗

lost the one mate and the other deserted her. Certainly the property reverts to the family." Dain's uncle, Bil, pawed at an ancient china bowl on the windowsill. His lips curled, barring a sharp grin.

"A male's bloodline does not usurp a woman's rights." Chanyn's Aunt Angyla stood near the fireplace on the other side of the room, away from Bil, looking down her nose at her surroundings and its occupants.

They'd gathered in Dain's office. Chanyn sat on the settee where Dain proposed to her weeks ago. The memory clung to the forefront of her mind, strong and bright.

Bil moved before the window, blocking the morning sun. Angyla crossed in front of the fireplace, the last ember went dark. Chanyn cradled her elbows to her chest, rubbing the goose bumps that rose. Along with the bumps, another memory rose in her mind.

At the age of ten Chanyn woke to find her mother gone. She'd felt sad, but not scared. She understood the workings of the ruins she lived in. She knew how to gather food from the garden and collect water from the rain barrels. She was alone, but she lived relatively the same as she had each day of her life. Not much changed that day, not even when her mother returned the next morning.

Tonight, in a room full of family members, Chanyn felt an, aloneness, unlike before. In the space of a month, she'd met her true love, found a true friend, and earned the trust of an ally. After a lifetime of being alone, for the first time Chanyn felt abandoned.

Bil and Angyla continued to bicker over Dain's property and wealth. Chanyn tuned them out.

A warm hand took Chanyn's. The grasp was awkward.

Merlyn.

She rubbed Chanyn's hand as though she were trying to wipe off a smudge. Her unpracticed smile was lopsided. "Don't worry. Mother won't let him take your wealth. Though it's probable that she will entangle the funds in the family coffers beyond your reach."

"The money doesn't matter to me."

Chanyn's currency had always been love and affection. Dain's friendship alone filled her well, and then he brought her Jian. Chanyn would give every cent of the money, every acre of the property to these people if only she could have Dain and his generous heart back.

Merlyn opened her mouth. Then closed it. She took a breath, leaned into Chanyn and spoke. "Did you love him?" The edges of her eyes bunched when she said the word love, squinting as though peering into the sun.

Chanyn looked into her cousin's curious eyes. Eyes that reminded her of her mother. But unlike her mother's quest for data, there was the growing warmth of compassion at the corner of Merlyn's eyes. Chanyn realized the younger woman asked because she wanted to understand, not catalogue the answer.

Chanyn nodded in response. "I do... did love him." The tense tripped her tongue.

Merlyn leaned in closer, eager. "Could you describe the indications to me? But not viscerally, quantitatively if possible?"

Chanyn tried to find the words to give the feelings measurement, and failed. "I felt a part of something. I felt wanted. I felt..." And there the feelings failed her, so she reached for a fact. "He was my friend."

Merlyn nodded at this last statement, as though she could grasp the fact better than the meaning. Her eyes went dreamy, unfocused, as though she were peering into the past. "I had a friend once."

Chanyn squeezed her cousin's hand. "You have a friend now."

Merlyn startled. Then relaxed under Chanyn’s hand. Chanyn gave her cousin another squeeze. And then she gripped her cousin's hand tightly. A wave of nausea threatened. Chanyn took a couple of deep breaths. Merlyn awkwardly patted her back. The rubbing motion wasn't helping, but Chanyn didn't want to dissuade the other woman's infantile steps toward affection. She needed a steady hand right now.

Her stomach convulsed again. Chanyn’s hands flew to her womb as though she could protect the novel life in there. Her aunt and Bil continued to argue, their voices grating on Chanyn's nerves as she held her breakfast in, refusing to let go of anything more. Dain had given Chanyn his entire world, and the moment after he left the earth she was barely clinging to what remained.

The nausea relaxed its grip and she stood up. "Quiet!"

All eyes went to her. Chanyn took a deep breath, preparing to speak. Unfortunately, she'd stood up a little too quickly.

Chanyn dashed for the china bowl that Bil coveted and promptly emptied her belly into it.

When she straightened, Bil's eyes were bright. "She's ill." He barely masked the delight.

"No, idiot," said Angyla. "She's pregnant."

"But, she lost the baby," Bil protested.

They all looked to Chanyn for conformation.

"The sudden vomiting so closely after first meal suggests a second pregnancy," Angyla continued. "The sickness happens due to a high level of hormones the body produces to protect the placenta. That indicates this pregnancy will be viable."

Chanyn took another deep breath. She straightened her spine, wiped her mouth, and prepared to speak. But something in the door caught her attention. Actually, it was someone.

Jian.

He stood in his robes, a bit disheveled as though he hadn't slept or washed in the day he'd been gone.

Chanyn wanted nothing more than to run into his arms and hide while he soothed her.

"Is that a hound?" Aunt Angyla sneered. "You let hounds into your house?"

Chanyn saw Jian's eyes lower, his head bow. She was about to tell her aunt off when she caught something behind Jian. Or rather someone.

Chanyn did take off running then. She moved past Bil as he pocketed a smaller piece of china, past her aunt who pressed herself into the far corner, past Jian whose arms opened for her. Chanyn ran straight up to Khial and wrapped her arms around his neck. She could tell this startled him, because for a moment he stiffened. Then tentatively, slowly, his arms came about her. Chanyn couldn't stop herself. She began to weep. As her body began to shake, Khial's grip on her