AARYN
When she caught his eyes, hers brimming again with hope, he didn't even have the clarity to look away. He stared back, all the pain and shock open for her in his gaze.
She was leaving the position open for him? She was so certain he would end up taking it that she would break generations of tradition?
It hit Aaryn like a spear between the ribs. Aware of the audience around him, he forced his face to calm, but dug his fingers into the underside of the tabletop, the wood splintering under his nails.
She really wasn't going to mate him.
A pit opened in his stomach.
Before he could process any of it, he felt the eyes on him. He looked up to find six pairs of eyes, staring.
Pyrce, who had been in the cave that morning was the one who had the balls to speak up first. "She's holding it open for you, Aaryn. You have to take it. You have to."
