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Damek snorts. “As if I wantyouteaching them. I’m a far better surfer.”
“Keep dreaming,” Duncan teases.
I can’t help but smile at their banter. Though, Duncan is likely right. Once Damek and I get married, it will only be a matter of time before we have children. Isn’t that what a marriage like ours is about? Having heirs? Our children will one day rule the Rune Clan.
I want to have a large family, that way the weight of the crown won’t be so heavy for my oldest child.
“Most succubi have large families,” I tell Duncan. “So I imagine you’ll have lots of nieces and nephews to spoil.”
Damek’s grin widens.
Duncan groans. “The two of you are going to gang up on me, aren’t you? Uh.”
But even Duncan can’t hide his smile.
This is what family is supposed to be like.
When I glance toward the front of the plane, I find Queen Rune watching us with an expression that I can’t read. When she realizes that I’ve caught her watching, she quickly looks away, but her expression doesn’t change. She almost looks… thoughtful.
I wonder… is Damek right? Will his mother grow to like me over time, once she realizes I’m not like the royals who have snubbed her?
The thought gives me hope. Because, as much as I don’t want to admit it, I do want a caring family. I don’t like having a family that is constantly fighting with one another. And that isn’t an environment I want to raise my children in either.
Damek keeps his arm around me as he and his brother continue to tease one another. And I think about what future vacations will look like once we have children. I imagine us heading to the beach for a fun week. I even imagine what Queen Rune would be like as a grandmother. As much as she dotes on her sons, I imagine she will do the same to her grandchildren.
Maybe Queen Rune isn’t as bad as I once thought. The way she treats her sons is evidence of that. Even though Damek isn’t her son by birth, she loves him just as much as she does Duncan.
11
VACATION
The island is even more lovely than I imagined.
It’s an island in the Atlantic Ocean, cloaked by magic. The entire island is a supernatural only island. It’s bigger than I expected, expanding more than five hundred square miles—too big for us to explore it all. But several supernaturals have vacation homes here. The home next door, for example, is owned by an older dragon shifter couple. They’re really sweet and the older woman even gave us homemade bread and jam when we arrived.
About an hour before sunrise, Queen Rune asks everybody to head outside for dinner. While they’re here, it’s tradition for the Rune family to eat dinner outside and then watch the sunrise together. It’s surprisingly sweet—they’ve been doing it since Damek was two when his parents got married.
During dinner, I sit between Duncan and Damek. Queen Rune smiles as Duncan makes a joke. I’m surprised she’s not in a bitter mood since I’m here—I figured my presence would ruin the vacation for her.
While everybody else sips blood from wine glasses, I have ice water. Part of me wishes I could join them, just so I didn’t stand out so much, but Damek doesn’t mind. He never has.
“Have you tried drinking blood before?” Duncan asks.
“Yes. I can’t keep it down.” I take a bite of my chocolate cake. Forget blood—dessert is so much better.
“But it’s nice that you fit in with the succubi that way,” he says.
I swallow my cake. “No. I never fit in with them. And my cousins never let me forget that I’m hybrid.” I try to keep my tone light but from the frown on Duncan’s face, I don’t think I managed to keep all the bitterness out.
“It doesn’t matter now.” Damek grabs my free hand under the table. “You’re with us. And I don’t care that you’re a hybrid.”
“Is that not a concern for your heirs?” I ask. “They will be more vampire than I am, but they will still be hybrids.”
“It may make me more protective of our daughters,” Damek says.
Our daughters.
Just thinking about Damek with our daughters in the future makes my heart melt. He’s going to be a good dad.
