Page 33 of Vanessa’s Bravery

“You’re not happy about it?”

“Not sure how to feel about it.”

Gabriel tipped his chin up. “Is your mate not happy about it?”

“She doesn’t know yet.”

Gabriel leaned forward. “It sounds like you’re not happy with her. Don’t you like the woman you slept with?”

“That’s not it. I’m drawn to her as if she’s put a spell on me. She’s gorgeous, she’s everything I ever wanted in a woman. The sex was explosive… but…”

“But what?”

Cole sucked in an audible breath. “She’s a prostitute.” The second the words were out, he felt guilty for judging her like that. He slapped himself on the forehead. “I’m such a fucking hypocrite! All my life I’ve relied on prostitutes for sex, and now that it turns out that one of them is my soulmate, I’m judging her for what she does for a living! What does that make me?”

Gabriel studied him with a kind smile. “A conflicted man. Listen, Cole. I did the same: I paid prostitutes for sex because no other woman would sleep with me.” He pointed to his scar. “I had much more of an impediment than you.”

Cole tilted his head toward Gabriel’s scar. “How did you get that?”

“My first wife gave that to me during our wedding night. She cut me when I undressed and she saw me naked for the first time.”

“You mean you didn’t have sex with her before you got married?”

“She had a very strict, religious upbringing.” He made a dismissive hand movement. “It’s water under the bridge. What I’m trying to say is that we do what we have to do. Being a prostitute doesn’t have to mean that she’s not a good person. For some women it’s just a way to make a living. Look at her just for how she makes you feel. If you’re drawn to her, it’s for a reason…” He smiled all of a sudden and looked past him. “When I met my second wife, I knew from the second I saw her that she was it. I just knew. And I also knew that I didn’t have a snowball’s chance in hell to win her love. She’s beautiful, and could have had any man she wanted. But she chose me, despite my looks, despite the ugly growth. She slept with me in spite of it—before either of us knew what would happen with the growth.”

“She sounds wonderful.”

“She is. She gave me three beautiful children, a happy home, and a future to live for. The woman you slept with can do the same for you. But you’ll have to accept her for who she is. Love can’t grow without that.”

Surprised at Gabriel’s wise words, Cole let them sink in. Gabriel was right. He had to look past Vanessa’s job and only look at how she made him feel.

“Do you believe in love at first sight?” Cole asked.

“I do. And I believe so do you.”

“I’m beginning to,” Cole admitted.

“Good. Though, of course I’m disappointed that you’ve already found your mate. You would have been a nice match for my daughter.”

“I’m sure I’m way too old for your daughter anyway.” Because there was no way that Gabriel was older than forty, even though he claimed he had adult children.

Cole rose. “Thank you so much, Gabriel. Thanks for everything you’ve done.”

Gabriel stood up and offered his hand. Cole shook it. “Call me to let me know how it’s going. And one other thing.”

Cole listened up. “Yes?”

“In most cases, the mate of a satyr male is also a satyr. That means she’ll go into heat several times a year.”

“Into heat?” He scrunched up his forehead.

“Yes, like a feline. When that happens, she will need sex more than anything in her life. If she doesn’t get it, she will get feverish. It’s very painful. It’s possible that she chose to be a prostitute because of it.”

That was a revelation. Maybe Vanessa didn’t really have a choice. “Does this mean, she knows what she is?”

“I don’t know. My wife didn’t know that she was a satyr before she met me. So this woman might not know either, and simply follows her instinct. Once you’re spending more time with her, you’ll be able to figure out if she’s a satyr. If she is, maybe we should introduce her to my wife and my daughter so they can tell her everything she wants to know.”

Hearing that Gabriel was offering this even though he knew that Vanessa was a prostitute, floored him. He felt embarrassed that he’d judged him the night before, because it turned out that Gabriel wasn’t one to judge. And he now felt even worse for having judged Vanessa. She didn’t deserve him to think of her as being something less, just because of where she worked. She deserved so much more.