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“The stars sent me not one but two daddies!”

“Lily,” Delilah groaned and cupped her face in her hands, but he was absolutely delighted.

She believed that the stars had sent them? It was so utterly charming that his heart melted completely. It was far more appealing to think that the Feriknikal had whisked them away to serve such honorable purpose to father nestlings and be goodmates to those who needed them. He liked this better than the grim purpose that was set before them to locate a proper territory to establish their rookeries. Serving one’s people was all fine and good, but this made him feel like he had an actual purpose.

He crouched in front of her; his wings unfolding with an urge to sweep around her and keep her close for all time. He swore that even when she came into maturity, he would remember this moment. Any male who dared to harm her would know the bite of his fury.

“I am honored, Lily,” he cooed.

“As am I,” Gehj replied, his heart in his eyes.

She was so small and delicate, more so than he had understood from his brief glimpses of her watching through her window. She was perfect, and she was his offspring… his nestling. There was no waiting for Delilah to make her decision. Even if he did not have the honor and great pleasure of raising her, she was his and would always protect and care for her. Even if that meant abandoning the rookeries once their task was completed to dwell on the outskirts of the human settlement, to watch over the both of them should they need him. He understood just from looking at his ahaku’s face that he felt the same.

It was decided. Delilah did not have to accept them as her mate, and she could choose to continue her life without them, but they would never abandon their mate and nestling. They would complete their mission that they were sworn to, but this was their family. They could do no other than watch over them and protect them, even if from a distance.

Atlavans were quick to choose but loyal to the core once that decision was made. The gods granted them this, and so he was greedily taking it. No matter the outcome, he would be everthankful to have been granted the chance to experience such feelings.

Chapter

Ten

Delilah caught her daughter by the arm in case she decided to throw herself at the two males staring back at her with such obvious pleasure. If nothing else, that alone showed her the depth of love and kindness that they were capable of. They weren’t merely just tolerant of Lily but looked at her the way fathers watched their children when they were at play. The way she’d often wished that Zack would have looked at her rather than with impatience. Love. It was the same warmth that brightened their eyes when they looked at her, even if she hadn’t recognized it at that particular time.

They even received Lily’s declaration with a look of delight despite the fact that, at that moment, she wanted nothing more than for the ground to open up and swallow her whole. First it was that the stars were sent for them, and then it was that they were to be a family… and now she was just outright calling them her daddies? Mortification filled her, but she was also surprised. Lily had cried for her father when he never returned home, but she had never mentioned wanting another father. Even Lily mentioning that she wished for a family so that they wouldn’t be alone hadn’t struck Delilah the same as wishing for a father. Shewas far more invested than she had previously understood. This was either wonderful if things worked out, or really, really bad if they didn’t.

“Lily—” she began, but was surprised when the males cooed at her, their wings extended out around them as if almost cupping her lovingly between them.

Now that she thought about it, they had done that with her as well.

“Greetings little one,” Gehj said. “I am Gehj, and this is my ahaku, Agrel.”

“Ahaku, that’s a funny word,” Lily replied and giggled. “I’m Lily, and that’s my momma. I knew the stars would hear me and send me someone, but I didn’t think that they would send me two daddies.”

“Lily,” Delilha gently chided, “it’s rude to make assumptions.”

Although both males seemed entirely on board with being her mate and would likely step up to help care for Lily as they had been, there was a lot more expected of “daddies” that she didn’t think was fair to automatically sign them up for. To her surprise, Agrel gave a clicking laugh that was a bit startling and more adorable than she wanted to admit.

“We do not mind,swiya,” he assured her, his expression soft as he looked down upon her daughter. “We would be pleased to be thought of as such.”

“It is a great honor to be called father,” Gehj confirmed, his eyes bright with emotion.

“You are? It is?” Delilah’s gaze shifted between the males. This was more than she had imagined from their earlier conversation.

Gehj nodded. “Naturally. We explained how much our people treasure children,” he said, tapping Lily on the tip of her nose with one claw so that she giggled. “It is not just theirexistence that is special, but who you are shaped to become for them. Any male can provide food and protection, but a father is… more than that. And mothers are revered among the Atlavan, so much so that it is forbidden among our people for a male to leave a female caring for a fledgling without adequate protection and care.” His expression shifted, quickly becoming disturbed. “It is beyond belief that anyone would leave a mother alone in this place.”

“A lone mother is supported by the entire clan of the rookeries because of how essential she is to the welfare of our nestlings,” Agrel agreed. “She would live peacefully with everything she desired, but she would have no shortage of males eager to care for her and her young should she choose an ahaku pair. It is considered a great honor to gain the trust and love of a mother, who would be, by necessity, far more selective.”

“Ahaku pair? You’ve mentioned that before, but I don’t quite understand what it is, other than the fact that you appear to form together,” Delilah observed, keeping her wording skewed away from the subject of mating as much as possible since her daughter was listening with rapt fascination.

Gehj tipped his head to smile up at her before straightening to his full, towering height. “That we do, but it is a result of being an ahaku pair, rather than being a pair because we chose to take the same female as a mate. Ahaku pairs are two males who bond as juveniles. It is a matter of our nature, but those who brought us here spoke of a chemical connection, but these are not things we know of.” He shrugged his wings. “The whys do not matter so much as the fact that males are drawn together and select each other for ahaku. Like all mating, it is irreversible and permanent unless one of the males dies. They remain together as juveniles, stabilizing their relationship with each other, and then they choose a mate together as adults.”

His bright blue gaze drifted over her in such a way that Delilah felt the heat of it sink deep into her and stir the banked fire within her until it rapidly rose through her to burn her cheeks. His lips parted for a moment, and he drew in a small, sharp breath before they closed once more. Whatever he tasted in the air sent a shiver through him, and his eyes grew brighter as his mouth curled with a look of definite satisfaction. She glanced over at Agrel to find him watching her in the same rapt fashion, though he remained crouched by Lily.

That at least made sense as to why things proceeded as they had. Didn’t Ragoru mate in threes with a single female? Zack had made it sound like something disgustingly bestial in which they relished sharing the same female between them. She had assumed that this was the case with the two males in front of her—that sharing was a matter of pleasure. The way that Gehj explained Atlavan mating practices, however, made them seem natural and beautiful. Perhaps those of the Ragoru were as well despite being painted as ravenous monsters. She doubted that the huntsmen would show Atlavans much more grace.

“Perhaps this conversation should be tabled for later when there aren’t little ears present,” she said, directing a meaningful look toward her daughter. “Lily doesn’t yet need to know the ins and outs of… mating.”

“Momma,” Lily protested, but the males chuckled.