Page 51 of Kentucky Nights (Dead Man’s Ranch #1)

“Lorcan, it’s imperative that Kentucky never learns the truth about my sacrifice.”

“What? Why? He deserves to know the truth, Daphne. He is struggling with the thought of being infertile, and on top of the secret that your lifespan got cut in half when you chose to be with him, isn’t this something else he deserves to know?”

I watch Kentucky and Romeo move the herd of cattle to the next pasture; more content than I’ve ever been in my life.

“That is why he can’t know. Promise me, you will never tell him the truth and if you tell his fated mate, which I know you will, I’ve seen it, she can’t tell him either.

You know his soul, Lorcan. He fights with the night entering his mind.

If you tell him the truth, he will end his life sooner than he has planned.

He will think he isn’t deserving of such sacrifice, and that’s not true.

He’s deserving of everything this world has to offer and more.

I love him so much, but I’m only temporary.

A stepping-stone to help him get to where he deserves to be.

If we can get him there, he will be okay.

His soul will be healed. He would never forgive himself if he ever found out I sacrificed my life and my ability to have kids.

All the progress would be gone. I’ll hold onto my lies if it means keeping him alive. ”

Lorcan sighs, rubbing a bony hand down the front of where his face would be. “Fine, I promise. But I don’t like lying to him. He’s too good a person.”

“I know, but his heart and mind can be his enemy. We will lose him if we tell him the truth.”

“I won’t make his mate promise not to tell him. It isn’t right for her to hold onto that lie for you.”

“If she wants Kentucky to live, she will.”

“I don’t see Kentucky wanting to kill himself after meeting his fated mate. That’s fucking dark, Daphne. Come on. I know you’re used to seeing him in another light, but no matter how many glimpses of his future you will see, you won’t know the future Kentucky.”

“True. I’m just scared for him, I guess. I’ve seen too many alternative endings to his future. It’s hard to decipher which one leads the way.”

“I understand.” Lorcan pats the top of my hand. “I’ll keep an eye on him, and eventually, I’ll get a matching hat to irk him. I live for that. Makes the sulfur in my dead soul pitter-patter.”

The end.