Ted Dekker - Mortal

“Please,” the Sovereign said. “There’s no need.”

Jordin straightened with no small measure of relief and glanced at Jonathan. His eyes flitted toward her. “Jordin, will you give us a moment?”

She looked from him to Feyn, who towered a good head and a half over her. They were both tall. They were both stunning-her with ebony hair and pale skin; he with hair the color of turned earth, his hazel eyes rimmed in lashes that any girl would have envied.

They were beautiful together. Standing side by side like that, they could actually inspire a new age, she thought. With her poise and his enigmatic ways, the entire world would watch and follow them, if only out of curiosity.

Jordin’s throat was dry. “Of course,” she said.

She stood still for a moment, reluctant to leave. Finally, she took an awkward step backward, then stepped down from the front porch to walk back toward the horses, trying to appear purposeful.

Jonathan leaped off the porch, and she saw from the corner of her eye that he’d taken Feyn’s hand. Uncharacteristic tears distorted Jordin’s vision.

She was overreacting, she knew. Jonathan was demonstrative by nature. But she seemed unable to ignore the sight of the man she’d devoted herself to with a woman of such power.

Feyn stepped down behind him, and followed him toward a copse of trees.

Jordin recinched the girth on her saddle, glancing often at them. Checked Jonathan’s saddle. Wiped the tears away with a gesture so swift she barely noted it herself. Their voices carried to her in low tones not meant to be heard. She kept one eye on them, wanting the entire time to look away from the way Feyn held his eyes as she spoke. The way Jonathan took her hand not once, but twice. The way the Sovereign dipped her head, offering him respect.

Or was it more?

They glanced back at her once. Good. Let Feyn see her watching them. Her. Jonathan’s protector.

It occurred to her that even now, Feyn could make an attempt on his life. Jonathan might chastise her for such a thought, but was it really outside the realm of possibility? Wasn’t he Feyn’s only true rival after her brother?

She had promised Rom to never let Feyn from her sight, but that promise paled next to her own commitment.

What if Jonathan and Feyn did rule together, side by side? She’d heard that Sovereigns didn’t marry-they only took lovers. But then a Sovereign had the power to change the law if he or she were so inclined. What if, by chance, it made sense that they should marry?

She lowered her head and forced herself to drag in a long breath. It wasn’t like her to be jealous. He was her Maker. The bringer of life. He’d poured out his life for her. It wasn’t for her to hold him with closed hands.

Could she stand by and protect Jonathan even if he were to marry Feyn?

She turned away from the horses, heart climbing into her throat. They were walking into the trees. Out of sight.

Panicked, she dropped the rein in her hands and headed after them.

She ducked the branch of a gnarled pine and hurried past three more with twisted, knotted branches that mirrored the fallout in her heart at the moment.

She hurried on, brushing aside branches, and pulled up sharply at the edge of a small clearing. Jonathan stood three paces away as though he had been waiting for her. No sign of Feyn.

He was alone.

She blinked, caught off guard. It was unlike her. She was faltering under the press of misplaced emotions.

“Where’s Feyn?” she asked in a voice far too thin.

Jonathan closed the distance between them. “She’s waiting. I said I needed to speak with you.”

The band around her lungs released, if only slightly. The scent of Dark Blood put Feyn behind and to their right. She was headed back to the shack.

“What do you think of her?” Jonathan asked

I don’t trust her. Not alone, and not with you.

“She seems… very powerful,” Jordin said.

“Yes, she is.”

“And very wealthy.”

He dropped his head and forced a thin smile. But his braids fell forward over his eyes so she couldn’t see his eyes. It was the posture of women she knew, when they wanted to shield their embarrassment or tears.

“Jonathan…” She reached a finger to lift his chin, regretting anything she had done or said to hurt him.

When he looked up there were no tears on his cheek. His eyes were filled with strange wonder.

“There’s something I’ve wanted to tell you for a long time, Jordin.”

Fear spiked her mind.

“I love you,” he said.

She stared at him, unable to respond.

“As a woman.” He reached out and took her hands in his. “I always have, from the first time you looked into my eyes after taking my blood. I chose you then and I choose you now.”

“Jonathan…” It was all she found the courage to say. She wanted to throw her arms around him and shower him with adoration, but her muscles seemed to have left her command.

He lifted her hand and kissed her knuckles. “I will become Sovereign.”

So Feyn had granted it?

“It’s happening then,” she said.

He smiled. “It will be a thing to see, I can promise you that. The earth will be shaken… A new age is dawning.”

“Because of you.”

His smile softened and he glanced down. Only then did Jordin find the words she longed to speak.

“I love you too, Jonathan. I’ve always loved you, more than you know.”

His thumb brushed over her knuckles. “You know that Sovereigns don’t marry…”

Despite her attempts to hold them back, tears filled her eyes. She nodded.

“Don’t cry, Jordin.” He lifted his other hand, brushed a tear from her cheek with his thumb. “If I could marry, I would choose you. It won’t matter; I choose you now. When I become Sovereign, you will see.”

She couldn’t help the tears slipping down her face. She didn’t quite know why she was crying… She’d never allowed herself to expect such beautiful words from him. The fact that he as Sovereign could not marry was beside the point.

He loved her. He’d chosen her.

“You must also know that the days ahead will be filled with danger. Intentions may be misinterpreted. The dead will rise, but the cost will be heavy.”

“When have we not faced terrible challenges?”

They would be together. Somehow. Though she knew he faced far greater challenges than any to date, she would be by his side. She would bear them all, with the courage of that knowledge. He loved her. He chose her.

“They pale compared to what’s ahead.” He paused, face taut with concern, then lifted her hand and kissed her fingers again. “When the darkest hours come, I want you to know that I’ve known what divides the heart for a long time, but not until recently have I fully understood my calling. The Dark Bloods won’t rest as long as I’m alive.”

“As long as I live, no Dark Blood will touch you.”

Jonathan smiled. “My beautiful Jordin. I would place my life in your hands over any other. Without question.”

“They won’t fail you.”

“No.” But his gaze shifted, like the sky clouding before a storm. “But before you can join me, I have to do what I came to do with Feyn. Sovereigns have their duty. But you must never think I’ve abandoned you. I will build a new kingdom as Sovereign, that I can promise you. Not everything is known-Mortals may turn against me. But you, Jordin…”

Emotion choked off his words, but he pressed on. “Promise you’ll never leave me.”

“I would never leave you! I will go with you!”

“No matter what happens, don’t leave me,” he said. “I can’t bear the thought of being without you.”

“I won’t! Please, Jonathan, don’t speak like this…”