Born of Defiance

“Don’t you dare insult yourself.”


She smiled at him. “That right there is why I chose you. And one day, I hope we can actually have sex.”

He laughed again. “It would be nice…” He glanced down, then wagged his brows at her. “I’m up for it if you are.”

She tsked at him. “Not today. I can tell by the jagged way you’re breathing how much pain you’re in. I wasn’t kidding. I don’t want you back in the hospital. But if you’re a good boy…”

He dutifully closed his eyes and feigned a soft snore. She kissed his forehead.

There was a light knock on the bedroom door. Dimming the lights, Felicia went to answer it.

Galene peeped around her to look at the bed. “How’s he doing?”

She opened the door to admit her. “He’s in bed, but resisting sleep.”

“He’s always been that way. I used to get so frustrated at him when he was a boy. There were times I thought I’d have to stun-blast him to get him to settle down.”

“And she would threaten my pudding if I didn’t obey,” he said sullenly.

“That’s because spanking never mattered to you. I should have known then you’d grow up to be a fighter.”

“Only because you numbed my ass from all the beatings I got as a kid.” He grinned at her.

Galene scoffed at him. She met Felicia’s curious gaze. “The lies my boy tells. I rarely ever got onto him. Honestly, he was an angel and a joy… when he wasn’t literally climbing up walls, furniture, and countertops. He took much better care of me than I ever did of him.”

“Now who’s lying?”

His mother ruffled his hair. “Can I get you anything?”

“I’m good. I’ve got my pillow. My bed. And best of all, my two taras. Life couldn’t be better.”

His mother kissed his cheek. “Good night, baby. Love you.”

“You, too.”

She paused in front of Felicia. “I’ll head back and leave the two of you alone.”

Felicia stopped her. “If you want, please feel free to stay. Not like we don’t have plenty of room here for you.”

She glanced back at Talyn.

“I really don’t mind,” Felicia said sincerely. “You’re his mother. I get it.”

“Talyn? What do you want me to do?”

Talyn pressed his lips together. “The Andarion symbol for war is two females under one roof. My mother didn’t raise no fool. Honestly, it makes no difference to me, but I don’t want either of you to feel weird or uncomfortable.”

“I really, truly don’t mind,” Felicia reiterated. “If you want to be close by in case something happens, I’d rather have you down the hall than across town. You can even sleep in here and I’ll take one of the other bedrooms, if you want.”

Galene smiled. “Now that I’m sure he’d object to.” She patted Felicia’s arm. “I’ll take the room at the end of the hall. And I’ll make dinner tonight for both of you.”

“Thank you.”

“Thanks, Mum.”

Inclining her head, she left them.

Talyn bent his arm under his head. “I’m glad you get along with my mother.”

“I adore her. She’s very sweet.”

“Don’t know if sweet’s the word I’d go with. She can be scary when stirred. But while I might doubt her sanity at times, I’ve never doubted her love for me.”

Felicia laughed. “You know she can probably hear you.”

“Yeah, but she raised me. It’s not like she doesn’t know I’m an irritable ass. Contrary to what she claims, I haven’t exactly hidden it.”

“I don’t think you’re irritable.”

“What can I say? You bring out the best in me.”

Felicia felt weepy over that. “You need to rest.”

“Fine.” He stuck his tongue out at her before he rolled over.

Laughing again, she closed the door and went to help his mother in the kitchen.

Galene was washing vegetables as Felicia entered the room. “What can I do to help?”

The commander shook her head. “Chop an onion?”

“Sure.” She grabbed a chopping block and knife. As she started, the hair on the back of her neck raised. She looked up to catch Galene staring at her. “Is something wrong?”

“If I asked you something very personal, would you be offended?”

“Depends. Is it offensive?”

“It might be. But I don’t mean it that way. It’s more nosy than anything else.”

“Then ask.”

“Why are you a companion?”

Felicia’s face heated up at the extremely personal question. Not to mention the fact that it was coming from the mother of her patron, which only made it worse. “I needed the money for school.”

“Didn’t your mother try to talk you out of it?”

“A little, but she quickly came around, once I pointed out my reasons and the benefits of it. Ultimately, she’s the one who trained me.”