The Mate He Gave Away novel · Chapter 21 of 40

Chapter 21: Midsummer Due

The herald turned his horse and rode out through the gate.

Nobody in the yard said anything until the sound of his hooves was gone.

Then the sergeant spat in the snow.

"Well," he said. "That's a miracle."

I went inside.

I didn't run. I walked very carefully.

I went up the west tower stairs and shut the door of our room and sat down at the table.

I took a piece of charcoal and drew a line on the wall by the window.

Mid-October. The lodge.

I counted along the wall with my finger.

Nine months, near enough, the way every woman in Greyford counted on her fingers at the well.

The middle of July.

I sat back.

The middle of July, for a single pup.

But Millward women run to twins. My mother had two sets. My grandmother had three.

And twins come early. Every midwife on the river knew that. Two weeks. Three.

My finger moved back along the wall.

It stopped at the end of June.

Midsummer.

The door opened behind me. Corvin came in, with the physician wheezing up the stairs behind him.

They looked at the wall.

"Midsummer," I said. "Give or take. That's my month."

Corvin went still.

I turned on the stool to face the old man.

"Tell me again," I said. "Osric. Could he have got better? Could the fever wear off?"

← Chapter 20 · All chapters · Chapter 22 →

Want to keep talking to characters like these? Chat with AI romance characters: AI Boyfriend · AI Girlfriend · Dark Romance · Fantasy Romance · BL (Boys’ Love) · Billionaire Boyfriend · Mafia Boyfriend · Possessive Boyfriend · Hockey Boyfriend · Older Boyfriend · K-Drama Boyfriend · Anime Boyfriend · Vampire Boyfriend · Werewolf Boyfriend · Demon Boyfriend · Fae Romance · GL (Girls’ Love) · Anime Girlfriend · Goth & Alt Girlfriend · Gamer Girlfriend · Tsundere Girlfriend · Fantasy Girlfriend