"Everyone has secrets."
"Dreams are the subconscious' way of telling people what they truly want."
*******
Artemis Mallory had lived fourteen of her eighteen years in the dark as to why her mother left her with her adoptive family and pack. She ha...
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Well this would be interesting.
"Can we have some privacy?" Orion said, his voice brimming with excitement. He had always joked that he would never find a mate, and here he was, standing in front of his mate.
There were going to be issues.
Issues that would surface sooner rather than later.
Lae gave me a panicked look as everyone else went to get food. I gave a small nod as I made no move to leave. Orion gave me a bewildered look.
"Artemis?" Orion questioned.
"I want her to stay," Laeeqa said softly. "I need her to stay." Most vampires follow the Muslim religion. A religion primarily followed by humans. As a woman, Lae chose to wear a headscarf, called a hijab. Not all Muslim women wore a hijab but those who did wore it by choice, not because they were forced. Lae's religious beliefs were why I was standing here right now. I was their chaperone. It was considered inappropriate if a male and female were alone together without a chaperone. Unless they were married, or related by blood. Hence, here I am. Chaperoning.
Oh yay for me.
I was more than happy to be here for Lae but as Orion's friend, I was worried about his reaction. Having a vampire as a mate was already a shock, but learning that nothing was going to happen until marriage, that was going to be a whole other thing.
"You won't know I'm here," I promised. No way was I getting in the middle of this unless I had to. Which apparently I would have to, as Orion tried to go in for a hug. Only for me to step in front of him and Lae, as Lae took a step back. "Except if you do that." I put a hand on Orion's arm. "You can't do that, Orion."
"Why the fuck not?" Orion snapped, causing me to flinch slightly. Orion's eyes flared with guilt as he saw me flinch.
"Let her explain," I said softly, stepping back slightly.
"Okay," Orion took a deep breath, and ran a hand through his hair. "What's going on? Why can't I hug you? You're my mate." My heart broke for Orion. He had always thought that the Fates had never deigned to give him a mate, that he was too unlovable. Too unfixable. Now he had met his mate, and not only was it technically illegal for them to be together, but he also was about to learn that becoming Lae's mate was more complicated than he thought.
"I'm Muslim," Lae said as if that explained everything. When Orion made no reply, she sighed. "It's a religion, a human religion, Islam, that a lot of vampires follow. I wear this veil, which is called a hijab," She gestured to her black veil. "Not all Muslim women wear a hijab, but those that do, do it for modesty and as a way to honour their God. It's also why I wear loose fitting and modest clothes." Laeeqa took a breath as she let Orion process the information. I watched Orion cautiously, gauging his reaction.
"What does this have to do with us?" Orion gestured between them, his face still confused.
"To keep things modest, men and women cannot who are not family cannot hang out alone without a chaperone." Laeeqa gestured to me. "There can also be no inappropriate touching."
