51. Morelle

51

MORELLE

I t took Morelle less than ten minutes to pack her entire wardrobe into the suitcases Brandon had brought from his house. Another five minutes in the bathroom was all she needed to collect the few toiletries that were actually hers and not what she'd found in Annani's home.

All that she owned fit inside one suitcase, and it was more than she had ever owned before. As she looked around, she realized that this room in her sister's house had become more of a home to her than anywhere she'd lived before.

Strange how a place could feel so familiar after such a short time. But then, she hadn't really lived in the temple. She'd merely existed, marking time like a prisoner counting days but with no end to her sentence in sight.

She couldn't have known that her mother would one day smuggle her and her brother off the planet and send them across the galaxy to their father.

Morelle had believed that the temple was where she would spend the rest of her life, copying scriptures by hand and performing other mundane tasks she found boring.

In the past two weeks here on Earth, she had done more living than in all her previous years combined.

Brandon had already gathered the few belongings he'd brought to Annani's home and gone to help Ell-rom and Jasmine, who had somehow managed to fill the entire walk-in closet in their room, mostly with Jasmine's things, she'd been told.

Well, there was no comparison between her brief life on Earth and Jasmine's. Her brother's mate had a lifetime of collecting stuff, and it looked like the people of Earth enjoyed having many things.

It was nice, Morelle had to admit, to own outfits of different kinds to fit different moods. Variety added another dimension that had been lacking in her previous life. She'd had two sets of identical robes and veils, and there had been no change in her appearance from one day to the next.

Making her way to the other bedroom, she found Jasmine folding clothes on the bed, the suitcase open on the floor next to her, already half full.

"Where are Ell-rom and Brandon?" Morelle asked.

"They went to Brandon's house with what I've already packed," Jasmine explained, smoothing a wrinkle from a blouse she was folding.

"Do you need help?"

Jasmine smiled. "No, thank you. I'm very particular about how I fold my things and in what order I put them inside the luggage, but you can keep me company."

That was already one way in which Morelle was sure Jasmine and Ell-rom differed. Her brother couldn't care less about his clothing and how it was folded.

"Can I ask you something?"

Jasmine cast her a sidelong glance. "Shoot."

The word made Morelle frown. "Shoot what? I don't have a weapon."

Jasmine's laughter filled the room. "I meant talk."

"Oh." Morelle nodded, filing away yet another confusing Earth expression. "Why can't people here just say what they mean literally?"

"Language is a reflection of the culture," Jasmine said with a shrug. "Is that what you wanted to talk about?"

"No." Morelle perched on the edge of the bed, careful not to disturb Jasmine's carefully folded piles. "I wanted to ask if fated mates enjoy all the same things and agree on everything."

Jasmine's hands stilled on the shirt she was folding. "If you're asking about Ell-rom and me, we definitely don't agree on everything, and we have very different preferences. I love being around people, socializing, and getting a lot of attention. I'm a performer at heart, and the more eyes on me, the more energized I feel. Ell-rom gets exhausted if he's around people for too long. He needs his privacy, his quiet time."

Relief flooded through Morelle. So, her hunch had been right, and even Ell-rom and Jasmine, who considered themselves fated mates, weren't perfect mirrors of each other.

"I also need solitude from time to time," she said. "But Ell-rom and I differ in other ways. He is much more accommodating and pleasant than I am." She sighed. "How do you manage to bridge the differences between you and Ell-rom? Do they lead to arguments?"

"We don't argue," Jasmine said, resuming her folding. "We're aware of each other's needs, and we compromise. That's the real secret to a good relationship—finding balance. You can't be completely selfish and want everything your way, but you can't be a doormat either. The key is finding a middle ground and taking each other's preferences and limitations into account."

The advice was sound, but Morelle suspected achieving that equilibrium would be harder for her and Brandon than it seemed to be for Ell-rom and Jasmine. Her brother and his mate were naturally more flexible and less stubborn than she and Brandon.

"Is everything okay between you and the councilman?" Jasmine asked.

"Brandon and I care deeply for each other, but we're still struggling to find that middle ground you mentioned. It's not as simple for us."

Jasmine set down the skirt she was folding. "These things take time and patience. Don't give up just because everything isn't perfect yet."

"I'm not giving up," Morelle said quickly. "But patience isn't my strong suit. I was hoping you might know of a shortcut. Maybe a manual for relationships?"

Jasmine chuckled. "We could make that a project—you and me. Interview everyone in committed relationships and compile their advice. But it'll have to wait until after I solve the mystery of my mother's disappearance."

Ell-rom and Jasmine had reported about the divorce document that her mother had sent her father. They were not sure that it was authentic, but if it was, it meant that Jasmine's mother had been alive at a time when she was supposed to be dead.

"Do you believe she's alive?" Morelle asked.

Jasmine straightened, something fierce and determined crossing her expression. "Yeah, I do. But I'll know more after talking to my father, or rather, after having a Guardian get into his head while I question him. My father never gives me straight answers, but this time, I'll have someone pluck it straight out of his brain."