Page 27 of Bound By Destiny

“What is it?” I implore, desperate to put an end to her turmoil, to leave Destiny in better shape than I found her so I won’t spend years worrying.

“I…”

To my horror, tears well up in her eyes. It feels like my entire world is shaking, and I have no idea what to do. Even though my mind is screaming at my betrayal, my heart knows Destiny is my mate. I can’t let my mate suffer. It’s impossible.

“Destiny, please,” I press huskily. “You have to tell me. I promise I won’t hold anything against you no matter what happened.”

Her lower lip quivers. My heart breaks in two.

“I don’t think so,” she mumbles. “You’ll probably hop on the first plane to Australia as soon as I tell you.”

It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell her that in any case, I’m not authorized to leave for another week, but I realize that’s not the kind of reassurance she needs right now.

“On the contrary,” I admit, wiping away the wetness from her face. “The more I know about you, the harder it’ll be for me to board that plane.”

Tears flow in earnest now down her cheeks, catch at the fullness of her lips, drip miserably from her chin.

“Dane…” She starts brokenly, her voice no more than a whisper. “Dane, I killed themall!”

Of all things, that’s what I was expecting the least.

Destiny, witty, soft-hearted, flusteredDestiny… caused somebody’s death? Scratch that,them, she said. She took not one life, but many?

A chill courses through me, but strangely enough my horror isn’t directed against her specifically. I’ve met her only a couple of weeks ago, but IknowDestiny. Maybe I can sense it because she’s my mate, but I’d bet my entire ranch that she doesn’t have a mean bone in her body.

Whatever happened was an accident.

“They were outside in such weather?” I ask, torn by the guilt marring her lovely features.

Destiny weakly bobs her head up and down. “The storm destroyed a lot of barriers and fences. They probably wandered and ended up there.”

“To be honest, they were being pretty reckless themselves if they purposefully tread over torn fences. The blame isn’t all yours.”

Destiny turns to me, brows drawn together in confusion. “Well of course they would, how… What are you talking about?”

I pull back. “What areyoutalking about?”

In a flash she shoots to her feet, arms flying to the air in helpless frustration. “The sheep, Dane!” When I only stare at her in utter consternation she wails: “I killed all the sheep! Eighty-seven of them!”

Wild, wonderful relief washes over me. Here I’d been imagining she’d accidentally caused the death of a couple of hikers, perhaps a whole family. Compared to that, even an entire flock of sheep isn’t as dramatic. My nerves drop instantly, and a bubbling chuckle rises in my chest. Soon, I’m doubled over, laughing so hard I can barely breathe.

“What’s wrong with you?” Destiny gasps from above. “You think this isfunny, you psycho!?”

“No. no, it’s just…” I wipe the tears from my eyes and straighten to my full height, gathering her hands in mine. “Oh God Destiny, I was imagining something even worse.”

She grimaces and eyes me in disapproval. Anger is a step-up from sadness, so I’m pretty glad to see the furious glint in her lilac beams.

“An animal’s life is just as important as a human one.”

I raise an apologetic hand. “I’ve devoted every day of my life for the past thirty years raising animals, so believe me, I’m not one to believe they’re worth any less than humans are.” I nudge an ebony strand away, so our gazes can meet unobstructed. “But honey, it was an accident. A really unfortunate one. Most people won’t even slow down if they see a wild animal on a road.”

“Not one, Dane,” she says with grim persistence. “Eighty-seven!”

“Warwick and I once had a neighbor about twenty years ago who raised animals,” I counter immediately. “They were kept in jam-packed sheds, never saw more than a few square feet of the world and were stuffed with antibiotics to keep them alive.Thatwas planned, profitable, cruel.” My fingers travel to her face so she won’t look away. “You’renot cruel. Hell, you were weeping over a box of organic eggs!”

“Negligence is cruel in its own way,” Destiny croaks. “Because of my miscalculations, all I could do was maneuver a last-minute landing on the cliff. I saw the sheep. I knew they would be spooked. But I still did it.”

“And thank goodness you did,” I tell her with full sincerity. “Otherwise I wouldn’t be speaking to you right now!”

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