He breathed deeply, content. Yes, their conversation had taken a darker turn the evening before, but he was still glad of it, glad that he had told her of his own losses and that she hadn’t turned away. In djinn society, for all their outward acceptance of those who took the aljar al-nawim, there was still an unspoken prejudice toward those who were left behind, as though somehow there must be something wrong with them, if their loved ones could walk away so easily.
No need to think of that now, though. He had Leila beside him, and she had proved the night before that she was willing enough to be his companion, now and forever. Their bodies had sealed the compact he’d made with the universe when he claimed her as his Chosen. And they had only reaffirmed their connection when they awoke in
