I blinked and let my lips part with the request. In slow enunciations, I uttered, “I don’t trust anyone.”
He nodded. “I know.”
“You should have told me the truth.”
He closed his eyes and bowed his head. “You’re right. I thought your trust was more important. Because with your trust came your love. It was the easier, less complicated route.” His jaw clenched with tension. “But I realize protecting you is what matters most, no matter how you feel about me.” In a slowmovement, he leaned forward and wiped the tracks of tears from his cheek. “I was selfish, and I thought I could protect you from the Cidris. And I regret everything. I am sorry.”
We stayed in mutual silence, letting it wrap around us in the beginnings of understanding.
“What happened?” I questioned, gesturing to the wound over his temple.
He kept his mouth shut like he was mulling over a way to get out of explaining.
“The truth, please.”
He sighed and retracted his hand from mine.
I left mine out for him to take again if he chose to.
His eyes latched on to my empty palm, and he laid his hand back down on mine, this time wrapping his fingers around it. “Someone found my stash of your blood after he realized I was farming only you. I walked in on him drinking it.” He paused as if reliving it. “I chose your safety over his.”
I swallowed hard, knowing that was Fletcher’s way of saying he had killed the Cidris. “What’d he do to you?”
“Knife. He got me in my shoulder too.” The hand that had lain in mine went to his left shoulder gingerly, touching it. To know there were morewounds beneath his shirt than the ones he had taken from me… gosh, the pain he must be in.
That was enough to throw me into action. To break the cloud of uncertainty that had been stifling me. I released the blanket, ends falling to the wayside, exposing all of myself to him. Carefully, I got out of my seat, rounded the rectangular table, and made my way to the kitchen. I grabbed a clean towel and poured some alcohol on it. I returned and swung my leg over him, before resting my bottom on his lap. “May I?”
His eyes darted over my face, as if he had forgotten what I looked like up close. Then, he nodded as his hands found their place on my thighs.
I dabbed the wound on his temple with the towel and listened to him hiss. When I was finished, I set the towel down and brought my fingers to the injury with the intention of taking it from him, but before I could touch it, he caught my wrist.
“Don’t you dare.” His watery gaze lifted to mine as he pushed my hand back down to my side.
His deep brown eyes pierced through me in that moment. And I saw him. I saw the Fletcher I had loved. And I wanted him. I wanted to reach for him, drag him back to the surface. “Hold me.”
Strong arms slowly banded around my waist as he brought me close to his chest. I wrapped my arms around his neck, his face tucked into the nape of mine. My shoulder dampened with his silent tears. Compared to my steady breathing, Fletcher’s was erratic. Heavy, uneven.
“Breathe with me.”
I took a deep breath and waited for him to follow. When he did, I exhaled slowly. We continued like this until his breathing synced to mine. His smell surrounded me in its familiarity and warmth. A need to heal him—to heal us both—flowed through me.
“Make love to me.”
His head popped up as his arms loosened around me. “What?”
I brought my head forward, crashing my lips against his. The tension between us collapsed. And as I tried to pry his lips open with my tongue, he kept his sealed. I growled and lifted my head with the sting of rejection burning a hole in my pride. “I said make love to me. Help me forget what happened.”
His brows were knitted together as his lips finally parted. “How could you make love to me without trusting me?”
The question settled uneasily in my soul. He was right, but I quickly realized why I could. “Because I’m hoping you can change my mind.”
His brows pulled up and the tears ceased with the promise of hope. “I will.”
“Then take me to bed.”
“Yes, princess.”
With a hand curled behind my head, he brought me forward until our parted lips touched briefly. His breath coated my mouth and it melted something icy and solid within me.
