Page 58 of Haunted Nightmares
Rotting and mad or not, this male truly is beautiful, even with the physical display of what being apart has done to him. And he somehow looks healthier than he did when he showed up in Lorna’s tent.
Because he fed from me. Duh.“How are you feeling?”
“Pardon?” Wraith’s head swings in my direction, his expression one of confused annoyance. “How am Ifeeling?”
I nod.
“Are you bloody mad? I’m up to my elbows in troll innards, fighting a voice in my head that thinks you’re not who you say you are while trying to convince me to drain you dry. I’m right pissed off for more reasons than I can actually sort through but have somehow pushed down far enough to not act on, I’m fucking starving, and my cock has been hard since you landed on the goddamn sidewalk outside.” He scowls and snaps his teeth before quickly getting back to the task at hand. “That’s how I’m bloodyfeelingso don’t ask such stupid questions. It’s insulting to both of us.”
Well, that’s a lot to unpack.
It gives me hope, though.
Wraith is in control of himself and his emotions for the first time in months, he’s more coherent than usual, and that means he’s most likely more rational right now, too. Even if the voice in his head hasn’t gone away yet. It might never go away, truth be told, but we won’t find out until Wraith gets over himself.
And at the very least, I can work with all of that.
“Don’t bother,” Wraith says as he slices into the second stomach.
With a frown, I step closer to the table despite the way the scent of death grows. “Don’t bother with what?”
“Unpacking, working with things. I’m beyond help and even if I wasn’t, I couldn’t imagine mating someone who deceived me for so long, one who allowed me to live in ignorance and insanity for months.”
“If you’d just let me explain, everything would make?—”
Glancing at me, Wraith scoffs. “Even I know that’s not the basis of mating someone.” Then goes back to the troll. “Filthy, that’s what it is. The unpleasant kind of filth that brings about the feelings of disgust. I couldn’t be with someone so dirty.”
I guess I was wrong about the coherent shit.
“You know what, fine, you’re right. I deceived you, I betrayed you, and I let you go completely mad.”And now I’m about to drop down to his level.“But at least I didn’t get you killed.”
If fighting fire with fire actually works, I just ignited a flame so hot it may burn down what’s left of this very house.
Wraith’s entire body tenses, tightens from head to toe as he snaps the scalpel in half between his fingers. The muscle in his jaw ticks as he removes his hands, dropping something in the small basin before he turns to face me completely.
“What did you just say?”
His tone has the hair on the back of my neck standing on end, especially when my mate straightens to his full height and takes one step toward me.
Gods, I love him so much, more than anything in the world but I’m not immune to how terrifying he can be. Close, but not quite, and after so much time apart, seeing him like this now is a little intimidating.
I’m not going to back down, though. This seems to be the only way to get his attention so if it means dredging up the past and all its misconceptions, so be it.
Stiffening my spine, I cross my arms against my chest and meet his angry stare. “I might have deceived you by making you think I was someone else but I didn’t get you killed. I never tortured you, never made you feel less than in hopes of you rejecting me.”
“Stop it.”
“I’ve never fucked you when I questioned whether you wanted me to or not.”
“Zephyr, stop.”
“I sure as hell didn’t use your family against you in a sorry attempt to push you away and?—”
Before I can finish my sentence, Wraith’s hand is on my throat, smearing troll blood on my skin while applying the slightest amount of pressure, and he’s walking me backwards toward the wall. “Shut your goddamn bloody mouth lest I shut it for you.”
Grinning in his face, I lift my chin in defiance. “Hypocrite.”
“Come again?” He growls as my back bumps into the wall. “Did you just call me a hypocrite?”
