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He pursed his lips, then walked into the sitting room down the hall, and I followed. He leaned against the wall, and as I made to leave he held his arm out to block me.
“I don’t like yourjob.” His lips curled up over his teeth.
My eyebrows raised.
Again, with this? I was really hoping he’d be used to this by now but here lately he has been pushing more and more.
“That’s unfortunate for you, but I do. You don’t get a choice in the matter.” I tried to push his arm out of the way, but he grabbed my shoulder. I slowly lifted my narrowed eyes to him.
“You need to stay here with me,” he demanded. My blood began to boil. “I’ve got a good job, and you could stay here and be safe, or we could find you work that is more suitable to your…abilities.”
I knew what he was insinuating. Since I couldn’t manipulate much, my particular set of skills wasn’t useful to anyone other than me. What I saw as a unique strength was seen by others as a weakness.
“You don’t need to be going off to who-the-fuck-knows-where on your own when you can’t defend yourself. Stop being so Gods-damned reckless when you don’t need to be.”
The audacity!
Typical arrogant male, wanting to assert dominance and save the weak little female.
I was anything but weak. He just didn’t know that—yet. I yanked my shoulder from his grasp and took a step back. My voice turned cold.
“Who are you to try to make decisions for me? We’re not together. I like my life just the way it is. And I want to keep it this way as long as I still have one.”
“Exactly!” he yelled. “You don’t have much time left, and you’re risking what little you do. Andfor what?”
“Back off Cade. I’m not quitting my job, and I’m not going to be with you. Now drop it.”
“Kya, I’ve waited two years. My patience is running thin,” he spat. “What if we were mates? Would you still deny me then?”
I shook my head and stepped around him, but he grabbed my arm tightly and jerked me back. I ripped my arm from his grasp and spun around to face him, hooking my foot around the back of his ankle and pulling it forward while pushing against his chest with my hand. He fell flat on his back, and the impact knocked the wind out of him. My other hand, already holding the dagger hidden in my clothes, came down to hold the blade to his throat.
“No. But we’re not mates. We had a deal. And this is exactly why we couldn’t work. I don’t want what you want for me. I only wanted you for the piece of meat between your legs.” I leaned close to whisper into his ear, “And it would quite literally take the divines intervention to make me want you in any other way.” I raised my head so he could see the seriousness in my eyes as I continued. “This was my mistake. I’ve let this go on too long. It’s obvious that your expectations for this,” I gestured between us, “were more than I agreed to. This was exactly what I wanted to avoid.”
I stood and left him lying there, eyes wide with fury and breathing heavily. I wrenched the door open and looked back at him over my shoulder.
“You don’t have to wait anymore,” I said before slamming the door shut behind me.
Fuming, I decided to walk off my frustration before returning to Morah. I was angry that he had to go and ruin the good thing that we had going. It was supposed to be light and fun.
He had seen my mark and knew what it meant. He should have known that I didn’t want a romantic relationship. Not when my future was so uncertain. Notwith him. Not with anyone. Not when my hopeless romantic fantasies craved a mate with a non-existent happily-ever-after.
By the stroke of fate alone, there were the rare occasions—so rare that I’d never seen it—that two fae were bonded through their souls. According to what I had read, mostly from the romantic novels I devoured at night, it was an unbreakable bond of near-primal instinct. And some instances on record stated they could be horrendously unpleasant and violent, especially for the mated female. Regardless, it was still highly desired. Children grew up being told stories of mates and their unconditional and unbreakable connection to each other. It was made to seem like the ultimate goal in life: to find your mate. And for most, it was.
Just not for me…
I walked around for a time before I quietly made my way back to Morah in the shadows. Once back in my room, I settled on my bed, not bothering to put on a nightgown. I was too exhausted.
I lay in the darkness, with only the soft light from the moons illuminating my room, processing all that had occurred. But my mind couldn’t stop the nagging thought of mates and bonds. It was childish to hope and dream that I could have such a thing, especially given what fate already had in store for me. But here, in the late hours of the night, alone in the darkness and with no one to judge my thoughts, I let my mind blissfully wander as I quickly fell into a fitful sleep.
Chapter Five
Kya
The smell of fire was what first woke me from my sleep. The thickness of the air burnt my nose with each breath I took and I wrinkled it against the strange stench. Propping myself up, my blankets slipped down to my waist, pooling heavily in my lap.
“Mama?” I sucked in a breath and rubbed the sleep from my eyes, blinking through the blackness that still surrounded me. My eyes adjusted quickly to the faint beams of moonslight that lit my small room.
A muffled roaring registered in my ears. My brows furrowed. I didn’t know what it was, but the sound made my heartbeat quicken and my chest tighten. Slipping out of bed, I shivered against the unnatural cold, watching as my breath puffed out in a white cloud in front of my face.
