Page 40 of Let Sleeping Vampires Lie

I stood up so fast that the bed springs creaked. “The truth is that Rene is dying. I did what needed to be done.”

Con stepped forward, eyes glowing in the low light—gold with hints of warning red. “No. You reacted. You let instinct make choices you don’t understand.”

I barked a humorless laugh. “You’re lecturing me on instinct? You—the man who solves problems with decapitation first and reflection never?”

He moved closer. “I’m not the one burning through unstable magic with no thought for the consequences.”

“You’re not the one tethered to a dying witch whose bond is unraveling. You didn’t feel how weak Rene was.”

“I didn’t have to,” Con said. “I could see it in Raven’s face. And in yours.”

Something raw twisted in my chest.

“You’re afraid,” I whispered. “Of my magic.”

He didn’t answer.

Which was answer enough.

“You keep running from me,” I continued, “and you want to blame that on the magic now?”

His jaw twitched. “I’m not running.”

“You’re always running,” I said, my voice honed by years of tension simmering between us. “You say you want me, you say you’ll stand beside me, but the second things get real? You pull back.”

He stepped closer, close enough that I felt the chill of his body against my overheated skin. “I pull back because you don’t trust me.”

“That’s rich,” I said. “Coming from the man who won’t even let me help Rene without accusing me of losing control.”

Con’s eyes slid over my face, lingering on my mouth before he jerked his gaze away like he’d been caught.

Oh.

So that was what this was about.

“You’re not afraid of my magic,” I murmured. “You’re terrified of me.”

His voice dropped. “I’m terrified of losing you.”

My breath caught.

Con continued, quieter now, but every word hit like a blow. “You throw yourself at danger like your life is disposable. You give away power without counting the cost. You act like you were made to die for other people.”

“That’s who I am.”

“No,” he said fiercely. “That’s who you were. Before the clan. Before the death dealers. Before me.”

Heat rose in my chest, anger and something else tangled too tightly to name. “Don’t make this about you.”

“It is about me.”

His anger flickered bright, edging into something blisteringly honest.

“It’s about me watching you burn yourself down every time someone you care about is in danger. It’s about you thinking you have to do everything alone. It’s about you not trusting anyone enough to lean on them.”

His voice broke on the last word.

Neither of us moved.