Broken (The Captive #5.5)(23)
"We only need one," he replied with a teasing gleam in his eyes. "And I'll make sure you stay seated."
Genny thought she felt an odd little thump in the area where her deadened heart resided in her chest. If she had required breath, she knew she wouldn't be able to breathe right now as everything within her seemed frozen. Without thinking, she rested her hand against his smoothly shaven cheek and leaned up to kiss him. Though they'd been spending everyday together, they hadn't exchanged any more kisses. She was well aware of the fact that they both yearned to do a lot more than just kiss. She was coming to care for him more and more with every passing day but she wasn't ready to give her body over to him. It would only result in her heart being broken. Though, she suspected it was already too late for her to come away from this with her heart still intact.
"I think that sounds amazing," she murmured against his lips.
"So do I," he replied and kissed her again. Now that she'd broken the seal, the dam seemed about to burst as his tongue slid enticingly over her lips before withdrawing. His heated mouth moved over her cheek before his lips rested against her ear in a gesture so intimate that her body instinctively pressed closer to his. Desire curled within her belly, she inhaled the enticing scents of leather, horse, mint and something intrinsically male that drifted from him. "I think you just like to scandalize the humans."
She'd gotten so used to touching him with ease that she'd forgotten it wasn't acceptable in the place they were, or that Camille wasn't used to it, until she heard a startled gasp and outraged murmurs. "Damn humans," Atticus muttered and took a step away from her.
But it was the look on Camille's face that kept Genny riveted. Her sister was staring at them as if they had just stripped naked and run through the streets of town. "Camille…"
"I'm going to see Matilda now," she blurted.
"I have no money for her yet," Genny reminded her.
"She'll understand. I'll be with her until you're ready to leave."
"Camille…" She took a step toward her but Camille turned away and hurried into the crowd.
"Let her go," Atticus said quietly.
"I don't understand what's wrong," she murmured.
Atticus turned to watch Camille. "Let me talk to her."
"That may not be a good idea."
"Let me try." He squeezed her hand reassuringly and stepped away from her.
Genny anxiously watched him follow Camille.
***
Atticus leaned against the wall of a hut and studied Genny's younger sister speaking with the older woman he'd met before. She smiled and laughed with Matilda but he could sense the tension in Camille as her shoulders never completely relaxed, and she kept glancing at him out of the corner of her eye. He looked back to where he'd left Genny to find her standing on the side of the road with her hands folded before her and a troubled look on her face. Realizing she'd been caught staring, she quickly busied herself by admiring a colorful array of ribbons hanging from one of the carts.
He didn't much care what Camille thought about him but Genny's love for her sister was clear and he knew it was important to her that they liked each other. Resigning himself to having to play nice with the girl, he moved away from the building and approached the cart. He pulled free a small money purse, placed it on top of the cart and pushed it toward Matilda.
"From Genny," he said. Matilda's eyes widened, she glanced at the purse and then at Camille. She slid the purse into her pocket as he turned toward Camille. "May I speak with you?"
Camille stared at Matilda before bowing her head. "Yes milord. I'll see you again soon Matilda."
"I hope so," Matilda replied.
Atticus's teeth had ground together when she'd called him milord again but he stepped away from the cart with her. His eyes went back to where Genny was waiting for them at the end of the road. She'd moved on from the ribbons and was now speaking with an older man trying to sell her some bread.
"May I ask why it is that you don't like me?" he inquired as he walked with deliberate slowness toward Genny.
Camille glanced at him from under her thick black lashes; her blue eyes were vivid in the sunlight filtering over her. She was a stunningly beautiful woman but even as that thought registered, his gaze was drifting back toward Genny. He felt his eyebrows shoot into his hairline when Genny smiled and took the bread from the man. A rumble of laughter bubbled up in his chest, she'd never eat the bread but the man's wrinkled face and words had convinced her to purchase the food.
"I like you just fine milord," Camille replied dismissively.
He stopped walking and touched her arm to get her to stop. The minute his skin came into contact with her, a crawling sensation slid over his skin and he quickly dropped his hand back to his side. He ran a hand through his hair, pushing it away from his face as he glanced back at Genny. If he hadn't known she was a vampire he would have thought her a witch with the spell she seemed to have cast on him in the weeks since their first meeting.
When they were apart, he couldn't get her out of his mind. Even feeding had become more difficult, he despised the touch of anyone else and the smell of others, specifically women, was repulsive to him. If it hadn't been necessary for his sanity and survival, he would have forgone the act of feeding altogether. As it was, he wasn't feeding as often as he should. He also hadn't lain with a woman since the day he'd met her. Feeding from them was bad enough but at least he didn't have to touch them much, the thought of feeling their flesh against his made his stomach turn.