Allegiance (Causal Enchantment #3)(45)
“What was your nightmare about?”
And I was tumbling downwards, anxiety slamming me against the hard, cold, uncaring ground of reality. My voice caught as I whispered one name, a name that left a bitter taste on my tongue. “Veronique.” It was the truth and yet a blatant lie. Another lie …
Caden slid his arm around to my opposite hip and pulled me close to him, welcoming my forehead against the ridges of his chest. He rested his cheek affectionately against the top of my head. “I’m sure she’s fine. There’s no reason they’re doing anything to hurt her. She’s too valuable,” Caden promised in a low whisper, his hand running through the length of my hair, stroking it gently.
You’re so wrong, Caden. Tears seared my eyes. I swallowed a sob. “I hope not.” Another lie to Caden. Two major lies in one night and I had sworn I could never tell him one.
I want to forget everything. Make me forget everything, for just a little while. My hand expanded, fingers stretched out across his chest, raking his muscles, skimming down along the ripples, wandering over his chest, his biceps, his stomach, his belt …
“I should go,” Caden whispered, grabbing my hand, his body growing rigid. A snake of tension constricted inside me. Reluctantly, I pulled away, rubbing residual tears away with the back of my hand. He moved to stand up.
“Wait!” My hand flew to his leg, grasping his outer thigh. I tempered my voice, asking more tentatively, “Can’t you stay a little while longer? Please?”
“Bishop’s all alone.” As if that explained everything, he was on his feet.
I swallowed my fear, forcing the next question out. “Is that why? Does it have anything to do with … before?” With Julian?
He towered over me like an angel, his tall, muscular body more appealing to me than ever before. I didn’t know why. Maybe because I was losing him … “Yeah. A little bit,” he admitted. The snake squeezed tighter, threatening to crush my vital organs, to end me. A single tear escaped, rolling down my cheek. I smeared it away with the back of my hand, not wanting him to see me cry.
Too late. The muscles in his neck tensed as he swallowed. He looked away, focused on the window. “It’s not right or fair that it bothers me, but it does. I can’t help feeling like you’ve betrayed me, even though I have no right. I’ll get over it but … it will take some time.”
“How long?” I asked. Inside, I was dissolving in misery.
“Evangeline.” His voice cracked, full of desperation. After a long pause, he shrugged. His voice turned hard and cold. “We have bigger issues to deal with right now.”
Bowing my head, I sank into the bed, clenching until my nails dug into my palms. I recognized practical Caden, the guy who’d kept me at arm’s length back on Ratheus. I thought I’d chased him away for good, but he was back again. He was assembling his own wall. A brick wall, not as agonizing as my barbed wire fence of lies, but still substantial. I wanted to scream at it, to tear it down, throw the pieces away, smash them, burn them. Instead, I nodded.
“Everything will be fine with us. I just need some time.” Time. Something we didn’t have. Leaning down, his cool lips first grazed my forehead and then planted a lingering kiss on it. “Get some sleep. I’ll see you in the morning.” With that, he vanished into the night, leaving me alone with my crumbling sanity.
When Max ventured in, the tears were still falling.
***
I woke up empty, drained. Luckily, I hadn’t endured another round of Veronique’s physical torture. Now, it was only my own mental torment that loitered. I wondered which was worse. Max was gone again. Likely out hunting. He had spent hours silently mopping up my tears with his snout. As much as I appreciated him, I appreciated the time alone.
Heaving myself out of bed, I showered and dressed at a sluggish pace, preparing myself for another day of Tribal magic surprises, of watching a good friend imprisoned and suffering, perhaps another injury, but most of all, another round of gut-wrenching distance between Caden and me.
Springy blond curls and a brilliant smile ambushed me the second I stepped out into the silent, empty hallway. “Ah!” I yelled, stumbling, my head banging against the doorframe.
“Come on!” Amelie chirped, oblivious to my shock. She grabbed hold of my good arm.
I let her drag me, my heart hammering against my rib cage. “Where?”
She shrugged vaguely. “Doesn’t matter. We’re spending the day together, remember? First, you probably need to eat.”
We found the two French cooks in the kitchen, this time with rolling pins in their hand and a round, flat pastry dough stretched out on the marble countertop. Smiling in unison, they dove back into their work.
“What do you feel like?” Amelie asked, already neck-deep into the open fridge. Before I could tell her I’d rather eat glass than food, a plate of fresh fruit and pastries materialized in front of me. Amelie’s long silver-painted fingernail tapped against the countertop. “Eat up!”
“You sound like Sofie,” I grumbled. I wasn’t hungry. The thought of food made me want to vomit, my insides twisted into so many intricate knots even Houdini couldn’t unravel. But, I knew arguing with Amelie would take too much strength. She’d pin me down and force-feed me. So I relented, picking up a slice of melon. Its sweet juices had barely touched my lips when Sofie entered. It’s like they had Evangeline radar …