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“He is a man who made the right promises and offered the highest price to obtain me. That is not a betrothed; that is a merchant, and I am simply his merchandise.”
“I am not changing for you. I am changing to preserve my dignity. You were simply the vessel that was used to help me see that.” “Whatever you need to tell yourself, Princess,” I said as I looked over my shoulder and winked at her. I saw her reach for a hairbrush and pull her arm back to throw it. I quickly stepped out and heard a thunk against the door only made me want to laugh more.
“He is the type of man who is always just on the edge of violence. Instead of trying to avoid it, he is eagerly waiting for an opportunity to partake in a fight, but only when he knows he has the upper hand.”
Allete was a girl on the verge of becoming an incredible woman, and if she married Cathal, he would tear her down, piece by beautiful piece. By the gods, I was not about to let that happen. Even if she were not meant to be mine, I could not let a woman be wed to that poor excuse for a man.
Yes, she was perfect for Clan Hakon. She was perfect for me.
While staring out at the bright flowers and rich foliage, I contemplated all the ways I could kill myself in the garden as I stood next to Cathal.
This place had always been a sight that inspired joy and happiness, but all I could think about was whether we had any plants containing deadly thorns. That was something I needed to speak to the gardener about. Surely, having a supply of deadly plants on hand would be quite useful. Not only for the poisoning of a high-ranking dignitary, but, perhaps more importantly, for use by forlorn princesses who need to put themselves out of their misery.
I was beginning to believe that perhaps he had not killed his wives after all. Maybe they had taken their own lives.
“Morning will be my favorite time of day because one day I will have a woman to wake up beside me to share the sunrise. I picture her in my mind, as I open my eyes to see her form lying beside me, her hair all a mess as the morning light streams across her face and down her body. I will run my fingertips across her cheek, down to her full lips, feeling the silky skin that is mine alone. The warmth of our bodies will keep me in bed too long, but I will not care because as long as she is beside me every morning, I can face anything.”
“Thank you, Torben, for caring for me,” I said after several heartbeats of silence. “It is not a hardship, Allete.” His eyes burned with an intensity that held me in place. I didn’t want to move for fear that he would look away. For some reason, that was the last thing I wanted him to do. “Actually, caring for another person is always a hardship. It is in our nature to care for ourselves first,” I told him. “Sometimes, yes. But then, sometimes, we come across a person who means more to us than ourselves. Sometimes we do anything for that person. Then there is no hardship.”
At some point, between the moment I first laid eyes on her and the moment we now shared, the moment where she sat staring at me with such need, I had realized that my life would never be complete without her.
“I will do whatever it takes to prove to you that your destiny is just that—yours. You are the master of your own life. There will be bumps and detours along the way, but at every turn, there will be a choice. Do not let yourself become a victim of your circumstances. You are too special for that fate.”
Whether the heavens collapse and the mountains descend into the depths. Whether the gods curse all humans and wipe us out. Whether the great abyss and Hades himself takes over the world of the living. For as long as you want me, I won’t leave you.”
I had a feeling Allete and I would be constantly intervening where those two were concerned. Brant was like rolling thunder, and Dayna was a bolt of lightning. Put them together, and you’ve got the makings of a volatile storm.
When the door was finally closed and the rest of the world was nowhere in sight, I shed the pretense that she was simply my charge. With that door closed, we were now back on equal ground. She was my mate, my bride, and I was her warrior.
Home. That was the one word that always puts a smile on any warrior’s face. But home had a whole different meaning to me now. Home was simply wherever Allete was.
