Page 91 of Perfect Sin

Impact

Sin

I slipout of bed early Monday morning and head out for a run. The rumors didn’t stop spreading just because Raven wasn’t at school for most of last week. If anything it made them increase. She has no idea what she’s going to be walking into, and I’ll need all of my control to keep the vultures at bay. I can’t let myself fly off the handle like I did last week.

Raven has only been home a couple days, but part of me thinks she still hasn’t come back to me completely. She’s struggling, and I don’t think this is a battle I can fight with my fists. I know what it’s like to live with trauma, and I hate seeing her suffer this way.

Lucien is sitting at the table with his morning coffee when I return. “Is she up yet?” I ask him.

“No.” He’s quiet, even for him. He stares into his coffee for a while before he looks at me. “She’s not handling things well, is she?”

“Can you blame her?”

“Not really,” he sighs. “It’s going to get worse though. How is she going to hold up to that?”

“She’s got us, and if that’s not enough, we’ll figure something else out,” I say, and pull out a chair to join him.

The soft padding of her footsteps sounds down the hallway. She leans against the wall at the end of the hall and studies us. Her hair falls wild around her, with the blue ends brushing against her hips.

I cringe, trying to figure out how much she overheard. I know I wouldn’t like it if they were discussing me behind my back.

“Good morning, princess,” I greet her cautiously.

“Looks like the two of you are having a heavy conversation.” She chews on her lip. “Anything either of you care to say to me?”

“We’re just worried about you,” I tell her.

She nods. “Thank you,” she whispers, then clears her throat. “I’m fine, though, just tired. I can’t seem to get enough sleep.”

“Princess.” I hurry to her and wrap her in my arms. She’s so small against me. “Tell me what you need.”

“I just want to get today over with.”

“Come shower with me,” I say, pulling her towards our room.

“We don’t have a lot of time,” Lucien shouts after us. “And for the love of god, crank up some music so I don’t have to hear you two fucking this early in the morning. I’d like to have an appetite today.”

“Think if we’re loud enough he’ll start looking for his own place?” I tease her.

She starts to back away from me. “No, I wasn’t kidding earlier, I’m really tired.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll do all the work.”

She rolls her eyes. “I’ll still end up boneless and unable to move.”

I smirk. “Just the way I want to keep you.”

“I’m going to have to make a doctor’s appointment,” she mumbles.

Not exactly the direction I saw her thoughts heading. “Why?”

“Because I’m not sure regular birth control can keep up with your sex drive.”

My heart stops beating for a minute. I’d been thinking about her mood swings and exhaustion in terms of her dealing with everything we’ve been through lately, but what if there was another reason for it?

The idea should scare me. Sure, I want her to have my children, but the idea is still just that, an idea. Starting a family with her is something I want, down the road when violence and bloodshed are miles behind us.

“You take your pill every day, right?” Why have I never asked her this? I have been content to let her manage such an important thing on her own without giving it a second thought. Not that I don’t trust her, but I should contribute in some way, even if only to remind her if that’s what she needs.

---