Page 68 of Death and Desire

Violet slumped against the balustrade and hung her head in her hands. Whatever remained of her heart was shattered.

As she wept, she wished herself far from Egypt, from this cursed place. From the man who haunted her. Despite the broken bond, she cursed him, praying he somehow heard it. Heartless or not, he would know what he’d done to her.

Chapter Eighteen

Standing in the dark, staring over the moonlit garden, Violet sipped gin from a delicate glass. The pain had dulled to a persistent ache. Blame it on the liquor, but truly, she could blame no one but herself. Shame had taken root somewhere between those tense moments at Club Cairo and her hasty request for room service to deliver a cold bottle of her favorite gin.

How she’d managed to return to the hotel without a scene proved a masterful stroke of luck with a healthy dose of determination on her part.

Caught between rage and regret, Violet discovered a balance and managed to stem her tears long enough to locate Dina. Feigning illness, she begged her friend’s forgiveness before retreating from the club. Dina had offered to escort her to the hotel, but she didn’t wish to ruin her friend’s evening...as she’d ruined every other outing in Cairo thus far.

Besides, Violet craved isolation. Anything to keep from having to explain this sudden shift in her demeanor. Dina’s brow furrowed with concern. As much as she wished to bring her friend into her confidence and relay every detail of the disastrous encounter, Violet felt nothing but shame at having been tricked and betrayed—yet again—by a handsome stranger.

The cab ride to the hotel passed in a blur, and she hurried through the hotel lobby, praying she wouldn’t encounter her father or brother. Or David. There was nothing she desired more than the confines of her room and a bottle of strong liquor to numb the pain.

Armed with her second glass, Violet’s unfocused gaze skimmed the garden expanse before her. The events of the evening slowly receded, replaced by darker, carnal thoughts of stolen moments in the greenery below. Her face warmed at the memory, and while she indulged the slow unfurling of desire in the pit of her stomach, she refused to let memories linger lest she call out for him in a moment of pure desperation.

It had taken all her restraintnotto call for him when she found her prized possession gone.

He chose his path. She would do well to remember that.

Violet tensed as a familiar sensation snaked along her limbs, curling through her body like a mist over the morning sea. Warmth flooded her veins that had nothing to do with gin. The caress lingered for only a moment before fading to a whispered breath, leaving her body humming. She closed her eyes and sighed.

Violet was no longer alone.

“Why have you come?” Her voice trembled as she posed the question.

“Do you wish for me to leave?” The silken tenor held a rough edge.

She didn’t need to turn to know Anubis stood behind her. Not Khalid. There was a subtle difference in his voice when he changed forms. Khalid had the edge of an Arabic accent, while Anubis’s cadence reverberated with an ancient authority.

Violet despised how attuned she was to him inbothforms.

“I should never have come to Egypt.” The confession slipped from her lips before she could think better of it. The darkness and the liquor had loosened her inhibitions. There was no reason to lie. Not when he could read her thoughts and sense her emotions.

There were no barriers between her and Anubis. Not anymore. She saw him for what he truly was—a mythical god born of a long-forgotten civilization. A monster.

---