Page 246 of Tempest of Wrath and Vengeance

Training clothes.

She hadn’t bothered with the socks or boots, and she’d left her hair down to dry around her shoulders.

This whole thing suddenly felt awkward. One would think she’d learned how to navigate this after Theon. It had been awkward with him too. Again, the same, but different, and it was all so fucking confusing. Because she was drawn to Luka in ways she couldn’t explain, but wasn’t she drawn to Theon in the same way, but different?

The same, but different.

None of it made any sense, and trying to figure it all out was driving her mad. Because her visions were showing her one thing, and her feelings were leading her down another path, and what was she supposed to do with any of it?

“Tessa, stop,” came a soft command, and she stilled at his voice.

Her hands were in her wet hair, and at some point she’d started pacing. Her power was flaring too, the bands on her wrists lighting up the space.

“How long are we staying here?” she asked, looking up at a large onyx frame. There was nothing in it. It was like he’d framed a section of the wall.

The sound of the chopping paused for the briefest of moments, but she felt something akin to…disappointment down the bond. Which was odd. She turned to watch him, his attention focused on the ingredients on the counter.

“For a while,” he answered tightly. “I was finally given information. I’ll explain while you eat.”

“Eat what?”

“Food,” he drawled, swiping up a bowl before making his way towards her. He stopped by one of the sofas, while she stayed planted by the wall. Luka sighed, setting down the bowl on an end table. “Out with it.”

“Out with what?” she asked.

“What is causing this spike of uncertainty and confusion down the bond.”

“It’s nothing.”

“Tessa.”

The way he said her name told her exactly how much he believed that statement.

“Who were you talking to?” she asked instead.

But he shook his head, crossing his arms. “You already know the answer to that. We’ll talk about it after we sort out whatever this is.”

“What do you want me to say?”

He huffed in annoyance. “I want you to tell me whatever it is you’re thinking about.”

“You can hear my thoughts.”

“Only the ones you want us to,” he countered. “Just say it.”

“I don’t know what to say,” she snapped, sufficiently irritated. “I don’t know what to do in this situation. When I’ve fucked around in the past, I was gone as soon as it was over. It never mattered. Not until?—”

She snapped her mouth shut, pressing her lips into a thin line.

“Not until Theon,” he finished for her.

“Yes. Not until him. And we’re so fucked up ourselves that was a whole other thing to unpack and deal with.”

“Did you? Deal with it?” he prodded.

“What do you think?” she drawled.

“That you use sex as avoidance, and when it was more than that, you didn’t knowhowto deal with it. When feelings were attached, you couldn’t use your usual avoidance methods,” he answered.

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