Page 20 of The Rhino's Rose

“We’re more now,” I say instead, pushing the mating pull down, as I’ve done for the past five years.

“Then…stay? If you want to. No pressure. And I don’t expect you to cuddle?—”

I cut her off with a brief kiss. “I would love to stay here with you.”

“I’d love that too,” she says, wrapping her arms behind my neck and smiling up at me.

Love.The word exchanged so easily between us holds depth for me. Truth. Love is commitment, connection, fibers in a bond, all of which I have for Rose. But not everyone reveres the word love in this way. For many, it has lost its value.

Logic can wait for another day, one when Rose doesn’t want to share my bed.

“Do you like cuddling?”

The quiet laugh she makes is clearly not rooted in humor. “I honestly don’t know. My mother died when I was two; I have no memories of her. My biological father is the cold and ruthless head of a mafia family who saw me as currency, nothing more. He bartered me to another mafia don when I was a young child, and had no problem handing me over to beclaimedas a bride on my thirteenth birthday. Garion is wonderful and I’m eternally grateful he rescued me that night, but I was thirteen when he stepped in as a father. Hugs are the extent of ourphysical affection. And I already told you about my minimal romantic experience.” Her arms slide from me to the bed, and she shrugs while blinking up at me.

“Would you like to try cuddling, see if you like it?” This close to her, I see her jaw and throat move as she swallows hard before giving me a nod. “I’m new to this, too. How do you want to start? What would be most comfortable for you and your sore ankle?”

The giggle she makes now is light, as they all should be, and hits me straight in the heart. “I haven’t even thought about my ankle since you made my body release all those endorphins.”

With that testimonial, my cock roars fully to life and taps her leg. “Ignore that,” I say, when her eyes open wide.

“What if I don’t want to?” She grazes the tip with her fingers, pulling back when it jerks involuntarily from her touch. “Did I do it wrong? I don’t want to hurt it. You.”

“Your touch will never be wrong. Explore me however you want. Rhinos are very solidly built; you won’t hurt me.”

“I don’t want to tease you, either,” she says, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth. “I’ve always wanted you to be my first, but I’m not sure I’m brave enough yet to try.”

Cupping her face, I sweep my thumb across her soft cheek. “You told me you believe things happen when it’s time for them to happen. I believe in fate, too.”Tell her, the voice of the mating bond demands again. It’s time I listen. “I’ll wait for you as long as you want me to.Whether that’s five minutes, five years, or five decades. However long it takes, no matter what has to happen along the way. Because I don’t care if I’m your first. I want to be your last.”

“My last? As in—” Her lips close tight, as if she’s fighting to keep more words from escaping.

“As in, I haven’t just been physically attracted to you since the first time I saw you. It’s more than that. Not all rhinos are fortunate enough to experience a true mate bond, but it’s something we all hope for. I had no reason to leave my old home in the plains of Kenya, yet I was compelled to move halfway around the world to a mountaintop in Canada.”

“You came here to buy a business from a retiring stoneworker. That’s what you told Garion.”

“The opportunity was a catalyst; I realized that the moment I saw you. The mating pull snapped into place, deep in my soul, and I knew you were the reason I came here. But I couldn’t very well tell your gargoyle father that his nineteen-year-old human daughter was my fated mate.”

“Because you thought I was too young, I know. But why, even after years passed, and I was older, did you always—” Shaking her head, she looks away, everywhere in the darkened room except at me.

“Why did I reject your attention at every turn?” I say, stroking her hair when she returns her attention to my face. “You deserve the freedom to live anywhere in the world with a husband who can walk by your side, no matter where you want to go. To have a houseful ofbeautiful babies who look like you. A full, human life. Now that I know your history, I understand why Garion has driven that point home every chance he gets. I think he’s aware of my feelings and wanted to make sure I didn’t pursue you because I can’t give you the future you deserve.”

The softness that’s intrinsically Rose vanishes before my eyes. “How nice of you and Garion both to decide my future without once asking what I want. It’s like I’m a powerless pawn in the game of my own life all over again.” She brushes my hands away. “If I thought I could hop out of here without you intervening, I would, but since I know I’m not in control of that aspect of my life either, I’ll sleep here tonight.” Then she turns her back to me and moves to the edge of the bed, putting as much space between us as possible.

Even in the middle of winter, my bedroom has never felt so cold.

Six

ROSE

It’s a relief and a disappointment to wake up in a silent house and find a note on the bedside table. Sunlight pours through the bedroom window, and when I reach for my phone to shut off my morning alarm, I know it’s well past Cornelius’s starting time for work. His days start a lot earlier than mine. After the late night we had, he’s probably exhausted. I shouldn’t care, I don’t want to care, but I do.

I pretended not to notice when he left the bed after I rolled away from him last night. Then I tried to convince myself I didn’t care about that, either. I’ve never been good at lying, especially to myself, and the tears that flowed out of me were an almost endless stream of proof. At least I managed to keep quiet. Bad enough that he’s taken it upon himself to decide how I should feel andwhat I should want. Pity on top of that would be even worse.

Reaching for the note, my attention catches on the broom-handle walking stick I left out by the pool, now propped against the wall near the headboard. Either he’s got mad tiptoe powers, or I was sleeping like the dead, because I didn’t hear him moving around in here. Probably for the best. I’m still pissed off at him for all the assumptions he’s made about me, but all the other feelings are still there, too. Even thinking about seeing him has tears building behind my eyes. Whatever happens next between us, I don’t want it to include getting weepy in front of him. That’d just prove his point that I’m too young and sweet and blah, blah, blah.

“Ugh!” I roll onto my back, the folded paper clutched to my chest. I should leave the note unread and get on with my life. The life he thinks he shouldn’t be part of, even though he claims I’m his fated mate. Contradiction much?

Sighing, I open the paper, a lump rising in my throat as I trail my fingers over my name written in tidy cursive.

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