Page 294 of Blood & Betrayals

I climb out of bed, the pattern of my nights getting so scarily familiar that I move on muscle memory. I unlock my phone, and the post flashes up. It’s a basic engagement photo. My hand is in Connor’s and the ring is displayed in thatI’m newly engaged and insufferablekind of way. I can see the notification in the top corner, and I sit on the couch before opening it.

Why is my heart beating so fast?

Why am I trying to justify this? I agreed to marry the man that I love.

There’s a pause before he replies, and I can see him typing and then not, then typing again.

I exhale. I expected hostility, but his questions are a little too probing.

He starts typing and stops again. I wait for a whole minute before I message him again.

I can feel his sadness, and I’m a little disarmed by the fact he’s not yelling at me. So, I decide the best course of action is to change the subject to something that might cheer him up.

I glance at the closed bedroom door before calling the stranger.

“Little fae,” he says, his unglamoured voice again sending a shiver down my spine.

“Stranger,” I say, shifting against the couch.

“You must be ecstatic,” he says, his tone sharp.

“What’s wrong?” I ask, but I immediately regret it. What a stupid question.

I hear him shift in his chair. It sounds like expensive leather. “Why do you ask that?”

“I can hear it in your voice.”

He sighs, releasing so much pent-up frustration that it sounds almost soothing. “Just a long day,” he says. Maybe he is okay with the engagement. Is it possible he’s over his little crush on me and wants to just be friends? The thought makes me bristle a little, but I push it away, focusing on him.

“Is it about that female you like?” Oh, gods. Why did I ask that? Why am I poking the bear?

“Little fae.” The tension crackles down the line between us. “I cannot talk about her without crossing boundaries, and we both know why that is.”

Did he just confirm that it is me? Fuck, I don’t know anymore. I sigh and pull my knees to my chest. “Tell me about it? Your day.”

“You want to hear about my long day?”

I exhale. This tension between us is unbearable, and I can feel every knot of it. “More than anything.”

I hear the clink of crystal and imagine a carafe filled with the most expensive scotch. He takes a drink before he begins. “It started fine, then turned into an absolute fucking wreck.” The way he growls a little on the curse word makes my fingers tighten on the phone. “I had several meetings. Everyone is just fucking incompetent.”

I lift my eyebrows, mentally filing that information away, and I decide to push my luck. “Meetings? What do you do?”

He tsks, but I hear a smile appear in his voice. “Nice try, little fae. You know I can’t tell you that.”

I huff. “Not even a clue? Must be a pretty shit job if you have meetings on a Saturday.”

“No clues. And yes, my job is twenty-four-seven, most weeks anyway.”

“Fine.” I pout, even though he can’t see me.

“Brat.” He laughs darkly, and my toes curl. Fuck. He needs to stop calling me that.

“I–I’m glad you’re not talking to me differently,” I whisper.

There is a long silence, and I can hear him take another sip of his drink. When he replies, his voice is tight again. “What do you mean?”

“Well, my trainer at the gym treated me differently when he noticed the engagement ring.”

---