Page 155 of A Soul to Guide

“Why? What do you want?” His tone was curt and swift, only so he could quicken this and leave.

If she required his assistance with something, he wasn’t going to just leave her by herself. He would put up with his own dark thoughts if it meant he could help her achieve their collective goal.

“I don’t know if I gave you the impression that I’m a doormat, but I’m sorry to inform you that you’re wrong,” she said dryly. “I don’t like the way you’re treating me.”

He turned his head to the side to look at her, and found she’d folded her arms across her chest. She was tapping a foot on the ground, her eyes narrowed into a glare.

He couldn’t deny he’d been treating her coarsely.

“Noted,” he stated, confirming he heard her.

It only soured her further, and her expression deepened.

“I don’t like that you’re avoiding me, either.”

He also couldn’t deny that. Unlike his usual stance, he wouldn’t.

Her tone and aggressive posture only made his hackles rise, and his fur and quills lifted to mirror it. He’d foregone clothing the last few days to avoid the probability he’d just tear them.

“I may do what I like around my home,” he stated truthfully. “If that is to be alone, then so be it.”

With that, he stepped forward.

“Merikh!” she yelled, leaping forward.

He only had enough time to turn and raise his arm to stop her from foolishly grabbing at him.

“How many more times must you be hurt before you learn not to touch me?” he roared.

Her features flinched in fright at his sudden loudness. She backed up when he stepped forward, and her back hit the bench.

“When will you learn that the outside of me isdangerous?Every time you bleed, you are only courting your own death.”

Once her initial shock faded, her own ire rebounded.

She took a step forward and accidentally knocked her chest to his own. Her stance reminded him of one of those yappy little dogs that always barked at him in the human towns, a silly little thing riling up a monstrous bear.

“Whatever your problem is, you need to get over it,” she snapped up at him. She could be quite feisty when she wanted to be, and he found that oddly cute – especially with the way her ears had darted back in aggression. “I don’t deserve to be treated this way.”

It took a while for those words to sink in, to register. His hands opened and closed into fists, but he could feel his anger rising on the back of his neck.

The rumble that came from him was low, deep, and sinister as he lowered his head to be more level with her.

“Don’t you?” he growled, his claws digging into his palms until they had pierced the plump flesh, blood squeezing through the creases. “Because I have another opinion on the matter.”

“Excuse me?” she said in disbelief. “I’m not the one being an a-asshole! I asked you to lie down with me, and you acted like a jerk!”

“No.” He raised a hand and risked loosening a single finger to tap her cheek with a claw in averythreatening manner. Merikh usually killed and destroyed what angered or hurt him; the female was lucky this wasallhe was doing. “I denied your request, and then you became spiteful.”

Her brows twitched. “No, I didn’t.”

“I said I won’t lie down with you, and apparently, that was enough for you to reject me.”

That rejection had stung ever since.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. You’re the one who couldn’t even give me a shred of care afterwards. I asked for something as simple as a cuddle, and you stormed off because apparently, that was too much for you.” Then she muttered, “Even though you’d already done so in the cave. It just meant you didn’t want to.”

Is that what she thought? He almost wanted to laugh.

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