Page 24 of Bound in Violet Ink
“Ohyes, because we are,” he replies, almost as if he finds this humorous. “Andyes, we will make that bond solid. You will then hide behindmyarmy.”
“Either you’re an idiot or naive, because a mating bond requiresconsent,” I quip, wanting to scratch his face. Then bathe my skin in his musk and bite his neck—no!My gaze flits up to the door…
“I can be persuasive,” he says with even a hint of play.
Glaring back into those eyes that confuse the shit out of me, I ask, “Why are you doing this to me?”
“Ican’t even protect you among my people, little flower,” he calmly replies, perhaps even gently. “Not unless you areboundto me, and I bound to you. But that clearly cannot happen in such a short time, and you also cannot leave this house until there’s no doubt what you are going to mean to me. You’re very familiar with court politics, which means you understand why this is a pressing matter.”
Mean to him. It suggests a sense of caring. Like a spindle turning ferociously, my mind spins the possibility of a life where heismy mate and is bound through fate to actually take care of me. Love me. Defend me. Honor me.
And as I stare down at the man that somewhere inside of me knows he’s my mate, I’m met with paralysis. He seems to have cleaned off some of the grime from the Carrows, but the wound is still fresh on his stomach. He hasn’t even been free for an entire day and is already planning on bonding with me. “How can we be mates—” I breathe out, struggling to get the remainder out. Saying it aloud shatters the foundation I’ve built my identity on.
If he’s Unseelie, and we are mates… my hand mindlessly rises to the back of my neck, the birthmark existing as long as I can remember. The answer is so obvious and brings so much understanding to my life that I cannot deny it further.
Am I… Unseelie?
Kane doesn’t move toward me, or reach out. He just stares with what feels like an invasion into my soul. “When we had our very brief encounter, I’ve never been so affected by another’s scent. Nor has someone maintained my rapt attention like you have. It didn’t take long to piece it together, but I didn’t understand how a Seelie could be fated to an Unseelie. With whatever turn of the fates, the Carrows held the answers, and I researched all I could and learned of the binding tattoos.
“I then made a request to your lady’s maid in a letter penned just for her, and she confirmed the tattoo on your neck and what it looked like—” my eyes widen, remembering when she touched it while braiding my hair and asked how long I’ve had it “—and while I don’t know the circumstances for your arrival at Silas’s court, I can easily surmise you were not taken from a Seelie home.”
The concept is painfully liberating. IknewI didn’t belong, and yet this means my identity is rooted with creatures I’ve been told to hate. “WhoamI then?” I ask, my voice trembling more than I care for.
“Your body and soul have been criminally neglected, Victoria,” he says, raising one of his hands out as if I should take it and get off the bed, the request suggesting so many simultaneous things. “Iwill be your liberator.”
I didn’t know Kane was so socially fluent. Whatever part of me craved him while alone in my tower is absolutely gluttonous with everything he just said. I swallow thickly. “You have a war at your doorsteps to navigate, Kane. Why not just lock me away until it’s done?”
He holds the hand closer, the tips of my fingers rising as if I want to throw all caution to the wind.
“I crave this connection more than I want to admit. My attention to detail will be severely impacted until you are taken care of first.”
Through unexplained understandings, IknowKane can feel me giving in. I can sense it through the way the tips of his fingers reach out further to graze mine, as if proving that his touch can be gentle. My hand slides into his while I stare him in the eyes, trying desperately to discern what’s true.
His skin against mine is foreign, yet familiar. Like a warmth I didn’t know I was missing. “I know much better than this,” I say, although I truthfully don’t care at all.
The left corner of his mouth tilts up slightly into the smallest smile. “And yet you wrote me that letter.”
“I don’t know a thing about you,” I quip, like a drowning man sucking in water before he succumbs.
“We will have plenty of time to learn.”
I grip his hand tighter, and something needy flashes in his eyes. For whatever reason, holding this much power over him fills me with a new kind of purpose. “Please just answer this truthfully—what exactly do you want from me? I am familiar with arranged partnership. I don’t mind knowing what youtrulywant from this. I’ll—”damn it all.“I’ll agree to this as long as you’re honest with me. Please just give me that.”
I swear there’s a low grumble that emanates from his chest, gripping my hand in return as he raises it up to his face, slowly running my skin along his nose to breathe me in. I’m utterly weak at the knees for such a simple gesture. “I’ve had two years to contemplate what a fated connection would mean. I admit, I grew greedy over time.” Silver eyes flash up at mine. “I want the deep bond that is promised, for your body and heart to be my reprieve. To utterly trust and love someone, and have it be returned. For that, I’ll hand you the entirety of any kingdom you desire.”
What do I say to that? The man has ensnared me since I first saw him, imprisoned by all the things my imagination could conjure. Now he’shere, holding my hand, telling me things I’ve only ever heard in dreams.
“Just don’t hurt me,” I say, even quieter.
“If we solidify the bond, you will have every leverage to break me, little flower. Hurting you would be the end of me.”
That’s the kind of bargain I can feel safe within. The more I observe him, the more it’s clear that healsoseems to be under a spell. Unlike me, he seems to embrace it. AndIwant it. I want itso badly I’m terrified of it not existing, which means I’m pushing it away so the disappointment is only minimal.
But… I’m done questioning my life.
I nod at him, and lean slightly forward to show I want down. Placing my other hand in his, he helps me onto the floor. “Did whatever you sedate me with have anything else laced in it?” I ask, feeling the heat in my cheeks. “Anything to aid in persuasion?”
His grin continues to melt me. “No, that’s the faintest existence of our bond, desperate to unite.”
