Page 158 of Wolf Caged
A stone?
What was so important about a stone?
I looked back at him to ask that, but he was already gone.
I devoured my breakfast, trying not to think about what Kaeleron had said about meat, and then bathed and dressed as quickly as I could manage, but I was tired, my head a little foggy and my movements sluggish. Kaeleron had been surprised to find me awake. I pondered that as I splashed water on my face and debated the merits of drinking another cup of tea. Had he done something to me last night to help me sleep?
“I should have asked him to put me to sleep before I threw myself at him.” But I had asked him if magic could help me, andhe had denied it, and I knew in my heart being put under by a spell wouldn’t have solved anything. I would have woken up in a worse condition than I had been in before I had been put to sleep, and I didn’t want to think about how out of control I could possibly get.
I might not regret Kaeleron being with me, helping me through the frenzy, but I certainly would regret sleeping with some random male.
Or worse, with several random males.
Maybe Kaeleron was doing me a favour by keeping me so close whenever the heat struck me, by shutting me away in that cabin so far from anyone else and refusing to bring me a male to scratch my deepest carnal needs.
And maybe he would come good on his offer to give me what I really craved when the heat hit me next time.
I knew there would be a next time.
The pleasure he gave me was intense, satisfying, and broke my heat eventually, but it wasn’t enough to make it go away permanently. Sooner or later, he was going to have to either find me a male or step up to the plate.
Something told me he would step up to the plate and slaughter any male who even looked at me when I was wild with a need for a male.
I had the sneaking suspicion Kaeleron was a possessive kind of male, and that was the reason he had taken me to that cottage, away from any eligible males.
He wanted to keep me to himself.
And by the gods, some part of me liked that.
“Nope. Nope. Not good.” I shut down the warmth that stirred inside me over possessive Kaeleron, denying it before it got out of hand.
I didn’t need someone to fall in love with. Didn’t want to find myself in that position again, vulnerable and in danger of abroken heart. I knew the perils of love now, and I was going to steer well clear of it. Scratching biological itches was fine. The other thing was a huge no go.
“I’ll help him out with this vengeance of his, repay my debt and then it’s back to my pack.” Why did the thought of returning home to Canada fill me with a heavy feeling rather than one of joy?
I didn’t want to contemplate that either. I needed a distraction, and Kaeleron had given me the perfect one. Research!
It was hardly a chore to leave my room and head to the library, a place that was rapidly becoming my favourite one inside the castle. I followed the maze of black-walled corridors and stairs up into the western wing of the castle, where it was wonderfully quiet and no one ever bothered me, determined to find as many mentions of this An’sidwain as I could before dinner.
I glanced at the windows to my left.
Which didn’t look like it was far off.
But I had only just had breakfast.
I paused and peered out of the windows at the city and the darkening sky. The hour was definitely growing late. I hadn’t really paid attention to how long I had been sitting outside the cottage, trying not to think about Kaeleron. Hours must have passed. And Kaeleron must have summoned me a very late breakfast once I had revealed I was starving.
Fine, I would find at least one mention of An’sidwain before dinner.
I pushed the heavy library door open and pulled up short on the threshold at the sight of an enormous black-haired male taking up my favourite chair in front of the fire.
He lifted his onyx gaze from his book, looking as startled to see me as I was to see him.
“Um… hello,” I said and shuffled into the room, keeping my distance from him as I catalogued as much about him as I could, trying to figure out who he was and how I had never met him before.
Not an unseelie.
The black horns that curled from behind his pointed ears, decorated with gold tips inscribed with fae markings were a dead giveaway that he wasn’t one of that breed.
