Page 29 of Dance of the Phoenix
I had so many things I wanted to say in response to that, but I was utterly depleted of energy. I’d somehow managed to stop time for much longer this time. It had been at least twenty seconds, all thanks to Ragnor’s distracting kiss, and now it took its toll.
But his words rang in my head as I recalled the look on his face when Magnus helped me up. What the hell was up with Ragnor now? Why was he so jealous all of a sudden? There was no reason for him to go all caveman mode on Magnus for daring to grab my hand. Did he really think I was interested in anyone else but him?
I opened my eyes and turned to look at the man in question. He and Magnus were chatting in quiet voices, their faces serious. I knew we were having a hard time right now when it came to trust and keepingsecrets, but I thought that at least he had enough faith in me to believe I wanted him and only him.
I’d told him I loved him, even after everything he’d done to me, for God’s sake!
I was reminded of CJ and Jada just then. Their fight back in the kitchens. How Jada felt about the looming Hecatomb and CJ’s participation, and how this thing seemed to have ruined their relationship beyond repair.
While our situations were different, I couldn’t help but think that the fate of my current state of affairs with Ragnor would not lead to a better outcome.
Perhaps the fact he considered me his, that he was crazy enough about me to get jealous, should’ve made me happy. But in the end, it only told me one thing.
Unless Ragnor knew all my secrets, he would forever doubt my loyalty.
Chapter 13
Aileen
Ragnor was actively avoiding me.
The Hecatomb was just a little over a week away. The hovering threat of it was beginning to become far more present than before, and now Ragnor was avoiding me.
Before, he had given me the excuse of his being busy, which I’d accepted, since it sounded quite plausible with everything that was going on.
Now, unless it was during training, which now consistently included Magnus as my literal punching bag, he kept himself out of my sight and even vicinity. At night, when I came back to his suite, sore and aching from training all day, he was never there and left no notes as to where he was.
It reached a point when his sheets no longer smelled like him, he’d been gone for so long.
I had no idea where he spent his nights or where he slept. Since he always seemed no worse for wear when he came to pick me up for my individual training, I assumed hewassleeping.
Just not with me.
I’d thought he was going to go all alpha male on me after getting all jealous that day with Magnus, but instead, he raised a cold wall between us, reminding me of the first few weeks of our initial acquaintance. That did not make me feel good.
If only I had a room of my own to hide in rather than the suite I shared with him. Funnily enough, after our return from the altercation with the Jinn, Ragnor and I had begun living together in his suite without even discussing it. It was as if we both saw it as a natural course of events.
Now I realized it might’ve been too early in our relationship to move in together.
It seemed I wasn’t the only one going through a rough time privately, though. CJ had been looking worse and worse with every day that passed to the point he looked as if he hadn’t had a good night’s sleep in ages.
To forget my own problems and try to help him with his, I offered to have lunch with CJ. He took me up on it but was very tight lipped during the entire meal, evading my questions.
Until I asked, “Is Jada at least coming out of her room now?”
That’s when CJ looked away and said, “Yes.”
And that was that.
Every day seemed to crawl by while the training sessions turned more and more brutal, until finally, the first week of training reached its end.
And the first day of the mixed training with the Gifted Hecatomb participants arrived.
“I’ve asked our Lord for his permission to attend the Hecatomb.”
Zoey and I stared at Isora, while our forks were halfway to our mouths. “No,” I blurted before I could stop myself.
Isora rolled her eyes. “Well, he agreed, so fuck you.”
