Page 115 of Enchanted Kisses
A loud crash drowned my words and drew his attention. In the corner, the tall mirror lay shattered in pieces on the floor. Bianca stood near it, clutching a bloody hand and moaning.
Caiden rushed to her, pulled off his shirt, and wrapped it around her hand.
I gasped in disbelief over the lengths she would go to get rid of me to get him.
Damnher.
Caiden helped Bianca to the bed and instructed me to get Raysa and Laken.
I wavered, the invisible string between us already stretching to a painful degree. How could I leave the room knowing what would happen the moment I was gone?
“Lily, please,” he said, examining Bianca’s hand.
I reminded myself of what I’d agreed to—Caiden’s safe return. And what it cost me—his love. It had to be enough that he was alive and home. I had to be strong and go through with it, or else Bianca would return him to the Realm of Death. Raysa had told me she would leave him to rot in the dungeon before letting him be with anyone but her.
Trembling, I commanded my legs to move. Each step that took me from Caiden felt like a stab to my heart. Anguish filled my chest, making it hard for me to breathe. I stopped on the second-floor staircase, unable to remember walking this far, and fell against the wall, sniffling and crying. “What have I done?”
I shook my head, refusing to accept Caiden’s fate—the fate I had arranged for him. There had to be another way, something else Bianca wanted more than Caiden. I couldn’t let her manipulate his mind. It wasn’t fair. I felt like I’d made a deal with the devil. As if I were no better than Dagan. If Caiden chose not to love me, I’d accept it. But I couldn’t rob him of the choice.
“Raysa,” I yelled, turning back. I bolted up the stairs and called for her again. “We can’t do this. It’s wrong.” She would hear me. She would get there first and intervene. It wasn’t too late.
I rounded the third-floor landing and pushed my legs to go faster. They felt slow and clumsy. The hallway seemed longer. Sweat beaded across my forehead and under my nose.
Faster.Must run faster.
Nearly to the room, I decided I would attack Bianca if I had to—anything to stop her. I smacked into a closed door and rattled the handle.Locked. I kicked the wooden frame, screaming Caiden’s name.
Raysa appeared in the hallway. At the same time, the door opened.
Caiden, radiant and glowing, gazed from Raysa to me. A look of surprise and maybe annoyance shaped his beautiful features.
“No, no, no,” I cried.I stumbled back into the wall and slid to the floor. The action seemed in slow motion. My stomach dropped and my breath caught as if the wind had been knocked out of me. The only sound was the pounding of my heart, echoing in my ears. When I was able to breathe, I broke into sobs.
Raysa crouched beside me, wrapped me in her arms, and cried with me. “I’m so sorry,” she mumbled and rocked us back and forth.
“Is she all right?” Caiden asked, speaking only to Raysa. His eyes didn’t flicker to me once.
At his bewildered expression, I clutched my chest. The string from my heart to his—still pulling me to him—shattered my heart with each tug.
Bianca appeared at Caiden’s side, a winning smirk on her red lips. Her hair was rumpled, the top half of her shirt unbuttoned. “What is all the commotion?”
Caiden’s gaze shifted to her, and his arm slid around her tiny waist. He smiled and kissed her lips. “Everything is fine, my princess.”
My princess. Pain burned my chest as if my lungs and heart had turned to ice.
Bianca pressed her body into Caiden and nipped at his neck.
He smiled in response and hooked his other arm around her, clasping his hands behind her back. “Mmm.” He tilted his head into her hair. “You smell lovely…like coconut.”
“Please, get me out of here,” I begged Raysa. I clung to her, unable to stand by myself.
She pulled me to my feet, the scent of strawberries filling the air.
Before we disappeared, I looked at Caiden. By some miracle, his eyes connected with mine. His once-loving gaze was empty, holding nothing more than confusion and something that might have been pity.
When he turned to Bianca, his eyes shimmered the way they used to when he looked at me. He ran his fingers through her silky locks and leaned into her lips.
I squeezed my eyes closed.No more. No more. I never wanted to return here.
