Page 18 of Taming the Beast (Fairy Tales of New York)

“It was about time,” he said vaguely, having no intention of spilling what was left of his soul to the woman who already knew way too much about him.

Mercy looked at him quizzically. “I thought you said there was nothing to fix.”

“I reassessed.”

“Because of me?”

“Does it matter?”

“It does to me.”

“Why?”

“It just does.”

“I suppose it might have had something to do with what you said,” he said easily, as if what Mercy had said hadn’t been cataclysmic. “So thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

“You were pretty brutal, though.”

“All for a good cause.”

“You’re not intimidated by me in the slightest, are you?” he said after a beat.

She looked at him quizzically. “Should I be?”

“Many are.”

“They don’t know you like I do.”

Seb stilled at her words because what did she mean by that? Was it an insult? He couldn’t tell. Her tone was too neutral. Not that it mattered one iota what she thought of him. “No. Well. Perhaps not,” he said coolly. “But as much as it pains me to admit it, I did listen to what you said, and I decided to take your advice. So do feel free to gloat.”

Mercy’s eyes widened for a moment. “I don’t want to gloat.”

“No?”

“Why would I gloat when you’ve made Zelda so very happy?” She looked at him, her eyes shining in a way that suddenly concerned him deeply. “It may not seem like it right now, Seb, but whatever your reasons, you’ve done a good thing.”

Seb shifted in the chair and frowned. Yes. Well. Time would tell. It was a start anyway, although who knew where it was going to head. He’d been on his own for years and he was perfectly content with that, so happy families was never going to be his thing. But maybe he and Zel could get to a stage where they could at least converse without one of them stalking off. For the sake of the Foundation if nothing else.

“We’ll see,” he muttered.

“You’re not as devoid of emotion as you like to make out, are you?” she said, something in her voice, coupled with that look in her eyes, now switching his senses to high alert.

Why was she looking at him like that? he wondered, alarm beginning to wind through him. Sort of dreamily. Soppily. As if she was proud of him or something. Whatever it was, she ought to stop it. He didn’t want her admiration and he didn’t want her to be proud. He didn’t want her to be anything. Just because he’d acknowledged his many mistakes with regards to Zelda, it didn’t mean he’d changed in any other respect. He hadn’t, and he had no intention of doing so.

“Don’t make me into something I’m not, Mercedes,” he warned.

“I’m not. But you went to see Zel before too, didn’t you? When she was in rehab.”

So his sister had told them that too. Was nothing left undiscussed? He supposed not. “Yes.”

“She didn’t remember.”

“No.”

“What happened?”

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