Page 74 of A Clash of Embers

I nodded. How could I be mad at this man? I couldn't be.

We sat on the bed, fully clothed, looking anxiously at one another. Wondering who would go first.

"I—" We both said at the same time and laughed.

He scooted closer to me and said, "I think I need to go first." He wiped his hand over his face and sighed, "I think maybe instead of telling you, I should show you. Through our bond. I can do that. I will let you into my mind, and you can see whatever you want to see."

He wanted to let me into his mind. A place he always kept guarded. I wanted to do it, but part of me didn't want to see something that would upset me.

"Clara, if we are going to be together, you need to know everything about me. No secrets, remember?" Ev said tenderly while reaching out to grasp my hand in his.

I nodded my head, and he gripped both of my hands pulling me closer as he whispered, "Close your eyes and trust me."

I did as he said and closed my eyes. I took a deep breath andtrustedhim. The bridge into his mind was immediate and the pain that radiated from him was excruciating.

"No. I won't do it. You can't make me do this," Eros said to Queen Amari.

She was frantic and concerned, "Ev, you must do this. You must capture her and bring her here. If it gets too out of hand, then you can help her escape, and she'll end up right back here."

He was running his hands through his hair, frustrated and annoyed, "Mom, I am just starting to build a relationship with her, and you want me to do this? To hurt her?"

Queen Amari reached over to brush Ev's cheek, and she cupped it in her hand, "Eros Vander, there will come a time thatyou will be able to be with her. There will be a time that she will need you and you will need her. No matter how hard you try to resist it, you are destined for one another. She will be angry with you most of the time, but the times that she isn't, she will love you.

"She will never do what you are asking of. She is the chosen child," Ev yelled at Theo.

Theo laughed, "Son, you don't understand what I am trying to tell you. This is how we get out of the curse. I have already discussed this with King William. He is aware of what will need to be done, and you will be the one to ensure that it happens. Clara must cast me out using the love in her heart. You must make sure that she does so. If she doesn't, then we die. Love is the only saving grace in this curse. Athiana doesn't know that, but I do."

Ev looked at Theo with pinched brows and a tired face, "I... I don't know if I can do that."

His father smiled and said, "You can and you will. If you love her, you must hurt her."

"Where is she? She should be back by now," Ev whispered into the empty space of my bedroom. He was looking over the garden and realized I wasn't there.

He noticed that I was no longer anywhere near the castle. Something in his heart or mind told him to find me. So, he ran and didn't stop. "Ugh. Where are you, Clara?"

Finally, he spotted me on the ground, and he shook his head in anger as I watched him slide his arms around me and lift me in his arms, holding me tightly. I had fallen asleep, and hewatched me sleep as I slept peacefully. I realized that he was the one who persuaded me to sleep. He used his power to help me. To help me clear my mind.

He laid me down on the bed and tucked me in. He sat there looking at me, tenderly. He leaned over, kissed my forehead, and whispered, "I love you, Clara."

He was fuming, sitting up in his bed, staring at the wall. He kept shaking his head and rubbing his knuckles. "Clara, don't do it. Gods, don't do it, please."

Suddenly he was up and slamming his fist against the wall. "Fuck!"

He turned his back against the wall and slid down it. Sitting on the floor, he placed his hands in his hair while taking deep breaths. He looked up at the ceiling and laughed, "I did this. I told her to stay away from me. It's my own damn fault. I need to get her back."

Ingria, he was in his home as I watched him walk down the hallway to the bedroom I used. Pushing open the door, he walked in and sat on the bed, looking up at my painting. His eyes flickered purple as he studied the painting he had created. "I'm coming to get you. Whether you want me to or not."

"There she is," he thought. I watched through his eyes as I tied up the werewolf to the ground, questioning the beast.

I watched my expression as I turned to face him. His heart was beating so fast. He was nervous. He spoke a few times, and then when he said, "Hello, Clara Bear."

My eyes flickered purple.

My mind pulled back from the bridge connecting our minds, and I blinked repeatedly, trying to take in everything I saw.

"I've always loved you, Clara. Even before you knew me. I regret what I did after the curse broke, but I wanted you to know that it was myownfault," he whispered as he slowly brushed his thumbs over the back of my hands.

"You have always beenmyqueen, my savior, the one to whom my soul belongs. I knew we would be okay when I saw your eyes flicker that day. I also knew you needed to break the inamorato marking, so I let you. You needed to know. You needed that choice."

---