She crosses to the bed, standing on the opposite side from my uncle. Her eyes rake me over, taking in the empty tray of food and the way I’m able to sit up on the bed. She offers me a soft smile before turning her attention to Alex. “What was that you were saying?”
Alex shoots me a heavy look.
Cate bristles, pulling her shoulders back and schooling her face. “You don’t have to hide it. I know that my relationship with Cal could potentially damage his campaign. I told him the same thing myself.”
Alex lets out another long sigh. “Good. Then we’re agreed that the best course of action is for you to end this relationship. The sooner the better.”
Cate’s eyes narrow. “I didn’t hear either of us agree to that. I already tried to convince him, but he was kind enough to remind me that I don’t get to make his decisions for him. Just like he doesn’t get to make mine for me.”
I reach for her hand, buoyed by her defense of us, and intertwine our fingers together. Maybe there is a chance of earning her forgiveness. “I choose Cate. And as long as she continues to choose me, we will remain a couple.”
“So option B, then,” says Alex with a grimace. “You get married.”
Cate’s fingers tighten around mine, and I feel it again, the itch. It’s a little less persistent, but it’s there, buried under my skin. “Those are our options? Never see each other again or tie ourselves to one another for life?”
I would be lying if I said her reaction didn’t sting, just a bit, but I know where it’s coming from, and I understand her hesitation, even if we both know we’re already connected forever.
I turn to Alex. “Can you give us some time alone?”
Alex looks like he’s going to protest, but he sees my glare and decides otherwise. He turns on his heel and strides for the door, shutting it gently behind him on his way out.
Once he’s gone, Cate shifts the empty tray to the table and climbs into bed next to me. She doesn’t say anything, just burrows down under the covers and tucks herself into my side. I take her willingness to touch me as another good sign.
“We don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do, Cate.” I run my fingers through the long golden waves of her hair, entangling them around my fingers before releasing them to fall in a shiny curtain.
“I don’t know if I can get married, Callum.” She mumbles the words into my chest. “Not just to you but to anyone. Look what it did to them, being Bonded.” She doesn’t have to say their names.
“We are not them, Cate. There is something rotten inside Lady M that has nothing to do with her Bond to Harold. Neither of us would ever be capable of doing the things she’s done.” I press a kiss to the top of her head, letting her familiar citrus scent fill my nose and stir a sense of longing deep inside me. I hesitate before asking the question I know I need an answer to. “Have you felt the Bond lessen?”
She stiffens in my arms, pulling away ever so slightly. “I don’t know what you mean.”
I sigh, though the sense of relief that it wasn’t all in my head is short-lived. “Why are you pulling away from me? Why are you fighting this?”
“There are so many things, Callum. So many reasons for us tonot be together. This election, the strength of our Bond and what it could make us do. I’m not good for you.”
I cup her cheek in my hand, raising her face so I can look her in the eye. “I told you that I would always choose you, Cate. And I meant it. You’re not helping me by pulling away. You’re only causing both of us unnecessary pain.”
Tears spill down her cheeks. “I’m scared, Callum. Of so much.”
I wipe her tears with my thumbs. “I am too. But we can face whatever the future has in store for us, as long as we do it together. You’ve had my heart from the moment I first saw you, Lady Caterine. And I’m not taking it back. If you would rather not marry me, I understand, and it won’t change my love for you. Nothing ever could.”
She presses her lips to mine, the kiss soft and sweet, though tinged with the salt of her tears. I deepen the kiss, letting us linger in it, but make no move to take things further.
She sighs as the kiss breaks, the sound full of longing and resignation. “I’ll do it,” she says, her voice quiet. “If it will help you win, if it’s what you need, then I’ll do it. I’ll marry you.”
“I’m not going to marry you unless it’s what you want, Cate.” She starts to speak, but I press my lips to hers. “We don’t have to make any decisions tonight.”
Her eyes search mine, the golden amber darkened with worry. “I don’t want to lose you.”
I tighten my hold on her. “You won’t. Ever.”
She starts to pull away. “You should probably get some more rest.”
I keep her pressed close to me. “Stay with me?”
She smiles, but it doesn’t fully reach her eyes. “Of course.”
We settle into the comfort of the mattress and the warmth of the blankets, and together, fall into a restful sleep.
