When I remembered every sordid detail, a blush heated my cheeks. “Why didn’t you take care of yourself?”
He shook his head. “Wouldn’t have been right.”
I set the cup down on the nightstand. “I’m sorry.”
He jerked his neck back. “For what?”
“All that ugly stuff I said to you. Hitting you. I didn’t mean it.”
“Cast your fears aside. I know that wasn’t you talking.”
“Can you open the drapes? Not all the way—my eyes are sensitive.”
Christian stood up and squinted when he pulled back the drapes. A stream of light spilled across the bed, and I reached out to draw healing light through my fingertips.
When the wound on my arm sealed, I touched my eye to make sure the swelling was gone. “Why didn’t you give me your blood last night?”
He closed the drapes and returned to the bed. “Had I done that, I wouldn’t have been able to control you. Not in that condition. You would have forced yourself on me.”
“Would that have been so bad?”
He gave my hand a light squeeze.
I thought back to being chained up in that room. My God, I’d come so close to cheating on Christian. How could he ever trust me again? I covered my face with my hands. “How did you know to come get me?”
“Claude. I tried to get there as fast as I could. He wedged something in the back door so I could get in.”
I lowered my arms. “You shouldn’t have come for me. It was risky.”
“Are you out of your fecking mind? Do you really think that flimsy note on the door would have kept anyone out of that room? I’m sure Chitahs two blocks away could scent your arousal, and a Sensor could easily touch the door and feel your emotions from the other side. I came for you so you wouldn’t have to suffer the guilt of taking another.”
I averted my gaze. “I almost did.”
“Not by choice.”
I glared at him. “Iwantedhim to do things to me. I don’t think I would have stopped him.”
Christian scratched his cheek and then stroked his chin. “Sensory magic isn’t just a novelty. Maybe that’s all you’ve seen, but it can be weaponized and completely inhibit your ability to make rational decisions. When it’s powerful enough, you can’t fight it. How did it happen?”
I reached for my coffee. “Someone spiked my drink.”
“Are you daft? That wasn’t a spike. Those wear off in a couple of hours. Yours raged on through the night. Whatever you drank was in its purest form, and not many Sensors are powerful enough to do it. Someone infused a shite-ton of magic into your drink. That takes either skill or money.”
“Money?”
“Aye. People buy bottles of it on the black market. Whoever did that to you is on my hit list for life.”
I sipped my coffee. “So you’re not mad? Don’t lie to me now and tell me it’s nothing if you’re going to hold it against me in the future.”
He took the cup away and leaned over me to set it on the nightstand. Instead of sitting up, he rested on top of me, his face an inch away from mine. “You’re not to blame. Do you understand me? I’ll not have you doubting me on this one. That’s why I didn’t touch you last night. It wouldn’t have been right. No matter how I feel about you, Raven, I’ll never take advantage when you’re under the influence of magic.” His voice softened. “That’s not to say you didn’t drive me mad with desire. How’s your fanny this morning?”
“Traumatized.”
He kissed me softly on the mouth. “Another time.”
“What were you going to say to me last night in the shower?”
His gaze lowered as he searched his memory. “I thought about charming you into submissive behavior. Then you’d be easier to control. But I vowed to never use my powers on you.”
