“Can we just petulantly ignore them all night?” I asked.
A sharp laugh escaped him. “Fuck, I’m glad you’re here.”
My heart squeezed tight. His honesty was a treasure he didn’t offer everyone.
“Unfortunately, as the host I have to make a minimal effort,” he said. “And I’d rather set the rules straight with him on this rare instance where he’s in my territory.”
“Are you concerned he’ll try something?” My pulse sped a little at the thought of the danger we might face. I’d learned how unpredictable Thorin and his men could be.
“Not here,” Cillian said. “He’s dangerous, not stupid, and this conference is too public. We should get those introductions out of the way, though.”
I sucked in a sharp breath, and Cillian leaned in again. He pressed a kiss to my temple, and the public PDA, the tender affection, sent a thrill through me. I still couldn’t process the way he treated me in front of this many of his colleagues. It filled me with a helium-like buoyancy, and I craved this attention.
“I won’t let him touch you,” Cillian promised. “With me, you’ll always be safe.”
The deepness of his voice, the gravity there, cemented the promise deep in my soul. I’d always been wary before, cautious, but somehow I believed him. “Okay. I trust you.”
Together, we strode across the ballroom in the direction of Thorin and Olivia. While we walked by the throngs of people, many stopped Cillian to offer a quick greeting, but he was an expert at staying on task. And his hand never left my lower back as he guided us forward. Tension crackled in the air the closer we got. This was the man who’d orchestrated deaths in Cillian’s family, yet he still had to face him here. The reality made my gut sizzle.
Thorin’s gaze traveled from Cillian to me, and a bone-chilling fear swept through me, yet I continued forward. I wouldn’t abandon Cillian in this now.
We arrived in front of Thorin and Olivia, and the thickness of the tension couldn’t be cleaved through with an ax.
“Well, you arrived,” Cillian said, not bothering to mince words. “Keep your distance and respect this space, and we won’t have a problem.”
He stepped back, as if we were going to escape, but then Thorin spoke.
“Wait, Cillian. We’ve got something to discuss.”
Chapter 23
Cillian turned into a statue at Thorin’s request, and I hated seeing him like this. As if my Beast was muzzled when he wanted to tear this man limb from limb.
Truth be told, I’d understand if he did.
Bloodthirstiness had never raged inside me like this before, but Thorin reminded me of every loathsome asshole I’d dealt with my entire life.
“What do you want?” Cillian snarled, his grasp on civility at its limits.
“You know what we want,” Olivia said cryptically, a smug look on her lips I itched to punch off.
“Your time is running out,” Thorin said, darkness simmering in his eyes.
Cillian’s shoulders stiffened.
“Your attempt here won’t work,” Olivia said, casting an ugly stare in my direction. I restrained the urge to stomp on her foot. “The wheels are in motion, and they can’t be stopped.”
What was she referring to? I watched Cillian carefully, the hateful look in his eyes as he stared the pair of them down. How he could possibly be using me, I didn’t know. After all, if he’d wanted to, I could have been cast away to the Pits, but instead he’d given me a position by his side. He’d offered me a community when I hadn’t experienced that before. He’d offered safety and bliss and kindness.
“You’re stating things I’m well aware of,” he commented, and his hand slipped around my hip, drawing me to his side. “And Beau isn’t an attempt. Leave him out of this.”
The fierceness in his tone swept through me, expunging any doubts I had. Even though he held his secrets, I trusted him in a way I hadn’t with many before.
“Tick tock,” Thorin said. The cruel twist of his lips seared into me, and I hated how Cillian’s muscles tightened, as if the man had something over him. As if the man could exterminate his life in the same manner he’d done with Cillian’s parents. The idea of that—my soul chilled at the mere thought.
“Come on, Beau,” Cillian said, guiding me away from them. “Let’s go speak to people worthwhile.”
I’d spent enough time by his side to notice when Cillian brimmed with that wild nature he often kept back, and Thorin brought it out effortlessly. However, he didn’t have to face this alone.
