“No.”
“Then just talk to me.” She slid off the bed, standing in front of me in my shirt, bare legs, looking small and soft and mine. “Vince, please. Just tell me what happened. You’re scaring me.”
Don’t keep looking at her. If I did, I’d cross the room. I’d pull her into my arms. I’d tell her I’d burn the whole dynasty down before I let anyone touch her. And Damius would drag her into that chamber.
I turned away. “Madeline,” I said, making my voice harder, colder, “go pack your things.”
“No. I’m not leaving until you tell me what’s going on.”She stepped closer.
Fuck, she was brave.
“Madeline. You need to go. Now.”
She didn’t move.
“I’m not stupid,” she whispered. Her voice shook. “Something happened. You’re not… you’re not like this unless someone threatened you. Or your brothers. Or?—”
“Stop.”
“Then tell me,” she pushed. “You can’t just walk in and?—”
“I said stop.”
Her eyes filled with tears. “You promised you wouldn’t do this to me. You promised. You literally lay in that bed this morning and told me you loved me. You said you weren’t going to switch me off.”
Knife, straight through.
I kept my jaw locked. Kept my hands at my sides when every instinct screamed to reach for her.
“I’m done. Okay? We’re done.”
She stared at me like I’d spoken a language she didn’t know.
“You don’t mean that.”
“I do.”
Her throat worked. “No, you don’t. I know you. I know when you’re lying. You’re doing that Crow thing—” she gestured toward my face with a shaking hand “—where you shut everything down and act like a stranger. I told you this scared me. You said you wouldn’t?—”
“Madeline—”
“You promised you wouldn’t switch me off,” she cried. “You promised.”
Fuck, baby. I know. I know.
“I’m not going anywhere,” she said, tears finally dropping. “I will fight for you. I will say it in every room if I have to. I will stand next to you in front of anyone and?—”
“You won’t,” I cut in. “You’re not going to stand next to me in any room.”
The panic in her eyes twisted into hurt so sharp it looked like pain.
“You think I’m just going to give up because you said a few cold lines? I’m not. I’m not walking away because you had a bad day and decided to play executioner with our relationship.”
Executioner. Yeah. That’s exactly what this was.
I stepped back, putting more distance between us. If she touched me, I was gone.
“Madeline, don’t make this harder.”
