“I forgave you the instant I woke up in that interrogation room.”
Another tear raked down my cheek. “I should’ve done the same, and for that, I’ll always be sorry.” A shuddering breath escaped me. “C-Can I be selfish even though I don’t deserve it? Deserve you?”
He chuckled, shaking his head. “You deserve me as much as I deserve you, so if that’s your fucked up way of telling me I don’t, then I suppose?—”
“Then will you stay?” The confession rang through the dark room, the only source of light in front of me,holdingme. “Not… Not just for the night either.”
“But for as long as you wish to have me?” he asked softly. “Oh, Oren Valens, I would stay with you forever if you’d just give me the chance to caress your heart and mend the fractures in your essence.”
“Promise? No… no more waking up alone? No more discarding me, because Ican’tlive without you anymore, Thorne.”
With his fingers still wrapped around my wrist, he brought my hand to rest against his chest, right over his heart. “I promise, with all I am and will ever be, that I willneverleave you again. Not until I take my last breath on this earth, and even then, I vow to find you in the next life so I have the privilege of doing it all over again.”
The first truly genuine smile lit my face since before my mother died. “I vow it too.”
His expression ignited to match mine, the smile lines I thought I’d caught in the past shifting into something else entirely—dimples. “Good,” he whispered. “Because there is no one else I wish to have by my side.”
“Me either,” I whispered, unable to contain the happiness I thought my father had eliminated.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
THORNE
Sunlight danced through the curtains, sweeping a golden beacon of light through the space. Beside me, Oren remained asleep, tangled up in the blanket with his head resting on my chest. His citrus, floral scent graced me, and I devoured it. Combing my fingers through his decently grown hair, I winched as my pads grazed over the large knot on his forehead. He groaned into the touch, nuzzling against me, and that frown quickly shifted into a soft smile.
It was as if the world saw him in the same manner as I did: breathtakingly beautiful in such unorthodox ways, ways I would never tire of exploring.
Even though I successfully talked him off the ledge, I knew the journey for us had only just begun. Because of my negligence, he’d landed in a position I never wished for him. One that required him to pull on the mask I’d worn for over nearly a decade, a mask I’d come to loathe almost as much as my own existence. And now? I despised it far more than I ever had, because it had already snuffed out some of his light. I knew it would only continue to do so; he had a role to play if we wanted to get out of here alive.
And while I’d played General Valens just as I always did—like a fucking incompetent fiddle—if Oren’s father found out that I’d cracked him back open, there was no telling what he would do if we failed to stop him first.
Oren stirred, his head angling between the crook of my arm, a small curl to his lips. “Think I’m dreaming cause you’re still here.”
Chuckling, I swept my fingers under his chin, pulling his face toward mine. My lips met his without hesitation, a soft, lingering kiss that I only hoped he’d carry with him for the rest of the day. “You’re not dreaming, dove. I am as real as the day is, which, speaking of. It’s nearly seven.”
He swiped his tongue over his bottom lip. “Yeah? Well, how about…” His eyes snapped open, sitting straight as the warmth from his body left mine. “Seven?”
“Yes, seven.” My jaw feathered with the admittance, knowing that my unwillingness to disturb his sleep had undoubtedly made us both late for training. “You needed the rest, and I couldn’t bring myself to?—”
“Myfatheris going to be there!” Oren clamored from the bed, haste ridden in his muscles as he put on his clothes without any type of ease. “He wanted… he wanted to see my first training session, and I’mlate. Withyou.”
Pushing myself up, I wrapped my fingers around his arm, pulling him back toward me. Clad in only my briefs, the slap of our bare skin meeting echoed through the room. “I have an idea. And you’re going to hate it.”
He craned his neck to look at me. “Thorne…”
“I was late, disobedient. You had to come and wake me up, but to make it believable, Oren...” I shook my head, my gaze meeting his dull blue irises. “You’re going to have to make it clear that you punished me for my failure. It’s the only way your father will take your word. He needs visual proof.”
He backed away, fists shaking but not from anger. “I don’t… Ican’t—I don’t want to put on the mask.” His chest rose and fell sporadically, those cerulean eyes darkening further. “I could never hurt you again.”
I grabbed his hands, sinking down to my knees in front of him. “And I believe you, Oren. But there’snothingyou can doto me that I can’t take. If we go out there together without a clear story, withoutproof,there is no telling what your father will do to test your loyalties.”
“But… but why does it have to be you?” His voice cracked, his palms lifting from mine to cradle my cheeks. “Whyis it always you? I fucked up and put myself in this position, not you. So why… why?—”
“Breathe,” I whispered, rubbing my thumbs across his fingers. “Ithasto be me because if it’s not… It’ll be Liam or Matthew. Oren, now that you’re a commander, you’re an asset. Your father is no longer interested in harming you physically, only mentally, to ensure you follow his commands. And he will useeveryonehe can against you.”
He shook his head, but the scowl etched on his face told a different story. “I can… I can think of something else that doesn’t involve?—”
“No! You can’t!” I screamed, squeezing his hands tighter. “Oren, Iknow. I fucking know.I’ve been in your shoes, and believe me, you donotwant to experience what I have at the hands of disobedience.Please.Just trust me.”
