I shook my head, not sure what had just happened. My brain must’ve broken. Morton was right—maybe I was training too much and it was getting in my head.
“Of course he’s giving me water. Let’s just keep cleaning the library, okay?”
Morton peered at me over the shelf with suspicion in his eyes, and I spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning until I was so tired I couldn’t summon a single thought, especially not about a certain bodyguard who’d been occupying far too much of my mind lately.
CHAPTER 18
Niamh
Iwalked through the town of Fairwitch Isle with Wolfe by my side, shivering as a gust of wind blew past us. I was always cold here, no matter how many layers I wore. I glanced down at my fingers to see the tips turning blue and tugged at my worn sleeves, hoping Wolfe wouldn’t notice. I didn’t need him to see my fingers and worry that something else was wrong with me, to give him another reason to not train me. He’d already been so hard to convince, and I was out of stories to tell should he decide not to.
It had been a few weeks since the day in the library I’d accidentally had a fantasy about him, and I’d almost immediately decided that instead of avoiding Wolfe, I would be an adult and get past that intrusive thought.
I was thirty-five years old, and I had needs. Needs that hadn’t been satisfied in a long time. It was only natural I’d have thoughts like that, although I wished I’d had them about my betrothed and not his unhinged brother. But the feelings for Cillian would come. I’d had dinner with him almost every night, and I really loved getting toknow him so far. We were becoming friends, which was a great foundation for a relationship.
“You haven’t said a word in a full minute,” Wolfe said. “That’s a new record.”
My head snapped in his direction, and I glared at him, secretly happy about his comment because it reminded me of why that intrusive thought would never, ever happen. Wolfe wasn’t capable of that kind of passion and tenderness and care. He was a stone wall that I had yet to break, and I wasn’t even sure I wanted to.
“Have you ever been in a relationship?” The question popped out of my mouth before I could stop it. Why? Why did I just ask him that? It was such a personal question. Far too personal.
He surprised me when he said, “Yes. Not for a long time, but yes.”
I wasn’t expecting that. I couldn’t imagine Wolfe in a relationship with anyone, but now I had about a million follow-up questions. “What happened? How did it start? How did it end? Are you still friends?”
He rubbed his temples like I was giving him a headache. “It’s just been the one, and... we met in school.”
“School?” I asked. “Okay, so let me guess.” I tapped my chin as we passed a statue of one of the lesser demi godwitches. From the flowers they were holding, I imagined they must’ve been related to earth, maybe a garden godwitch or something? Passersby stopped, dropping little petals around their feet as an offering. “You were partners on an assignment, and even though you’d never opened up to anyone in the past, the long nights working together in the library, studying with heads bent close, finally cracked that hard shell of yours.”
He snorted, lips twitching, which was starting to become one of my favorite things to witness. “You read too many romance novels.”
I quirked a brow. “I was stuck in a tower for three years. I read all kinds of novels, all the time. What else was I to do?”
“Uh-huh, and the majority of them were romance. You just seem like the kind of person who believes in happily ever after, in true love and all that.”
He definitely wasn’t wrong, and it irked me that he already knew that about me.
“Who wouldn’t want to believe in that?” I argued. “Who wouldn’t enjoy a good romance book where the heroine meets a man, or another woman, who grovels for her, who shows her how much she’s loved and deserved? You wouldn’t enjoy that?”
He huffed, not answering my question. “It was in guard academy, in case you were wondering. We bonded over our love of battle strategy and fighting. We trained together often.”
So that was the type of woman he went for. Strong, a warrior like him. The opposite of me.
“Wait a minute.” My eyes bugged out. “Guard school as in the royal guard?” I asked. “You were part of the royal guard?”
No answer.
“How long were you together?” I asked with a laugh. Wolfe looked so positively grumpy it made me giddy.
“Seven years,” he said gravely.
“Seven years?” I shrieked, unable to believe Wolfe had been in an actual relationship, let alone for so long. A few people jumped nearby. “What happened after seven years?”
“Nothing,” he snapped, the grumpiness turning to anger in a flash, his cheeks red, fists clenched.
I’d overstepped, and now I felt bad.
He glanced at me, some of those sharp edges softening. “It just wasn’t right. Harriet is happily married now, and we’re friends. I’m happy for her.”
