"Yeah," I say, my hand sliding down her spine. "It only counts as once."
She's mine now. Completely, irrevocably mine.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
ASHA
My eyes flick open with sudden alertness. Morning light filters weakly through the heavy curtains, leaving most of the room in darkness. Something woke me. I reach for Trigger, and my arm protests, its own weight almost too much exertion, but it's nothing compared to the weight on my chest when I find his side of the bed cold.
Insecurity and hurt flare inside of me. We spent the entire day in bed, exploring, charting new paths, each of us intent on leaving our mark. Yesterday meant something, and I was certain it meant something to him too, but if that were true, I don't see how he left.
I close my eyes, and that's when another sound registers. The shower is running in the bathroom. That must have been what woke me up. He didn't leave. Relief floods through me, and the way my entire body physically uncoils from the stress of believing he left, even if it was just to tend the animals, tells me there's no going back. I can't be halfway with him. There's no going back. It's all or nothing with us.
I stretch, and my body literally groans, bones popping as I arch my back, when I hear a soft knock at the door. Shit. That's probably Dar.
"Just a sec," I say as I sit up and look around the room for an article of clothing. I'm out of bed, tossing pillows aside to find something to put on, when I spot my robe on the loveseat in the sitting area. I pull it on, tying it loosely, and pad to the door.
One of Dar's maids stands in the hallway, a garment bag draped carefully over her arm.
"Buenos días," she says with a warm smile. "Mrs. Dar asked me to bring this up for Mr. Hale."
I take the bag and automatically note its weight. It's heavy. "What is it?"
"That's Mr. Hale's outfit for the fights today. Mrs. Dar had it specially tailored for him.”
My smile freezes. "Oh. Thank you," I say, giving her a curt nod. She disappears down the hallway, and I close the door slowly, my heart starting to pound.
The fights. No. No, I must have misunderstood. Maybe she meant…maybe it's just nice clothes for watching—spectator attire. My mind flicks through all the possible options, but my hands are already shaking with a knowing sense of dread.
Laying the garment bag down carefully, I send up a whispered plea. "Please let me be wrong about this."
I unzip the bag slowly, and the fabric inside catches the morning light streaming through the window. Sequins. Gold and crimson, intricate embroidery along the shoulders and down the sleeves. The unmistakable cut of a bullfighter's jacket, a traje de luces—a suit of lights.
The betrayal pierces my chest. He promised. When I finally agreed to keep my name on that contract, I only had one condition. He looked me square in the eye and promised.Nokilling bulls. He said, "Done," without hesitation, like it was nothing, like it was easy. And I believed him.
The shower is still running. He's in there, completely unaware that I know. Probably planning how to tell me—or maybe he wasn't going to tell me at all. Maybe he was just going to slip into this costume and go do the one thing I asked him not to do. This is exactly why I don't let people in. This is why I keep my walls up, because the moment you trust someone, make yourself vulnerable and believe their promises, they prove you were right to be afraid all along.
I'm biting the side of my thumb, ready to storm into the bathroom and confront him, when something else ignites beneath the heartbreak. Something cold and calculating. Something that feels like the old me, smart and strategic, someone who doesn't just react, but who plans and stays three steps ahead.
I turn from the bathroom door, every move already mapping out in my head. Last night, he uttered the words, ‘You knew what I was when you married me.’Time to remind him who he married.This was his first mistake, and I’ll be damn sure it’s going to be his only one.
CHAPTER TWENTY
TRIGGER
"Have you seen, Asha?" I try to keep my voice steady, even though I'm out of breath and panicked after walking out of the shower this morning to an empty room. When I got in the shower, Asha was still sleeping. When I walked out, all that remained was my unzipped garment bag on the bed I had left her in.
I scan the suite and nothing. She's not here either. I'm half convinced the maid got it wrong when I asked if she'd seen Asha. She told me I'd just missed her and that she requested a ride into Seville. It's the only reason I'm here and not at the airport. She's running.
"The traje de luces suits you well," Dar praises, taking too much time to admire the suit she had tailored for me to wear this weekend.
"Dar, I'm not trying to be rude, but it's important I find my wife," I say, trying to hurry her along.
"Is everything okay?" Her expression morphs to worry.
"Yes," I try to sound less panicked. "I just want to see her before I get out there."
Her eyes look past me and scan an area across the arena. Then she points. "She is with Rohan at the stables under the north entrance."
