Two seconds later the solid wood hit the floor with a resounding crash. “What the—” I jumped, my skin prickling with a renewed burst of shock infused anger.
Saint’s bulky frame filled the doorway and my heart leaped into my throat. Gulping, I backed away while my anxious gaze roamed the room once more. When my eyes came back to his, my steps faltered. The pained anxiety, an expression I hadn’t witnessed before, staring back, caught me by surprise.
“Please, baby...” he trailed off, the indecision unmistakable.
More tears blurred my vision. I swung around to shield my weakness. Just as I hiccupped on a sob, his muscular arms wrapped around me and for one fleeting moment, I almost gave into the urge of sagging against that hard chest and allowing his familiar warmth to swallow me. Protect me from the hurt consuming my soul. No! I shook the notion out of me with a resolute wince. He’d committed the ultimate sin. Betrayal. Grabbing his fingers, I attempted to move his hands away, but he tightened his grip around my waist and buried his face in my hair.
“Please, Snow, believe me, I didn’t sleep with your mother.” The sincerity in his voice should’ve calmed me, it didn’t.
I couldn’t erase the picture of my mother’s head on his naked chest or her hand on his cock. The same cock he’d promised belonged to me. The same cock I’d sucked and fucked. Irritation pumping furiously through my veins, I jerked away from his touch, whirling around to glare at him. We stood in momentary silence. Chest heaving, shoulders tense, gazes a total contrast of rage in mine and despair in his until he reached out a hand.
I shoved it away. “How could you?” Anger drenched in agony learnt my voice a distinct timbre I hardly recognized as my own.
He sighed on a deep exhale, and I could’ve sworn his eyes glittered with tears. I was still trying to fathom that when he touched my chin. “I have no idea how she did it, Snow and God help me if I could find out, but I never slept with your mother. You have to believe me.” The desperation lining his words was something I didn’t think I’d hear from the usually confident man I’d come to know. “The last thing I remember was agreeing to a glass of wine she’d poured for me.”
I frowned. “What was she doing at your home in the first place?”
He raked a hand through his hair and sighed. “She found out about us and came over to talk. The last thing I remember was pouring her a glass of wine she brought with her, but I chose water instead. After that, it’s a blank. I guess she—”
“Drugged you?” I finished for him, my heart racing a million miles per hour. Why would she? He nodded. Was he lying to cover his ass? As I searched my mind trying to come up with something viable for why she would drug him, we stared at each other, the seconds ticking away into minutes.
“Please, Snow, say something. Anything,” he broke the silence.
“I need time.” Dropping my gaze to the floor, I fidgeted. I needed to speak to my mother. When I turned around and walked away, he didn’t stop me. Even as I climbed into the cab I’d ordered, I wasn’t sure if I was disappointed, he hadn’t or relieved that he was giving me time. Still, the tears wouldn’t stop as I watched the passing scenery through blurred vision.
Chapter 45 - Levana
Twenty minutes later, when the cab rolled to a stop outside my mother’s two-storey seaside cottage, I took a minute to stare at the white-washed walls and lilac lattice windows and I couldn’t help comparing it to a belladonna plant. With its soft purple flowers and dark inky berries, that appeared so beautifully innocent on the outside but so lethally poisonous on this inside. “Isn’t that a true likeness to you, mother?” I muttered.
Straightening my shoulders, I walked up to the front door, my steps unhurried, my heart not ready to deal with this woman. She opened on my second knock, her expression a clear indication she’d expected me to come. Still, she left me on the porch and went inside.
I stood there, debating whether to go in, until annoyance took over. Rounding the corner, I followed her upstairs. “This is a new low even for you.” I scowled, crossing my arms over my chest
She was sitting on her bed when I entered her room. “Whatever lies he planted in your head, he’s just trying to sway you, sweetheart.”
“Sweetheart?” Only ever having heard venomous hate pouring out of her mouth since the day I was old enough to understand words, the endearment earned a sarcastic laugh. “You expect me to believe you, over him,” I scoffed.
