“It wasn’t like that,” she mumbles, rubbing her cheek as if she’s going to cry. “I mean, yes, they weren’t nice to me, but it wasn’t that bad. I appreciated you stepping in. Let’s just leave it at that.”
There’s a tone to her words that I can’t identify, and the heat I detected in her at the museum is still there—a throbbing pulse deep inside her body, making her scent stronger and a deep pink blush glow on her cheeks.
Wait… is she turned on right now?
The thought leaves me at a loss, and I’m quiet the rest of the way home. When we get inside, though, and Trina tries to disappear, I grab her arm to stop her.
“Let go of me!” she says, glaring at me.
“Fine,” I say, taking my hand away. “But you have to come and talk to me, right now.”
“Why?”
“Because we fucking live together, we’re married, and we can’t live like this!” I explode, trying not to yell. “I mean, seriously, what the hell is going on with you?”
Trina looks up at me, and she bites her lip, her eyes brimming with potential tears. Her vulnerability breaks me, and I take a step back.
“Please,” I say, reaching out but not touching her. “Talk to me.”
“Alright,” she sighs. “I’ll talk to you. But I don’t know what it’s going to achieve. You can’t blame me for being upset that you’re the one who trapped me in this marriage—especially when it looks like you have plenty of options.”
Wait, what?
Trina’s cheeks color an even deeper red, and the heat in her body increases.
“Trina… you’re jealous,” I say.
She laughs, a sudden, sharp sound. “Don’t be ridiculous!” she exclaims. “I couldn’t care less what that vamp does—or you, for that matter.”
“Trina,” I say, reaching out and gently taking her hand. “You really are jealous.”
She stares at me, her eyes wide. They are warm again now, making me think of tropical pools full of reflected light from the pure white sand beneath the shimmering water.
“I’m not,” she almost gasps.
I tighten my grip on her hand, just a little, and trace my thumb across her palm. A shiver runs through her, and I see her tongue creep to the edge of her lip.
Well, damn. I read this all wrong.
“You couldn’t handle seeing her all over me,” I say, smiling. “Don’t deny it. I can see it all overyou.”
“Okay!” she snaps, moving as if she’s about to pull away but grabbing my hand even tighter. “No, I didn’t like it. Is that what you want to hear?”
“It doesn’t matter what I want to hear,” I say, tracing circles on her palm with my thumb. “What matters is how you feel.”
“I don’t know,” she says, a helpless tone in her voice. She sounds so lost and sad. I want to wrap her in my arms, press her against my chest, and never let her go.
Not yet. Only if she begs me.
“Trina,” I say gently. “I know it might not mean much to you, but the binding ritual is very real. Your body has been reacting to it since the beginning, hasn’t it?”
She nods, tightening her fingers on mine again.
“We can’t go on like this. Surely, you agree with that?”
She nods again, and even though her eyes seem to brim with tears, they don’t trickle down her cheeks. She bites her lip again, and the sight sends an ache through me, reminding me of all the desire I have for her that I’ve tried to deny or lock away.
“If we’re going to move forward from here… knowing what we know, right now… that we’re attracted to each other, and you don’t like seeing me with someone else—”
