“About what?” We weren't touching, but I could feel his body just behind mine. Just as I could always feel when he was nearby or in the same room. I had a sixth sense for Dommik Thorne, one I couldn’t shut off or ignore. I was naturally attuned to him, only bolstering my case that I was making all the wrong choices.
“About this? About everything?” I said to the opposite wall, tears pricking in the corners of my eyes.
“You need to be more specific,” Dommik said in a clipped tone. He looked haggard and tired. I wasn’t sure where he was sleeping or if he was sleeping since he’d relinquished his room to me.
“About Rhazien,” I blurted. “About being bound.”
Dommik’s lips pressed into a thin line and he rubbed the stubble on his chin as he pondered the question. “I don’t think I can weigh in on that.”
Immediate regret washed over me. “Of course. What was I thinking?” I shook my hands and tried to wave away my lapse in judgement. “I just—” I started, not sure if I could admit the next part of my thought.
“What?” he inquired during my elongated pause.
“I don’t have anyone to talk to. Likereallytalk to. About any of this.”
“You’re feeling unsure?”
Was that hope flickering through his gaze?
Yes.I didn’t say. I was too captivated by his hardened stare.
My regret doubled. I wanted to want what Rhazien wanted, but at this point it felt like a thankless task from an absent partner. I’d been there before. I didn’t want to exist in that place again.
The energy of the room shifted and the air became heavy as it strained to hold the weight of the said and unsaid things between us.
How long? How long would we continue to do this dance? How long could I continue to pretend like he wasn’t the thing holding me back for giving myself fully to Rhazien?
“No. I’m—” Defining my mess of feelings was like trying to hold water. They slipped effortlessly from my grasp, mixing into unsortable chaos. Better to just pretend I wasn’t affected by…well, everything. “I’m fine. I’ll be fine.”
“Reyva…” Dommik’s brows knit together. My armor softened at the sound of my name on his lips. And softened further when he said, “We’ve talked about this. You don’t have to be?—”
A soft knock interrupted us and I took an interest in the dying embers of the hearth while Dommik moved to open the door.
An unfamiliar form followed behind Alba’s gray robes. Then I looked closer, and she wasn’t unfamiliar at all. Although I hadn’t seen her clothed, I placed her instantly. It was the slave woman Eryx and Rhazien fed on in front of me at the ball four nights prior.
She was clearly in poor health. The woman was thin, too thin. Pale and tired and weak from the looks of her posture and the way her glazed, unfocused eyes stared at nothing in particular.
“Thank you for coming.” Dommik nodded to each of them.
The frail woman shot a wide-eyed, fearful glance to Alba and croaked, “You said he didn’t want to feed on me.”
“I don’t.”
“He doesn’t.”
Dommik and Alba said in unison. I cocked a brow at my chambermaid and the commander. Were they conspiring together?
I kneaded my hands together as I waited for someone to provide some clarity. Neither of them were in a rush to oblige and my impatience mounted. “Well?”
“His Majesty sent me,” the frail female admitted timidly.
“Which Majesty?” I folded my arms over my middle. My glare could have leveled a battlefield.
“She means Rhazien,” Dommik clarified on her behalf.
My muscles contracted at his name. The thought of him dining on her made my stomach drop. I couldn’t reasonably harbor any jealousy after Dommik had…
I steepled my fingers, pressing the tips together until my knuckles cracked. “To what end?”
