Stomach queasy, I nudge my bowl of stew away. “That’s understandable.” It’s probably been years since he had sex. I want to ask, but probably shouldn’t.
“After I lost my family, I spent a long time feeling nothing for anyone. Not love, not lust. I’d started to wonder if the loss had broken me.” His swallow is loud in the quiet. “Until you.”
Oh goddess, how is this man capable of breaking my heart and making it soar all at once?
Gunnar meets my gaze, and the raw emotion on his face takes my breath away. “After years of feeling nothing, what you awoke in me was—a lot.”
Turning my hand palm up, I lace my fingers with his. “Of course.”
Gunnar inhales slowly. When his fingers loosen, I’m afraid he’ll pull away, and he does, but only to run his fingers through my hair. “I think… I wouldn’t mind feeling it again. With you. Just until the wedding,” he adds.
His lips look so soft and biteable. “Yeah. Just until the wedding. But we can have a wedding night, right?”
A low chuckle rumbles in his chest. “It is what tradition dictates.”
I have to touch him. Now. But what if he isn’t ready? Taking in a breath, I settle for poking his fingers.
Gunnar scoffs. “You can touch me. I won’t run. Not again.”
Smiling, I take his hand, heart racing when he squeezes my fingers.
That’s when I notice it. The pale scar that winds down my wrist. A bone-deep cold seeps into my soul. I wrench my hand away and lift my wrist, heart racing. “Oh goddess. How long has this scar been here?”
It isn’t supposed to be there. My magic keeps them hidden but… oh no. When I used up my magic reserves, the spell hiding my scars must have worn off.
Bolting from the bed, I race into the bathroom. When I glimpse my reflection and find my worst fears staring back at me, the temperature in the room drops. Nausea churns in my stomach, and I fear I’ll be sick.
“Gunnar…” My voice comes out pitifully small. “H-has this been here the whole time?”
Gunnar enters the room, but I grab a towel and cover my chest.
“Don’t. Don’t look. Please.”
Gunnar’s sigh is heavy. “Lo, I’ve already seen it.”
Oh goddess. He’s seen it. The memory of the worst day of my life, of my worst and most foolish mistake, carved into my chest with fangs and claws and—
There’s a roaring in my ears and bile in my throat.
My hand shakes, and the towel falls to the floor. I hug my chest, trying to cover the worst of it, but it’s hopeless now.
Gunnar’s seen them.
Goddess, he’ll never look at me the same way again.
Chapter 15
Gunnar
I saw it. Itwas horrific, and I hadn’t been able to stomach looking, not for long.
Even after getting a good look at them, my eyes won’t look away. I’m frozen in place, trying to figure out if what I’m seeing is real. How is he still alive when his chest has been torn apart?
Claw marks crisscross his chest, bisecting his left nipple. There are teeth marks on his shoulder. A savage bite mark is embedded in his arm. Scars cleave their way down his chest until they reach his groin. Such a deep cut would have disemboweled him.
I swallow hard against the sudden urge to vomit. Not from disgust. I’ve seen my share of scars and all manner of gore from countless battles. It’s because of how old these marks are. The monster that did this could have killed him. I could have lost him before I even had the chance to meet him.
It’s why I hadn’t been able to leave him. Like a craven, I’d come into his room with the intention to end things. It was the decision I’d come to during my run. I would return, tell him I couldn’t do this, and leave. In hindsight, it makes no sense. His family would have been devastated. Arlo would have been leftwithout the means to get his potion, although in all fairness, he likely would have devised a different plan. He’s clever. As for me, I would have locked myself away in my cabin and let the beast have me.
