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I swallowed hard, forcing myself to listen to her this once. “Alright,” I said softly.

Rowan reached for my hand and led me out of the house, far enough away for neither of us to hear what she said next.

Chapter

Twenty-Seven

EVIE

Istared at the man I realized I never really knew. On the surface, Soren was a beautiful specimen of the male species. Going on pure physical beauty, he might be prettier than Rowan, which was saying a lot because my husband was gorgeous. And wonderful. And amazing.

And…I digressed.

Soren was objectively gorgeous, witty, charming, intelligent, but I never thought he was all that smart—especially not after that nonsense with the witches.

Maybe his promiscuity had nothing to do with arrogance or a lack of intelligence. Maybe Soren was trying to fill a hole in his life in a very unhealthy way. Maybe we’d pegged him wrong all this time.

I crossed my arms over my chest and stared at the tattoo on his chest. “Why.”

“Your father is a difficult man to say no to,” Soren began.

I slashed my hand downward. “Don’t give me that bullshit,” I snapped. “Rowan told him no just fine.”

“I’m not Rowan,” Soren said.

“Oh, I certainly know that. He’d never be stupid enough to let the Horned God tag him with such a foolhardy bargain. What did he promise you in exchange?”

Soren’s jaw tightened.

“Ah.” My eyebrows lifted. “Glory? Power? More women? A veritable harem for you to indulge your wildest fantasies?”

Soren’s snort was derisive. “You think so little of me, Evie? Even after that business with Moira? You think I am unable to learn a lesson even after the woman I⁠—”

Oh. Oh. Fucking hell’s bells and all his reindeer. This poor sonofabitch loved my best friend. I would have laughed if I didn’t want to burst into tears.

Soren cleared his throat. “Even after Moira was taken right under our noses and subjected to such horrors?” He laughed. “I haven’t taken a woman to my bed since the moment she stepped on my godsdamn porch and told me how disgusted she was with me.”

“What did he promise you?” I asked, my voice soft, cajoling.

He wouldn’t meet my eyes. “Does it matter?”

“Very much,” I said. “If you don’t want money or power or glory or women, what else could my father have offered you to take on such an insane task?”

“I would have helped her regardless,” Soren said.

“But you would have been subjected to the whims of the Lords,” I said. “And you didn’t want to be forced to work under their demands.”

My damned father had manipulated all of them, but Soren had gone in with his eyes wide open.

He shrugged. “You know what they’re like.”

Boy did I. By the time it was over, I’d wanted to murder them all in cold blood.

“My father used you, but you used my father, too.”

Soren’s smile was humorless. “Not bad for an overdramatic man whore, eh?”

I sank onto one of the chairs and buried my face in my hands. “If you don’t tell me, my father will.”