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“Good girl,” his words come out in a rich whisper as he kisses the tops of my fingers. His deep voice and gentle touch send sparks through my body, leaving goosebumps in their wake. “I’ll leave some snacks and water for you both in half an hour.”

I twist the knob, and he releases me, eyes locked with mine until I’ve placed that wall back up between us.

“Viioolet, you beautiful bitch!” Pru slurs as I turn around. Leaning against the door I look over at my friend and sigh. She’s sitting against the headboard with crossed legs, wearing boxer shorts and a camisole, with a glass of wine in her hand. But when I look at the nightstand, she’s already a bottle in, and this looks like her first glass of the second bottle. “I know I wouldn’t normally call you that. Never have, as a matter of fact. But you ditched me!” She crawls forward, falling to her stomach when she reaches the end of the bed. Her eyes widen a fraction; she rises and sits back on her haunches. Seeming to gain new life in her drunken stupor. “Hold up… Why are you wearing Aunti Rory’s dress?”

My breath hitches. What would Cain want me to say? We aren’t together… She might say he loves me, but that doesn’t change what we are.

“Ohmygod were you two fucking?” My eyes widen, and before I can say anything, Pru shakes her head and her hands out in front of her, “groossss, he’s practically my brother. I don’t want to think about it.” I sigh in relief and go to sit on the edge of the bed.

“How did you know it was her dress?”

“Because I’ve snooped through everything Cain owns. That dress is one of his most beloved possessions.” She leans back on her hand and takes a sip of her drink.

“Why snoop?”

“That’s our relationship. I snoop on him; he snoops on me. We both suck at talking, so we just investigate, you know?” She smiles, gently shoving my shoulder with her foot, “That’s how I found the portraits. He’s always spying on my art to see how I’m doing. So, I decided to do the same. The only thing is that he’s not the same type of fucked up as I am. His art doesn’t give him away emotionally or mentally… Well, maybe mentally. Because it only consists of you.” I feel my cheeks blush, but I’m too tired to care.

“Let’s go to bed.”

“Nooo I just got you. Play one game with me and then we sleep, okay?”

“Okay.”

Cain, Age 22

Chapter 6

I knew this would be a fun trip.

As we boarded the train, I looked up just in time to see Violet step into the medical car. Four weeks in the woods, cut off from our world back home, is exactly the opportunity I needed to get her alone again. With Alistair in town, chasing her on our property is off the table. Here, no one will care if they hear her screaming my name.

My knee is bouncing up and down, fingers gripping the edge of the exam table; my skin is buzzing as I wait for my Flower. Her silhouette forms against the thin hospital curtain, pausing for a beat. I catch a quiver in her exhale before she steps through the curtain and meets my gaze.

Her hair is pulled half up in a bun, leaving the rest of her hair to fall down her back. Perfect for wrapping my fingers in. She’s wearing a fitted, long-sleeved, turtle-necked, black knit dress that stops just below the knee, and fleece-lined black tights. It’s meant to be modest, something to keep her warm. She even has a white coat and a stethoscope hanging from her neck. But I don’t see any of that. I can’t help but follow the curves from her breast to her hips or think about her thighs quivering in my hold as I fuck her with my tongue.

“Good morning, Sir. I’m Miss Daily, and I will be performing your field readiness exam.” Her gaze flits over me before stepping closer. I reach out, grab a lock of her sun-kissed hair, and twirl it between my fingers. Violet startles, practically jumping out of her black winter boots. Her eyes shoot to mine, and a trembling hand grabs my arm. She’s shaking—bad. Her fingers are nearly bouncing off me as she tries to hold on

“You’re shaking, Kitten.” I wrap her hair around my finger, and Violet’s lips part when I tug.

“I’ve been shaking since I saw your name on the clipboard…” Her words come out as air, a whisper in the wind. I slip my fingers from her hair and slide my hand over her shoulder, up her neck, then cup her cheek, rubbing my thumb back and forth over her soft skin.

“Are you afraid of me?” We haven’t been this close since I touched her at the forge. My art still fresh on her back. Maybe she’s changed her mind since then…

“No.” Violet leans into my touch, and my thumb brushes the corner of her lip. Her eyes close for a beat, her lips catching my thumb as I brush it back, then she meets my gaze with her bright ocean eyes. “I like you…” I grip her nape, pulling her into me, but she catches herself with her shaking hands, pushing against my chest. “Please… Don’t make this harder than it already is.”

“Meet me tonight, an hour after lights out, over by the lamp post.” I capture her lips before releasing her. “I’m taking you out tonight.”

She didn’t fucking show up.

I burned through two herbal cigarettes, waiting an hour before taking the hint and leaving to blow off steam. I’m two shots in and working on something the bartender offered to make me when he said it looks like I’m having a rough night. Not enough lavender and chamomile in the world can get the chip off my shoulder.

It’s probably for the best, anyway. So what if she likes me? That doesn’t change anything. She can’t mean anything to me.

Then what the fuck have you been doing with her?

I sigh and throw back a sip of the slightly sweeter amber liquid. I really need to leave this girl alone…

“Hey there! Fancy seeing you here. What brings you to Blackmoor?” A voice chirps at my side, and I swat her hand away before she even makes it to my arm. When I look up, her eyes widen a fraction before brushing off my ice and offering a wide smile filled with perfect teeth. Her honey eyes and matching hair that fall to her waist look about as sickeningly sweet as she smells. Is that vanilla? I scrunch my nose and take another sip of my also sickeningly sweet drink. I don’t like sweets.