And, oh, did they…
I hate that Eric affected me the same way as always. He made me feel like a silly little girl who was being scolded, and I… I let him. I had no intention of leaving with him, but if Sebastien hadn’t rescued me when he did, Eric would probably still be doing his best to convince me to leave with him.
That’s how he won me in the first place. Between wearing me down with the constant refrain that I couldn’t do any better than a powerful, wealthy lawyer, then pointing out how lucky I was that he chosemeto be his… and then slipping in some flattery that twenty-three-year-old Annaliese was helpless to fight back against… in the end, going along with it was so much easier than fighting. Falling in love with him was so much easier.
I don’t love him anymore. If I had any doubt about that, whether or not positive feelings lingered and that I would have regrets the next time I saw him… yeah, no. I was already so pissed andfrustratedthat he would try to upset my sister. But after the way he showed up at Alexandre’s party to confront me? I might’ve quailed a bit under the weight of those icy blue eyes, falling back into the old habit where he talks at me and I just stand there and take it, but the whole time…the whole time… all I kept thinking about is how I wanted him to just leave me the fuck alone.
And then Sebastien suddenly appeared. He saved me, and he threatened Eric, and he admitted that he went to the King and got ablood oath.
Loni told me about those. In the Order, it’s another level to a Claiming. If an Owed signs a blood oath, he’s swearing to take care of the woman he’s Claiming—to the death. If the King seals it, he’s giving the member permission to do whatever it takes to protect his wife.
Would Sebastien really do that for afakewife? Because if anything happened to me… if he fails in his duty… the vicious Order says that the Owed will spill their blood again. That’s how serious a blood oath is. Through Miranda, Deirdre confirmed it. A blood oath says that my life is worth his. If I lose my life because he failed to protect me, he forfeits his.
And if anyone hurts me, he can killthem.
It’s rare. Loni made me think it was common enough because she has one with her husband, but it only takes five minutes around Adrian and Loni Heller to pick up on just how obsessed that man is with his wife. No…devoted. That’s what Sebastien said. Adrian was devoted to Loni.
Is Sebastien devoted to me?
I don’t do fake…
He has a tattoo. As I reluctantly take the arm he offers me—covered with his leather jacket again, though the image of what’s underneath it is burned into my memory—to lead us both back into the venue, I keep thinking about the word inked on his skin.Love. He got a tattoo the morning after our wedding. He got it forme.
Who does that if they plan on walking away after the year they agreed to?
I don’t know, but the same question beats a constant refrain against my skull as we rejoin the party.
Eric is gone. I’m not all that surprised. Deep down, he’s a coward. He can bully me all he wants because, well, he always has. But once Sebastien interfered? Once my husband threatenedhim? Of course he fled.
Does that mean that I think this is over? That he’d take the hint and finally give up on me, moving on? Maybe. I’m not sure. I’d love to think so, but I don’t have the mental capacity to to think about it at this moment. Not when Sebastien has switched his hold on me so that I’m tucked under his arm, wheeled around the party as we make our ‘goodbye’s to the guests two hours before the scheduled end of the party.
We drove over to the venue together in Sebastien’s Porsche. I allow him to lead me out to the car, but once I’m sitting in the passenger seat and he’s sliding next to me, I turn to him.
“He knows we’re married now.”
Sebastien’s expression is flat. That’s not usual. No matter, there’s always a hint of charm. It’s his own shield against the world. I realize how much I’ve gotten to know him in the last two months or so because whenever that easy smile is gone… I know that the real Sebastien is peeking through.
Only now? I have no idea what he’s thinking. And when he says, “Is that a problem?” in a carefully controlled voice, I can tell it’s not good.
“What? Of course not. It was only a matter of time. But Eric…” I shake my head, trying to hide my fear, instead showing my husband my disgust. “He’s dangerous.”
Sebastien reaches out, laying his hand possessively on my thigh. “So am I, love.”
I suck in a breath. “Sebastien…”
He rubs my knee. “Not to you. I hope you understand that. Never to you. I’m a dick, Annaliese, but I’m your dick. You don’t have to be afraid of me.”
I haveneverbeen afraid of Sebastien Reynolds. I don’t think there’s anything he could ever do that would cause him to inspire fear in me. “I know,” I tell him. “And I’m not. Afraidforyou, maybe?—”
“Ward doesn’t scare me.”
He should. He has fifteen years on Sebastien, and while my husband has purposely avoided the Order as much as he can, Eric is firmly enmeshed in it. I’d like to think that Sebastien’s close friendship with the King will help him, but if Eric starts targeting Sebastein now because of me… I’ll never forgive myself.
I choose my words carefully. “He has connections and no morals. You’re a good guy, Sebastien?—”
He snorts.
I continue anyway. “Youare. He’s… not. He told me if I ever chose another guy, he would…” At the last minute, I change what I was going to say. “...it would be bad. And he didn’t just threaten to demote me. He threatened to take Miranda’s future away from her. I can’t let him do that.”
