Page 165 of Split or Swallow

Leo shrugged. “If it does, we will deal with it.”

Tem noticed his use of the word we, as if they were in this together. Maybe they were.

Another minute passed before Leo asked:

“How can he be in your mind?”

She heard the hesitant curiosity in his voice, and remembered that up until tonight, Leo didn’t know about her mental tie to the basilisk.

“I don’t know, exactly,” she answered truthfully.

“But he…can speak to you?”

“Yes.”

“And what did he say?”

“Which time?”

Leo’s fingers stopped again. Tem realized too late that he’d assumed Caspen had infiltrated her mind for the first time a moment ago.

“He has spoken to you multiple times,” Leo said.

It wasn’t a question. There was no point in denying it.

“Yes.”

“You…maintain a connection with him?”

His shock was obvious. Tem fought to deescalate the situation:

“He maintains a connection with me.”

It was the truth. Or at least, part of it. It was true that Tem savored their bond, but Caspen was the one who controlled it.

Leo’s grip was tightening around her.

“And what, exactly, is the nature of your connection?”

Tem had no idea what to say. No answer would satisfy Leo: no explanation would make this situation acceptable to him. How could she possibly tell him the extent of her mental bond with Caspen? How could she tell him that they had sex through that connection—that Caspen would turn her on and she would do the same—that they had brought each other to orgasm more times than she could count? It was incomprehensible, even to Tem.

“He speaks to me…and I…answer.”

“I see,” said Leo quietly. “He speaks. And you answer.”

His voice was steady. But Tem knew they were in very dangerous, very uncharted territory. She held her breath as he said:

“How often does this occur?”

“It’s…not consistent. I can’t predict it.”

“And what did he say to you tonight?”

Another question she wished he hadn’t asked. She couldn’t tell Leo how Caspen felt—how their entire relationship had flashed before her eyes in an avalanche of aching torment.

“He didn’t say anything, really. He just…” Tem broke off, trying to put the experience into words. “He’s jealous,” she finished simply.

“Well,” Leo murmured, and to her surprise, his tone softened. “We can hardly blame him for that.”