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Not just on me, but on Belle.
The only reason he was even here in the café with my father was the spell she’d placed on him, I realized. After all, he couldn’t finish what he’d started all those years ago if he couldn’t actually get it up.
Which is a damn good reason for me not to lift the spell, Belle said. He won’t keep any deal made—that much is pretty obvious.
I agree, but let’s concentrate on one thing at a time.
“The situation cannot be allowed to stand as it is,” my father said. “It’s affecting the future of you both—”
“There’s only one way this situation is going to fucking end.” Anger made my voice vibrate. The red rage remained close to the surface, and I couldn’t be sorry about it. It kept me from giving in to the fear and the memories that still burned deep down. “And that’s for the marriage to be annulled.”
“That would not be our first—”
I snorted. “Of course not, because marriages can only be annulled if one of the parties did not give their consent or consent was obtained by duress or fraud.” My gaze shot to Clayton’s. “Imagine what that would do to your reputation if it got out.”
Heat shot into his cheeks, but once again he held his tongue.
It might be wise not to antagonize him any further came Belle’s uneasy comment. He looks ready to kill.
It was only then that I realized she’d deepened our connection so that she could see through my eyes.
Yeah, sorry, she said, but I needed to understand exactly what’s going down. I think the rage stopped you sensing it.
Probably.
“A divorce would be more convenient,” my father said.
“Oddly enough, I’m not in the mood to make things convenient for either of you.”
Anger flared deep in his eyes, and just for an instant, his power surged over me, momentarily scalding my senses and sending the café’s remaining spells into a frenzy of activity. Lightning flickered out from the layers of wild magic, jagged little warnings of what waited if they didn’t watch what they were doing.
Unfortunately, it also served as a pointer that all was not as it seemed—not with me, not with the magic that still protected this place.
“Interesting” was all my father said. But his gaze, when it returned to mine, was speculative.
“Not so much,” Monty replied. “Not if you know the recent history of this place.”
“The magic of a wellspring can affect spells, but what just happened here is extremely unusual, and we all know it.”
“Except,” Ashworth drawled, “for the fact that the wild magic within this reservation does many things it should not—and I suspect you’ve both read my reports and Monty’s and are well aware of that.”
“Meaning you’re Ira Ashworth,” Lawrence said. “That would certainly explain recent events in Canberra. But back to the matter at hand—if we agree to an annulment, there must be suitable terms on both sides.”
“And what would you consider suitable terms?” Monty asked. “Given you forced a sixteen-year-old into a marriage she didn’t want, I’m thinking it might be better for you both to simply get the annulment ASAP and walk away. We all know you have enough tame judges in your pockets to get it done quickly and quietly.”
“That might well be possible,” my father said. “But we want the spell on Clayton removed, and I want you, Elizabeth, to return to Canberra and undergo a full magical audit.”
I forced a smile, even as my gut clenched. A full audit would reveal the ongoing changes within me. “So that you can drug me into another marriage? I think not.”
“Fine. We’ll do it here—I don’t particularly care.”
Of course he didn’t. Not when it might reveal that the daughter he’d tossed away like so much rubbish might actually hold some worth. The anger of the child who’d never been good enough rose, but underneath the hurt remained. Despite everything, there was some small spark of that child still aching for the love of her father.
“And why would I put myself through that again, Father dearest? I had sixteen years of being told I was a worthless disappointment. I don’t need to add an exclamation point to what is already common knowledge.”
“Oh, I think we do.” He studied me for a long minute, and I rather suspected he was seeing the things I was trying to keep hidden. “These are my terms. Do you agree to them or not?”
“If I say not?”
