AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Okay, now that had most certainly not happened in my dream.
A little disappointed he hadn’t commenced with ravishing me against the wall, I opened my lashes and looked up into his eyes. They were a bright, piercing blue.
Shaking my head, I begged him with my eyes to stop this madness I was experiencing. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Friendship,” he said. “Taking tea together. Talking after dinner. Walks in the garden.” With a shrug, he glanced down. “In full view of everyone. Hell, bring your babe along as a chaperone. Or Allera, Nicolette, your husband, I don’t care, anyone you choose. We don’t have to do anything tawdry or illicit, no matter how fun that sounds. We don’t even have to touch or be within ten feet of each other. Just being around you…” His eyes glittered with intensity as he dropped his arm from the wall and stepped back, giving me more space than I honestly wanted. “Getting to know you would be a balm to me, a bandage to help me deal with other, unattainable things I desire. Plus, you’d get to appease your curiosity as well, and learn more about me in return. A win for both of us.”
I looked into his eyes and soaked in the pleading he conveyed to me even as I slowly shook my head in denial. “Soren would never go for that. Not even something as innocuous as you’re suggesting.”
His teeth clenched and eyes turned hard. “Then fuck Soren.”
I jumped at the anger he exuded and quickly backed away from him, even though I didn’t disagree with his sentiment. Fuck Soren, indeed.
But regret filled his gaze. “Vienne,” he whispered, reaching out, only to drop his hand a second later and shake his head. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to disrespect your husband. Please accept my apologies. I shouldn’t have said that. Hell, I shouldn’t have suggested any of this. It’s not your responsibility to ease my suffering. I refuse to put that on you.”
Shaking my head, because there wasn’t anything to forgive—he’d done nothing wrong—I clenched my teeth and hissed, “Don’t apologize to me. If the mark is truly the thing that chose me for you, then this is no more your fault than it is mine.”
Torment entered his gaze as he watched me. “But I don’t know what else to say.”
“Oh, Urban.” Agony roared through me. Worried I could only ever hurt this man, I reached up to cup his cheek in my hand, only wishing to apologize without words, because no words could fix what I did to him. But then I realized touching him could only make the situation worse, so I dropped my hand before making contact.
Shuddering out a breath, he
closed his eyes and bowed his head with a defeated kind of loss.
I’ll find a way, I wanted to promise. I would find a way to make this right. For everyone. But for the life of me, I had no idea how.
“It doesn’t matter,” he started in a rusted voice. “If I never find out your favorite color, or your biggest fear, if I learn no more about you than I know now. It doesn’t matter who you lay your head next to each night or who you call husband. I will continue to hold you in the highest regard. You always have a safe place with me. Because…” His eyes came open. “Until my dying breath, I belong to you.”
I shook my head, rattled by his words, flattered as much as I was intimidated. I wasn’t sure I wanted so much power over anyone. “Why are you telling me this?”
“Because. I wanted you to know, in case my actions here have chased you away for good and you decided to never talk to me again.”
“I’ll talk to you again,” I swore, even though I knew I shouldn’t. I shouldn’t give him false hope. But he said it would help, so I would.
Urban only smiled as if he knew better. “And it’s okay,” he murmured, “if you don’t.”
Before I knew it, he was whirling away and taking off down the hall, leaving me.
“No.” I shook my head even harder, unable to accept that our conversation was going to end this way. “Urban.” He didn’t hear me, so I lifted my voice. “Urban, stop.”
He fell to an immediate halt which made my heart crack. He really would do anything for me, wouldn’t he? Even stop when he wanted to leave.
“Turn around,” I said.
He turned.
“I will talk to you again,” I said with force. “If it helps you, I will.”
He nodded. “Okay.”
“And I…I never got the chance to thank you in person. For saving my life.”
He bowed, low. “It was my honor, my lady.”
“I also want to apologize for the way you were treated after. I’m sure I haven’t heard all the details, but I know it must’ve been bad.”
“My lady, don’t. It wasn’t…” But he stopped himself from continuing, glancing away as if he wanted to say he’d never been hurt but couldn’t lie.
