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But I was shoving the chair back and walking away before she could finish.
Benjamin caught up to me as I reached the doors. “How dare you walk away from your mother like that—”
“Don’ttouchme!” My aura flared in the street, and Benjamin took his hand from mine, brow furrowed.
“Rook, you will go back in there right now and apologise—”
“I don’t owe any of you an apology,” I snarled, stepping back from him.
Only her.
She was the only one I owed an apology to. I understood the truth now. I understood how wrong my parents were. I had hurt her; I was the one who’d failed. Who wasn’t good enough. It was simple, devastating, and yet… it was better this way.
It was me who wasn’t worthy of her. I had never been, and I didn’t think I would ever be.
FOURTEEN
VEX
Rook: I want to apologise, Vex. I’m downstairs. I’ll wait as long as it takes.
I’d stared at that text for a while. The others had told me that he wouldn’t see me until I asked. I’d been too much of a coward so far. And now…hewas the one asking. Drake was pissed when he saw it, since they were supposed to be waiting for me, but I was a little relieved to be honest. So I told him and Love that I wanted to do it.
I was wearing one of my favourite sweatshirts, having found the courage to pull it from one of the boxes. On the cuff were the words my mother had embroidered all those years ago.
“Find your voice, find your strength.”
I clutched that cuff in my fist nervously as I peered around the downstairs kitchen. It was where Rob usually cooked, though I knew he was staying elsewhere for a few weeks. To give me space and privacy, I guessed. So they were cooking for themselves. And Drake had told me Rook had been spending time in the small living area behind the bar so that I didn’t accidentally run into him.
Rook got to his feet the moment he saw me step into the small space, eyes wide.
“Vex.” His voice was rough. There was caramel brandy lingering in the space, and it set me on edge. It was a scent I had fallen for once, that I was programmed to fall for—only now, its sweetness made me nervous. He was wearing a suit, which I’d never seen before, and he looked different. His eyes were haunted, and his face was drawn, dark hair a mess.
Had he been suffering while I was gone, like Drake and Love had?
It was probably the toll this was taking on his whole pack,a little voice whispered.Not about you.
Did I want it to be about me?
Of all of them, I was most frightened of what Rook had to say. He’d so easily rejected me. I was the reason he had dropped the Dragon Hunters contract…
“Will you talk to me?” he asked.
I took a few steps into the space beyond the kitchen, looking around at the TV and armchairs, lip caught in my teeth.
It was just beginning to feel safe, but… I knew he’d seen the book—had seen how much he’d hurt me—and it wasn’t just the dark bond. I’d cared enough, been desperate enough, that he’d hurt me, even when I was nothing to him.
“You’re angry,” he said, taking a step towards me. “And you have every right to be—”
“I’m not,” I whispered. “I’m not angry.”
He paused, paling a shade. There was a strange silence, before I finally found my voice again. “I don’t… want you to pretend to want me just because…” I trailed off.
Just because what?
The others wanted me back?
There was a princess bond between us now.
