3

~Aspen

Were Kastriv an ordinary man, he would be dead.

I look toward my husband, so shocked I'm lost for words. He seems to be struggling to form a response too, shifting uncomfortably in his seat.

"You...You what?"

Kastriv examines my husband with an unforgiving, ice cold gaze. "I want to fuck your wife. And you're going to let me."

I could throw up. Not because the notion disgusts me, although it does terrify me, I'm just so afraid he's serious, motivated by...I have no idea.

This can't just be because of a general attraction to me. I mean, he may be a Noble, but no one in their right mind would attempt to barter the use of someone's wife for their own pleasure. At least I never thought someone could be so unhinged.

Oliver looks at me with frightfully wide eyes. "You mean Aspen? Really?"

Kastriv dips his head. "Yes."

"Can I ask why?"

"I want to know how badly you want these Demon's eradicated," he murmurs, not releasing Oliver from the intensity of his gaze.

So he is serious? It's hard to tell. There's the barest hint of an amused smile flirting with his lips, suggesting he's enjoying watching the both of squirm.

"A lot, of course. But I could find you any other woman..." Oliver barters.

Oliver couldn't care less about me. If he offers me up to Kastriv, though, then he loses, and the Noble gets what he wants. Maintaining the ruse that he's a loving husband is imperative, even if he silently wishes he could just hand me off for the night.

Kastriv's attention shifts to me, dark gaze tracing down my face, over my lips. "I don't want another woman. I want Aspen."

I need to defend myself...I can't just let this happen.

"I-"

Oliver holds his hand up, glowering at me. "Aspen, don't say anything."

My closes. If I disobey Oliver now, he will either hand me off happily to Kastriv now as a form of punishment, or he will refuse, and punish me himself.

"Well, what will it be?" Kastriv pushes.

"I want the Demon's gone, badly, but this is my wife." Oliver reaches over to caress my arm, as if it proves his love for me, how desperate he is to keep me for himself. It takes all my self control not to rip my arm away in disgust.

Kastriv's eyes cool. "If you do not accept, I will ensure all other Noble's will not sponsor your endeavours."

Oliver goes silent for a moment, flicking through his options. "You would just sleep with her?"

"Yes."

"But you wouldn't get her pregnant, right?" Oliver looks over me, disgust lingering in his expression. A Noble's child would be an impossible inconvenience for him. He couldn't care less about the implications on me.

Kastriv leans back in his chair, staring off into the distance, which I'm currently wishing I could flee toward. "Personally, I am opposed to her having to take a tonic, as the side effects are undesirable."

Oliver tenses. "But you would wear-"

"I don't like anything between myself and my lover. Does this change your answer?" The Noble's tone is getting pushier, giving Oliver less of a chance to gather his thoughts.

There are numerous other forms of contraceptive. Not that Oliver would know about any of them. We don't sleep together, and even if we did, it would be my responsibility, not his.

Oliver releases a tight sigh. "I suppose not."

My expression remains neutral, but the horror gathering inside me is threatening to spill over. I want to scream at the both of them, to turn on them, but the consequences to reacting would haunt me for the rest of the year, not just the night.

Kastriv smiles, clasping his hands together. "Excellent. I hope you are not opposed to me being rough with her, it's how I like it."

Rough?

How rough is rough to a Noble? Is it like what I imagine when I’m splayed out in my bed late at night, thinking about those who I can never have?

Or is it  more sinister?

I used to dream of being with a Noble, about living in their reality, instead of mind, and experiencing what those incredible bodies riddled with magic are capable of. Now, the thought of that makes me want to be sick.

"Go ahead, Kastriv," Oliver concedes.

Kastriv's gaze flickers to me, monitoring for a reaction that I refuse to show. "I'm talking bruises, tying her up...making her beg and submit to me."

Oliver shifts uncomfortably, knowing the Noble is trying to embarrass him, but can do nothing to avoid it. "Nothing I myself don't do to her."

I would roll my eyes, if I weren't contemplating ways to get out of this. My fantasies about being with a Noble have now devolved into nothing, as I stare back at the terrifying man. I wish this soft breeze would carry me away to somewhere that I can make decisions for myself, where my life isn't being constantly threatened.

"It will likely be multiple times in a single night," he continues.

"I'm not opposed," Oliver grumbles, completely submitting.

"Perfect. Leave then," Kastriv demands, getting to his feet. Oliver scrambles up also, but I take my time, worried my legs are going to collapse out from under me. I'm going to be left alone with the Noble...

Oliver steps in front of Kastriv, whose superior height becomes increasingly noticeable. "I thought I was staying here the night."

"No, I only intend for Aspen to stay. I shall have her returned home tomorrow." Kastriv looks at me, but I glance away, training my attention on the flat, distant horizon.

Oliver reaches out, shaking the Noble's hand. "Pleasure doing business with you."

I know I shouldn't, but I grab at Oliver's hand, desperately hoping he will see how insane this bargain is. "Oliver, please don't leave me here..."

He doesn't even look at me, avoiding my reach out to him before he steps off the deck. Both Kastriv and I watch him stalk through the foyer, to the front door, and then out of it, likely overjoyed at how little he had to give up to get what he desired.

Swallowing thickly, I keep my gaze trained at my feet, knowing if I flee, Kastriv can catch me, and if I attack him...Well, there's no point even considering how that would go.

"Why don't we go inside?" Kastriv offers.

Nodding numbly, I follow him inside, the glass door gliding closed behind us. Is he going to touch me? Is he going to get to it right now, or will he wait until the sun has fully fallen beneath the horizon? It's getting close to being dark, deep shadows sprawling out through the room.

Glancing up at Kastriv, I see him watching me, his previous amusement having vanished, a cold air about him now.

I shudder, backing up cautiously as he starts to advance on me.

"Do you truly believe I would pay your husband to have sex with you?" he demands. He's angry, I realise, a shadow passing over his face, deepening his sharp features.

I gape at him. "You just did."

He doesn't stop his advance, even as I stumble away, until my back bumps up against a piece of furniture, and I'm forced to look up at him. "I have no intentions of sleeping with you, Aspen. I just wanted to see how badly Oliver wanted those Demon's dead."

"Oh..."

"Try not to look so relieved," he notes, quirking a brow.

I can't help it, my knees quivering uneasily. I'm not going to be forced to be with Kastriv in such a horrific manner, and I would try with relief, even if he doesn't want to see it. Regardless, I'm still here alone, with no way out.

"Why talk about getting me pregnant, about bruising me then?" I ask warily.

"I wanted to push him, to make him want it. And shredding his dignity was quite satisfying too. I don't particularly like him," he notes.

I stare at his back as he turns away.

"Why not?"

"Because who in their right mind wants Demon's eradicated? Only fools who know nothing about them," he mumbles. He shrugs his jacket off, discarding it on a nearby seat. It reveals his toned arms and single, deep red tattoo on his right bicep.

I blink. "You just-"

"A band of Angel-bloods stand no chance against a single Demon. Most are ancient, or have been trained since birth, as Demon's tend to stick to their own clans. An untrained one's power alone rivals the most powerful Angel-blood," he explains.

I don't bother hiding my shock. "Really?"

His gaze traces over me, like he knows something I don't. "Uh huh."

My mother has always assured me that I only have trace amounts of Demon blood in me, so my power will always be limited. I doubt I would ever be able to rival an Angel-blood; especially one like Kastriv.

But it does make me wonder what else I've been lied to about.

"So shall I go home now?" I ask, motioning to the door. The moment I'm allowed out, I'm going to sprint for that door and never look back.

"No. I hope you stay and maintain this ruse, and continue to do so when you return home," he murmurs.

I don't usually talk back, especially to those with magic. Each time I've done so, Oliver has punished me greatly, and often times, not physically. He knows my weakness, and how best to exploit them to cause the most amount of pain possible.

"You embarrassed me. You made me feel like nothing but a piece of meat...Why would I help you?" I snap.

Some part of me, some deep, scarred part, expects Kastriv to rear back and strike me for speaking out of turn to him. But he doesn't so much as flinch, unbothered by my raised voice and aggressive tone.

"Because I get the feeling you don't like your husband very much either," he mutters.

I could deny that, exclaim my relationship with Oliver is full of love and compassion, but I don't feel very loyal to him right now. He left me to get fucked by some Noble, all of his own gain. He doesn't deserve my favour right now.

"That's not the point."

"I would have loved nothing more than for you to speak up and defend yourself, but you didn't. I assume that has something to do with him?" Kastriv accusatory tone leaves me stumbling for a response.

Rubbing the back of my neck, I look elsewhere. "I didn't know what to say."

"Not only did I push him, but I was pushing you too, Aspen," he breathes.

He appears as though he is struggling to contain his anger...or is that something else? He doesn't look happy, whatever it is. He knows too much, see's too much. The moment he came into our home, I knew he didn't believe Oliver and I's charade.

But what does he expect me to say? If I admit to him that Oliver is abusive, and has been since I married him, Oliver would know, and nothing good would happen to me.

I especially don't trust a Noble to help me.

"I wasn't really going to let you sleep with me." I would have stood up for myself, demanded he decide differently, had it gotten to that.

Kastriv's jaw tightens. "Really? Because it truly sounded like you gave up."

I look away. Gave up? It's all I seem to do recently. For the first two years of my marriage, I tried everything in my power to get away, to start a new life. It all failed. So yes, I suppose I have given up.

"Tell me, were you going to let me fuck you to the point of bruising you? Were you going to risk bearing my child?" His voice is gathering in force now, a primal anger threatening to let lose.

He can't know the truth...No one can know the truth...

He closes the gap between us, until he's so close I can almost feel his breath against my skin. "Tell me!"

My hands clench into fists, and I release a frustrated growl. "I don't know...Okay I don't know, I never have a choice, ever. All I'm meant to be is the perfect wife, and I would rather have sex with you then him."

Kastriv grows silent as confusion echo's across his face.

"I'm sorry, what did you just say?" he whispers.

I run my hand down my face, realising I've said too much, that this is going to reflect terribly on me. "Is there somewhere for me to sleep? I'm exhausted."

"Hey, look at me," Kastriv demands, grabbing my arm to pull it away from my face with shockingly gentle force. "Tell me what you meant by that? That you would rather have sex with me, a man you presumed to abusive and dangerous, then your own husband?"

"It doesn't matter, okay? Please let me sleep," I beg. Please, just let up.

Kastriv looks torn, reading the desperation on my face. Eventually he sighs, backing away, letting me stumble forward into the space he once occupied.

"Fine. We have more to speak about in the morning," he murmurs dismissively, waving his hand.

I don't waste any time, as he explains where, upstairs, the guest room is, heading straight up to it.

I lock the door behind me, pressing my back up against it.

I'm doomed. Kastriv is going to tell Oliver what I said, and I'll never see the light of day again...All because of how damn persistent the Noble is.

Collapsing onto the bed, I close my eyes. I should get some sleep, and be grateful I'm not in Kastriv's room tonight, servicing him.

I tug the sheets down, and then back up, not bothering to take my clothes off. It doesn't feel right doing that here, anyways.

As I lean to turn the lamp off, my hands brush against a small, white tube. Frowning, I pick it up, examining it.

Burn cream.

I glance down at my hand, which I've kept bandaged all day, hoping Kastriv believed my excuse about burning it during cooking, despite the fact that we have staff.

Either way, he's clearly thought about it, purposefully leaving this medicine for me, when Oliver insisted I didn't need any.

Unwinding my bandage, I toss it away, applying the burn cream, before redressing the wound with the fresh bandages left next to the tube.

Settling back down in my pillow, I hold my hand close to my chest.

It can't mean anything, I think to myself, as I let sleep overcome me.