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48. Ropes
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I Reject You, Mate 49. Gentleman
I pour in the mixed oils while I run the bath. The scent of lavender fills the bathroom and it's calming, relieving. Setting the bottles aside, I dip a toe into the bath, the water's warmth embracing me as I sink in. There's a soft, contented purr from deep within me, as I submerge myself, holding my breath for a brief moment. When I resurface, my head leans against the lip of the tub, eyes closed, and I exhale slowly, feeling my muscles yield to the soothing bath. I'll need to converse with Sinclair. Talk to him about Eliana and what comes next in this...engagement. Converse about...getting married. Sure, no one's ever really ready to tie the knot, but this? This feels too soon. Sinclair seems back to his usual self, and that's a relief, but it only confuses me further. Did he propose because he genuinely wanted to? Does he truly want to make me his wife? He'd said he would never hurt me. Has acted in accordance to his words and promises to me. So...is
I Reject You, Mate 50. Blues
Frightened, yet alive. And he hasn't even touched me yet. Sex hasn't been an enticing word for me in a damn long time. With Rune, and then...Alaric. The first had been an experience I had initiated, created. The second had been forced on me.That isn't why I'm frightened though. I know Sinclair would never hurt me. It is what comes after sex with Sinclair that frightens me. Will he stop being obsessed with me? Will he dump me and move on to the next?I hate that I doubt everything. That I second guess everything. But then, I've been through enough to give my trust freely to anyone. I've been through enough to really let myself believe that I could have a happy ending.It seems far-fetched. One good thing happens, it gets overshadowed by a ton of bad things. Damn, my life is full of so much drama, I can barely catch a break. I try to tell my story, but it would seem the one with the pen doesn't like me much. "Come," Sinclair orders, turning away from me. "Sit."And I
I Reject You, Mate 51. Intrusion
Sinclair's deep breath tickles my hair as he sleeps. I twist in his arms to look watch him. He looks rather peaceful when he sleeps. His full brows aren't knotted together or furrowed and his lips are parted slightly.His hair is tousled, both from my fingers and sleep. I smile and tap his nose, snickering to myself.Think I might have tired him out, if such a thing is possible. He's drifted in and out of sleep for the past two hours, awakening only to draw me close once more.Much later, after his ministrations, he brought dinner. He devoured it eagerly, while I nibbled, my belly feeling filled with things that weren't food.It had been surprising to see push the plates aside and fall asleep within seconds of eating. So yes, perhaps, I wore him out.I start to rise out of bed when his arm tightens around me. "Where are you going?" he murmurs sleepily, his words a soft slur."Kitchen. I'm thirsty," I practically croak. My voice is like granite, and my throat hurts.We had tried other
I Reject You, Mate 52
"Yeah," Eliana quips, leaning her head against the glass tiredly. "I got her. I'm fine." Elijah's voice comes in through the receiver and close my eyes, listening in on their conversation. There's not much else I can do. I can't move, and it's a small mercy that I keep drifting in and out of what feels like a coma. I can at least take note of the landmarks. I can't hear a sound from my phone that sits in my pocket still. What if Ray's hung up? My location is turned on, so I'm not worried that I won't be found. It's a matter of when, because we've been on the road for hours. *"I told you I would handle it,"* Elijah chides, and I hear the worry in his voice. *"This is no child's play, Ellie."* "So you have said for weeks and you did nothing. You don't want me marrying Sinclair, and that's why you refused to kill her, so she could take his love and attention from me. I'm not stupid, father. I know how your mind works. Unfortunately," Eliana mutt
I Reject You, Mate 53. Doomed
Gin "You're wasting your time," I mutter, tired of the amount of needles being poked into my numb forearms. Seeing my blood being drawn again and again is starting to irk the shit out of me. "I'm surprised Alaric didn't already show you how to properly turn someone." Eliana taps the railing by the bed I've been strapped to. "And you're willing to share this with me?" I shrug. "Sinclair's going to kill you anyway. It will be knowledge wasted on you." Irritation flashes in her eyes, but she responds rather calmly. "You're delusional," the crazy woman tells me. How ironic. "You're the other woman. Sinclair and I, we have these sort of fights. He'll come around when you're gone." She says it so softly and intently that my skin goes cold. The ease with which she speaks of death is scary, for a human. Even I try not to speak or think often of the lives I have taken. It might have been a fight for my life, but killing another is nothing to tak
I Reject You, Mate 54. Thinly Veiled
Astrid"No, no and no."I can't believe we're having this conversation. It's bonkers, or whatever humans say. "There shouldn't even be a duel. He's her mate for crying out loud. He has no right over her."Rune sighs, fingers twining my hair to calm me. Queen Zephyr...well, she says nothing, staring out the window like the matter is of little consequence to her.But then, she has been like this since my father-in-law's secret came to light. Closed, distant, quiet. The only time she ever smiles anymore is when she is with Ember. She doesn't even talk to her mate. She stopped sharing his bed that day.For the revelries and the hearings, they act as one, but Rune and I, we see it all. We hear it as well. The arguments, her cries and shouts. She is hurt. Deeply.The time frame dates back to way before she became King Fenrir's Erasthai, so I know that it is not the fact he had a child somewhere else that hurt her, but the fact that he could abandon him, and hide it from her. It ta
I Reject You, Mate 55. Zephyr
ZephyrNails dig into wet soil, uprooting plants and flowers. Flowers I planted over the years, tending to them like they were the children I couldn't have after Rune.I look at my fingers. There's dirt in my nails and mud coating my palms. My nose scrunches up. How unbecoming of a queen.Unbecoming? The thought rips laughter from my throat. Before Fenrir, I was the carefree daughter of a Lord. I would roil in dirt for days, doing nothing but gardening.I had siblings but I wasn't like them. I was kind and naive, looking at life as nothing weighty or serious.Fenrir, he taught me how to be queen, even before my coronation. We would spend days and nights, past the curfew, reading scroll after scroll. He would watch me with keen eyes as I read and practiced for the duties and responsibilities that came with being his wife.And when I dozed off on the library's table, he would wake me with soft kisses on my neck. I would wake up with a hunger I didn't understand, and I would want
I Reject You, Mate 56. Agony
Gin"He should've told me!" Eliana screams, throwing the drugged wine bottle into the wall. It shatters, glass and wine splattering everywhere.She's having a meltdown when it happens. I hear it first, the whirring sound on the roof. My brows furrow at the thud that follows. Helicopter? Everyone has gone still, and Eliana's eyes dart about wildly. Feet hit the ground frantically and there are growls and groans. Ezra does a flip in me and she howls excitedly. I would too, but I can't move. He's here. I can smell him. The spice and citrus-y scent. My stomach falls and my heart takes off in a dangerous flight.Eliana looks at me then and I try to grin, just as someone storms into the hall, panting. "We're leaving now. Boss's orders!"The next few minutes are the longest in my life, yet, I can't exactly narrate it. Perhaps, it's the drug in my system and the fatigue that drains me faster than I can help.My bed is suddenly in motion, pushed by unseen hands. I blink, and Eliana c
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I Reject You, Mate 79. Epilogue
NAOMIIt is indeed amusing, more so than I thought it would be.Dane would laugh his head off if he saw me right now, carrying a backpack, strutting down a hallway filled with women who stare at me with wide eyes and men who whistle unabashedly. I know, I look good in leather.I halt by a huge door, peering up at a sentinel who has the sternest stare. “Hello, love. Would you mind opening up for me? I have an appointment with your…principal?”His gaze rakes me from head to toe and rises back again. “Chancellor Vesper,” he mouths slowly, like he’s talking to a kid, and I can’t help the faint smile that blooms across my lips at the notion. The male turns around, and I whistle at how nice his ass looks in uniform. Stepping foot into this land has brought me across the finest specimens I’ve ever seen. There is no end to them. None at all. I step out of my allotted room in castle—hot guards. I walk the streets of Lycanthia—extremely hot villagers. I walk into school—stunning, beautiful and
I Reject You, Mate 78. It's Not Mine, I Swear
It’s not mine, I swear.“I’m sorry,” my husband apologizes for the umpteenth time, dropping a kiss to the curve of my mouth. It’d almost been a mishap. Almost. Had Ethan not swooped in with rings that I’m pretty sure were new; rings I didn’t choose. As if he somehow knew Sinclair was going to lose them, like he did during his wedding with Eliana. I currently have a fucking plan B on my ring finger and the more I look at the more I want to smack him.I purse my lips, refusing to speak to him. I’m not particularly mad, but how does a man forget his own damned wedding rings? Okay, maybe I’m a little irked, and plenty disappointed.Grasping his cool hands tightly, I let him spin me across the floors in an elaborate sweep than earns cheers and I blush, smiling at a clapping Ray. “I’ll murder you later,” I tell Sinclair and Dane chokes on his wine somewhere in the gathering.“I look forward to what method you’ll chose. Your hands are much too small to strangle me. You love me too much to p
I Reject You, Mate 77. Wedding
Three Months Later…GinevraMy fingers are sweaty around Rune’s arm, and my steps are slow, a complete contrast to my racing heartbeat. I cannot, for the life of me, contain my excitement and anxiety. My breaths are shallow, and I can’t get enough air in my lungs.Rune’s larger hand lands on mine, and I glance up, looking through the veil. His green eyes smile as he pats down gently. “Think of tonight. It’ll help.”Tonight. Butterflies scatter in my stomach. It’s not like it’s going to be my first night with Sinclair, but it is my wedding night after all. The first night I’ll spend as Mrs. Winchester. My toes curl in my heels at the thought of it, and maybe, just maybe I start walking a little faster to get it over with.I grin widely as Ethan, dressed in a black tuxedo, gives the huge door a large push and it parts wide enough to reveal the floral petal pathway. Rune takes the first step up, and I follow, blowing a playful kiss at Ethan, whose lips tilt up into a small smile.As I st
I Reject You, Mate 76. Forty Human Years
Fenrir Leaning against the wall, he overlooked the gardens where his mate knelt, tending to the flowers with her bare hands. Her light hair brushed over her cheek and she pushed it back, smearing mud on her porcelain skin. Her eyes were the brightest he’d seen them in days, and he wished he could take her with him.It was for her, after all, that he was doing this for. He would right the only wrong he had done in his life. He would return to the past, and ensure he never even met with the boy’s mother.But Fenrir knew there were consequences and sacrifices to be made if he was going to toy with time. Nothing as drastic as losing his life, but he truly did wonder if the world might have been a better place without him. An awful thought. If he didn’t exist, Hekate wouldn’t have been reborn into Rune’s body and the problem with the Void would never have been resolved. Zephyr would have been mated to some lord who didn’t understand her meek, yet wild nature and desires. The world was
I Reject You, Mate 75. Ginevra
GinevraSinclair bounces the Viper into the driveway later in the afternoon. He kills the engine and I wipe a stray tear from my cheek before he can notice.I reach for the doorknob, but he’s already walking around the car to get it for me. I try to get out on my own, but my feet won’t hold me up. I’m exhausted. Recovering, but still very tired. The physician said the poison was completely gone and a few days of rest would be enough to get me back on my feet. He had insisted that I still stay, but I couldn’t stand being at the castle anymore.“Let me,” Sinclair says softly, hands sliding under my knees as he lifts me up. His face has a nasty grimace when he glances up. “I’m afraid we have guests.”I follow his gaze to the familiar cars parked around the yard and I smile a little. “They must’ve missed you.”“We very well know they’re just busybodies,” he mutters, carrying me inside. “I’ll get the urn when—”“Leave it there,” I whisper, closing my eyes to push another onslaught of tears
I Reject You, Mate 74. Son To Father
SinclairHe walks around his desk, red robe flowing behind him, and he walks past without looking at me. At the last second, he says, "Walk with me, Norman."Norman. The impulse to rip his skin off his bones pounds through me, but I know it'll get me nowhere. I push off the door, trailing behind him slowly as he walks, hand folded behind his back.The silence stretches on for some time before he stops before a huge black door, pressing his palm against it. The door shudders and slides open, revealing a vast orchard. I hesitate at the threshold, but the king continues on, robe dragging across the grass. "If I planned on killing you, you'd be dead already, boy.""You call me boy one more time, I'll kill you," I promise, following behind him.The door shuts with a loud boom and he turns to me. "Give it a try. You know you want to."His eyes taunt me. Try, if you dare, they seem to say. I don't do well with threats or challenges. I lunge for him, my fist connecting with his jaw. The secon
I Reject You, Mate 73. Father To Son
Sinclair“I’ve gotten most of it out, but I’d need to administer the antidote over the next few days. I’d advise you remained at the castle for the time being, lest her condition deteriorates.”“You’re welcome to stay,” the man who I will not call my half-brother says behind me softly, and I ignore him, watching Gin shiver and sob in her sleep. I had barely stepped out of the hall when her body began to spasm in my hands.A quick inspection, and the wound from the arrow stabbed into her shoulder had turned black. Poison. It’d explain why her father died so quickly. An arrow I assume was meant for me.Naomi fidgets by the door, rattling off something to Astrid, even as her gaze keeps darting back to Ginevra. She feels guilty, and that’s a first for Naomi who doesn’t give two fucks about anything or any one else. She talks a lot when she’s nervous, and scared, and right now, even I am frightened. For Gin. She’ll recover from the poison, but I’d never seen her so…lost.A guard suddenly a
I Reject You, Mate 72. Her Kill
The seconds blend together and I’m there, beside my father, unable to breathe, to think a way out—Father’s form begins to morph, crumple, as he shifts. I look up, and the physician is a few feet away, but even I know an arrow in the throat is as fatal as a severed head. Still, I wail and plead. Anything to get it out, anything to get the wound to heal—because it’s not. It’s turning black instead, and it’s spreading so fast, I’m scared to blink, or I’ll lose time again.Father’s eyes, now back to being blue, shift to mine, and for the first time in so many years, I see clarity in them. He starts to talk but blood sputters from his lips, and I place my hands on either of his cheeks. “No, don’t…don’t try to speak.”I feel wet, warm hands on mine, and I look down to see him grasping my fingers tightly. It is odd. It’s been so long, I no longer know what his warm touch feels like, and though it is foreign, I tighten my fingers around his hand, unwilling to let go.In the moments when some
I Reject You, Mate 71. Hell
The air lightens, for everyone else but me. I am bound by his order, and I watch in horror as Sinclair, free once again, tries to grab me. But I suddenly feel invisible fingers around my neck, choking me. I grab my neck, gasping for breath, and Sinclair halts, snarling at King Fenrir. "Let her go!"King Fenrir leans back in his chair, crossing his ankle over his knee. "Get in the ring then." He looks back at Astrid and Naomi. "Try anything funny, and I'll snap her neck." He snaps his fingers and my head starts to move in the wrong direction. "It's really that easy."Growling, turns in the opposite direction and pulls a sword out of a guard's hostler and he's in the ring before my neck can actually snap.The king's hold on me lessens enough to turn my head forward and watch them and I exhale deeply, breathing hard and sobbing.An elder I recognize--I'm too shaken up to remember what the fuck his name is--starts rambling off the rules that no one ever adheres to. I try reaching Sinclai
