Page 128 of Bonded Chaos

My words died on my tongue, not wanting her to hear the desperation in my tone.

But then my resolve snapped.

Fuck it. I was desperate.

“Cadence, I can’t withstand this anymore. Your silence is worse than any torture I’ve ever endured.”

Her jaw tightened, but she did not speak.

I dropped to my knees in front of her, casting aside my pride as desperation clawed at me, tearing me apart from the inside. My hands gripped the arms of her chair, and I turned it toward me.

I leaned in, my face mere inches from hers.

“Fuck, Cadence, I need you,” I whispered. “I need to hear your voice. Hurt me if it’ll bring you some godsdamn peace, but don’t sit there and pretend I don’t exist.”

Cadence’s eyes flicked to mine, and the brief acknowledgment made my heart stutter. But her gaze was cold and unreadable. It pierced deeper than any blade ever could.

For a moment, I thought I saw a shimmer of emotion in her chocolate depths, but it vanished as quickly as it had appeared. Her lips parted, and I inhaled sharply, praying to the gods for the first time in my life that she was about to end my misery and speak to me.

Instead, she exhaled a soft breath and turned away from me, staring back out the window into nothingness.

“What would you have me do, Cadence?” I begged. “Do you want me to carve my heart from my chest and place it in your hands? I’ll do it. Just say the words.”

Cadence rolled her eyes as if I wasn’t ready to do just that.

“Tell me how to fix this.”

But Cadence only pressed her lips together in a tight line, denying me any hope of my salvation.

A low growl rumbled in my chest as frustration and despair warred within me. I sat back on my heels before pushing myself to my feet and pacing the room as if I were a caged animal. My magic thrummed beneath my skin like a furious tempest, and Iresisted the urge to pull Cadence across my knee and spank the defiance out of her.

As much as my cock stirred at the thought, something told me she wouldn’t be agreeable to that idea.

I raked my fingers through my hair, gripping the strands as I tugged.

I welcomed the pain.

Any distraction from the thick, oppressive silence that stretched between us was a welcome one. My control was slipping under the weight of her indifference, and I knew that if I didn’t rein myself in, I’d only push her further away.

I stalked toward her again, my footsteps light but deliberate. Cadence tensed, and her body went rigid. But she still wouldn’t look at me.

Once more, I lowered myself to my knees. I took her hands in mine, and when she didn’t pull away, I thanked the gods for that small mercy.

“If you don’t want to speak to me, that’s fine.”

It wasn’t.

I figured I had one day left in me at best before I lost it and did something foolish.

“I’ll talk, and you can listen.”

Cadence shifted in her seat, and that was all the encouragement I needed to continue.

“I know I fucked up. I understand my actions have hurt you, and while you may not believe me, my main priority has always been your safety.”

Cadence snorted, and I couldn’t help the smirk that lifted my lips.

“Fine, I was also driven by an insatiable need to keep you at my side. To mark you in a way that everyone would know exactly who you belonged to.”

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