Page 61 of Ashes of Betrayal

“Maybe not … but if I’d made this about Enya and not about me, I might have acted differently.” His face twisted. “Instead, I had to get my revenge. I didn’t care about anything else.”

Bree made a frustrated sound in the back of her throat. “Self-pity doesn’t look good on you.”

He jolted at that. His eyes narrowed then.

She stared back at him, unflinching. Fortunately, his gimlet stare had never cowed her. She had to get through to him, even if that meant he turned the rage that was eating him up inside on her.

She could weather it.

“Aye, you’ve made mistakes … I have too,” she said after a long pause. “Back in Morae, I’d lost hope … but you gave it back to me. Now, I’ll return the favor by telling you thatneitherof us is a lost cause.” Her pulse quickened as his gaze glinted. “The truth is that Eilig mac Frang had it coming. Is it your fault that Enya has poor taste in men?”

“You talk as if my sister had a choice,” he countered roughly. His fingers now held the cup in a death grip. “She didn’t.”

“Neither did you.” She leaned forward then, her fingers gripping the edge of the table. “You both did the best with the fate the Gods dealt you.” They stared at each other across the table, the air drawing tight between them. “But you’re wrong. This has never been just about vengeance, Cailean … you might not realize it, but you were looking for redemption as well.”

He snorted, the firelight playing across his taut face. “Don’t make me sound noble,” he ground out. “I’m not … and after everything I’ve done over the years, I don’t deserve salvation.”

“I refuse to believe that,” she shot back. “There’smuchabout you that’s good. You’re loyal, steadfast … protective.”

Anger darkened his face, and he shoved himself up from the table. “I’m not listening to this horseshit.”

Undaunted, Bree rose swiftly to her feet and moved around to face him. Ancestors, he was tall. Even though she was an athletic Shee female, she still had to raise her chin a little to hold his eye.

“Aye, you will.” She shoved him in the chest, deliberately provoking him. “You looked out for Mirren and dealt out justice after she was raped, even though you angered the High King. You sent me back through the stones when you could have thrown me to the wolves. Shades … you even earned the love of a fae hound.” Tears stung her eyes then. She couldn’t help it. The emotion gathering in her chest was overwhelming. “And if you want to make things right with your sister, we’ll stay here at Cannich until you do. But don’t you dare give up!”

Moments passed, and she watched the anger drain from his eyes. “It won’t work.” His voice was thin now, raw. “She’ll never forgive me.”

“Aye, she will.” Bree broke off, her heart pounding. “But first, you need to forgive yourself. Let this self-loathing go. Let. Me. Help. You.”

Cailean stared down at her, his expression anguished. “You deserve better than me, Bree.”

“No.” She shook her head, vehement now. “We were meant for each other,” she whispered as a tear slid down her cheek. “Alone, we’d never have broken free of the past. Together, we’re stronger. Better.”

His lips parted, and something like wonder darkened his eyes. Lifting a hand, he brushed the back of his knuckles across her cheek.

Bree couldn’t help it; she shivered.

“My stubborn, fiery wife,” he said huskily. “You won’t let this go, will you?”

She huffed a shaky laugh. “Never.”

His gaze turned limpid, his thumb skimming lightly over her mouth and down her jaw to her neck. It then settled in the hollow between her collarbones, where her pulse fluttered.

A wave of dizziness swept over her.

Reaching up, she steadied herself by placing her hands against his chest. And under her right palm, she felt the thunder of his pulse. “Cailean,” she breathed, as longing twisted deep in her chest.

“It’s terrifying,” he whispered back. “The power you have over me”

“And you … over me. You could crush my heart, you know?”

“But I won’t.” He slid his other hand up and cupped the back of her head. “Instead, I will guard it.” He bent his head, his lips brushing her cheek. It was difficult to concentrate then, for the tip of his tongue circled the shell of her ear.

A deep sigh shuddered out of Bree, and her fingers splayed wide against the wall of his chest. Her body was melting now, their surroundings fading. The crackle of the fire in the nearby hearth, the wail of The Whistle against the walls—all of it disappeared as Cailean walked her backward.

And there, pressed up against the stacked-stone wall, he cupped her face with his hands and kissed her deeply, tenderly.

Bree kissed him back with the same gentleness. In the past, their embraces had been fevered, wild. But the emotion of this moment couldn’t be denied. After their fraught exchange, they both needed this.

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