Page 40 of A Touch of Iron
I really wasn’t in the mood to have this conversation. I felt so guilty just being in his presence. Even so, I didn’t regret my actions one bit. “What do you want, Ansel?” I said, unable to stop the annoyance from creeping into my tone. “There’s nothing you can say—”
“I’m sorry,” he interrupted me. “I realized I never apologized to you for bringing your mother here. So … I’m sorry, Violet. I truly, truly am. I never intended to hurt you.”
Hearing him say those words brought on a fury he didn’t anticipate.
“But you did!” I yelled, snatching my arm from his grip. “You brought my mother into this mess knowing full well the danger you were placing her in and knowing I never wanted it!”
His green eyes glossed over and he lowered his head. “I know. I was wrong. I should have thought of a different way. I—”
I waved off his late apology. “It doesn’t matter, Ansel. You did what you did, and I can’t forgive you.”
“So that’s it?” His jaw tightened. “We’re over just like that?”
I swallowed and stared at his distraught face, finding it difficult to swallow past the lump in my throat to answer him. The minute I had sex with Alec, it was over between me and Ansel for good. Besides that, if he ever found out,hewouldn’t forgiveme. Not that I’d cheated on him, but still, I had relations with his brother. The one he warned to keep his hands off of me.
“I—”
“Violet, we’ve been through too much for things to just end this way,” he said desperately. “I love you!”
“But I don’t,” I choked out, my eyes widening when I realized what I admitted.
His face was a mask of confusion. “What?”
I stumbled backward and stared at him. “I … I don’t love you, Ansel,” I confessed. Until now, I hadn’t realized the truth of my words.
Ansel entered my life at a time when I was at my most vulnerable. I’d lived my entire life thinking I was crazy because I saw the fae, which my mother had done to protect me from the world in which I was currently embroiled. He helped me unearth the secret that was kept from me my whole life. Ansel was the first fae I met, and understandably I got attached because in my eyes, he was my savior. But was that the only reason I liked him? Were there other reasons?
I knew my words hurt him in a way I didn’t intend, but it had to be said.
His face darkened. “Is that why I smell my brother all over you?”
My eyes widened and my stomach lurched. “What?”
Ansel laughed snidely. “Don’t forget how keen a fae’s sense of smell is. You didn’t even bother to shower to get his scent off you!” he snarled.
I wrapped my arms around myself, feeling self-conscious and ashamed. “That’s none of your business.”
“Like hell it isn’t!” he shouted, taking a menacing step toward me. “Of all the fae in this world, why did you have to choose my brother?”
“Ansel!” a sharp voice called out. I was the only one who turned in their direction, surprised to see Kazimir approaching. “This is neither the time nor the place to have this discussion.”.
“No!” Ansel growled without looking his way. He grabbed my arms hard enough to leave bruises and roughly hauled me toward him. “Why? Tell mewhy!”
“Let go, Ansel!” I gritted between my teeth and tried to pull away, but his fingers dug in more painfully. “Ansel!”
“Release her!” Kazimir demanded, his voice low and deadly. “Now.”
When Ansel didn’t acknowledge him, Kazimir reached across me and ripped his hand from my arm. I quickly stepped back, rubbing the tender skin.
Ansel seemed to snap out of a daze, his eyes wide as he gaped at his hand and then at me. I knew he didn’t mean to, but it didn’t take away from the fact that he hurt me. No matter how mad he was, he had no right to grab me that way.
“Go!” Kazimir demanded. “She doesn’t want to speak with you anymore.”
The horror of what happened was clear on Ansel’s face. He slinked away with his tail between his legs, hurrying out of the courtyard and back toward his room.
I was alone with Kazimir, my father.
He turned to me, scrutinizing the marks on my arms and then at my face. “Are you okay?” he asked stoically.
