Page 125 of Bound
Markus sits back in his chair, his fingers steepling before him. “I see.” Another forceful push of air. “Any guess on which way he is leaning?”
“Not a clue,” I mutter and drop into the chair across from him.
His yellow gaze tracks over my face. “What else has happened?”
“Am I that easy to read?”
“Not to anyone that has not known you and watched you grow these last twenty years.”
So many responses press at my lips. I force them all down and grip the armrests. “If I asked to leave Lock Lake, would you let me go?”
Silence.
“You wish to return to the Sith?”
My heart pummels my ribs. “Yes. No.” I rock forward, arms on my thighs. “I don’t know.”
“Is this because of Amoret?”
“Again, am I that easy to read?” I ask, arching a brow.
His smile is tight. “I don’t want to lose you, Gage. But I have not bound you here. There is no contract, no requirement.” He appraises me for several heartbeats. “Do you love her?”
“No,” I say. “But I crave her. Not merely her body, but her smile. Her happiness.” I climb to my feet and pace before his desk. “I hold no title here. No prestige. I tarnished my name under the Hill the day I fled. It would take years to rebuild it. To relearn how to control my fire there. But for her …”
“You would try.”
I look at him and can only nod.
He stands from behind his desk and walks to me. His hands are cool as they land on my shoulders, even through my shirt. But strong. Familiar. “Any woman that would ask you to change, is not the right one.” I open my mouth to argue. “I am not saying she is not worth your love, Gage, when you are capable of loving her, merely that no decision made in haste is a happy one.”
“Then what do I do, Markus?” I ask. “I want her. For the first time in longer than I can remember, she makes me feel calm. She tames this.” I flex my hand and my fire rolls over my palm.
His topaz gaze flicks to the flames before his hands squeeze my shoulders one last time. He steps back with a sad smile. “Is she the one that tamed it, Gage, or did you find someone worth caring about enough to tame it yourself?”
