Page 138 of Happily Ever Witch
His momentary relief evaporated. “Fuck the note! Youleftme. You ran off while I was asleep, because you knew I would try to stop you. I needed the mating ritual to ensure that it didn’t happen again.
“Iaskedyou how our separate lives deal worked and then I did exactly what you wanted.” Esmeralda gave a lofty sniff. “The rules didn’t say I had to wake you up, every time I leave the house. And anyway, that’s all behind us.”
“It’s not behindme. I’m still furious about it. I plan to be for quite some time.”
She kept talking. “Ifwe get married, it will be because I say ‘yes.’ That’s what we’re focused on, now.”
“We already negotiated that!” He sat on the floor, watching her pace. “We had a deal that you would decide on me, if I helped your dumbass brother. Well, you decided. You can’t back out of it, now.”
“You didn’t explain the fine print of that deal.”
“The rules didn’t say Ihadto explain it.” He taunted, tossing her words back at her.
They glared at each other for a long moment.
“Okay, time out.” She abruptly made a T-shape with her hands. “As I’ve been saying all along, rules are not our friends. Villains shouldn’t try to follow them. We suck at it.”
He grunted, because that was true.
“From now on, let’s just tell each other everything. It’ll be so much easier.”
He considered that proposal. “Everythingwe tell each other is true? Like the game never stops?”
“Yes. There needs to be honesty between us, all the time. Otherwise, we’ll keep finding ways to bend the rules and this crap will keep happening.”
Trevelyan nodded.“Deal.”
“Deal.” She pushed back a handful of dark curls and returned to arguing. “But, we’re still not married. You tricked me into it.”
Trevelyan promptly resumed the fight, too. “Because you would have refused, if I hadn’t. This way I get what I want.” He looped one arm around his knee, exasperated at how complicated she was making this. “It’s too late. The spell is set, just like we signed a marriage scroll. Nothing can change it.”
Esmeralda’s eyes narrowed, as if that was a dare.
Fuck.
He didnotwant to dare a level six witch to change something he didn’t want changed. Trevelyan had faith in the craftiness of his ancestors, but he hadmorefaith in Esmeralda’s fathomless magic. Who the hell knew what she was capable of, if she got mad enough? He didn’t need her brainstorming ways to get rid of him.
Trevelyan quickly backtracked. “It’s still a fair deal. I’ll save Marrok and be a good mate to you.” He made a face, because they’d just agreed to be honest. “Well, I mean, notGoodgood, but I’m loyal and I proved to you I could enspell guitars. Surely you can work with that.”
“I’m not married to you, unless I say yes.” She reiterated stubbornly.
This was insane! The woman was already his. There was simply no denying it. Except she was denying it. How could he stop her from denying it?
Trevelyan thought for a beat. Witches’ mating customs were different than dragons’. If he didn’t give her theopportunity to choose him openly, she wasn’t going to accept their bond.
Esmeralda was too much like him, in too many ways. Death or freedom. Even if it beyond-a-shadow-of-a-doubtexisted, she’d continue to view their marriage as illegitimate, if she felt trapped. That wouldn’t do, at all. Everyone needed to know Esmeralda was his, especially Esmeralda.
“Alright.” Trevelyan switched to a different tactic. Dragons kept trying strategies until one worked. It was how they racked up so many victories. “What will make you marry me?”
She blinked at him, like she hadn’t expected that question.
Trevelyan raised his eyebrows at her obvious surprise. “A mating ceremony in your culture is a wedding. We can have one of those.”
Women liked weddings. At least his sister did. Marion planned another elaborate marriage ceremony to Nicholas ever year or so, dragging her poor True Love through a new mess of seating arrangements, cake tastings, and the occasional barbarian invasion.
Esmeralda looked wary, but at least she was listening.
“I told you, I can compromise with my mate. …Even when she doesn’t want to admit that she’s my mate.” Trevelyan persisted. “I want to get married, in a witches’ ceremony. So we canbothfeel like we decided.”
