“See?” Rowan released my hand. “You may not see me as a villain, little treasure, but it’s exactly what I am. It’s what I’ll always be.”
“Hey.” I snatched his hand right back. “I wasn’t done holding you.”
Even in the dark, I saw the surprise in his eyes.
“As for what you said about the whole villain thing…” I stopped walking and turned to him. “Lord Onyx saved us that day in the dark wood. He could’ve let his demons rip us apart, but he chose to spare us instead.”
“Your point?”
“Maybe the concept of heroes and villains is a myth,” I said. “A person can’t be defined like that. We’re always evolving. Growing. What matters is the decisions we make each day.”
Rowan regarded me in silence.
“What?” I asked as the seconds ticked by. “Do I have something on my fac—”
His mouth crashed to mine. Standing in a forest with the scent of pine and earth all around us, his scent surged forward, hitting me the strongest. He tasted like spice, each swirl of his tongue on mine an explosion of heat.
“I was right,” Rowan murmured against my lips. “You’re going to destroy me.”
“I don’t want to destroy you.” I rested my forehead on his. “I want to love you.”
He released a shaky breath. “You can’t love me, little treasure. And I can’t love you either.”
“Why?” I touched the golden cuff holding his hair to the side before running my fingertips over the dark auburn strands. “Because you’re afraid?”
“Because I’ll hurt you,” he said in a broken voice, eyes pained. “You say what matters is the decisions we make, but all of mine are self-serving. One day, whether it’s today, tomorrow, or years from now, I’m afraid I’ll give in to my nature and do something I can’t ever take back.”
“One of those men will either love you… or kill you.”
Lupin’s prophecy rolled through my head as I held Rowan’s gaze. Our choices in life steered us down certain paths. And my path, it seemed, was charging straight toward the edge of a very steep cliff. What waited for me at the bottom of that cliff, cuddles or death, was a mystery for another day.
I pressed another kiss to Rowan’s lips. His mouth trembled against mine as he sank his fingers into the back of my hair.
Tonight, I chose to trust him.
***
“We’ve been walking for hours,” I whined as Rowan led me through the forest. “Ask the shadows to fly us the rest of the way.”
“It hasn’t been hours. More like thirty minutes.” He smirked. “I didn’t peg you for a lazy muffin.”
“I’m not lazy. I’m just selective with my energy output.” The ground began to elevate, and my steps grew more sluggish. “Are we going up a hill?”
“Up the mountain, actually.”
“You really want to kill me, don’t you?”
“Not even a little.” Rowan pulled me along with him. “You amuse me too much.”
“Glad I can be of service.”
When the incline steepened, he kept hold of me to ensure I didn’t trip. My gentleman thief. The trek had me breaking a sweat despite the chilly night, but I kept my whining to a minimum. I was happy to be with him. “Do you think we’ll find any gemstones up here? I’d love to bring one home to Briar.”
“Always thinking of your men, aren’t you?”
“Yeah. I am.” A pang hit my heart. “They’re everything to me. Guess that makes me a lovesick puppy, huh?”
“Oh, without a doubt. It’s sickeningly sweet.” Rowan helped me over a fallen log, then continued up the hill. “How does it work? You loving so many men. They don’t get jealous of each other?”
