Page 100 of Tail, Dark and Handsome: Celestial Mates
“My best feature,” he repeated, sounding wary.
“I’m pretty upset with you right now. I’m tempted to say your only redeeming feature.”
He ran his thumb along her cheek, wiping away tears she had not realized that she shed. “I believe you also have the wrong end of the twig. I detested Rebel at the end. We were in the process of a divorce.”
His voice sounded so calm, so even, and his words rocked her. She misunderstood everything. “A divorce? But you—”
“She was my childhood friend, not a sweetheart. That was a story fabricated for the media by my father. I already told you of the circumstances that led to our mating.”
“The war.”
He nodded. “The Troubles. Revel was my friend from when we were kits, and his little sister followed us everywhere. I wanted to help my friend, but we were not well suited. She was talented and all the things people say, but she was also vain and selfish. Spoiled. As the years went by, we grew more and more hostile toward one another. Her heart belonged to another.”
“Chase?”
“He had been too young to marry when she needed an escape from Talmar. I knew they were having an affair. They were discreet for a few years but grew less so over time. I did not care as long as she did not do this in front of our kit. She often stayed in the city with Chase. She said it was for performances, but we both knew.”
“Then why not separate?”
“Public perception. My father kept tight control over us.” Winter tilted his head back and sighed, his breath fogging in the air. “At first, I think I was too young to believe I could go against him. By the end, he could not control two grown adults who were decided.”
He paused, as if noticing the scarf hanging loose around her neck. His fingers brushed against where the chain dug in. “He injured you.”
“It’s fine. It didn’t take much force to snap the necklace.”
“Chase and Rebel brought out the worst in each other.”
“He loved her.”
“And blames me for her death, yes.” He brushed the back of his hand against her cheek. “I do not speak of Rebel because I do not believe I can speak fairly of her, and I do not want Zero to hear me disparage her.”
She thought back to every time someone brought up Rebel. Winter’s mood darkened, and he lashed out at anyone near. She mistook his pain as a broken heart, not a man trying to be respectful to a woman he loathed. She wanted to ask what happened that night, but he had already shared so much. His nerves must have felt raw. Another time, then.
“Thank you for telling me,” she said.
“Are you cold?”
“I’m suddenly feeling warmer.” She stretched up on her toes and brushed a kiss to his lips. “We talk to each other, okay? When we’re upset, we talk.”
“Agreed.”
“Good, because yours is the only face I want for the rest of my life.”
His ears twitched, as if confused, but he said, “You have my heart.”
“Good thing, because you have mine.”
Chapter 22
Where’s Rebel? Winter Cayne denies any knowledge of that tragic night, claiming a head injury. Witnesses claim to have heard Winter threaten the pop star, grabbing her roughly and threatening bodily harm…
-Tal Tattler
Marigold
The days leading up to the Harvest Festival were fraught with little dramas. Zero’s date with Clarity approached, and he grew increasingly dissatisfied with his wardrobe. He never struck her as being particularly fussy about his appearance, but this was adateand he didn’t want to blow it with ratty old shoes.
Insert eye-rolling. There. It’s like you were there.
