Page 57 of Bound (A Faery Story 1)
beside her and attempt in some way to make up for the way he had
treated her. He wanted to kiss her and hold her. He wanted to tell her
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Sophie Oak
how much she was already coming to mean to him. He wanted to beg
her forgiveness and promise to never, ever treat her that way again.
She wouldn’t believe him. He was obviously a man of no honor.
He’d proven it in the arena today. If he had a shred of honor, he
would walk away from her now. He could provide her with nothing
but a dying brother and a ramshackle brugh on a meaningless plane of existence. He should allow Dante to take her to his plane. At least
there she would be fed, clothed, and taken care of.
“Clean up.” His words were harsh to his own ears. “We leave in
an hour.”
“Sire,” Cara blurted, looking startled. “Surely you cannot expect
your bondmate to travel this evening.”
He stared down at the little gnome. He had been raised to be a
king, and though he was no longer that man, he still expected to be
obeyed without question. It had been bred into his character. A king
never explained his actions, even when they were wrong. He was sure
Cian would have knelt and explained himself to the small woman, but
then, Cian would never have been in this mess in the first place. Cian
would never have screwed up so badly with a woman that she
couldn’t stand to look at him.
“If you have a problem with it, I’ll take her now,” he said softly.
The little gnome held her ground, but he could see it cost her.
“No, Sire. I will make sure she is ready for the long and arduous
journey.”
Beck strode to the door. He needed a bath, but he wouldn’t disturb
hers. If things had gone as planned, he would have cleaned her up
himself. He would have shown her how tender he could be. He would
