Ra’Sa wants…children.
I can't be pregnant. I won't ever be able to handle that again.
Ra'Sa is dangerous—far more than I ever realized.
I'd been a fool for thinking he could be swayed. I'd been a fool for thinking I could ever control any part of this. I need out. I need to get away.
I shake my head and push away. “I can’t be your mate.”
“I never asked?—”
“I can’t—I can’t.” I look up at him. “If a song sings between us, I don’t think I would accept.”
He grows defensive. “Was my kiss so repulsive?”
I swallow hard. “I—You—You don’t know how to care for humans.”
What the fuck kind of answer was that?
The damage hits him square in the chest anyway. His face falls into a grimace.
You weren’t meant to be a mother.
I’d heard that my whole life. It seems I wasn’t meant to be a mate either.
Slowly, he pushes me off of him and helps me replace the sleeves of my dress. Once I’m clothed, he stands and pushes out of the tent.
“Ra’Sa,” I call. If he leaves me alone out here, wolves could find us. Or more of those pale, red-eyed creatures. "Please. I didn't mean it like that. Forgive me?—”
“Sleep. I will be near.”
Chapter 14
RA’SA
“Move your wrist faster,” I grumble as I carry Melisa through the snow.
“Put your glamour back on,” she retorts.
I find it’s easier to travel with my skin blue and my tail long. This morning, I was weary from the poor rest, so I didn’t even bother using Thorne’s glamour.
“No. Now move faster.”
Melisa practices her knife work while nestled in my arms. Perhaps it’s masochistic to keep her so close to me, but I can’t help myself. She is injured. There’s no way I would have her walk like this.
“It’s disappointing that this is the only way you wish to wear me out. I swear, there are much more fun ways to work up a sweat,” she pants.
I try not to notice the way her black hair sticks to her skin or how the cloak parts to reveal her soft, full hips and thighs in the red gown.Especially because of what she said last night.
“There is no better way to prepare to enter Zlosa than by ensuring that you know how to defend yourself,” I retort, and she falls silent.
The quiet doesn’t bother me much. It helps to think about our exchange.
Or rather, her rejection. If it had been anyone else, I would’ve believed it and left her be. Cut myself off.
Optimism does not come easy to me. I tend to see the worst in people. But Melisa is decidedly different. I’m not sure why.All I know is that a sensation deep in my gut tells me to hold on.
I want to help her.