“I don’t care.” His eyes lit with passion. He cupped my cheek with one hand, and with the other, he pulled me against him. “I want you now.”
I took both his hands in a firm grasp and pushed him away from me. “But you can’t have me,” I said. “At least, not right now.”
His eyes shone with hurt. “You’re being serious?”
I nodded.
Sighing, he turned away. “You’re still lying to me. Why can’t you tell me the truth? You say you don’t want me, but your actions speak otherwise. I feel the spark between us. You can’t deny you feel it, too.”
How was I supposed to answer? Did I lie to him? Even if I did, he’d know. Lying had never worked before, and I knew it wouldn’t work now.
“Yes,” I answered quietly. “I feel it, too, but now isn’t the time.”
“When will the right time be? Tomorrow?”
“No, not tomorrow. Never.”
His eyebrows rose. “Never?”
“Not until your memories are back. I’m sorry, Kull.”
Standing tall, he crossed his arms, putting up a wall between us. “You should leave.”
Nodding, I backed out of the room. It was better this way. He’d hate me if I let him do this now.
When I got back to my room, I closed the door behind me and climbed in bed, pulling the sheets under my chin. I felt empty and cold inside.
Han slinked out of his hiding spot under the bed, hopped on top of the covers, and curled up beside my feet, purring softly. My thoughts wouldn’t let me sleep, and my emotions were so wound up I felt like a rubber band ready to snap.
I’d done the right thing, hadn’t I? Deep inside, I knew it was the right decision, even though all I could think about was the way his lips had felt on mine and the way his hands had caressed my skin.
As my mind wandered and I finally started to fall asleep, I felt Theht’s presence returning, making me speculate how it was I hadn’t felt her when I’d been with Kull. Was it because my powers were missing?
If so, maybe that meant there was a way to banish her, but before I could give the thought much more attention, my exhaustion caught up with me as I drifted off.
Sunlight streamed through the window. As I woke, I glanced at the clock. 7:13. I grabbed the pillow and held it over my face, wishing morning would go away. I so wasn’t ready for another day. I wasn’t ready to face Kull. Didn’t want to relive that embarrassing nightmare that was last night. How could I look at him straight?
I needed the old Kull back. Cursed Kull was someone I didn’t know. He didn’t even resemble the man I’d fallen in love with. Somehow, I thought I might regret not having sex with him last night, but now, I was relieved I’d done what needed to be done. I would’ve hated myself forever if that had been our first time.
After showering, changing, and making it downstairs to the scent of brewing coffee, I found Brent in the kitchen, buttering a piece of toast. He looked up as I sat on the barstool and grabbed an orange from the fruit bowl.
“Sleep okay?” he asked.
“Yeah. Wonderfully.” I hope he heard my sarcasm.
He raised an eyebrow.
“Has His Majesty made an appearance?” I asked as I peeled my orange.
“Haven’t seen him.”
Good. Maybe I’d figure out a way to avoid him altogether.
“When’s the big day?” Brent asked.
I raised an eyebrow. “Big day?”
“Yeah, you two are getting married, right?”
“Oh yeah, guess I forgot.” I sighed. “No idea. We’ve been so busy trying to find a lost sword and save the world that we haven’t made any wedding plans. To be honest, with the way he is now, I don’t know if it’ll ever happen.”
Brent nodded. “Maybe that’s not such a bad thing.”
“What? Not getting married?”
He nodded.
“Why would you say that?”
He placed his butter knife aside, seeming to think carefully before he spoke. “I’m just not convinced he loves you, that’s all.”
“That’s because you’re not seeing who he really is. This curse has made him a completely different person. He’s not usually like this.”
“You’re sure it’s a curse making him that way?” He spoke with a casual tone, but I heard the concern in his voice.
“Yes, I’m positive.”
“Hmm.” He took a bite of toast.
“You don’t believe me?”
“I think you’ve always had a problem with falling for people who don’t really love you.”
“What?” I laughed. “Okay, if that’s true, then are you admitting you never loved me?”
He paused before answering. “I think we stayed together because it was convenient.”
Ouch. “Then it’s a good thing I dumped you.”
“I suppose.”
“You suppose? You’re admitting that we never loved each other, but you only suppose it’s a good thing we broke up?”
“All I’m saying is I think you should really consider what you’re doing before marrying this guy. Are you sure he loves you? Are you sure he makes you happy?”
“Yes. I’m positive. I know you can’t see it right now, but he loves me, too.”
I’d had this same conversation in reverse after I’d met Kull, except then, we were discussing Brent. At the time, I’d had a hard time admitting I loved Brent, but this time, I didn’t hesitate to admit my feelings for Kull. I’d never been more sure of anything in my life.
“You’re right,” Brent said. “I can’t see that he has feelings for you at all, which is what worries me.”
We stopped speaking and ate our breakfast in silence. I would’ve reminded Brent of the curse, but I’d already explained it before, and I got the feeling he wouldn’t understand any better if I explained it again.
His Majesty finally appeared from upstairs and stalked into the kitchen. He
