annulled on the basis of cross-species incompatibility.”
I’d looked into the legalities the moment my uncle handed me the marriage certificate. My uncle could still access all my belongings and wealth, but only once the power of attorney kicked in, which would happen when I went full kraken.
“I don’t understand.” Her nose wrinkled, and I noticed that the stud in it was a little turtle. Cute.
My gaze dropped to her midsection, wondering if she still had the pearl nestled in her navel.
“You married me,” she continued. “Wasn’t that supposed to break the curse?”
“There’s more to it.”
“Of course, there is. When isn’t there?” She sighed. “Hit me. Why didn’t getting married work?”
She seemed genuinely curious. It didn’t make it any easier to admit why it’d failed. “Do you love me?” Awkward to ask. Even worse to see her reaction.
She recoiled. “What kind of question is that?”
“You asked why it didn’t work. For the curse to break, not only must I wed someone of the Farseer line, but they must also love me. Without the aid of magic. Or threat.” As if I’d threaten anyone without cause.
My uncle would say my life was enough cause. But I liked to think I could aspire to better than that.
“The cure demands a true mating. Shit.” Said softly. “I’m sorry.”
“Why are you apologizing? This isn’t your fault. It’s neither of our faults.”
“That just makes it more maddening.” She paced in front of me, and I drank in the sight of her—her hair a tousled storm of platinum strands, her eyes flashing, the color constantly changing, swirling. A man could get lost staring too long into those eyes.
“I take it you didn’t know about the curse.”
She shook her head. “First I knew was that letter your uncle sent. And I panicked.” Her shoulders lifted and fell.
Not quite an apology. “You didn’t want to marry a monster. Understandable. This entire situation is a shitshow, which is why it will end with me.” I did my best to sound nonchalant about my future.
“What do you mean?”
“Unlike my father and his father before him, I chose not to subject a child to this doom. I am choosing to break the curse in the only way I can.”
Her eyes widened. “You’re going to sacrifice yourself.” Then she slapped me. “Why the fuck would you just give up?”
“Hey.”
She whacked me again. “Don’t be a coward. Just because you see a future that might suck, that doesn’t mean you stop trying. There’s always a different path to try.”
For some reason, my lips crooked into a smile. “Is this an invitation to seduce you? Sex equals love?” I arched a brow, being deliberately crude since she didn’t seem to grasp why I had no other choice.
“Sex…” She glanced down at herself and then me, her expression thoughtful. “Married but not yet consummated. Could be a technicality.” Her gaze dropped to the bed.
I stepped back. “I am not going to have pity sex with you.”
Sasha glanced at me. “You’ll enjoy it.”
“It’s not going to happen,” I growled. “You don’t want to be married to me.”
“No, but I’d rather be married for a while than see you turned into a monster.”
She tugged off her shirt.
I might have stopped breathing as she stood there in her bra. It wasn’t the fact that she had a gorgeous body—that went without saying—or that she’d revealed her bra and the swell of her breasts. It was the implication.
She stripped to have sex with me. As a favor to save me.
Not because she liked me.
I took another step away from her.
She frowned. “You really aren’t comfortable with us having sex.”
“Call me old fashioned, but if it happens, it should be because we both want it.”
“I want it.” The words emerged from her in a husky murmur.
“But do you love me?”
Because the curse was specific.
Her head hung, giving me the answer.
“It’s not your fault,” I said softly. “Perhaps if we’d found each other sooner…” Maybe I would have had a chance to woo her, to explore this strange thing that existed between us. Or at least, used to exist.
The way she was looking at me, I might as well go for a swim and not bother coming back.
“There has to be another way.” She wrung her hands. “I’m looking and looking, but I don’t see anything. Just water. And more water.” She paced as she muttered, staring off into space.
“Have a good life, Sasha Farseer.” I moved past her, my heart as heavy as my steps. Hoping to feel a gentle touch.