and I want to make it very clear that nothing like that will ever happen again.”
“Excuse me?” I whispered, barely comprehending what I was hearing. “Are you out of your mind?”
“I am very serious. A relationship like that won’t end well for either of you, and that sort of distraction is the last thing you need right now. Your focus is to be on your training and the learning of our ways, and absolutely not on dating. Are we clear?”
“And I suppose the nature of our involvement is irrelevant to you? Even if I told you Alex had bonded to me?” And me to him, though I withheld that particular nugget.
“Impossible,” he dismissed, and even had the blood curdling audacity to roll his eyes slightly, as though I was nothing more than a silly girl with a starry-eyed dream. “You’re a Holder. It doesn’t work that way. You will get your head out of the clouds and do what needs to be done, before any of this gets worse.”
I felt my neck grow hot and my face flush as I looked at his aloof stance and stony expression. He expected me to just toss love aside, like it meant nothing. To throw it all away and focus on myself, not caring who I hurt in the process.
To be like him.
“So, let me get this straight,” I said, trying to unclench my teeth. “I’m not allowed to be with Alex?”
“Alex has nothing to do with this, you have no business being with anyone, not with the way things have turned out regarding your ability. Alex is a good man, and I expect you to handle the situation like an adult and give him the respect of a courteous explanation, and then focus your attentions where they need to be.”
In that moment, something in me snapped. “The respect of a courteous explanation? The respect of a courteous explanation?” I growled through my teeth. “What should I do? Should I send him a letter? Is that the adult thing to do?” He went rigid but didn’t respond, his lips pressing back into their hard line. “You’re the expert on ruining lives after all.” I smiled cynically. “By all means, tell me what to do. Should I marry him first, would that be better? Start a family with him, then dump him flat? Make sure he really hates me?”
“How your mother feels about me has nothing to do with this.”
“How she feels about you? If only!” I was shaking, I was so furious. “I wish she hated you! Dear God, you have no idea! But she never will. You dug your claws into her so deep that she’ll go to her grave defending you, instead of finally realizing what a selfish coward you really are.”
“There is nothing more I could have done to make it any easier on her!” he yelled.
“You have got to be kidding me! This, from the man who can literally alter memories and erase minds? You could have done anything you wanted! You could have made her forget all about you! You could have made her think she was the one who left you! Hell, even making her think you had died would have been better than a flat out rejection! You could have made it as easy on her as you wanted it to be, but you didn’t! And don’t give me any of that crap about not believing in interfering with people’s minds, because you know damn well that there is nothing you could have done to her mind that would be any worse than what you actually did.”
His expression hadn’t faltered once since I started, nor had he attempted to speak. He just stood there rock hard, his cool impassiveness only fueling my fire.
“And now,” I fumed, “you dare tell me who I can and can’t be with? Who I can and can’t love? You, who knows absolutely nothing about me? Expecting me to throw Alex aside so that I can focus on my own interests? I don’t know what’s worse; the fact that I have someone like you for a father, or the fact that you actually think I’m like you!” I finished, disgust heavy in my voice. I turned my back on him, stomping to the door, yanking it open.
“We’re not done here.” Jocelyn’s voice as cold as steel came from behind me.
I glared over my shoulder at him as I yanked the door open. “On the contrary, professor, you and I are more than