There were no other options for me.
“Hello, Craven, my sweet,” she said, a seductive smile budding. “At long last, we’re together again. Go ahead. Admit it. You’re happy to see me. And if not, take a look at the body I’m offering you this lifetime. I think you’ll get very, very happy very, very fast.”
Like a fool, I heeded the command of my greatest enemy, my worst temptation, and swept my gaze over her incredible form. The first thing I noticed, however? She had bruises on her shoulders, abdomen and thighs, each one about the size of a fist. The sight of them had turned my stomach, fury spilling through me, seething just under the surface of my skin.
Someone had thrown rocks at her, and that someone would pay. No wonder she’d feared the avian outside.
My gaze roved over the rest of her. No other bruises were noticeable, only...only...my thoughts fragmented. Exquisite female. More curves than I’d expected. A flush. Would it burn me? Skin that looked as soft as a flower petal.
Softness wasn’t something I’d known in any of my lifetimes, but suddenly I craved it.
“I’m hoping we won’t have to fight this time, my love.” She traced a fingertip between the valley of her breasts. “Do you like what you see?”
I forced my gaze back to hers, one of the most difficult things I’d ever done. “You don’t want to fight this time? That’s a surprise. I seem to remember being attacked in the garden.”
“Oh. That.” She waved a hand in dismissal, all grace, confidence, and seduction. “You were building toward a tantrum, and you might have harmed this body beyond repair before we’d even had a chance to reconcile.”
Reconcile? “You cannot be serious.”
“Oh, but I am. I am your fated one. We are meant to be together. If you’ll just give me your marriage bracelet, I will vow to never again harm you or any of your people.”
Marry Leonora? I laughed. A wedding was the one thing she’d always wanted. The one thing I’d never given her. Even as I’d fallen in love the first time, even as obsession for her had consumed me a second time, I’d sensed something was wrong with our relationship.
“I see you’ve finally remembered our past lives,” I said, deciding not to respond to her proposal.
“For the moment.”
Would she be able to erase her memories again? “Is this a permanent stay or a quick visit?” When she had her memories, she had access to her magic, which must turn her eyes blue.
“What would you like it to be?” she asked.
“Stay. Please.” My mind screamed, Leave. “I cannot wait to give you the punishment and pain you so rightly deserve.”
“So you haven’t forgiven me for two minor wars?” She pouted.
“Minor?” I shouted.
“Very well,” she continued, and sighed. “If hurting the girl will assuage you, then by all means, hurt the girl. Recovery is no longer a problem. But when the time is right, I will return for good. That’s a vow. Prepare yourself. You will forgive me, just as I’ve forgiven you, and we will be a family at long last.”
She could control which side of her personality controlled the helm of her mind? Vibrating with menace, I stepped closer, wanting her to see my disgust up close and personal. “I will never be with you again, Nora.”
The endearment reverberated inside my head, stopping me cold. Why had I used my old nickname for her?
She grinned, smug now. “Oh, yes. I’ll be back, and you’ll forgive me. You’re halfway there already.” A second later, she collapsed.
The sense of connection returned in an instant, and I dove for her again. Water splashed over the rim of the tub, soaking parts of my tunic that had escaped the first dunking dry.
She was featherlight as I lifted her from the bath and carried her to the pallet of furs. Afraid I would break her and seething about it, I laid her down gently and covered her nakedness with the only blanket.
Mind in chaos, I sat beside her and bent my legs, resting my elbows on my knees. The things she’d said...
When the time is right... What did timing even matter? We didn’t get to erase memories of our past because we didn’t want to face them, then resurrect them another day, when we did. Yet she’d done so before. Would she do so again? And had she really referred to herself as “the girl”?
Who would she be when she awoke? Ashleigh, the one without her memories,