slipped his hands into his pockets. “Those were extenuating circumstances.”
“What if I want to call off the bargain?” I raised my chin and crossed my arms while studying his face for a reaction.
He shook his head. “It can’t be done.”
“Why not?”
He sighed. “We struck a magical bargain. It doesn’t just bind me. It binds both of us and will hold us to its terms that we put forth to one another. You use the sands of time to travel back and in exchange, you promised me a favor.”
I shook my head. “Which you still haven’t told me what it might be. What, will you demand my firstborn child as your “favor”?”
His gaze roved my body. “Believe me, if I wanted a child from you I could think of better ways to go about it than entering into a contract.”
I snapped in front of his face. “Yeah, well, I’ve changed my mind. So consider this contract a bust and get the hell out of my house.”
He ran a hand through his hair. “Joey, I’ve told you I can’t do that.”
“Why not?”
“Because, lamb. You know too much. Where I live, what I can do, that I possess magical artifacts. I’ve made you immune to my thrall which means we can’t pass this off as a bad dream. The only way to go is forward.”
Just as the cat had claimed. I took a step away from him. Was that some sort of threat? My room was sadly devoid of weapons.
“Don’t look at me like that.” His tone was irritated.
It was the first time I had heard him sound anything but cajoling and playful. “Like what?”
“Like I’m going to hurt you. I can’t cause you any sort of harm.”
“Can’t, not won’t?” I asked.
“I am physically incapable of hurting you per the terms of our contract.”
“Not because you’re a decent person who wouldn’t ever hurt a woman?”
“I’m fae. We interpret things differently. I can’t tell you I’ve never hurt a woman because hurt feelings like the hellcat over there would count.” He nodded to where Puck sat, watching our exchange.
“What I can tell you is that I have no intention of causing you any sort of harm,” he continued.
“It’s too late for that,” I wrapped my arms around myself and turned to face the window. I wasn’t going to admit that I had foolishly begun to have feelings for the trickster. That I enjoyed how I felt when he gave me those heated looks and begun to think that maybe being with him for more than the sake of our bargain was a possibility. When was the last time I had felt appreciated as a woman instead of middle-aged window dressing?
But Clara was right. I’d allowed Robin to charm me into a contract that he was now claiming I couldn’t get out of. She hopped up onto my dresser and sat at eye level, the piercing green of her gaze condemning.
Add another regret to Joey Whitmore’s ever-growing heap of them.
“Lamb,” he began tentatively.
I rounded on him. “Do not call me that. My name is Joey. And I may be trapped in this damn bargain with you but that’s where this—” I gestured between our bodies, “—ends. Now, send me back.”
“No!” The cat screeched. She lept for me, claws extended.
I ducked, shielding my face from the coming scratches. Robin caught her by the scruff of the neck and walked to the bedroom door. She struggled and hissed and spat, but couldn’t free herself from his grip.
“I’ll deal with you later.” He deposited her in the hall, then shut the door, effectively trapping her outside.
He turned, his sapphire gaze assessing. “Are you all right?”
I put a hand to my chest and could feel my heart thundering. “She really doesn’t want this to happen.”
As though punctuating my statement, a thud sounded outside the door. And another.
“Is she really trying to break the door down?”
“I told you, Clara has her own agenda.” Robin turned away from the door so that he was once again facing me. “Are you sure you’re ready?”
I nodded. “If there’s no way to go but through, I’m ready to go through.” And to hell with the consequences.
Robin reached into the pocket of his dark coat and extracted a familiar looking box. He opened the lid, displaying the hourglass. “Grab a handful of sand, about a third of that in the hourglass. Good. Now, picture the day you want to return to. The sands of time will take you there.”
“Just like that?” I asked.
He nodded mutely.
Hesitantly,