Tabitha refused to listen to his argument. "Get dressed and meet her. It'll only take a minute and then she'll leave."
"But-"
"No buts, General. I'll be waiting at the stairs and if you're not there in five minutes, I'm going to bring her up here."
Amanda sat in a burgundy chair near a heavily draped window. She looked around the formal, elegant mansion. Unlike her home, there was nothing inviting about it. It spoke of a man who was stern and formidable, pretentious and condescending. Cold. Even a little evil and scary.
Everything she'd been told to expect from Valerius Magnus.
How had Tabitha ever hooked up with such a man? Her sister was none of those things.
Well, Tabitha could be evil, but in her twin's case that was an almost endearing quality.
It seemed to take forever before she heard Tabitha coming down the stairs.
"Tabitha!" The hushed tone was stern and commanding.
When Tabitha didn't lash back with a caustic retort, Amanda got up to investigate. She stayed in the shadows so that she could see Valerius with Tabitha on the stairs.
He was dressed in black pants and a black button-down shirt. From what she'd heard of him, she'd assumed his hair would have been cropped very short. To her surprise, it brushed down to his shoulders. His face was elegantly sculpted. Perfect.
Power and control bled from every part of him. This was definitely not the kind of man who attracted Tabitha.
Ever.
He glared at her sister as if he wanted to choke her. "You can't have her here. She has to leave immediately."
"Why?"
"Because Kyrian would die if he ever found out his wife was in my home. He'd lose his mind."
"Val-"
"Tabitha, I'm not kidding. This is cruel to him. You have to get her out of here before he finds out."
Amanda was shocked by his words. Why would he care how this affected Kyrian when Kyrian would gladly see him dead?
"Amanda wants to meet you, Valerius. Please? Just for a minute and then I'm sure she'll head home."
She scowled at Tabitha's calm, rational tone. Normally when her sister didn't get her way, she turned rather violent. Or at the very least, shouted.
His face softened instantly as he reached out and cupped Tabitha's scarred cheek in his hand. "I hate when you give me that look." He brushed his fingers over her eyebrow and smiled gently at her. "Okay." He dropped his hand to hers, then pulled it up and kissed the back of her hand.
Tabitha kissed his cheek before she stepped away and headed toward the library.
Her heart thumping at what she'd just seen, Amanda stepped back into the room so that they wouldn't know she'd been spying on them. But as she waited, images of their encounter played through her mind...
Valerius couldn't believe he was about to meet his enemy's wife.
Tabitha's twin sister.
He'd never been more nervous or unsure of himself.
But he refused to let that show. Stiffening his spine, he walked into the library, where Tabitha greeted her sister.
It was extremely odd to listen to them speak to each other. The only way he could tell their voices apart was their vocabulary. Tabitha had a unique way of speaking, whereas her twin sister was more eloquent and proper.
Amanda's eyes widened a bit as she scanned him from head to toe. Whatever she thought of him, she gave no clue.