Chapter 9
chapter
nine
Gideon
I couldn’t be happier than I am right now. A month ago, Verity became mine. Okay, she blushes hotly when I tell her all the depraved things I want to do to her, but I suspect she secretly loves my dirty words. Her breath hitches when I say them, like her body is already responding to the promises she knows I’ll keep.
I pull Verity close to my side as we walk along the city street, headed for a deli to get her favorite Reuben sandwich for lunch. We pass several “monsters,” including a gargoyle who’s also with a human female and a guy who looks like some kind of demon, judging by the red eyes and forked tail.
“How are you doing, sweetheart?”I ask, squeezing her hand.
I want my girl to know she’s always safe with me. We monsters have been around for a while now, but our presence can still be unsettling to humans. People stop in their tracks when they see me walking in their direction. I don’t kid myself that it’s anything to do with me as a person—they don’t know me—but more to do with the hypnotic effect my species has on them.
Oddly enough, Verity isn’t like that—probably because she still doesn’t look into my eyes for longer than a split second. She doesn’t seem to notice the attention I draw, and I hope that’s because I go out of my way to make her feel cherished. She may avoid my gaze, but I only have eyes for her.
Verity smiles up at me as we continue to walk, resting her hand on my chest for a moment. “I’m good, Gideon. It’s sucha beautiful day, so clear, and the sky is so blue.”
I don’t care if the sun is shining or it’s pouring buckets of rain. I’m with Verity, and that alone makes the day incredible. Lava could rain from the sky, and I’d still be happy, walking down a busy street with the woman who stole my heart the moment I laid eyes on her.
I inhale a happy breath as we turn down a side street, lost in each other and nothing else. I’m not paying attention to the group of young men until they move in front of Verity and me. In fact, I don’t pay them any heed until one of them grabs Verity.
He pushes her in the direction of another man who’s holding a gun. All five men look to be in their early twenties and are wearing hoodies, even though it’s a warm day.One of the men is also a gorgon, while the rest appear to be human.
“Give us your fucking money, freak,” the guy with the gun demands.
Those are his last words because I turn him to stone with a single look. I turn to the young gorgon with a glare of menace that should have him backing up, but he puffs out his chest. Too bad because I have a few years of practice on him, and he also turns to stone. It won’t be permanent because his gorgon DNA will kick in after a few minutes, but it’s enough to immobilize him for now. The other guy will take a little longer to defrost because he’s human.
Another of the guys rushes at me, but I thrust a massive fist in his face. He flies back and hits the wall before he crumples to the ground, unconscious.
There’s no need to be gentle with these assholes, as far as I’m concerned. They chose violence, so I do the same. Besides, I will do anything to protect Verity.
Another one comes at me from the side, but in a flash, he’s a statue, proclaiming for all tosee why you shouldn’t mess with a gorgon in love.
The last one pushes Verity away so roughly that she falls, scraping her knees and palms. Her red cotton dress looks amazing on her curves, but it does little to protect her fragile skin. My rage breaks free the moment I see blood on her torn skin, and the man is at my mercy in seconds. My first punch knocks him to the ground, and his mouth starts to bleed in a way that satisfies me more than it should.
“You don’t touch women. Especially. My. Woman,” I snarl between clenched teeth, punctuating the last word with a fist into the man’s face.He howls in pain and grabs his face, and blood spurts from his nose.
“You broke my nose, you freak,” he yells.
I step back from him, noticing the blood splattering on the ground and his hoodie.
I turn to ensure that Verity is safe. She’s shaking but standing right behind me. “It’s okay, sweetheart. It’s okay. I’ve got you. I won’t ever let anything happen to you.”
I try to soothe her, but she pulls away, her head down. Worry creeps in, but I swallow my fear. It’s the adrenaline. Everything is fine.
“Can we go home now? I’m not hungry anymore.” Verity’s voice is subdued.
We walk back to my car, my hand on the small of her back. Once I’ve got her seat-belted in, I go to the driver’s side. I glimpse my reflection in the tinted window and freeze.
There are blood spots on my face. What must she think of me now? I get into the car and put my hands on the steering wheel. Blood cakes my knuckles, likely a mixture of mine and those I hit. I wince, squeezing my eyes shut.
Verity can’t even look me in the eye for fear of being turned to stone. How can I expect her to forgive the violence? Today, I proved to her that I’m nothing more than a monster.
I’ll do anything to keep her safe, even if it requires me to walk away from her.
I don’t speak as I pull onto the road and head to the highway.
Verity lives a quiet life. She tutors monster children and spends the rest of her time with her best friend, Alice, and lately with me—in my library and in my bed. Even the monsters she chooses to work with are among the gentler species. She never puts herself in harm’s way, and thus far, it’s protected her from things like this. From the darker side of my life. From the struggle to contain my monstrous nature for the sake of living harmoniously, even when threatened by assholes like those men.
I sneak a glance at her. She has her skirt pulled up and is looking at her scraped-up knees. I hand her some napkins from the glove box.
She was injured because of me.
While she’s cleaning up, I pull out my phone and message one of the guys at my security company, giving him the location where we were attacked. He’ll get the injured guy patched up and send the others on their way with a boot up their asses once the petrifying spell wears off. They better not cross my path again because I’ll kill them next time.
The fact that I’m still feeling a murderous rage prickle under my skin is proof that I’m not good enough—not human enough—for this beautiful human.
“I’m sorry, Verity.”
“It’s not your fault. You didn’t send those miscreants after us.”
Her voice is strained and edged with fear.
“Let’s just go home,” she says again.
I turn left at the next intersection, heading toward Verity’s place. The drive is silent, save for the sounds of traffic around us.She makes a noise in her throat, and I see from my periphery that she’s looking at my face.
Likely, she expected me to take her back to my place. That was our original plan.
But I need her to be safe.
The only way I can ensure that is if I’m far away from her.
I glance at my bloody hands gripping the steering wheel.
This is for the best, I tell myself. Despite the crushing weight of knowing what I’m about to do, I know it’s the right thing for her.
I pull into the driveway and put my car in park. But I make no move to exit.
“Gideon?” she asks, her voice barely more than a whisper.
I don’t turn to face her. “I suppose it was only a matter of time before you saw me for what I am.”
“And what are you?”
“I’m a fucking monster.”
She releases a shaky breath. “What does that make me?”
“Too good for me. We’re not a good idea. I can’t keep you safe.”
Verity shakes her head, her eyes shining with tears. “Is this about those kids? It wasn’t your?—”
“It’s not about those kids. It’s about me,” I say through gritted teeth. “I’m not good for you. I’m sorry, but we’re done. It’s for the best, Verity. I’ll have my assistant let you know once I’ve vetted the team for the translation project.”
“I see.” Her shoulders slump as the first tear rolls down her cheek. “I’m sorry, too. Sorry that you don’t see the wonderful person I see. Goodbye, Gideon. Take care of yourself.”
Verity is out of the car before I can say anything else.
I wait until she disappears into her apartment. Then I put the car in reverse and leave, though it feels like the worst decision I’ve ever made. My heart is cracking in two, a pain far worse than anything physical.
I hate leaving her like this, but what else can I do? She’s too precious to me to put her at risk. And if I stay, she’ll never look at me without a touch of fear. She’ll never be able to look me directly in the eyes.
Better for me to hurt her now before I put her at greater risk and make a mistake I can’t undo.