Chapter Eighteen – Thea
Chapter Eighteen
Thea
I couldn’t sleep, but I just wanted to keep my eyes closed and enjoy being carried, held, protected. Who would’ve thought I needed closeness so badly? I was a solitary creature. I had friends, but every time I saw them, I felt drained after two hours and wanted to go home and hide under the covers with a book. The last time I’d dated someone was a few years ago, and the relationship had been lackluster. We came from the same world, our parents were friends, and we should’ve had a lot in common. We didn’t. Then I found out he was seeing other girls, and I made him my ex over text.
It was different with Taran. We’d just spent an hour at the stream, talking and getting to know each other, and I didn’t feel drained at all. I felt energized. I’d lied earlier when I said I was exhausted. Well, not really. I was. My ankle hurt, the cuts on my body throbbed, and my muscles were sore. Physically, I was a mess. I would need at least a week to recover after this ordeal. But mentally, I was alert. He’d made me curious. About him, about his world...
I had so many questions, but I needed to take a moment to think first. Reassess my situation. Taran was right. Now that I knew who Soren was, was I still going to marry him? My brother’s future was at stake, but was it worth this sacrifice? I loved Matthew with all my being. The things I’d seen on Markus’s phone were scary, though. Scarier than him trying to kill me.
Now that I knew Taran was here and had been here all along, I was at ease. The bodyguards that worked for Monster Security Agency were professionals, and my father had chosen him well, given the terrain and his skills. He knew the woods better than anyone. Now I was certain he’d helped me with the bear, too. He must’ve stopped the animal, otherwise it would’ve run after me. There was no way a human could outrun a bear, so it must’ve been Taran. He’d brought me my backpack, too. So, I hadn’t hallucinated. I’d lost my backpack in my madness to get away from the bear, and he’d silently retrieved it and left it where I would find it.
It was overwhelming to think he’d watched over me since the moment I entered the woods and this nightmare began. I was still embarrassed that he’d seen me in my most vulnerable moments, but he hadn’t said anything so far. He didn’t seem to think that I was a weakling, or that I was a stupid girl doing a stupid thing.
Maybe he wasn’t judging me because he was my bodyguard, and his job was to protect me, not regal me with his personal opinions. I hoped it wasn’t just that. Not that I should’ve cared what he thought... He was working for my dad. I didn’t care about the chauffeur’s opinion, so why would I care about Taran’s?
Except he’d changed his appearance for me. No one had ever changed something for me. It felt special. Until I saw the man that he was emerge from under all those branches and vines, I hadn’t realized how handsome he was. In his leshy form, I’d noticed his personality – kind and caring. I’d noticed his strength. Knives or no knives, Markus hadn’t stood a chance. Already, all those were qualities that would make a girl melt. And then he’d become this tall, strong, lean man with long black hair, eyes as dark as the night, a sharp chin, a perfect jaw, and beautiful cheekbones. He’d sculpted the straightest, most noble nose I’d ever seen on his young face, and I couldn’t help but wonder if he’d done it specifically for me.
“You’re not sleeping,” he said.
We’d been walking for an hour.
“I’m resting.”
He didn’t say anything. I opened my eyes, feeling embarrassed that he’d found me out. What was he doing? Listening to the way I was breathing? I noticed how the vegetation moved out of his way as he passed, and I remembered it had done the same for me. At that time, I didn’t understand what was happening. I’d thought it was the wind or my imagination. Again, it had been Taran.
“I can try to walk if you’re tired,” I said.
“I never get tired.”
“Never?”
“Never.”
Oh, to be a monster. Compared to them, humans were a joke.
After a while, he was the one to break the silence. “I want to ask you something, and you don’t have to answer.”
“Okay.”
“Why are you doing this?”
I was afraid that was going to be the question. Of course. Anyone would’ve asked me why. I was starting to ask myself why.
“I’m doing it for my brother. He got into a bit of trouble, and Soren can make it public. He owns a newspaper. And before you ask me, I don’t know what my brother did, but the story landed on one of his editors’ desks, and he promised to kill it if my dad asked me to marry him.”
“And that’s not fucked up at all.”
I chuckled. “I know it’s fucked up. But what was I supposed to do? Say no?”
“That’s exactly what you should’ve done.”
I sighed. “Matthew is my brother. I want to help him if I can.”
“Not like this.”
“You don’t understand.”
“It’s a marriage of convenience,” he said. “What don’t I understand?”
“They’re the norm in my world. No one gets married for love. Even my parents got married to join their fortunes. They fell in love later, after they had Matthew and me.”
“That is... sad.”
“They’re happy. Even if it was hard at first, they love and respect each other. They’re best friends.”
“Is your father much older than your mother?”
I laughed. “He’s a bit older, yes.”
“Soren Sinclair is a lot older than you, I hear.”
“Yeah.” He wasn’t telling me anything new. At this point, it was more like Taran was the voice of my conscience. He was reflecting my thoughts back at me, forcing me to dig deeper. “I’m not going to pretend I like this.”
“You’re going to have to pretend if you marry him. You’ll have to pretend for the rest of your life.”
I fell silent. I thought he was going to push the matter, but he respected my silence. The sun was starting to set. Another day had gone by, and I was getting closer and closer to the resolution.
“We’ll have to stop soon,” Taran said, as if reading my thoughts.
“Whenever you want to stop, it’s fine by me. It’s not like I’m doing the walking.”
He laughed. His chest didn’t rumble like I expected it to. I couldn’t hear a heartbeat either, nor feel it rise and fall as he breathed. He was so different, so mysterious... I had no idea how a leshy worked. Did he ever eat? Did he need to eat?
I had a feeling I wasn’t going to sleep tonight. Too many things to think about, too many questions to explore.