Chapter 17
Chapter
Seventeen
CAELAN
Isent the edict down less than twenty-four hours later.
All Shifter Lords were to be out of the Lord of Texas and the Borderlands’ Territory within eight hours of receiving notice.
Soren sat in my study watching me carefully. “What happened?”
“Evie happened,” I snarled.
“All terrible decisions do seem to stem from a woman,” the other Lord said dryly.
When I sent him a dark look, Soren merely laughed. “I’ll be out of your property within the hour, but this edict will raise some eyebrows among the others. Maybe not your precious Rowan, but Donovan will come sniffing around.”
“Let him come.” I was itching for a good fight anyway.
Seymour sat beside me, traps waving around like he was at a rave. He hadn’t lunged for Soren, surprising both of us, though Soren knew better than to reach for him. The Red Dragon flytrap had shown a disturbing sentience and grew more intelligent as the days passed.
“Would you like to talk about it?” Soren asked, the whiskey tumbler he held glinting iridescent as the light hit the crystal.
“She flat out refuses to have anything to do with me,” I said before I could zip my lips.
Evie was the most frustrating woman I’d ever met.
Soren’s brows flicked up. “Even a carnal relationship?”
“She’d just as soon I never darken her doorstep than let me show her my dick.”
Soren’s laugh made me snarl softly. “Maybe your Floromancer needs a gentler wooing.”
I told him what Evie said to me. Even repeating the words sent pain through my soul. What had happened to her to make her think such things? After everything, why would she think she’d stand alone?
Soren’s expression sobered. “Someone has profoundly hurt your Evie. Do you know anything about her ex-husband?”
I didn’t think her ex had everything to do with it, though he probably held some responsibility. “Not much on record. They were married for a while. The divorce was abrupt and went fast. Evie left without much of anything other than the clothes on her back.”
“And now?”
“I believe he’s remarried and has children.”
Soren studied me. “How old are those children?”
I stilled as the dates clicked together in my head like the last puzzle piece, and a low curse tore from my throat. “That sonofabitch.”
He held up a hand. “Infidelity can leave anyone heartsore for the rest of their lives, but a spouse having children with their affair partner can break someone.” His face softened. “Especially if Evie wants children.”
I was such an asshole. This wasn’t everything. Evie’s secrets were deep and held tightly, but this was yet another hit to her psyche.
“When did you become such a good person?” I groused.
Soren laughed. “I promise I’m no such thing. You see this on the inside, and I’m looking from the outside. I am not emotionally tied to your Floromancer. Not like you or Rowan.”
My attention was a jagged thing. “Rowan?”
He grinned. “Murder lurks in your eyes, Caelan. Tone down the glow, please. Rowan has no designs on Evie that I can see, only a deep-seated need to protect her.” Soren frowned. “From us, no doubt.”
He scrubbed a hand over his face. “When did we become such insufferable jerks?”
“She likes Rowan best,” I growled.
Soren rose and set his glass down. “Because he’s not insufferable. Perhaps we should try it.”
“Good luck trying that with the vampire,” I said.
“Moira has no idea of the charm offensive coming her way,” Soren said with a wink.
He paused at the door. “Even I can see your Floromancer has a tender heart. She might possess a spine of steel, but it doesn’t mean she is not vulnerable.
If you wish to win her, you must first understand her.
That is the way to her heart. Gain her trust, Caelan. The rest will follow.”
I thought I had it, but apparently the gods were laughing at me for my blind assumption.
Soren slipped out, leaving me in a silent study, staring at the wall as I mulled over his words.
Gain her trust. The rest will follow.