Chapter 19
Chapter
Nineteen
Minerva
The first thing I was aware of when I woke up was that my chest ached. The second was the feel of soft breaths against my temple. I opened my eyes, blinking when I saw a familiar ceiling. My bedroom ceiling. Based on the light seeping around the curtains and the shadows dancing on the walls, it was very early in the morning.
How did I get here?
Turning my head, I looked to my left and saw Talant stretched out on the bed next to me, his face only inches from my head with one arm tucked beneath his head and the other resting across his abdomen, his hand dangling onto the bed right next to my arm. He was close and facing me on his side, but he wasn’t touching me.
I moved slowly, my head fuzzy and light, and looked down my body. A light blanket was draped over me, covering me from my chest down. The pain in my chest reminded me of the heat and fire that hit me when Talant broke free from the trap created by the coven. I lifted the edge of the blanket expecting a severe burn, something that would require serious healing magic. Instead, my skin was only red and peeling as though I’d gotten a nasty sunburn.
I blinked at the sight of my mostly whole sternum. Someone had healed me because there was no way my skin would be sealed and mostly smooth otherwise. I also should have had a gnarly scar.
Talant stirred next to me, so I tucked the blanket back against my skin, wincing when it touched the tender new skin that ran between my breasts.
“You’re awake,” he murmured, his voice raspy with sleep.
I tilted my head to the side to look at him. “Yes. How long was I out?”
He sat up, looking down at me so I didn’t have to crane my neck to see his face. “A little over twenty-four hours. Maybe closer to thirty.”
I gestured to my chest. “Who healed me?”
“I did.”
“You have healing magic?” I asked, unable to keep the incredulous tone from my voice.
“Yes. Specifically for damage caused by fire and heat.”
I supposed that made sense. His power seemed to be based in fire and blood.
“Thank you,” I said.
“Don’t thank me,” he rumbled, leaning over me and reaching for the edge of the blanket.
I held it down to keep him from tugging it away from my chest. “Why not?”
He paused when I wouldn’t release the material, his eyes flicking up to mine. “Because I’m the one who injured you in the first place.”
My memories of the cavern were foggy at best. “Are you sure? There was a lot of magic flying around the cave.”
“I recognize the damage caused by my power,” he replied, his eyes intent on mine.
His fingers tugged at the edge of the blanket. “Let me see the wound.”
I refused to release the fabric. I was naked beneath it, and I had a feeling he had already seen too much of me.
“I look like I have a bad sunburn. It’s red and peeling, but that’s it,” I said.
Talant cocked his head as he studied me. “I still need to look.”
“No, you don’t,” I argued.
The blanket started to slip from my grip, so I curled my fingers into the edge, anchoring it to my chest.
“Minerva, I’m the one who cared for the wound when I brought you home.”
“I was unconscious then. I’m fine now.”
A smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth. “I never took you to be shy.”
I squinted at him. “I’m not. I just prefer not to give you a cheap thrill.”
His amusement fled, and he released the blanket so suddenly that my body jerked. He looked almost…hurt.
“There is nothing thrilling about knowing that you were hurt because of me and my inability to protect you from my magic. I promised Ally I would take care of you and keep you safe. I broke that promise.”
He sounded as if the thought tore him up inside. I stared at his face, wondering if he truly meant those words. Everything about his expression and tone indicated sincerity, but it was so difficult for me to trust my judgement in my current state. My head wasn’t clear, and my entire body felt heavy.
“What are you thinking?” he asked.
“I’m trying to decide if I’m of sound mind,” I answered.
“Why?”
“Because I want to believe you mean everything you just said, but my brain also feels like a fried egg, so I’m not sure I can trust my gut at the moment.”
His jaw clenched at my words, and I could practically hear his teeth grinding. “Of course I mean them,” he growled. “I told you that I have changed. I don’t want to go back to my old life. I want to do more with my power than accumulate more magic or wealth.”
I reached out, putting my fingers on the back of his hand. “Okay. Please calm down. I like this bed and my blankets, and I’m not sure I could jump out of bed if you set it on fire.”
He sighed as he closed his eyes and shook his head. “You will always think the worst of me, won’t you?”
“Trust comes with time. Your actions tell me every day what your intentions are. I don’t know you the way Ally does. Even if I did, I don’t trust easily. I can’t afford to.”
“Has someone broken your trust before?” he asked.
I withdrew my hand from his. “Of course. Everyone has had their trust broken at one time or another.”
“Who broke yours?”
I opened my mouth, my mind completely blank. There was an entire list of names and faces that I could count off, but in all honesty, it was Fate that had broken me. By taking my parents. My sister and her husband. Because if I couldn’t trust in the very fabric of the universe, how could I trust him? How could I explain it without sounding as defeated and bitter as I felt? I was saved from trying to stammer an answer by my bedroom door being thrown open.
“I see the witch lives.”
The words were drawled.
I tore my eyes from Talant and stared at his brother lounging in the doorway to my bedroom, his arms crossed over his chest. He wore a pair of shorts I didn’t recognize. Where had his clothing come from?
“You sound disappointed,” I replied, heavy on the sarcasm. “Too bad.”
It surprised me when Davian smirked, obviously amused by my words. With that expression, he looked so much like Talant that my heartbeat stuttered.
“Brother, if you’re going to antagonize the witch, I’m going to make you leave the room,” Talant growled, his head twisting to stare at Davian.
Davian dropped his arms and sauntered deeper into my bedroom, stopping at the foot of my bed. “Are you expecting me to thank you for showing up?”
I recognized the power play for what it was. “Actually, knowing what I do about you, I don’t.”
His smirk became a full-out grin. Strangely, while his smirk made him look like Talant, his smile changed his face completely. There was still a resemblance to his brother, but his features were sharper, more angular.
“Then, I won’t bother.”
I rolled my eyes, which made him chuckle. Then, I looked at Talant.
“His mood is much improved from the last time I saw him.”
Though I was speaking to Tal, Davian was the one to answer. “I’ve had time to discover more about you, witch. Your home and your friends have been very…informative.”
When I tried to push myself up into a sitting position, Talant’s hand landed on my bare shoulder, keeping me down. I shot him a harsh look before focusing on his brother.
“I wouldn’t snoop about too much, Davian. You never know what sorts of annoying things you might stumble on. Like curses that will make your balls feel like they’re on fire.” As for my friends, I wondered who he was talking about.
It was Talant’s turn to chuckle at my words. His brother merely studied me with narrowed eyes.
“You’re a skilled liar,” he admitted. “I can’t tell if you’re serious or not.”
I raised my brows at him. “There’s only one way to find out.”
I was bluffing for now, but there would be some hexes created as soon as I was out of this bed. The nosy bastard had no right to go through my home.
“Davian, step out,” Talant interrupted. “I need to check Minerva’s wound.”
His brother rested a hip on the end of my bed, turning his back to me. “I promise not to peek.”
Before I could open my mouth to tell him to get the hell out, Talant flicked a hand in his direction. Smoke unfurled from the seat of his pants and Davian leapt to his feet cursing.
“Gods dammit, brother!” he roared.
“Out!” Talant said, pointing to the door.
Still swearing under his breath, Davian stomped out of my room, slamming the door behind him. Talant rose from the bed and followed, stopping to lock the door and pocket the skeleton key.
When he faced me, his expression was serious. “I need to look at your wound.”
I sighed, knowing that he spoke the truth. If he was the one to heal me, he needed to check the progress of the magic.
“Fine. Bring me my robe.” When he opened his mouth, his intention to argue obvious, I waved a hand at him. “I don’t care what you did or didn’t see while I was unconscious. I’m awake now, and I prefer to be as covered as possible while you inspect the wound. It’s not up for discussion. You either get my robe, or I will kick you out of my bedroom and call Ally to come check it. Since she is your Annointed, I’m sure she could figure out if your healing spell worked or not.”
Talant scowled at me but did as I said. My robe was at the end of the bed, but I would have to crawl forward to grab it, which meant exposing parts of my naked body. Something I wasn’t ready to do because I felt vulnerable enough in Talant’s presence.
I took it from him and sat with it in my lap, staring at him until he sighed and turned around.
I waited a few moments, making sure he wouldn’t turn back, before I let the blanket fall to my lap and pulled the robe around my upper body. The new skin on my chest pulled and ached a bit, but it wasn’t too bad. Once I was covered, I rearranged my pillows so I could recline back against them.
“Okay, I’m done.”
Talant grunted but didn’t say anything else as he turned to face me. He sat on the edge of the bed, leaning over me and reached for the robe.
“I’ll do it,” I insisted.
His hands paused, and he flashed me an annoyed look. “I’m hardly going to rip the garment apart if I touch it.”
“I know, but I’m uncomfortable enough with this as it is. I need to control something so I’m choosing the robe.”
“Fine. I need to see the wound.” His voice was gruff, and it was clear that he was irritated.
I parted the silk revealing the long line of skin. Even in the short time since I’d woken, the redness had faded a bit, becoming more of a dark pink.
I held my breath as Talant touched two fingers to my chest, just below the place where my collarbones met, and traced them down the line of the wound.
Grateful that my wrists rested over my breasts and hid the fact that my nipples hardened at his touch, I focused on controlling my heart rate.
Then, I forgot all about the sensation of his fingers tracing my skin because he pressed gently over a spot just below my sternum, and pain flared to life. I tried to control my wince but couldn’t stop the sharp inhale that the pressure caused.
“Did that hurt?” he asked.
“Yes. It’s very tender.”
His index and middle finger continued on their path down my torso, tracing the line all the way to my naval. He stopped in several places and put more pressure on the area, but the pain was much more manageable.
“You’re nearly completely healed,” he said. “Since you weren’t conscious, I handled most of the magic externally, but you need a bit more internal healing.”
His eyes lifted from my chest to my face. “A few drops of my blood should do it.
I knew my eyebrows were close to my hairline as I stared up at him. “Excuse me?”
“You need to drink a few drops of my blood to complete the healing. Otherwise, you run the risk of opening the wound again for the next couple of days.”
I wanted to insist that I would be just fine without his blood, but then I remembered that his brother was in my house, bound to Devil Springs by ancient runes, and probably not inclined to wait for me to recover before he started pressuring me to release him from his promise.
“Fine, but I need to know something before we do this,” I stated.
“My blood won’t give me power over you,” he said. “If anything, it will give you power over me.”
My mouth snapped shut. I couldn’t believe he’d just admitted that. Not just admitted it but did so with no prompting from me whatsoever.
“Okaaay,” I drawled. “Thank you for telling me, but that wasn’t my question.”
His eyes burned mine as he waited for me to ask.
“Will…the same thing that happened in the hotel room happen again?”
Streaks of ruby fire appeared in the amber of his irises. Our faces were only a foot apart, so I could see the color change immediately. The temperature within the room also rose a few degrees, making a light sweat break out on my skin.
“Are you asking if you’ll come again?” he asked.
I tried to scowl at him, but knew I failed because I had to swallow hard to get rid of the sudden lump in my throat.
“Yes.”
His expression was lusty as his eyes trailed down my face to my still-bare chest. When his gaze returned to mine, I could practically see flames burning in his eyes.
“As lovely as that was,” he began. “It won’t happen when you take my blood.”
The sinking sensation in my chest had to be relief. There was no way it could be disappointment.
No way.