He moved to touch her, but she stepped back. He was just trying to keep her in line. Being physically affectionate with her had worked so far. It wasn’t surprising he would try it again. “Sure.”
He reached out and pulled her into his arms. “Meggie, don’t cry. It will be fine. We need money. I have to work. I told you I spent the last of our gold on the tournament.”
She stood stiffly in his arms, knowing better than to try to break free. She would only make a fool of herself, and she’d done enough of that lately. “Fine.”
He sighed and seemed reluctant to let her go. His hands found her hair. “I’m sorry about last night. I hope you won’t hold it against me.”
She shrugged and wished he’d just go ahead and leave. “I won’t bother you with it again. I didn’t understand.”
She knew he’d been fighting something. She’d just been wrong about what he had been fighting. He didn’t want to have sex with her. She was convenient, and he was male. He needed sex, but he’d obviously found the experience distasteful. He always shut down the bond. Now she knew why. He didn’t want her to know how he really felt. It should have been obvious even without the bond. After all, he had chosen to sleep in a barn rather than sleeping with her.
And yet she’d felt his need the night before. It had broken over her like a wave crashing on a beach. She’d seen little pieces of his soul. There was a kindness in Beck that didn’t mesh with his current cruelty. He loved his brother. He’d risked his life to save her. At times, she’d felt a genuine affection come from him. The confusion had her in knots. But in the end he couldn’t possibly want her if he was willing to leave her.
He smiled slightly, a little uptick of his lips. “You just don’t understand our ways, yet. It’s going to be fine. You’ll see.”
“Sure.” She replied because he seemed to want a response. She couldn’t see that anything would be fine.
He reached out and tilted her head up. A lazy, warm look came over his handsome face. “May I kiss you, wife?”
That seemed to Meg to be the cruelest thing he could do. She pushed away from him. “Don’t call me ‘wife.’ Call me your bondmate or whatever, but I’m not your wife.”
His eyes flared at the challenge. “You damn well are, and you better not forget it.” He took a deep breath and got back on the bike. “Don’t try leaving, Meg. I’ll find you, and I won’t be happy when I do.”
He patted Dante on the shoulder. The bike levitated roughly ten feet off the ground, and they took off.
“Where the hell would I go?” Meg asked, to no one in particular.
She was alone in a world that was so foreign it was legendary on her home plane. She was a city girl who didn’t know how to make dinner that didn’t come neatly wrapped in plastic. She was, once again, in love with a man who couldn’t love her back. Meg sank down, put her head between her hands, and cried.
Cian dropped down behind her wordlessly. She wasn’t sure when he had come out, but he’d probably heard everything. She didn’t fight him when he gathered her into his arms and rocked her while she sobbed.
An hour later, Meg had dried her tears and gotten dressed for the day. Cian sat at the kitchen table watching her as Meg tried to figure out how to cook the eggs she’d found when she’d bravely ventured into the chicken coop. She had felt bad. It seemed to her that all the chickens were looking at her like they knew she’d eaten their sister last night. There was judgment in those little black chicken eyes. If she hadn’t been so hungry, she would have run out because those beaks looked dangerous. But her stomach had warred with her fear of being pecked, and hunger won.
She had gathered five eggs when she heard a low sound. She had looked across the yard and seen Cian milking a cow. He still had to be told her name every few minutes, but he seemed happy enough to follow her around and do the odd chore. He hadn’t tried to get back into bed. Meg had feared she would spend the day coaxing him out. Instead, he shadowed her.
Now he sat patiently, watching and drinking milk from a mug. Meg had tried it, and despite her fear that warm milk would be gross, she found it slightly sweet.
There was a strange little oven that Beck had used last night, but there was no stove top. There was a grill in the hearth, though. After poking her head into all the cabinets, she came up with an iron skillet. She might never have been camping, but she’d read enough books to know how to cook. At least in theory.
“Are you hungry?” Meg smiled at Cian as she cracked the eggs into the skillet. She used a fork to whisk them. There were only four forks, two knives, and three spoons. None of them matched.
“I am.” Cian studied her for a moment, his eyes moving across her face. “Did my brother send you to take care of me?”
“Yes.” She gave him a sad nod. It was the truth. Beck had bought her to save his brother. She had a job to do.
“You’re very pretty,” Cian said, almost shyly.
Meg wondered how old he thought he was. Sometimes he came off as almost childlike. Other times he looked at her with barely controlled lust in his eyes. He hadn’t acted on it. Meg felt perfectly safe with him, but it could be difficult to keep up with the changes. After they ate, Meg intended to get this bonding thing done, so she could have another fully functional, non-crazy teammate.
After she had broken down, Meg had made a few decisions. She was stuck here. She wasn’t getting home, so she had two options. She could lie down and cry. She could bemoan her fate and become bitter, or she could get off her ass and make do. She could be dependent on the people around her, or she could learn really damn fast. As she didn’t intend to act as Beck’s wife again, she decided she’d better be a fast learner.
She had discovered a small room while exploring the barn. It had a cot where Beck had slept the night before and a little stove to keep it warm. It wasn’t much, but she could stay there and be fairly comfortable. From what she’d read on the computer Dante had left behind, she understood that the brothers needed her to remain close to at least one of them. Somehow, her brain formed connections with theirs and allowed them to function. There had been a bunch of brain-numbing chemistry and science that she’d skimmed over.
There was nothing in the vampire information that claimed sex was needed at all, so Meg thought it best she slept apart from them. She doubted Beck would have a problem with it. Once she made it clear to him he didn’t have to worry about her sexual advances anymore, he would probably get on board with her plans.
If she wasn’t the type of woman who brought out a man’s protective instincts, then she’d better learn to be independent. A room of her own would help. It would be far too hard to sleep beside them every night and not be able to touch them. Once Cian was rational again, Meg had no doubt he would be slightly horrified to find out he was married to someone his brother had such distaste for.
Meg pulled the pan off the grill using a thick towel. The eggs were a little burnt, but edible. It was a minor triumph. She scooped the largest part out onto a plate for Cian. He was bigger than she was and looked like he could use the calories. She was going to have to figure out how to fatten him up.
“Thanks,” he said gratefully as he dug in. “My sister likes eggs, but she likes them fried. When she gets up, will you make some for her, too?”
It was easier to play along than to explain over and over and over. “Of course,” she murmured as she picked up her fork.
They ate in silence for a few minutes. Cian then seemed fascinated by the sight of his hand. He held it up in the light and looked very confused. His head whirled around, and he took in the cottage.