“I don’t understand you, cos,” Dante admitted. The light was fading now. The vampire didn’t need the hood of his shirt. He sat negligently in the shade, but then, everything Dante Dellacourt did had an air of negligence about it.
“I don’t expect you to.” Beck soaped his long hair. It should have been Meg’s job. Washing her husband’s hair was the responsibility of a Fae woman. He had given up the right when he treated her like a piece of trash.
“You’re tearing yourself apart over what happened out there, and I’m not sure which part is killing you. You aren’t responsible for the fact that you’re losing control. You should have been bonded five years ago. If I recall, your parents had already betrothed the two of you to a nice royal girl.”
Beck snorted. He remembered Maris. How could he forget? He’d known since he was very young that she was his future bondmate. She had been a cool blonde and very aware of her position, even as a young teen. If she had been with him in the arena, she would have slapped him silly. “I don’t think my uncle intended to honor that contract.”
The vampire sighed impatiently. “That’s my point, asshole. You did everything right. It’s not your fault that it all went wrong. Meg saved you.”
“Don’t you think I know that?” Beck asked irritably.
“Then why did you treat her like crap?”
“It’s your fault,” Beck snarled, lying through his teeth. Maybe if he pissed his cousin off enough, he would go away and leave him alone. “You were the one who was stupid enough to bring her into the arena.”
Dante stood. He walked to the water’s edge, proving he did, indeed, have a death wish. “It was the only way I could think to salvage the situation.”
“I can think of another,” Beck replied, narrowing his eyes in challenge.
Dante threw his head back and groaned. “I am not going to inject you with cold iron, you asshole. Get over it. If you want to commit suicide, I’ll give you the needle, but I won’t push the plunger. I wouldn’t just be killing you. I would be killing Cian, too, and I happen to like him. I like him a hell of a lot more than I like you right now. You had no right to treat her like that.”
“I know.” Beck didn’t even try to keep the guilt out of his voice.
“She gave you everything she had, and you tell her to cover up,” Dante complained. “No, ‘wow, baby, that was one hell of a blow job. You’ve got the sweetest mouth known to man.’ Just ‘cover up so no one sees my bitch.’”
Beck’s anger was on the rise once more. “Hey, don’t you talk about her like that. She’s my wife.”
“Then why is she crying alone? I checked in on her, and she was crying.”
Beck felt his stomach clench. She was crying, and he was the bastard who had caused it. “I won’t ever take her like that again. I can’t take it back. I can only promise to treat her with respect from this point on.”
Dante rolled his eyes. “You are such an idiot. You honestly think that she’s upset because you fucked her? She is heartbroken because you fucked her, bonded with her, and then dumped her ass. Seriously, you need to take lessons in how to woo a woman because they don’t like it when you use them and walk away. Even I know that.”
Beck marched out of the river, shaking the water off his skin. Dante had brought along a towel, and he tossed it toward Beck. Beck did not thank him. “I didn’t dump her. I lost my fucking head. I treated her like a piece of meat. Can you blame her for not wanting to be near me?”
“Oh, cos, that wasn’t the problem,” the vampire said, bringing the attitude down a notch. “I was watching. Hell, I couldn’t take my eyes off it.” Dante left that line of thought at Beck’s low growl. “I think she’s more perfect for you than you could have hoped. She enjoyed it.”
Beck twisted his long, dark hair. It would be a bitch to comb out. “That was the bond. I flooded her with it. I pushed myself at her.”
“That is your nature,” Dante said quietly. “But I think you are underestimating her nature. She was happy afterward. She wasn’t ashamed. You made her feel that.”
Beck pointed an accusatory finger at his cousin. “You don’t understand. Maybe you vampires treat consorts with such blatant disrespect, but we do not dishonor our bondmates in such a fashion.”
When Dante spoke next, he had to talk around his fangs. It let Beck know just how irritated his cousin was. “We vampires make damn sure that our lovers are satisfied, and after they’re satisfied, we thank them and cuddle them. We find out what they need and give it to them. If what my lover needs runs counter to what society or my father taught me was acceptable, then fuck society.”
“Don’t you talk about my father,” Beck warned.
“Of course, it all comes back to your father. He was a good man, Beckett, but he wasn’t perfect. He wasn’t a perfect king, and he damn sure wasn’t a perfect father. He pushed you too hard, and he completely ignored Cian. Cian was supposed to be king, too. He didn’t value Cian’s input, so he focused all his time on you. No one could live up to his standards. Gods, Beck, when are you going to be who you are and not who he thought you should be?”
“Get out.” Beck would not listen to anyone talk about his father that way. He hadn’t been able to save his father, but he could damn sure preserve his memory. “Get the fuck out of here. Go back to your cushy little plane and make all the scandalous news you possibly can. Don’t come back here. You won’t be welcome.”
Dante dropped his hands in defeat. “Fine. I’ll go, but I’m only going as far your village. I’ll head out and make sure Cian doesn’t fade before you can get to him, but you would do well to listen to me. You’ll make yourself and that woman you married miserable if you deny who you are.”
Dante stalked off, his lanky body disappearing in the tall, thin trees that quaked in the wind.
Beck wrapped the towel around his waist and sank to the ground. It was a long time before he rose, and the whole time he sat wondering if the vampire wasn’t right.
Meg tried very hard not to feel anything. Cara’s small hands smoothed the soft fabric over her shoulders. The little gnome had to stand on a chair to reach her. Meg knew she should be helping, but she felt so empty that she allowed the gnome to dress her as she would a doll. She had merely answered the female’s softly spoken commands. Lift your right leg. Lift your left leg. Bow your head so I can get the shirt on. Cara sang quietly while she worked. Everything the little gnome did was soothing.
In the mirror, she could see that she was wearing what looked like suede pants, though god only knew what kind of animal had actually given up its skin for them. Her shirt was a little tight in the chest, so she immediately buttoned the collar up to her throat. It wasn’t flattering. It looked much better unbuttoned. Unbuttoned, it showed off a creamy expanse of skin and a faint hint of round breast. Meg thought it looked rather sexy. But Beck hadn’t found the sight of her naked body sexy at all. Cara had wrapped a leather belt around her waist then helped her into a pair of knee-length boots. Her hair was braided and marigolds were woven into it.
All Meg could think about was how she was going to get away.
“Well, look at you,” a low voice said. “Fae Barbie.”
Meg shook her head. As upset as she was, the vampire made her smile. He might be the only thing she halfway understood in this strange world. “You have Barbies, too?”
“Oh, yes,” Dante confirmed. “My sister filled the house with them. I used to have my soldiers take them hostage. She had to pay me to get them back. It was my first business. The consort Barbies come with bite marks on their necks. I bet yours don’t have that.”