I didn’t understand the point he was trying to make. “Why?”
Hugo rubbed his hand over his face. “I am an incubus. I have had this problem time and time again. It's not you. People get enamored. They follow me. Start to obsess.”
My nostrils flared as I held back laughter, confident that my nervous giggles would not be taken well due to the situation. My own mate didn’t want me around?
“You want me to stay away from you?” I asked carefully, as the gravity of the situation sank in slowly. Hugo Sinclair was rejecting me.
I felt sick.
Hugo's ice blue eyes flicked to mine before focusing on a spot above my head. “Whatever this is. It can't happen. Everything is different now. I’ve changed. It's all changed.”
“Changed?” I repeated back.
Did Hugo realize that he was my soulmate? Was he going to deny the claim? Deny fate, the universe, and his heritage?
“I’m mated now.” He pulled his t-shirt down, ruining the collar by stretching it to reveal his silvery scar. The Cyclian rune that connected his soul to mine.
“Right,” I said without emotion. Unsure of where the conversation was heading.
“I’m attracted to you, sure. But you're not the one for me. You have to get over this obsession. My mate is the night sky, dreams, beautiful and wise. Immortal. Everything I want. You're... not.”
My mouth opened to correct him. To tell him the truth. That the unrealistic being he was describing was me. The same person he was rejecting. I wanted to scream that I was his mate. That he was mine and always would be.
But the words died in my mouth. Burnt down to ash.
“She's a demon?” I asked. My voice croaked, and I was unsure if it was due to my injury or the conversation.
Hugo nodded.
“And you're a Hunter.” I continued.
“Yes.”
“You’d accept her?”
“She’s mine.” Hugo was full of conviction.
“It won't work,” I said, bitterly. “You might be a Demon, but you've cast your lot with the people that kill them.”
His eyes flashed with anger. “My mate will understand.”
“Understand that you turned your back on your own kind so that you could 'redeem' yourself?” I bit out, fisting the blanket. Unable to control my mouth and not meaning any of the words that pushed past my lips. “A baby incubus who can't control his lure. Who won't even try? Your Demon half is starving, Cambion. That is the reason you cannot control it.”
Hugo shook his head and stepped back. His expression twisted in pity.
“I’m sorry.” He whispered. “I didn't realize that I had used my magic on you. Remi told me about the dreams...”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “I’m not enthralled,” I said, exasperated. “Go on. Reject me. That’s what I want. You're too much hassle. I don't have time to hold your hand anyway.”
When I looked up, Hugo was gone.
Something tickled my cheek. I reached up, and the pads of my fingers came away wet. I turned my hand over and studied it. Unsure of what was happening. Was I crying?
Hugo had done me a favor by walking away.
It gave me an excuse to stay away while I was in the compound. To play the wounded ex. The spurned suitor.
I had told myself that I would not accept the claim. That I would leave after Davenport found his snake in the grass. Hugo wanted a perfect mate, and I certainly wasn't that.
When my cluster had died... My world had ended.
I wouldn’t survive the loss of the one soul that the universe had tied to mine.
Silent tears continued to roll down my cheeks, and before long, the salty water dried and stung. My breaths became pathetic hiccups.
I wasn’t even sure why it hurt so much. Why it felt like I was dying from an invisible gaping wound.
I had been inside of Frankie Gardiner for too long. I was beginning to forget who and what I was.
Remi found me an hour later standing on top of my bed, pretending to surf. My arms outstretched and eyes closed. He pulled the curtain back, carrying a few of the erotic novels that I had stolen from Jae. He had a change of clothes slung over his arm.
I was stir crazy, my skin itched like a swarm of fire ants were crawling over my skin.
Being taken out by a few tablespoons of salt had done a number on my reserves. I needed to feed asap.
Unfortunately, the sun was still in the sky, and I could not sense any sleeping people around. I was going out of my mind. Manic energy charged through my body, trying to push my true form out through my pores. My skinsuit felt ill-fitting. Too tight and too loose at the same time.
“Frankie, honey?” Remi said tentatively as he approached my bed with cautious steps. “Are you feeling alright?”
My eyes darted to his. My lips lifted into a jaunty crooked smile. “Never better, old friend.” I mimicked his British accent.
“Are you sure?”
“Just hungry.” I sat on my bed, bouncing once before crossing my legs.
Remi's guilt was a tangible heaviness. It tasted like chalky love-hearts candy.
“I’ll go get you something to eat.” He suggested. “I promise to check it for poison.”
I stifled a laugh. They thought I had been poisoned? At least they didn’t know the real reason I had been puking blood. “Hugo was just here,” I said, feigning disinterest. “Apparently, you told him I was stalking him.”
Remi's guilt intensified. “To be honest, I thought he would be flattered.”
“Right.” I picked at the skin of my thumb. “He joyfully informed me that he never wanted to see me again.”
Remi's gaze darkened. “He said that?”
“More or less.” I shrugged. “It’s okay. I'll be gone soon, and he can go back to his pitiful existence. Waiting for his Soulmate.”
His brow quirked. “He told you about the mysterious woman that's been visiting his dreams?”
I scratched my arm, about to burst out of my skin. “Uh-huh.”
“You don’t think she's his mate?”
“He’s got the mark.” I chewed my bottom lip, worrying it until I drew blood. Unable to contain myself, I pushed away from the bed and began to pace. Remi held out his hands; he made a 'Woah' sound, like someone in a movie if they wanted to calm a horse.
“Are you sure?” Remi looked dubious. “I thought you hadn't been enthralled, but now I’m not sure.”
I exhaled sharply. “It’s not that,” I mumbled and threw my hands up in the air. Frustrated and full of energy.
Remi stepped forward. He gripped both of my hands and held my eyes. “Frankie, you're all over the place. Take a deep breath.”
I closed my eyes. My teeth gritted. Remi wrapped his arms around me. Holding me tightly. Giving me comfort. I found myself relaxing into his embrace.
“Am I still crying?” I asked.
“Yes.” Remi laughed.
“Damn.”
“I'm sure Hugo didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.” Remi stroked my hair. “He doesn’t know what he wants.”
I hummed but did not argue.
“He was the first one here. When he heard that you'd collapsed...”
“Remi?”
“Yes, love?”
“Shut up.”
His chin rested on my head. I gripped his shirt. It was wet with human tears. Drops of water that I could not control.
“Don’t worry, love.” Remi murmured. I wanted to hold onto him forever. It would be so easy to reach back and press my lips against his. To feel his hands against my skin. To roll in the sheets, high on touch and laughter.
I glanced up through tear-stained lashes. Remi brought his palm up to my face and rested it gently against my cheek. Caught in each other's orbit, I wanted my Remi. He made everything better. My only constant.