After what happened in the carriage, where she was held in his arms and on his lap, Belle was finally let free and sent inside while Rohan said he had somewhere to be and that he would see her later.
He had refastened his trousers with such swiftness it made her pulse race, then threw open the carriage door and reached for her. His gloved hand was warm, firm, guiding her down the steps as if he couldn’t bear to stop touching her.
At the entrance, he halted. His grip tightened ever so slightly, like he didn’t want to let go. Then, without lifting his gaze, he lifted her hand slowly to his mouth. His lips brushed over her knuckles—soft at first, then lingering with a claiming hunger that made her knees weaken—before he finally let go.
"Go in. I will see you tonight," he whispered with a slow, calm smile—one that was different from any of his other smiles. This one looked almost genuine, without the usual mischief or teasing that so often curled at the corners of his lips, and it made her stomach feel like a thousand butterflies were fluttering inside, desperate to find a way out. It was a strange, light sensation that spread all the way to her heart, making her return his smile with a faint, hesitant one of her own.
She didn’t ask where he was going, nor did she linger when he let go of her hand and slowly stepped back, eyes still averted. Then, he turned and began walking away.
With the servants already taking in their shopping bags, she turned toward the entrance, but paused to look over her shoulder at his retreating figure. His broad back moved farther from her view as he walked in the direction of the gate, not bothering to take the carriage. But knowing he had wings and could move faster than anything she’d ever seen, she told herself he would be fine.
Still, she couldn’t help but wonder where he was going.
Her stomach stirred with a heated, twisting sensation as the memory of what she’d done in the carriage surfaced. She could hardly believe she’d done that. Heat rushed up her face, and clearing her throat, she turned and walked into the castle.
That day, she did not see Rohan in the castle, not even at dinner, where it was only she and the vampiress who acted like nothing had gone wrong at the boutique and that she hadn’t left her to be humiliated.
Lady Cordelia did not even apologize for leaving her behind with the human girls—she only smiled and talked about irrelevant things, at least to Belle, who was barely paying attention to whatever she was saying about their hunting season as her mind was on many things as she ate.
All her thoughts seemed to revolve around Rohan when she had many things to worry about now. She couldn’t help but wonder if he would return before she would go to bed, as the thought of sleeping and returning to that dreadful land terrified her. Perhaps with another presence beside her, she wouldn’t go so far and be awakened. What if he decided not to spend the night here like he did some nights before?
She had had the opportunity to actually write to Jamie this evening but still had no idea how to send it. She had thought about sending Rav, but the man did not seem like he would leave her side again even if given a chest of gold after what had happened in the boutique. It seemed Rohan must have warned him to stay around her whenever his cousin was there.
She had tested him by asking him to fetch her something, but the man had simply called for another servant while continuing to keep pace with her, trailing her every step since the moment she walked in after Rohan left her. He seemed to be her constant tail for the day.
Furthermore, she did not believe he would send the letter without telling Rohan about it. She did not want Rohan to know. She wanted to make sure Jamie left without getting into any more trouble with her husband.
She had kept the letter on her bed and walked to the balcony to cool off her head after putting out all those words on paper.
She did not know how he would feel reading it. Would he be disappointed in her for what she had chosen and was turning to? She was no longer the Belle he knew, and she would be kidding herself if she kept deceiving her heart that there was still a place for Jamie in there.
That afternoon, she had found herself looking out into the garden, cooling off her emotions about the things she had written and thinking of how to send it, but her eyes found Kuhn eating peacefully in the garden, sitting alone on a tree branch with many apples gathered on his lap. He ate one bite and then another, then threw it away to pick a fresh apple.
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