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“Your home is beautiful,” I said, trying to make small talk to fill the silence. The kitchen would’ve been similar to one on Earth, except that there was no refrigerator and there was a wood stove in the corner.

Luisca was loading some sort of sausage onto my plate while I wasn’t paying attention.

“Thank you. That’s plenty.” It was more than plenty, considering my appetite had nosedived.

She poured me some tea from the kettle on the table. “Tea okay? We have trouble growing coffee here, so we have to import it, and we’re out right now.”

“Tea is wonderful. Thank you.”

“Milk?” Tiber moved a glass pitcher in front of me. It was warm to the touch. “It’s fresh from the cows every day. We’re pretty self-sufficient here.”

“We have to be. If we traded too regularly, Herrick would know we were here,” Luisca said.

“Thank you for letting me stay here.” I sipped the tea, which was quite good, as we all settled into an awkward silence again.

“We want you to feel comfortable here,” Luisca said, reaching out and patting my arm.

“Yes, this is your home while you’re here, no matter what the circumstances,” Tiber added.

In other words, if I wanted to tell Kaden to go screw, they’d have my back? I wasn’t sure I’d be able to push it that far, but I could sniff out sympathy, especially when it was dished out this heavily.

“I’ve known Kaden for a very long time.” Tiber smiled in a knowing way. “I never thought he’d get mated. It’s going to be an adjustment for him, but he’ll get used to it. You don’t go from being single for as long as he has and not have a period of realignment.”

It might’ve been easier if they’d ignored Kaden’s churlishness. Now I felt like I had to offer up some sort ofsomething, instead of ignoring it the way I preferred.

I took another couple sips of tea, having trouble handling the compassionate looks for another second.

“Kaden and I are mated, but…it didn’t really happen the way either of us planned. It just sort ofhappened.” Kaden had warned me not to say too much, but that was before he’d acted the way he had this morning. That entitled me to some liberties if I was going to be left to explain his attitude and not feel like an idiot. “But the deal is done, and we’rebothtrying to make the best of it.”

“However it happened, it’s a good thing, even if he’s too stubborn to see it right away. Don’t let him make you think otherwise,” Luisca said.

Kaden didn’t need to make me think anything. I already knew it. I’d forced him into a situation where he was stuck with me, and no one needed to explain how undesirable that was.

I forced down what was left on my plate, waving off the offer of more. I had to get out of here before I said more than I should.

“I better get going,” I said.

They nodded. I caught some looks shooting back and forth between them as I headed out. I was sure a full-fledged conversation about Kaden and me would commence as soon as I was out of earshot.

Kaden was waiting in the field for me, throwing a stone up into the air, letting it hover for a moment before dropping it.

I marched right up to him, planting a hand on my hip. “You’re upset because you’re stuck with me. I get it. I take responsibility for thatto a certain degree.But it wasn’t all me, and I’m trying as hard as I can. Would it kill you to be civil to me in front of other people, even if it’s such a strain you can’t be tolerable when we’re alone?”

His jaw flexed. “If I’m on edge, it’s because we’re on the brink of a full-fledged war and we’re not ready.”

A situationI’dcaused was what he didn’t add. That was fine. He could be angry. I could handle it. When it was done? I’d find a way to go my own way.

“And it’s all my fault, right?” He didn’t have a chance to answer before I launched into the rest of my tirade. “Youmarkedmewithout saying anything about what that entailed. I’m just the worst person ever because I finished off the job you’d basically started. So go right ahead. Blame me. Hate me. Be angry at me. I don’t care.” I threw my hands up in the air and then turned and walked away.

“Billie,” he called.

I ignored him.

“Billie,” he said, sounding closer.

He grabbed my arm, and I lashed out, pushing at him. He grabbed both of my arms, holding me there.

“What? What do you want? You want to tell me how horrible I am? I don’t care.”