Page 55 of Bite The Power That Feeds

I continued to pace.

I know ssshe’ll choossse you.

I faced the other wall, shirtless in my sweatpants, staring at a random painting a servant put on the wall. “Then why tell her?”

Becaussse you love her, and you would never betray her.

I turned back to Fang, seeing him perched up now that the argument had escalated. “Omission isn’t a betrayal.”

Omissssion is as treasonous asss a lie.

She’d finally gotten to a place of acceptance. Finally looked at me the way she did before. Wanted me the way she did before. Not having to choose made the transition easier for her, and once I gave her the option again, it would only complicate everything. “I’m not going to tell her—and you aren’t either.”

Kingsssnake—

“Can I trust you?”

He stared at me with those piercing yellow eyes, his disapproval as hot as the fire behind him.

“Fang.”

You want me to lie to her?

“It’ll just fuck with her head. You know that.”

Fang continued his ruthless stare.

“That conversation was between me and my father. It’s my business—not yours. Are you loyal to me or not?”

Always.

A burst of relief hit me. “Then we’re finished with this conversation.”

Fang looked at me like prey, like he would strike and leave a bloody gash on my face.You need to trussst her, Kingsnake. Ssshe wouldn’t leave you.

I stopped in the middle of the room, my hands on my hips. “That’s not what worries me.”

Then what doesss?

I kept my gaze on the fire.

Ssspeak.

“She’ll ask me for something I can’t give…”

I don’t understand.

At one point, I thought that was the life I wanted. Thought I wanted it more than anything. Thought it was how life was meant to be lived. But I quickly discovered the truth—that I wanted to live forever. And now that I had Larisa, I wanted immortality even more. “She’ll ask me to give up my immortality—and live a mortal life with her.”

* * *

I headed back to Grayson in the middle of the night, taking advantage of the darkness to cover as much ground as possible. My father had affairs that required his attention and would leave the following day to attend the wedding.

We only had to stop once, and that was because it was an unusually sunny day.

It was different with Fang now. He gave me the cold shoulder—and it was as cold as ice. He didn’t speak to me on the ride. Instead of being wrapped around my shoulders, he chose to sit in his bag like he wasn’t there at all. When we made camp, he did the same, like my company was unbearable.

I refused to address his anger. If he had something to say, he could say it to me.