Page 51

Ryker

It had been six days, fourteen hours, and thirty-three minutes since Cadence had uttered a single word to me.

After I had dealt with my father, I’d returned to my chambers to find her staring out the window. When I spoke, she didn’t even look at me. It had been that way ever since.

But she didn’t maintain her silence entirely.

She gladly entertained Riordan or Malesh whenever they checked on her. She spent her days laughing and chatting with my brother and best friend as though she’d known them all of her life and their company was all she needed to be happy in this world.

Had I thought about murdering both of them and laying their heads at her feet as some kind of ceremonial offering?

Absolutely.

More than once.

But I also knew that this was my fault. I just didn’t know how to fix it.

Cadence’s silence was slowly killing me. Every second I went without her sweet voice filling my ears was like having a dull blade slice into my chest. My blackened heart, which I’d long since believed incapable of beating, now thundered madly as though it were trying to tear its way free in a vain attempt to get to her.

And it was fucking agony.

I peered at myself in the mirror over the wash basin. Dark circles colored the skin beneath my eyes, and my hair was begging for a comb. My tunic was rumpled, and I couldn’t remember changing it from the previous day.

I looked like shit.

My thoughts were too consumed with the woman who loathed my presence.

I dipped my hands into the basin and cupped some water. The cool liquid felt refreshing as I splashed it across my face, clearing my mind and sharpening my focus.

This couldn’t go on. I needed to end this impasse. Right fucking now.

I strode from the bathing chamber and found Cadence in the same spot I’d left her — staring out the window.

“Cadence,” I said, my tone measured.

When she didn’t respond or even glance my way, I released a controlled breath as I ran my hand through my hair. My gaze traced the curve of her face and the set of her jaw. She was stubborn and unyielding, my mate.

I moved across the room and retrieved a tumbler from the cabinet. I poured myself two fingers of whisky and raised the glass to my lips. The burn of the alcohol went some way to temper my mounting frustration.

“Cadence,” I tried again, softer this time. “Talk to me. Yell and scream if you want to. Call me a bastard and curse me in this life and the next. Hit me, punch me, cut me. I don’t care. Just… say something . Anything.”

My voice dropped to a whisper as I pleaded with her. “Please, Temptress.”

Still, she said nothing.

Cadence continued to stare out the window as though I didn’t exist.

My hands curled into fists, and shadows flowed from me without permission. My magic was restless, mirroring my inner turmoil.

I was losing my fucking mind.

I marched toward her, stopping a few feet away, and waited for her to acknowledge me as I looked down at her small frame.

She didn’t look up.

“Cadence,” I growled, my frustration getting the best of me. “I can’t…”

My words died on my tongue, not wanting her to hear the desperation in my tone.

But then my resolve snapped.

Fuck it. I was desperate.

“Cadence, I can’t withstand this anymore. Your silence is worse than any torture I’ve ever endured.”

Her jaw tightened, but she did not speak.

I dropped to my knees in front of her, casting aside my pride as desperation clawed at me, tearing me apart from the inside. My hands gripped the arms of her chair, and I turned it toward me.

I leaned in, my face mere inches from hers.

“Fuck, Cadence, I need you,” I whispered. “I need to hear your voice. Hurt me if it’ll bring you some godsdamn peace, but don’t sit there and pretend I don’t exist.”

Cadence’s eyes flicked to mine, and the brief acknowledgment made my heart stutter. But her gaze was cold and unreadable. It pierced deeper than any blade ever could.

For a moment, I thought I saw a shimmer of emotion in her chocolate depths, but it vanished as quickly as it had appeared. Her lips parted, and I inhaled sharply, praying to the gods for the first time in my life that she was about to end my misery and speak to me.

Instead, she exhaled a soft breath and turned away from me, staring back out the window into nothingness.

“What would you have me do, Cadence?” I begged. “Do you want me to carve my heart from my chest and place it in your hands? I’ll do it. Just say the words.”

Cadence rolled her eyes as if I wasn’t ready to do just that.

“Tell me how to fix this.”

But Cadence only pressed her lips together in a tight line, denying me any hope of my salvation.

A low growl rumbled in my chest as frustration and despair warred within me. I sat back on my heels before pushing myself to my feet and pacing the room as if I were a caged animal. My magic thrummed beneath my skin like a furious tempest, and I resisted the urge to pull Cadence across my knee and spank the defiance out of her.

As much as my cock stirred at the thought, something told me she wouldn’t be agreeable to that idea.

I raked my fingers through my hair, gripping the strands as I tugged.

I welcomed the pain.

Any distraction from the thick, oppressive silence that stretched between us was a welcome one. My control was slipping under the weight of her indifference, and I knew that if I didn’t rein myself in, I’d only push her further away.

I stalked toward her again, my footsteps light but deliberate. Cadence tensed, and her body went rigid. But she still wouldn’t look at me.

Once more, I lowered myself to my knees. I took her hands in mine, and when she didn’t pull away, I thanked the gods for that small mercy.

“If you don’t want to speak to me, that’s fine.”

It wasn’t.

I figured I had one day left in me at best before I lost it and did something foolish.

“I’ll talk, and you can listen.”

Cadence shifted in her seat, and that was all the encouragement I needed to continue.

“I know I fucked up. I understand my actions have hurt you, and while you may not believe me, my main priority has always been your safety.”

Cadence snorted, and I couldn’t help the smirk that lifted my lips.

“Fine, I was also driven by an insatiable need to keep you at my side. To mark you in a way that everyone would know exactly who you belonged to.”

That got a reaction out of her.

Cadence turned to face me. Her eyes narrowed in disapproval, and her lips pulled up in a sneer.

Fuck!

She was most beautiful when she looked ready to end my life with her bare hands.

“I might be a monster, Cadence, but I’m a monster who’d do anything to keep you safe. No matter how reprehensible. Even if it means you hate me for it.”

I paused, searching her eyes for any sign that my words were getting through.

“I won’t lie to you and tell you that I regret stealing you away or deceiving you into carrying my child or making you my wife.”

Cadence stiffened, but I pressed on.

“But I do regret that my actions hurt you.”

I waved my hand between us as I said, “This is all new to me, Temptress. Despite how it looks, I am trying to be the man you need. It won’t happen overnight, and I’ll probably fuck up more than I succeed, but I’m committed to doing better by you. I want to be the mate you deserve.”

Cadence met my determined gaze, and this time, she saw me, really saw me. She scanned my face, studying every detail as if seeing me for the first time.

My heart hammered inside my chest, and I bit my tongue to stop myself from filling the silence, giving her the space to come to me of her own volition.

Any hope of reaching Cadence vanished as she turned away.

Just like every time before.

With a resigned sigh, I stood and headed toward the door.

It was time for a different approach.