Page 69 of Gilded Locks

“Yes.”

“No matter how many times I break you, I’ll always put you together again. Remember? Trust.”

She nodded, unsure how she’d come to trust him so quickly, but unable to deny the fact that she did. “What if some parts of me are too broken to fix?”

“Nyet. If they truly broke you, you never would have made it this far. To us.”

He made love to her slowly, thoroughly, with a patience that spoke of infinite time and infinite care. His hands mapped every scar, every tremor, every place where trauma had left its mark. And where his touch lingered, the pain seemed to ease, replaced by warmth and belonging and something that might have been love.

He kept his eyes on her, watching her responses and studying her tolerance when he gripped her throat or pulled her hair. He liked manhandling her. Liked when he made it hurt because he liked kissing the pain away and putting her back together again.

When she shattered in his arms, it was with tears streaming down her face—not from pain, but from the overwhelming relief of being truly seen. Truly accepted. Truly cherished despite everything she’d been forced to do.

When they lay tangled together on the rug, watching flames dance in the hearth. Marigold confessed, “I like being with you.”

He shifted to hold her a little tighter, but said nothing. The storm outside had finally broken, leaving the world washed clean and new.

“Maybe you’re exactly what I needed, someone sturdy enough not to bleed from my rough edges.”

“I have rough edges, too. We all do.”

“I like when you put me back together again.” She stared at the flames and laughed to herself. “Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall…”

“If you’re expecting all the king’s horses and all the king’s men, I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed. I only share with my brothers.”

His words were playful, but also realistic. She shivered at the terrifying thought of Hunter. “What if I don’t want to be with them.”

He drew back to look at her. “Don’t be foolish, printessa. We can be very accommodating, but the rules are clear. To stay, we require your full consent.”

She tightly swallowed. “But Hunter hates me. He told me himself he has no interest in touching me.”

He pressed her head back down to his chest. “Eventually, that will change. Do yourself a favor and accept that which cannot be avoided.”

She sat up. “You can stop him.”

“Why would I?”

His question stung. “Because we…” She looked down and frowned. “Don’t you care about me?”

“Yes, but Hunter’s my brother.”

“So?”

“So, we have an understanding. I won’t betray him.”

“Even if he plans to hurt me?”

“He won’t.”

“He already has! Just tonight, he slammed me into the counter and threatened me. He’s cruel and?—”

“Enough.”

Stifled by his sharp command, she stared at him in shock. He cared about her, but would never put her before his brothers.

“I’m such an idiot,” she whispered, pushing herself off the floor.

“Where are you going?”