Page 63 of His Asset
“I—” My voice caught in my throat.I shook my head.“I don’t know if I can forgive you.Or even if I should.”
“I’m not asking for forgiveness,” he said quietly.“Not yet.I just want you to know the truth.That I’ve always tried to protect you.That I meant to take you away from that place long before I did.But you were too unique, too strong.The powers-that-be weren’t in any hurry to let you go.”
He looked away, the shadows carving deep lines into his face.“I’m close now to shutting the facility down.Permanently.No more cages.No more numbered cells.”His voice darkened.“No more scientists pretending they’re gods whenthey’rethe monsters, not the experiments inside the labs.”
I stared at him, the words sinking in like sunlight on frozen skin.“What about the man with eagle DNA?”I asked hoarsely.“Did you catch him?”
He shook his head slowly.“No.When you escaped, I called off the search for Adler.I couldn’t bring myself to care.I was too invested in finding you again.”
So Adler was still free.It loosened something up inside of me.Another so-called experiment who now had a chance to live life the way he was meant to, free and without human intervention.
Not that I doubted someone from the facility was already tracking him down.Adler was a valuable asset, and the board of directors and the investors couldn’t risk any leaks, anything that could expose what really went on inside the facility.
Adam’s mouth twisted with something between pain and confession.“Losing you again...it broke something in me I didn’t know could break.”
The air grew heavier, pressing between us, full of everything we weren’t saying.The silence stretched, thick and impossible.I needed to do something, anything, to keep from falling apart.I shoved some broccoli into my mouth, chewing hard, desperate for a distraction before I let out a shuddering breath.
The truth was heavier than I could bear, and yet, somehow, it was the only thing keeping me grounded.Somewhere beneath the grief, a spark flickered.Understanding.Maybe even the faintest thread of gratitude...and something else.
I forced myself to breathe, to focus on anything else.“What about Reuben?”I swallowed some of my wine.“Is he alive?”
Adam nodded once.“You asked me not to kill him.I listened.”His breath shuddered, almost like a sigh of relief, or exhaustion.“Despite everything, I think he genuinely cared about you.Perhaps once the shock wore off, he would have—”
“I don’t care,” I cut in sharply, the heat that had simmered beneath the surface rising now like wildfire.“I was blinded by him while I was trying to forget about you.”
He froze.His gaze locked with mine, burning gold in the low light.“What are you saying?”
I picked up my knife, my hands trembling as I sliced the meat, then stabbed it with my fork.I shoved the chunk into my mouth—lamb, I realized vaguely—anything to stop myself from saying what my body already knew.The first bite melted on my tongue, rich and tender, but all I tasted was him, his masculine voice, his overwhelming presence and nearness.
“You’ve been through hell,” he said quietly, his voice low, rough-edged.“I’ve only ever wanted you to be okay.”
I set my knife and fork down with aclack, the sound too loud in the sudden silence.“You can’t say things like that,” I whispered.“Not when I can still feel what those scientists did to me.What you let them do.”
Adam’s eyes held mine, unflinching.“You were extraordinary.You were always going to survive.But I watched over you, protected you as much as possible.I made sure the scientists left you...untouched.”
I frowned, his words dragging against my every nerve.Hehadonce killed three scientists after their barely veiled threats against me had set him off.It didn’t stop me from asking the truth.“You saved me from scientists who might have taken me without consent?”
“Yes,” he confirmed softly.“Even someone as strong as you shouldn’t have to face something as terrifying as that.”He shook his head.“It was bad enough learning what happened to your parents.I couldn’t accept anything even worse happening to you.”
I stared at him, my heart pounding.Though he’d had nothing to do with my parents’ demise, ithadtouched him somehow.“Guilt’s a powerful motivator.”
“What I feel for you has nothing to do with guilt.”He leaned closer, his meal forgotten.“Every decision I made was to keep you safe and alive.”
He was close now, too close, his warmth brushing against my skin.My wings twitched, restless and wanting.I tried to speak, but my voice seemed broken.My heart ached, heavy with everything I’d fought so long to dismiss.When he released my hand and reached up, brushing my jaw, I didn’t pull away.I couldn’t.
“I can understand your hate,” he murmured, his thumb tracing the corner of my mouth.“But it doesn’t stop me wanting you.”
“I don’t hate you,” I confessed softly.“I—“
What?Did I dare reveal the truth?That I longed for him?That I’d loved him even before I’d acknowledged it?
When I finally leaned forward, our lips meeting, it wasn’t forgiveness that pulsed between us.It was fire.A storm breaking loose after too long contained.