Page 50
AMbrOSE
I t’s been a little less than twenty-four hours of this bout of sickness.
Last time, it lasted three days. I’m already so fucking tired, but I can’t imagine how hard this is for Piper.
She was exhausted when she left the chateau, and she’s had no rest. She’s been beaten, tried to protect herself, and now is forced to endure her curse once again.
I reach out and hold her hand. I’ve been doing this a lot.
I’m not sure if it’s for her comfort or mine.
I don’t even know if she realizes I’m here.
My magic burns in my chest, and I let it flow down through my fingers and into Piper.
Sending her peaceful illusions. I hope even if her body is in pain, her mind is at ease.
I talk Piper through the illusion, projecting it straight into her mind.
“It’s one of those perfect spring days. We’re in the backyard, swinging in a hammock, white fluffy clouds floating over our heads.
The birds are chirping, and there’s a gentle breeze that makes it cool enough that I’ve tucked a blanket around us.
We talk about nothing and everything. We nap, and when we wake up, we kiss. For hours. Just because we can.”
I stop and steady my voice, clearing my throat as my emotions overwhelm me.
Piper’s so still. I don’t want to lose her.
The vision I just spoke of continues on in Piper’s mind and it takes everything in me to keep it from crumbling.
Because without her, my life will go back to being shallow and meaningless.
I don’t know what will happen when she comes out on the other side of her curse.
We kissed and I have to figure out how we move forward.
Staying with her would be wrong. Abusive.
She has no choice but to feel the way she does about me.
I can’t take advantage of her like that.
And yet I don’t want to leave. I won’t leave until she’s better.
But then…I’ll keep my distance. I won’t stop looking for a way to cure her, but I love her too much to take advantage.
I lower my head to the back of her hand. “I’m so fucking sorry, Piper. I will let you go because I love you.” I press my lips to her hand and mourn the loss of love in my life. This one hurts most of all.
Piper’s hand moves, cupping my cheek and then combing through my hair. I lift my head and find her vivid blue eyes open.
“You’re awake.” Her hand drifts back to her side as I sit up. My eyes drift over her body. She’s not shaking. She’s still pale and there’s a shadow of a bruise on her jaw, but she looks better already. “How do you feel?”
Her hand drifts to her jaw.
“I’m so sore.” Her brow furrows in confusion.
“Do you remember what happened?” I grab a glass of water off the nightstand and hold it out to her. She scoots back to sit upright, resting her back against the headboard. She definitely doesn’t seem as weak as she was last time.
Piper takes a drink and licks her lips. “Tucker was here.” She eyes the room as if expecting to see his body still lying somewhere on the floor. “I threw a bunch of potions at him.”
“Yeah, you did. He looked like shit when I got here.” Pride swells in my chest.
“You were here?” Her voice is raspy, but her eyes are clear. She looks out the door that opens to the hallway. “What happened with Tucker?”
I fill her in on what I did to him with my illusions and how Josephine healed her. Her mouth drops open in surprise as she listens. She straightens and presses her lips together. “Good. I’m glad. Does that make me a bad person?”
“No.” I shake my head. The relief I have that Tucker will never be able to hurt her again is palpable. And I don’t regret what I did for a second. Piper has no reason to feel a second of pity for the horrible man who caused her so much pain.
Piper takes a sip of water. “I’m grateful you were here, but why did you come?”
“I’d been trying to get a hold of you all day. I just felt like something was wrong. Well, I knew something was wrong, but there was this urgent need to get here.”
Piper takes another drink of water, then holds it with both hands on her lap. She takes a deep breath and looks up at me. “Why?”
“Why?” I echo, but I know what she’s asking. My first inclination is to joke. To lighten the mood and offer up some pithy reply. But didn’t I just get done telling myself I would do the right thing?
“Because I was worried.” I take a deep breath. “Because I love you.”
Piper’s eyes are wide as she stares at me. The water glass in her lap shaking slightly.
“Is this because of your curse? Because you feel obligated?”
“What? No.” I stand up, nearly tripping over the chair I’ve been sitting in.
It’s one thing to spill your heart to someone who’s basically unconscious, but when they’re awake, it’s brutal.
I’m in unfamiliar territory. I’ve never been in love.
I’ve never felt worthy of it. Growing up with parents who wanted nothing to do with me cemented the idea that I didn’t deserve to give or receive love, but Piper changed all that for me.
I’m also slowly realizing that maybe she doesn’t believe she’s lovable as well.
“I came over because I was worried. There was something in my gut that said you were in trouble. Maybe it was my magic, I don’t know. I just knew I had to be here. Then your curse hit.”
Piper smooths back her wild hair. It’s a mess from all her tossing and turning. “How long was I sick?”
“A little over a day.” For the first time, I’m really taking in Piper’s room.
It’s warm and inviting, just like her. She has bookshelves stacked with books, a cozy chair in the corner that she probably reads in until she falls asleep.
I brought in an uncomfortable chair from the kitchen so I could sit at her bedside and not fall asleep. Mission accomplished.
“Just a day?” Piper’s surprised question brings my attention back to her.
“Not quite twenty-four hours,” I reply, glancing at my phone.
Piper frowns and takes another drink of her water. Her hand wobbles as she reaches out to set it on the table. I come to her assistance, taking it from her and setting it down.
“Maybe it wasn’t my curse.” Piper rubs at her jaw. “It’s never lasted less than three days,” she murmurs to herself.
Without so much as a wobble, she swings her feet off the bed and stands.
“I’m going to go to the bathroom,” Piper announces, and then shuffles out into the hallway.
When she returns a few minutes later, she looks more alert.
Her face is freshly washed, and her long hair has been pulled back into a ponytail.
She’s probably brushed her teeth, too, if I had to guess.
She stands in the doorway, her shoulder resting on the door frame with her arms crossed.
“Thank you for helping, but I think you should go.”
Table of Contents
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- Page 50 (Reading here)
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