Page 7 of Obsessively Yours (Fae Kings of Eden #2)
7
SIXTEEN YEARS OLD
Vivian sat cross-legged on her bed while Violet lounged on her own across the room. Violet’s side had strings of beads and dried flowers decorating the walls to match her purple quilt, while Vivian only had an undecorated bookshelf, a brown quilt, and bare walls.
“Do you want to see the new dress I made for Roman’s birthday ball tonight?” Violet asked her twin, twisting around to look at her.
The grating sound of Vivian sharpening her knife halted, and she looked up. “Is it frilly like the last one?”
“A lace border is not frilly,” Violet protested. “Mom bought me real beads for my birthday.” Usually Violet made her own out of stones and pebbles, but that took forever and they were never smooth or symmetrical.
Vivian scoffed. “Beads? Maybe if you wore normal clothes you’d have a boyfriend to take you to the ball instead of tagging along with Mom and Dad.”
Violet counted to ten in her head before speaking again. “A lot of girls dress like I do.” She’d had enough of Vivian’s insults. “You act as if I’m an outcast because I’ve never had a boyfriend. What do you care if boys like my dresses or not? I don’t make you feel stupid for fighting or wearing nothing but neutral colors all the time.”
“I’m trying to help you,” Vivian snapped back. The older they got, the worse she treated Violet, and Violet didn’t understand where her sister’s growing hostility came from. “If the truth hurts your feelings, that’s on you.” Vivian sniffed and went back to sharpening her dagger, the sound making Violet want to scream.
Violet refused to admit it, but the fact that no boys showed interest in her hurt. No one knew Viv and Roman were mates, and boys flirted with her incessantly, but not Violet. “If you’re going to be rude, keep your opinions to yourself. I’ll wear what I want, frilly lace and all.”
Vivian turned murderous eyes on Violet, taking her aback. “You’re just trying to get Roman’s attention,” she sneered. “It’s obvious you’re jealous that I’m his mate. Wearing flashy clothes and throwing yourself at him isn’t going to work.”
Violet’s mouth fell open. Roman? Where did that come from? She and Roman were only friends. How was that throwing herself at him?
“Are you insane? When have I given you the impression I was jealous?” Yes, Violet had been jealous when they were younger. She’d have an occasional fleeting thought here and there, but she’d always respected their bond. “If I wanted to ruin your relationship, I would have told him about your secret boyfriend,” she seethed. “You are the only one of us who is disloyal.”
The blood drained from Vivian’s face, and Violet smiled with smug satisfaction as her sister scrambled for something to say. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Violet snorted. “You’re not as stealthy as you think. Roman is my friend, but you’re my sister, and I wouldn’t betray you that way no matter how horribly you treat me. Don’t ever accuse me of something like that again.”
Vivian ran a hand through her hair, her skin still a deathly pallor. “It’s Roman.” Violet’s brows lowered. “My boyfriend,” Vivian clarified.
Violet knew her sister had lied. It hadn’t been Roman’s voice Violet heard through the door a year and a half ago, nor had it been Roman her sister slept with last year, according to him.
Judging by her sister’s reaction, she and her mystery boy were still together. “Why would you need to hide your relationship with your mate?” Violet challenged.
Vivian laughed bitterly. “It was his choice. ‘For my safety,’ he’d said. Until we graduate and he’s stronger, we can’t reveal our bond.”
Lies . There’d be no reason for them to hide the relationship from their families.
It insulted Violet that Vivian thought her dumb enough to believe the blatant lie, but Violet let it go.
“Your clothes are pretty,” Vivian said with a sigh. More lies . Vivian hated Violet’s clothes. “Even if I don’t understand why you’d want to spend hours sewing that weird stuff on. I’m sorry for what I said.”
“You’re terrible at apologizing,” Violet muttered under her breath, wondering what happened to her sister along the years to turn her into the nasty, dishonest person she’d become.
* * *
Roman tugged at the collar of his green formal jacket, hating how it itched. He wore a shirt underneath, but it didn’t help. The ballroom looked like a golden goddess threw up on it with ridiculous silks lining the walls and over-the-top gold statues he hadn’t known his family possessed. Roman’s birthday balls were the perfect excuse for his mother to go wild, and the large ballroom suffered the price.
After greeting every nobleman in attendance, Roman started toward the balcony doors, in need of fresh air, but stopped short when a burst of anger and hurt punched him in the gut.
He clutched at his jacket and sucked in air to combat the swirling emotions within him. They didn’t affect his mood, only his physical body, meaning they weren’t his emotions at all. Vivian .
He might not have felt romantic affection for her, but he was still supposed to marry her one day. His father had noticed the distance between Vivian and Roman and started drilling the importance of prioritizing his mate’s safety and happiness into him. The feelings coming down their bond did not include fear or pain, so physically, she was fine. Ordinarily, her stronger emotions consisted of giddiness and triumph, and this swift change worried him.
Straightening slowly, he scanned the room for her familiar dark auburn hair. The large room brimmed with guests dressed in their finest, milling around to rub shoulders with those they deemed important. Moving along the outside of the crowd, his worry grew.
There. He caught sight of Vivian slipping into the ballroom through a side door. The dark green gown she wore fit her muscular frame well, and Roman could see why the other guys wouldn’t shut up about her, even if she didn’t appeal to him. Her hair hung loose instead of tied back in its usual braid, but the thick locks did nothing to hide the fury on her face.
Roman watched her search the room, and when their gazes collided, determination slithered down their bond. Whatever worry he’d had for her evaporated, replaced with the need to disappear.
Vivian wove her way through the crowd toward him, and he forced himself to stay put. They didn’t speak much outside of school, training, and their weekly dinners, and he didn’t know why she sought him out now.
“I’ve been looking for you,” she said breathlessly. “Can I speak with you outside?” Vivian glanced over her shoulder. Roman followed her line of sight, but there were too many people to see what, or who , she was looking at. Smug satisfaction, strong and potent, traveled down the bond, and he had to fight to tamp down his own contempt.
He opened the door to the small balcony and ushered her outside. Before he could close the balcony door, Vivian tenderly cupped his cheek. The gesture took him by surprise, and he wrapped his fingers around her wrist.
“I’ve been wanting to do this all night,” she murmured and kissed him before he could yank her hand away from his face.
Revulsion filled him as she stole his first kiss. It felt wrong , not only to him, but to Vivian as well if the unease flowing down the bond was any indication.
He jerked back, and Vivian sighed. As he started to ask her what the hell she was doing, someone cleared their throat and stepped out of the far shadows of the balcony.
Violet .
Roman’s world tilted. Pain flashed in her big blue eyes, and he wanted nothing more than to shove Vivian over the railing. He and Violet were nothing but friends, but the need to beg for her forgiveness rode him hard.
Violet laughed nervously. “I’ll give you two privacy.”
Vivian giggled shamelessly and malicious glee zipped down the bond. “Sorry, Vi. I didn’t realize you were still out here.”
Roman’s gaze snapped to Violet, and his body stiffened at the wooden smile plastered on her face. “Hiding?” he tried to tease.
They always met on this small balcony during his birthday balls, and had he known what Vivian intended to pull, he would have kept the viper far away. Roman thought that in her vulnerable state, she might have needed his help.
What a fool he’d been.
Violet laughed lightly again. “Always. I’ll see you two later.”
Miserable, he watched Violet leave, and when the door snicked shut behind her, he took a step away from Vivian. “What was that about?”
Vivian had the nerve to glare at him. “I wanted to see if there was a spark yet. We’re only a few years away from graduation.”
“Bullshit,” he accused. “We’re supposed to keep a low profile, and you just fucking kissed me in front of everyone.”
She patted his cheek and winked. “I’ll tell everyone my sister dared me to kiss the prince. They won’t know we’re mates.” Vivian threw open the door, waltzed inside, and looked around. Roman watched as she theatrically swiped a thumb across her lips. “I’ll see you later, Rome.”
Then it hit him like a bolt of lightning. Vivian had used him to make someone jealous. The little serpent.
His fingers clasped around her upper arm to stop her retreat, and he leaned down. “I can feel your stronger emotions,” he reminded her. “Something upset you earlier, and when you kissed me, you wanted to recoil as much as I did.” She stiffened and turned a dark shade of red. “We have a lifetime together. Let’s not start lying to each other now.”
Vivian turned to face him so that the room was at her back and lowered her voice. “Fuck you, Rome.”
He smirked. “I can feel when you do that too.” The air between them grew heavy with tension. “We’re not together, and as long as you’re discreet, I don’t care who you sleep with, but do not ever use me again.”
Without waiting for a reply, he stepped around her and left.
* * *
Violet hurried from the ballroom and realized with absolute horror that she was in love with Roman Covington. The proof lay in the way her heart beat erratically, pumping the painful venom of heartbreak through her body. Her insides hollowed out, and a prickling sensation crawled across her skin.
How did this happen?
Roman belonged to Vivian, always had, and Violet had only ever wanted happiness for them, but seeing Roman kiss Vivian tore Violet to pieces. Her feelings were the worst kind of betrayal to her sister, whether her sister liked Roman or not.
Violet’s throat tightened. Ridiculous, all of it. Another thought, worse than the last, struck her. Vivian hadn’t lied about dating Roman. Perhaps at one time she’d dated someone else, but not now. That means she did cheat on Roman.
Oh gods. The sob Violet fought hard to contain escaped and echoed off the stone walls of the hallway. She felt sick and guilty and confused all at once, and the need to be far away from the palace overwhelmed her. If anyone happened upon her in this state, she’d die of embarrassment if the pain didn’t kill her first.
Twin trails of warmth slid down her cheeks, and she swiped her sleeve across the evidence of her foolishness. I’m crying over my sister’s boyfriend. Gods, please forgive me .
The quiet pat of her slippers against the marble floor were soon joined by quicker, louder footsteps behind her, and she swore inwardly.
“Violet, wait.”
Of course it had to be him. She swiped at her cheeks again and slowed her steps, turning to Roman with a forced bright smile. “Skipping out on your own party?” Her voice sounded stuffy from crying. Damn it.
He fell in step beside her and studied her face, taking in every detail. She knew what he saw: bloodshot, puffy eyes and a pink nose that hopefully wasn’t dripping.
Dear gods, if you would kindly pull me to the heavens now, I will never ask for anything again.
Roman touched her elbow to stop her, his expression tortured. Violet’s breath hitched. Can he see how I feel? His pity would be her undoing. If he tried to let her down with a valiant speech, Violet would disappear into the wild and never return.
“You should go back to your party before your mother sends the entire battalion looking for you,” she suggested lightly.
Roman grimaced. “I don’t know why Vivian kissed me.”
Violet’s brows lowered, wondering why he felt the need to pacify her with a lie. A pity “we’re just friends” talk would be better than the insult of an untruth. “That’s what mates do, is it not?”
His eyes searched hers, but she didn’t know for what. Heartbreak, shame, and humiliation were the only things he’d find. “We’re not supposed to in public,” he reminded her.
Violet smiled softly, hating the way his confirmation of their relationship cracked her chest wide open. “I’m not the public. You can kiss her all you want.” Tears threatened to make an appearance, and she wanted to scream. I swear to the gods, eyes, if you leak in front of him, I will pluck you out myself.
Much to her dismay, they didn’t heed her warning, and a bead of moisture escaped.
Roman reached up and swiped away her tear with a gentle stroke of his thumb. “Why are you crying?”
“I’ve had a bad day,” she admitted, not even having to lie. Watching him kiss Vivian ruined any joy the day had granted her. “And I’m tired.”
Did he step closer or had she imagined it?
Roman had yet to remove his hand from her cheek; his thumb still moving softly across her skin. “What happened to make it bad?”
There was no concern in his question, but a challenge. She stared at him, trying to figure out his meaning. Did he want her to admit what she felt to further her humiliation? No . Many things could be used to describe Roman, but cruel and arrogant did not make the list. What, then?
“I had trouble with our arithmetic homework,” she fibbed. “You know how terrible I am at it.”
The corner of his mouth twitched. “We didn’t have any arithmetic homework this week.” This time, he did step closer, forcing her to step back. “In fact, we haven’t had any homework this week in preparation for the ball.” His head tipped slightly. “Tell me,” he murmured.
But she wouldn’t—couldn’t—because in every scenario she came out the loser. When all’s said and done, Rome and Viv would marry, have a beautiful warrior baby, and live out their happily ever after while Violet watched from the shadows.
With stark clarity, she realized they could no longer be friends. It hurt, possibly worse than seeing Roman and Vivian kiss, but it had to be done. If she didn’t put an end to it now and give herself time to get over Roman before they forced her to watch him live out her dream with Vivian, there would be nothing left of her heart to give someone else.
So, she would end their friendship until her idiocy passed.
But not tonight. Selfishly, she wanted one more night with him before she confessed her sins and distanced herself; one more happy memory to tuck away for later. Besides, a lot of thought went into her birthday gift to him, and it’d be a shame to waste it.
Pushing down her swelling emotions, she wrapped her hand around his. “I have a gift for you, but you have to give up the rest of your party for it.” She’d planned on pulling him away after midnight when the party died down, but now seemed as good a time as any.
Roman opened his mouth to say something but closed it with a snap and squeezed her hand. “I’d give up anything for you, princess.”
* * *
Roman knew he’d look back on this night as one of the happiest of his life. He’d wondered if Violet felt the same way he did, but he’d seen her hurt expression before she’d fled the ballroom.
The tears streaming down her face only cemented his suspicions, and while he wanted to kill Vivian for being the catalyst to Violet’s tears, they were proof his feelings weren’t one-sided.
Only one thing stood in their way, but he vowed to find a way to transfer the mate bond from one twin to the other. Lore suggested identical twins were one soul torn in two. If their souls were once one, why couldn’t the bond transfer from one half of the soul to the other? There had to be a way.
The palace library contained an unfathomable amount of history books, some of them centuries old. They were kept in exclusive rooms not available to anyone except scholars and royals to avoid over-handling and to preserve them as long as possible. When age wore them down, scholars copied them into new books to avoid losing the information to time.
There might be something useful in them about bonds. He’d check old fables and faerietales too. As a child, when his mother would read to him, she’d said they were real tales passed down from person to person. Roman knew she’d only been fueling the imagination of a small child, but what if the old stories were rooted in truth?
Deep down he knew if something existed allowing a royal to bond to someone other than their gods-blessed mate, the knowledge would have leaked by now, but he had to try.
Roman adjusted his hand and threaded his fingers through Violet’s. “Where are we going?”
She smiled beautifully over her shoulder and led him through the wide, ornately decorated hallways. Paintings framed in gold hung from the smoothed and polished stone walls, lit by oil lanterns encased in golden sconces. Roman hated it, but his mother thought the gaudier, the better.
“It’s a secret,” Violet said cryptically. “We’re almost there.”
They turned toward the stairs leading to their classroom, and a grin stretched across his face. “What scheme have you cooked up tonight, princess?”
Roman’s favorite girl released his hand, pulled a few tools from her dress pocket, and crouched in front of the door. “We’re going to flip everything inside.” The mischievous smile she flashed him before starting on the lock made him laugh.
“What exactly does flipping everything entail?” he mused and leaned against the wall beside the door.
When the lock clicked open, Violet pushed open the door and tugged him inside.
After closing the door behind him, he turned to her and folded his arms across his chest. “How long have you been planning this without telling me?”
“Almost a month,” Violet replied slyly, flitting from lantern to lantern to brighten the room. She waved her hand around, gesturing to the entire room. “We’re going to flip all the furniture, paintings, and whatever else we can, upside down. It will look like the world flipped on its head.”
It took a moment for her meaning to register, and when it did, he burst out laughing and Violet brightened with delight. “How do you come up with these things?”
She shrugged and tapped one of the desks. “I’m not strong enough to do the desks, but I can start on the paintings.”
Roman raised an arm and flexed his muscles. “I won’t let you down.”
Together, they turned the room upside down, laughing and talking in hushed whispers as they worked. Roman paused to observe Violet as she flipped every book on the bookshelf. The flush of her cheeks from laughing, the excitement in her eyes, the way she bounced on her toes when she moved— beautiful .
He was hers completely and irrevocably, and he would do whatever it took to make her his, too.