Chapter 35
Caspian’s POV
“What?” The sweet creature in front of me looks more like a deer in the headlights than a naughty little mermaid trying to pretend she didn’t just admit her true feelings for me.
“You just said I’m your mate.” I inform Viviane smugly, dragging my knuckles over the high plane of her cheek. I’ve been waiting to hear her tell me I’m her mate since the first moment we met. I wasn’t expecting my victory to come so soon, and I certainly didn’t foresee it happening in the middle of an argument – but no matter how it happened, I’ve never heard such perfect words.
“I did no such thing.” She lies, biting down on her lower lip with punishing force.
“Careful, sweetheart.” I warn, plying her swollen lip free with my thumb. “Lying to your mate has consequences.”
Viviane opens her mouth to argue back, then closes it abruptly, her turquoise eyes flashing while my fingers continue to stroke her lips. Our connection allows me to feel the sentiments she wished to throw back at me, though she smothered them expertly. If lying to your mate has consequences then you ought to be in trouble for going behind my back about moving in.
I’m honestly not sure if her continued resistance to admitting I’m her mate is borne out of fear, or because admitting it will weaken her stance about moving in together. It’s probably a bit of both, but I have no intention of letting up either way.
“Say it again, Viviane.” I encourage, baring my fangs and tracing them along the papery flesh of her throat.
“No.” She defies hotly, arching into me. “I never said it in the first place.”
“Then say you’ll move in with me.” I suggest, “I won’t make you admit we’re mates tonight if you agree to cooperate.”
Small palms flatten on my shoulders, pushing my body up and away from her prone form. I immediately search her expression for signs of fear, but find only excitement and flushed heat on Viviane’s stunning countenance. “I mean it, Caspian.” She utters with stealy softness, “I’m an adult. I make my own decisions, and a wolf is the very last person I will ever give that kind of power over me.”
My wolf huffs in frustration. Part of me is infinitely pleased Viviane feels safe enough with me to argue, to push back and show the spirit I’ve always known lurked inside her tender heart. The other part of me wants to shake her – this is not the time to exercise her independence.
“Kitten, if what you’re telling me about the trafficking is true, you’re in even more danger than I knew.” I sigh, pressing a few light kisses to her collar and trying not to let my wolf get too excited by the smell of her. “I respect your wishes, honestly. But you aren’t safe here. You won’t be safe until we can get you securely set up in the pack house.”
“I’m not ready, Caspian.” Viviane insists. “You seem to think that claiming me as your own will make me untouchable, but it’s just going to put an even bigger target on my back. You can’t be with me every second of every day.” She continues, pushing herself up onto her elbows. “People are going to get curious, they’re going to start asking questions. Eventually someone will figure out the truth.”
I lean back on my haunches, not liking the scarce distance between us and pulling Viviane from the couch and into my lap. I can’t explain the strange dance our bodies have performed throughout this argument. All I know is that she’s never close enough, and even when her skin is plastered against mine, I always want more. “I already told you I will not allow prejudice in my pack.”
Viviane settles her cheek on my shoulder. “I’ve already lost my best friend over this secret.” She sniffles. “Everything is changing as it is, why can’t you give me some more time?”
My only comfort is that she’s not pushing me away anymore, though I’m smart enough to realize this is only a temporary reprieve. “Because you’re too important to me to risk.” I explain, fisting my hand in the long, silky locks of her hair. “We don’t have any time to waste.”
I’ve already sent Marina with Chase to begin setting up apartments for the mermaids in the Pack House. The decision was made the moment Mordred escaped, but I want Viviane to agree to come – if it’s at all possible. Unfortunately the more time that passes, the less likely that seems. Perhaps I underestimated her fear, or overestimated her trust in me, but I have a sneaking suspicion this is going to be a much more turbulent transition than I hoped.
“What worries you most, little mate?” I prod. “Is it James? People finding out you’re a mermaid? Simply trusting wolves?”
“I don’t know.” To my immense relief, Viviane leans into me now, “I just know I’m not ready.” My relief disappears as quickly as it came with her next words. I feel like a monster when they reach my ears, her soft voice so quiet it all but breaks my heart, “please don’t make me.”
“Baby, please talk to me.” My forehead rests against the heavy wooden door, the scent of peeling paint polluting my mate’s perfect scent.
“Go away!” Viviane shouts through the solid oak, a dull thump signaling the stomping of one tiny foot.
Moments before the door had slammed between us, me on one side pleading forgiveness, my lovely, infuriated mate on the other, vowing never to speak to me again.
In the end, no amount of cajoling had been able to convince Viviane to move into the Pack House willingly, making her presence here extremely reluctant and thoroughly grudging. If it hadn’t been for Marina, whose side Viviane would not leave when she was in such poor health, the situation might have ended up even more hopeless than it currently is.
“She’ll forgive you in time.” Marina reassures me, standing at my side with quiet confidence.
How strange it seems that Viviane’s mother and I are now allied against her – especially since we share the same goal of keeping the young mermaid safe. In fact, my mate is the only one who has truly objected to this arrangement, and as much as I want to grant her time and space, my wolf’s baser instincts have other ideas.
Standing by and entertaining temper tantrums is not in my nature. At the same time, if anyone deserves to throw a good tantrum, it’s Viviane. I don’t want to frighten her or push her out of her comfort zone, but at a certain point I can’t help but think coddling her is doing more harm than good.
“What do you do when she gets like this?” I ask Marina, feeling thoroughly sorry for myself.
Marina snorts, her brilliant green eyes sparkling with more light than I’ve seen from her yet. “I’ve got news for you shifter, my daughter has never said a cross word to me in her life.” She nods towards the sealed bedroom, “You’re on your own with this one.”
My wolf shifts restlessly, “Did I do the wrong thing?”
“No.” Marina replies without deliberation. “But she has good reason to be afraid of wolves. Especially wolves who take her decisions from her.”
My shoulders stiffen reflexively, “That’s not –”
“You didn’t have any other choice.” Marina soothes me, “Not if you wanted to keep her safe.” Her skin, the same golden shade as Viviane’s, wrinkles with wisdom rather than age. “That’s what life is for our kind. Even the right choices rip our hearts out.” She explains cryptically. “You need to learn that every bit as much as she needs to learn that freedom doesn’t mean always getting your way.”
It doesn’t escape me that – for all Marina’s strict words – she hasn’t moved away from the door any more than I have. She looks very young to have a grown daughter, and yet aged beyond her years. I try to imagine what it must have been like to bear a child in slavery, to escape with her and set her loose into a world full of the same beings who made their lives hell. For the first time I wonder if some of Viviane’s reluctance to accept me isn’t because of some sense of guilt – that she’s betraying her mother;s sacrifice.
At the same time, Marina has accepted me while Viviane has not. “When this is all settled,” I broach carefully, pulling Marina’s attention, “I hope you’ll tell me the rest of your story.” Her eyes widen slightly, but I continue, “I want to know what it was like for you to join this pack. I want to know what it is like in the settlements now… I want to help.”
Marina watches me cagily, looking so much like my mate I have to smother a grin. “Do you mean that?”
“If I have to spend every day of the rest of my life proving that I am not like the wolves who hurt you – I will.” I vow. “Viviane is my world now, even if she hates me!” I raise my voice, earning myself what sounds and feels suspiciously like a shoe being thrown into the door on the other side of my face. “That makes you my family. Of course I mean it.”
