by Chris Cannon
“Carry on then.” Clint gestured that they should continue.
“No,” Valmont said. “I’m not continuing this conversation if you’re going to threaten me. No matter how ridiculous the threat.” He pointed at the snowballs.
“This isn’t a conversation.” Bryn dropped the snowballs on the carpet. “It’s me wondering who stole my boyfriend and left this pod-person in his place.”
“Look at it from my point of view. I have followed you around for months, devoted my every waking moment to you, and then you agree to spend your life with someone else.”
“No, I didn’t.” How could he not see this? “I agreed to become business partners with someone else.”
“Maybe as a human, it’s hard for me to see the difference,” Valmont said. “Maybe the bond allowed me to look past all the reasons we shouldn’t be together. If you remember, in the beginning, I didn’t want a relationship. You’re the one who started us down this path.”
“I call bullshit,” Clint raised his hand. “Sorry, dude, but you flirted with her while she was with Zavien. And you continued to flirt with her once you were her knight.”
“She’s a beautiful girl, and Zavien was a jerk who needed to be taken down a notch.”
And that painted Valmont in a lot less flattering light. “So, you flirted with me to annoy Zavien, and then you flirted with me because you thought I was pretty, not because you actually liked me or wanted to date me? Because I call bullshit on that.”
“That’s not what I meant. I did what I did because I liked you, but I don’t think things would have become so serious if it weren’t for the bond and for us being together twenty-four hours a day. If I were still in Dragon’s Bluff and you stopped by to say hello on the weekends, we wouldn’t be where we are now.”
“Are you sure I can’t blast him with a small fireball?” Bryn asked Clint.
“No,” Clint said. “And he does make a good point. Lots of couples here at school get together because they are living in close proximity.”
“You have just stepped in the mother of all piles of dog doo,” Ivy said. “And I suggest you dig yourself out quickly.”
“Please.” Clint laughed. “I’ve been chasing you since we were toddlers. You know that. So this doesn’t apply to us. Unless it’s backward, and you finally caved because we’re together all the time. And please notice, I’m not upset about that fact if it’s true.” Clint pushed his chair away from the table. “And on that note we are out of here. Sympathy anger can be a dangerous thing.” He held his hand out to Ivy. “You can come back later if Bryn needs you.”
Ivy stood. “Call me when you need me. I’ll bring chocolate, or a body bag…whatever the occasion calls for.”
Bryn nodded. “Thanks for helping.”
Once her friends exited, Bryn leaned forward and covered her face with her hands. “No matter what I say, you’re going to insist we’re broken up, right?” She sat up and took a shuddering breath. “I don’t understand your change of heart, literally. At the Valentine’s dance, you told me you loved me, so what’s changed?”
“Nothing has changed, Bryn. I still love you, and I probably always will.”
And her head was going to explode. “If you love me, then why are you pushing me away?”
“You have no idea how painful it was, watching you walk into that room last night with Jaxon, walking away from me, choosing him, making it official… It was an ugly reality check, and it made me see that no matter what fantasy life we’d planned, you and I could never be together. Standing in the lobby by myself, I think I went through all the stages of grief: anger, denial, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. After I accepted that we weren’t going to have our own happily ever after, I started to wonder if there was anyone else who could make me happy.”
Bryn had a sneaking suspicion she knew where this was going. “Answer me one question, and I promise not to blast you, no matter how badly I want to, but does Megan have anything to do with this change of heart?”
He didn’t respond, and that’s when she knew. Son of a bitch. She imagined barbecuing him. But she couldn’t do that, because, despite how bad his timing was, he wasn’t wrong.
“Is it all due to her? Or is she the final piece in the puzzle?”
“I think she, or someone like her, is the final piece…just a normal girl I can live a normal life with.”
“That’s great for you,” Bryn said. “And not to sound selfish, but what about my happily ever after? I had this scenario all planned out in my head about the giant mansion with two wings.”
“After the party last night, do you still believe that could work?”
She wanted to lie and say yes, “I don’t know. I was hoping to find a way. I still want you in my life. More to the point, I still want you.” She couldn’t put it any more simply than that soul-baring statement.
“And you’re upset because you think I don’t want you anymore,” Valmont said. “The truth is I’m choosing not to want you because it’s not healthy for either of us.”
“Why can’t we enjoy the time we have left? Why does it have to end now?”
“Because the longer it goes on, the harder it will be to end.”
She wanted to stomp her feet like a toddler. “It’s not like it’s easy to end it right now. At least not for me.”
“It’s not easy for me, either, but I know it’s right. And I know it’s better than it would be if we wait to break up until your grandfather or someone else insists we do so. This way it’s our choice.”
“It’s your choice,” Bryn snapped. “I’m not choosing this.”
“You’re beginning to understand my argument, aren’t you?”
“You have no idea how badly I want to blast you out of that chair,” Bryn growled.
“Because you know I’m right?”
“No, because I understand your stupid logic, and I hate it.”
“I’ll always be here for you. And I’ll always be your friend.”
“Nope. Doesn’t work for me. I can’t have you around twenty-four hours a day like this. It will kill me faster than any Rebel plot.” She tried to laugh, but it came out like a half sob. “You need to go.”
“I won’t leave you unprotected.”
“I’m a kick-ass shape-shifting dragon, remember?” Bryn sniffled. “Despite all the attempts on my life, I am pretty good at taking care of myself. I don’t need a babysitter. If you don’t want to be my boyfriend anymore, then I don’t need you in my life. ”
“You’re being ridiculous.”
“Sucks to be the one arguing your case when the other person has made up their mind already, doesn’t it?”
“Yes,” he said.
“It might be immature, but if you can’t be more than my knight, then I can’t have you here. Besides, Lillith said I’d have to release you after my marriage contract was approved. Who knew she was psychic?”
“You can’t break our bond over this,” Valmont protested.
“A minute ago you wanted a simpler life. I can give you that with three words.”
“Stop and think before you do this out of spite. I am still willing to lay down my life for you.”
“I understand, but if we do this now, when I’m riding a wave of anger, it’s like ripping off a Band-Aid. We don’t have to draw it out. No one on campus needs to know the real reason you bailed on me. They’ll all think it’s because my marriage contract was approved.” She chuckled. “Look at me, thinking like a Blue.”
Valmont sat back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. “Ultimately, it’s your choice, but you’re forgetting one important fact. If I leave, who do you think your grandmother will insist stay by your side twenty-four hours a day?”
And just when she thought this situation couldn’t get any worse. “She’d want Jaxon to spend every waking moment with me which is ridiculous, because I can take care of myself. I don’t need anyone to protect me.”
“Your grandmother thinks otherwise. So, you can ca
lm down and let me do my assigned job as your knight, or you can kick me out and deal with Jaxon.”
Her head started pounding. She was trapped. “I’m pretty sure I hate you right now.”
“Bryn, I’m sor—”
She pushed her chair back from the table. “Oh no you don’t. You don’t get to say anything nice, or supportive, or sensitive. I need to stay angry or I’m going to fall apart. And you can keep up the, you’re-only-my-employee-bullshit you started by keeping small talk to a minimum. We aren’t going to hang out, and we aren’t going to be friends. Because if we start laughing and having fun together, I’ll miss us. Maybe we can be friends later, but not now. Got it?”
“You’re serious? That’s how you want to leave things?”
“None of this is how I want to leave things, but if you insist on staying and being my knight, then that’s how it’s going to be. Understand?”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
The impersonal tone was exactly what she’d asked for, but it still hurt. “Fine. I’m going to call Ivy and I am going to bitch up a storm, so why don’t you go hide in your room or on the terrace.”
“Now I’m relegated to the servant’s quarters?” he asked.
“Yes, as a matter of self-preservation. Check back with me in a month and maybe we can renegotiate our arrangement.”
Valmont headed into his room and slammed the door.
And Bryn crumbled.
She pulled her knees up to her chest, curled into a ball, and let the tears flow. How had her life turned to such utter crap? Why did every guy she ever liked turn out to be such a complete moron? Was there something wrong with her? Sure, being officially promised to marry Jaxon made being with Valmont a little more difficult to manage, but they could have worked something out, if he thought their relationship was worth fighting for. And since he didn’t, why wouldn’t he just go away? Being around him every day was too painful to imagine.
She dabbed at her face with the napkins left on the table until they fell apart in her hands. What was she supposed to do now? This was all so damn frustrating. Since she was out of napkins but not out of tears, she went into her room and climbed into the shower. She could call Ivy later. Right now, crying in the shower would be therapeutic.
You’d think she’d be used to this, my-life-is-not-my-own scenario, but Valmont dumping her was a complete shock. Just when she needed emotional support, he decided to be all business. Then again, maybe he didn’t want to watch the playacting she and Jaxon would have to do in public.
And what about Rhianna? How was she dealing with this? At least she’d still have Jaxon to lean on. No one would expect them to break things off. And it’s not like Bryn wanted him. The strange thing was that out of all the males in her life, he was probably the only one, besides Clint, she could rely on right now. Since they were legally tied together, according to the Directorate, he couldn’t leave her. How was that for irony?
When her fingers started to prune, she got out of the shower and dressed in her favorite yoga pants and T-shirt. A knock on her bedroom door made her heart jump. “Bryn, it’s Rhianna. Can I come in?”
“Yes.”
Rhianna peeked in the door. Her normally flawless complexion was blotchy and red.
“I see you’ve been doing the same thing I have,” Rhianna sniffled. “I thought we could commiserate and maybe eat some chocolate.” She held up a box of cookies.
“How’d you know I’d be crying?” Bryn asked.
“Ivy called to check on me, and she told me about Valmont. She figured I might need some girl time and that my Blue friends wouldn’t be open to listening to me gripe, and she was right.”
“That sucks for you.”
“You have no idea,” Rhianna said. “Since I’ve been relegated to Jaxon’s mistress, I’m supposed to be happy and not care that his marriage contract was approved.”
“Yours never should have been voided in the first place,” Bryn said.
“Agreed, and your knight should realize nothing has to change between you two.”
“I tried telling him that,” Bryn bit into a chocolate cookie. The light brown chips were peanut butter. “Oh my God. These are awesome.”
“I know. I ate two before I came over.” Rhianna laughed.
And then it hit Bryn. The one good thing about being married to Jaxon might be spending time with Rhianna. “How do you think polite dragon-society would react to you and me hanging out together in public?”
“I’m sure they’ll be shocked, but I don’t care. There’s something freeing about being off societal radar. I’ve developed an if-I’m-not-good-enough-for-them-then-I-don’t-have-to-follow-their-rules attitude.”
“I’m so jealous.” Bryn took a giant bite of cookie. “I should probably ask how Jaxon is dealing with all this. I’m sure he’s not thrilled, either.”
“No. He’s angry with his father for springing this on him. Ferrin should have given him and you advance notice, so you’d be prepared.”
“It makes me wonder why they did it this way. Why now?” Bryn broke a cookie in half while she thought about it. “I bet it was more my grandparents than his parents.” And then there was Lillith.
“From a strategic point of view, maybe they wanted to show the Rebels that the top two influential Blue families were united.”
“If that’s true, then Ferrin and my grandfather could have walked around campus hugging or something.”
Rhianna laughed. “That would have been a sight.”
And then another more logical explanation occurred to her. “I bet they wanted to show the Rebels that I’d aligned myself with the Blues…that even though I was a hybrid, I’d chosen to back the ruling Clan.”
“That makes a lot of sense,” Rhianna said. “And it also shows everyone else that you aren’t in league with the Rebels.”
Either way you thought about it, Bryn didn’t love the logic. What’s done was done. Next topic. “Did Jaxon tell you about the message his father gave him for me?”
“That was a bit harsh,” Rhianna said. “Ferrin can be scary.”
“And Lillith is so sweet. I don’t know how she’s put up with him.” And now Bryn would have to put up with him at holidays and birthday parties. Not that she could gripe to Rhianna about that, so she decided to gripe about the current thorn in her side instead. “I still can’t believe Valmont bailed on me. Our idea about the mansion with two wings where you and Jaxon could live on one side while we lived on the other could have worked. My wing is going to be a bit boring now.”
“I’m sure you’ll find someone else,” Rhianna said.
“I don’t know. First there was Zavien and now Valmont. Maybe I have sucky taste in men.”
“I think maybe you’re a victim of your unusual circumstances,” Rhianna said. “And once all this war stuff is over and you release Valmont from his bond, you’ll have a chance to find someone new.”
She had her doubts. “What do you think is going to happen with the Rebels? Will the Directorate let them live off by themselves, or are they waiting for an excuse to squash the uprising?”
Rhianna reached around and touched her lower back. “My life was changed in more ways than one due to the attacks…and not for the better. I wish we could find the Rebels responsible and bring them to justice.”
How had Bryn forgotten that? Okay it wasn’t like she’d forgotten, but she’d been fantasizing about hybrids, Throwbacks, and the Directorate living in peace. “I’m sure the Directorate has been hunting down the dragons responsible, but I don’t know if they’d share with us that they found them.”
“You’d think they’d want to let us know we’re safe,” Rhianna said.
“Or not.” Bryn rolled the idea over in her mind. “This might sound ridiculous, but what if Ferrin has been executing the dragons responsible for the attacks and not telling everyone, so we think we still need to hide behind them.”
“That’s a little extreme, even for Ferrin.” Rhianna said. “Plus
, the Directorate would want to parade their victory in front of everyone to show us they were right all along.”
“Right about what?” Bryn asked.
“Right about not approving certain marriages because they’d produce undesirable dragons.”
“I’m mildly offended by that statement,” Bryn said. And she wasn’t joking.
Rhianna pointed at the box of baked goods. “First off, I’m sharing my cookies with you, so you don’t get to be offended. Second, you have to admit any dragon who would try to hurt or kill students cannot be right in the head.”
Bryn snagged another cookie. “Good point. Attacking innocent students and the people of Dragon’s Bluff isn’t the act of a sane, reasonable dragon. But neither was voiding your marriage contract due to a non-hereditary limp.”
“True.” Rhianna leaned back on her elbows. “There doesn’t seem to be an answer to any of these problems, which is quite frustrating. It would drive Garret crazy.” Rhianna sucked in a breath. “What if the Greens developed a test to see which hybrids and Throwbacks would have come from parents who would have failed the blood combining test? Could that tell us which ones were unstable?”
“I have no idea. It sounds like racial profiling. And who’s to say nurture wouldn’t overcome nature? Just because the child was at risk for developing a certain behavior doesn’t mean they would definitely develop that trait.”
“There’s no good answer to this dilemma,” Rhianna said. “Which might be why someone is hunting down the hybrids.”
Bryn’s stomach growled. “These cookies are good, but I think I need real food. Do you want to go to lunch?”
“Where at?”
“Just to be perverse I feel like telling Valmont we want to have lunch at Fonzoli’s.”
“That’s not a bad idea,” Rhianna said. “He’d get to visit his family which might make him feel better.”
“It also seems like there are so many ways it could backfire.” She told Rhianna about Megan. “I’m not sure I can maintain my cool around her. I’m sure she’s perfectly nice, but right now I hate her and every girl like her who can give Valmont the life he wants. And I desperately want to incinerate his grandmother.”
