Chapter 24: Chapter 24

Before he heard the clicks of her shoes, Ben felt her broken heart coming nearer, and he dropped the muffin he was eating to the counter as his stomach turned.

Thorin’s eyes moved over his head, and he managed a smile to hide his concern about her dark eyes and weight loss. “Did you need something, Sweet Girl?”

From the doorway, she pulled the charm on her chain back and forth under her fingers. “I wanted to tell you I’m going to the Order party this evening.”

He spent the last few weeks doing his best to stay out of her way, but Ben’s eyes drifted to the side, and his chin met his shoulder. “Not tonight.”

“I’m not a child, and I wasn’t asking for permission, Ben.” Her arms crossed her chest, and she nodded her chin to Haldir. “Would you mind the trouble of escorting me, Uncle Haldir?”

A throaty chuckle came from the old man’s chest as he cleared his mouth with his tongue and wiped off his hands. “Escort a beautiful woman to a party? That doesn’t sound like any trouble at all, Imara. I’d love to. I’m quite tired of being locked up in this stuffy old house with these wet blankets, anyway.”

“You got that right.” She inched around the corner of the kitchen island, then leaned into his face and pressed her lips against his cheek, but her eyes never left her mate. “I’m ready to have some fun.”

While she triumphantly passed him by as she left the kitchen, she glanced back over her shoulder. “Don’t be late.”

Ben rolled his neck from side to side, then spun the stool around. “Imara! Stop!”

“Leave me alone.” Her hand met the newel post, and he grabbed it, then turned her around to face him. Her pouty mouth wrinkled up under her nose as she hissed at him and jerked herself free. “Get your hands off of me.”

She backed up the staircase as he followed along in front of her. “What are you doing?”

She tugged the silky robe from her legs as each foot found its next step. “I’m about to go find myself a dress to wear. Something irresistible.”

His hands found her hips and pulled her into his chest. “You know what the hell I’m talking about.” He kept her pinned close to him, and his fingers cupped her cheek. “I’m asking you not to go, Imara. Please.”

She rolled her eyes and twisted her lips to the side as she shook her head no. “No. You don’t get to do that.” The heels of her hands dug into his chest as she pushed at him. “You’re not my bodyguard anymore; you’re not anything to me at all. You made that perfectly clear.”

Her finger pointed at him as she backed away. “I’m not spending one more second wallowing around this old house over you.”

***

The squelch of Haldir’s polished leather shoes on the marble floor made Thorin turn from the window. His teeth dug into his bottom lip as short, rapid chuckles came from his throat while he looked the Viking over. “It’s always entertaining to see a thousand-year-old savage like yourself all cleaned up and looking dapper. You just might be confused with a proper gentleman if you’re not careful.”

Haldir twisted his arm in front of him to check his cufflink. “The ladies love this old savage cock. They drop their panties the minute I talk about all the battles I’ve been in.”

A huff of air came from the dark corner where Ben was drinking whiskey, already a few glasses in. “Just keep your fucking hands off my wife, asshole.”

“I’ve known Imara since she was in nappies; I’d never lay a finger on her.” While he unscrewed the cap on the bottle at the server, Haldir pointed his finger at Ben. “You’ve brought this misery on yourself, my friend. She doesn’t know she’s a married woman, and you’re not acting like much of a husband.” A satisfied groan left his nose as he relaxed into the sofa with his ankle on his knee. “Whatever happens tonight, that’s your doing, and you have no one to blame but yourself.” Flashes of gold shot through the darkness as Ben’s eyes met Haldir’s. “She’s a beautiful woman, and the men will be all over her. You let that sink in for a moment.”

Ben smelled Imara as she came closer to the parlor, and he set down his glass, then pushed his hair off his face as Haldir slapped his hand to his chest. “Well, aren’t you a vision!”

She wore an ankle-length black gown with a slit up the thigh and a neckline that left no doubt that she was all grown up and looking to punish Ben for his error in judgment.

She leaned into the mirror that hung on the wall beside Ben and rubbed the smudge of her red lipstick from her mouth. “Thank you, Haldir.” She wiggled her fingers in her reflection when she saw the box in Haldir’s hand. “Is that for me?”

He gave the box a toss to the coffee table as he moved around it, then slid the corsage on her wrist. “It’s magnificent.” She could feel Ben’s eyes burning into her, so she pinched Haldir’s jacket between her fingers and tugged him a little closer. “Wherever did you find it?”

After he kissed the back of her fingers, he tucked her arm into his. “You don’t live as long as I do without knowing where to find things to please the ladies.” His head tipped to the door. “You ready?”

“Oh yes, I most certainly am.” As Haldir led her to the foyer, she glanced back over her shoulder. “Don’t wait up. You never know what we might get into.”

Once the front door closed behind them, Ben rose from his chair and launched his cup into the fireplace, sending shards of glass through the air. “Argh!” His whole body shivered as he grasped the back of the sofa and clutched at the pain in his chest.

Thorin chuckled as he surveyed the mess and sipped on his drink. “Well, that was certainly ridiculous. Do you feel better at least?”

The expensive bottles of Thorin’s favorite liquors jingled as Ben’s fist met the intricately carved wood paneling on the wall. “Dammit!”

Ben threw himself back into the chair, then leaned over and grabbed at the back of his head. He rocked back and forth, and Thorin sank onto the coffee table across from him. “You can’t keep her locked up here forever. Do you remember how angry you were at Shaw and me for doing the same exact thing? It’s not right, Ben. It wasn’t right when we did it, and it’s not right now. You can either be with her or not, but you can’t force her to be miserable with you like this. In the end, it will all turn out the same, anyway.”

His teary face rose to meet Thorin’s, and Ben wiped his hand across his mouth. “It’s all my fault.”

Thorin’s lips twisted as he shook his head. “Imara was cursed the day she was born, Ben. Fate brought you together so you could save her. I believe it with every cell in my body. You need to believe it too.” He wrapped his arm around Ben’s neck and pulled him into a hug. “All this pain and unhappiness. This is what that monster wanted, Ben. You’re just feeding the curse and making it stronger. Don’t you know that?”