"She will, Daae, I can tell you that much," he said. Anthony was quiet for a moment. Could he accept this compromise?
"Alright, I think that is fair, if she decides to go back to you then I will allow it," he said with more reluctance then he had ever felt in his life.
"How dare you!" Christine cried. All three men turned to look in surprise at Christine, who was standing by the doorway. Her face was flushed in obvious anger and her hands were clenched.
"How dare all of you!" Christine continued.
"Christine, how good of you to join us," Erik murmured. Her look could have sent daggers straight to his heart.
"What is wrong with all of you? You talk as if I am a possession which can be given to whoever you all see fit!" she cried. She had a score to settle with every one of these men, and she planned on getting it out tonight. If they thought it was right to have a discussion about her why she was not there then she could very well tell them what was on her mind without feeling guilty about it. She decided to confront her brother first, he was the easiest.
"Anthony, I love you dearly for wanting to protect me but I do not think it was right for you to take me away from Erik, regardless what he had done. I need to be able to handle things myself. And I can speak for myself, you do not have to," she said. Her brother said nothing, knowing he had been wrong in some things but taking her away from her husband had not been one of them. Christine looked at Raoul.
"Raoul...I am sorry for kissing you, it was not right. I did not want to give you any false assumptions that I felt more for you then I do. That was not right and it was very childish of me. I do care about you, but more like a sister to a brother, like I feel towards Anthony. I am sorry that it took all of this to happen for me to realize it," she said. Raoul nodded. Deep down he had known that she would never love him like he loved her but he had just not wanted to admit it.
"And Erik...God, I could rant and rave at you but I need you to know that it is not you that is allowing me to stay here until I am ready, I am making that choice, no matter how hard that is for you to swallow," she snapped. Erik held in a curse when he felt his body stir in desire. Why the hell did he find her so arousing in moments like this when he should be thinking about what she was saying? Everything that had happened since their wedding had made her a stronger woman, and he was just beginning to see that. He said nothing, looking at her, knowing she could see his desire and he could see the anger that crossed her eyes.
"Could I speak to you in private, Erik?" Christine demanded. He grinned, having seen that coming. He followed her out of the room and into her own room, the one he had been in what felt like mere hours ago. She turned to look at him and he knew that if he was not careful this might turn into a very heated argument.
"I know that you can be a chauvinistic jerk sometimes but why do you find it so hard to listen to anything I am telling you?" she demanded. He leaned back against the door, trying to look like he was interested in what she was saying.
"Perhaps because I already know what is on your mind and what I have on my mind sometimes is more appealing," he answered. One finely arched brow rose in question.
"Really, and what is that?" she demanded.
"How beautiful you look when you turn from the calm and sophisticated Christine to my little spit-fire," he answered. She sighed, knowing that he was trying to confuse her once more. Did he mean what he said or did he just want her to forget about what they were arguing about?
"And what about that is so terribly distracting that you cannot listen to me for a few moments?" she asked, becoming annoyed. Perhaps this was why she could never take anything he said seriously, she never knew what he meant by his tone because he was always so hard to read.
"I find it very arousing," he murmured, his voice becoming slightly husky. Christine turned away from him, knowing this was a trap of some kind. He wanted her to trust him again and would probably do anything to gain that trust.
"What I am talking about is serious, Erik, you need to work on your temper and the way in which you view woman," she said.
"I know. But you need to know that I am not the only one who needs to win back trust. You lost my trust when I found you kissing Chagny," he murmured. Christine swallowed and said nothing, knowing he was right.
"I do not want to discuss this any more tonight, I think it is better if you go," she said. She gasped when he came up behind her and wrapped his arms firmly about her, pressing a kiss to the skin of her neck. She tried to pull away but he held her fast.
"We do not need to discuss anything, perhaps we should simply let our bodies do the talking?" he wondered. She tried to say no but her mouth did not seem to want to cooperate. He turned her around to face him and pressed several long, torturous kisses to her mouth. The first moan she hears brings her back to her senses and she pulls away, turning away from him in shame. Why could she not say no to him?
"Please, Erik, you need to leave," she whispered. He says nothing and she turns to look at him, only to find him already gone. She collapsed on the bed, millions of thoughts whirling in her mind.
xXx