Bella
"I think we should talk now, Edward," I whispered. I turned to him. "I have so many questions. If you snap like that again, would your anger kill me? You would have killed him had I not stopped you, right?"
"No, I won't hurt you. I think we should talk. Let's go back to our room," he murmured as he put his hands on my shoulders. "Will you come with me?"
I looked from his hand on my left shoulder to his eyes, noting how they looked less predatory. The red was gone, replaced by a dark steely gray that now had a bit of light to it. I was in complete shock over being asked to go with him instead of being ordered to go back to the room too. I wasn't sure if I could trust him, but I trusted him to show mercy and he did despite how enraged his Beast was. I am not as terrified of him as I was but I am more confused than I was before, and I couldn't fight the need to be close to him. That last fact is what scared me the most. What has changed and why? Does he only want me to bring Ara back and end his curse or does he truly want me?
Finally, I nodded. He moved his hands down my arms before linking our fingers together. "Come, my Bella." I walked by his side to our room, where he dismissed the maid before picking me up to carry me over to his bed. I wrapped my arm around his neck as I shook my head.
"Please, don't. I hate your bed. It feels strange," I begged before flinching as I anticipated his punishment for being so blunt.
He chuckled before laying me on the bed. "Things are different now. I have always liked your fire. I repressed it because I never thought I could allow any part of me to stop reliving my past. Also, my scent will comfort you now and heal you. Just as yours calms my Beast."
I inhaled deeply, surprised when I didn't have the urge to throw up. I realized what he said was true, as I put the pillow I had sniffed down. I also remembered how I had healed. I looked at my hands devoid of any scars or blemishes of my life in the human world and here. In a nervous flurry, I bombarded him with questions, "How? How is this possible? Am I going crazy? Are you going to kill me now? Or soon? Am I dying? Do you want her and not me? What is happening?"
He shook his head as he sat on the bed and patted the mattress for me to sit, "No, you're not going crazy. I will never kill you. I will not allow anyone to hurt you either. I know that you don't believe me, and for that, I apologize."
My eyes widened as I heard his apology. I couldn't help but watch him like he had grown two extra heads. "Why are you being so nice to me?" I blurted out. "I want the whole truth."
He sighed as he reached out to take my hand again. "That's a long story. I also don't have all of the answers, especially after what happened with Arnold."
I interlocked our fingers hesitantly before squeezing them. "Tell me. Make me understand because I'm confused. I used to beg for death, but now I only crave life. I used to wish to run away from here and you. But now…"I took a deep breath. "All I want to do is be around you when before I had only wanted to be a loyal servant to avoid death."
He scanned my face. "Do you remember what happened in your visions?"
"Remember what?" Am I missing something? If he's alluding to me being his lost love, I will slap him.
He sighed as his hand tightened around mine. "Let me tell you my whole past. Many human centuries ago, I was the Crowned Prince of the Fae. I met my Intended, or as you would call her, my soulmate. Ara was a wonderful woman. Faithful, honest, loyal. I loved her more than life. I was so happy to make her my Queen. My father had a history of exterminating any in his way."
I rubbed his hand with my finger. "Take your time."
"She was everything to me. We eloped and she became pregnant. My father, King James, was evil with power and didn't want to leave his throne. He attacked every mate that belonged to his opposition. They went crazy and attacked him. He either killed them or imprisoned them for life. I will find a way to free those who I haven't yet. When it came time for me to take the throne, he attacked my Ara. I announced to all Fae that she was my wife, not just my intended. As if I thought that would stop him because I had always been a good son. I foolishly thought that he would allow me both the throne and my wife.
The night of my coronation, he attacked Ara. He dragged her off the throne and killed her in front of me. He had his guards hold me in place and I was forced to watch as he obliterated her soul. It broke me, and I went a little crazy which got me banished. I knew that I would make sure my father paid. Not just for her, but for all of the souls he obliterated as well. I sought out The Darkness and it gave me my Beast, but a curse too. I got my revenge against my father. Every year since, I have taken sacrifices to try and break the curse or free those who opposed my father. Every day I plot, plan, and spar, just to keep up the skills that I need once I am rid of my curse."
I remained silent as my heart ached for him. I may not understand how it felt to lose someone you loved, but I understood the need to get even. Even if my needs had never been as pure as his, I still understood. "King Edward, I'm so sorry," I murmured soothingly as I moved my finger over his hand.
"Let me finish, please," he paused to brush his lips over mine. "I've prayed every day for her to be returned to me, but every day I was denied. Until last night. When I was touching you, she came through. She's inside of you. You brought her back to me. You are her or so I thought at first. I was confused as to why my feelings for you were changing. It made me angry. I felt like I was betraying Ara, but I should have known better. Faes are the species that are most commonly reincarnated. And some of us, even though it is very rare, end up remembering our past lives. Last night, after I decided that I wanted you, Ara made herself known. But her soul had been obliterated making it impossible to ever return. She wanted her Edward back, and I will never be him again. I don't want to be him again. I want to be better. You make me want to be better. Even if you are my Beast's mate, I want you as mind too. So I wasn't going to be able to let you go before, but now, I really can't let you go. I hope you understand. I hope that you can give me a chance to prove to you that what I say is true. You don't have to be afraid of me. I won't hurt someone I love. How I feel about you is true. I want you next to me at all times. I want to make love to you. And above all else, I want to guide you through your transition."
"My transition? What do you mean by that? Am I going to look like you?" I asked, panicked, making him chuckle a little.
"No, all that's happening is that you are unlocking your Fae blood or something far better," he murmured as he lifted my hands to kiss my knuckles. "I think it started when I laid my claim on you. I marked you and that's when you became my addiction and my Beast learned that you were his mate." He brushed my hair back to touch his bite mark. Heat and arousal filled my senses, chipping away at what little resolve I had. "When I fed from you, I left some of my magic behind. It solidified our bond and helped you heal." He lifted my hand again to run his thumb over all five of my fingers. "Everything was healed. Didn't you notice?"
"Of course I did. I was going to ask but I was afraid to."
"My magic being able to heal you as it did, proved what my Beast knew the moment you touched his face. You couldn't be human. I foolishly had thought you could be Ara. No magic can bring an obliterated soul back as it had been. The Ara I knew was dead. However, there is a magic that can create soulmates even after one has been obliterated. It is extremely rare, but so is this." He kisses me softly. "You never have to be afraid, not of me or my Beast. We will never hurt you again. He can't because you are his mate and I won't because you, not Ara, are mine. I'm bound to you for all of eternity. And I won't let you be taken.."
"Why not?" I asked breathlessly.
"Because you're mine to love. And I intend to do that for the rest of my life," he answered. I leaned back in the bed, scanning his face. As I studied it, all I could think was: Did I believe in any of this?