The Beast And The Blessed by Ashley Breanne Book 2
The Warrior and The Witch by Ashley Breanne
Chapter 2
Joselin’s P.O.V.
– Present Day
One had to be a special kind of stupid to let their ignorance feed their fear. Yet, as I stepped into the pub, the room fell silent. Bodies shifted, and multiple people began collecting their belongings to make a quick escape. Only one person in the building should have been afraid of me, and he was sitting with his back to me at the bar, trying to enjoy his day off.
I was about to ruin that.
My chest warmed as my eyes ran across his broad back and shoulders. He didn’t bother turning to look at me as I approached him. I rested my elbows on the counter next to him as the bartender placed a beer in front of me and then rushed to the other end of the bar.
The sound of feet scurrying away as the room rapidly emptied made me grit my teeth, knowing I would have to leave a large tip to make up for the loss of his business. A quick scan of the room showed only a few castle guards, who were used to me, had chosen to stay and were enjoying their meals.
But that was how it worked. I used to let their reactions get to me. The people would take one look at my long white hair and colorless eyes, and they would leave. When I was first brought here, a few people protested King Amery from taking me in. They lost, but it still bothered me.
But now, even though most of them had grown used to me, I embraced it.
I loved that I instilled a deep-seated fear in people. Humans, Lycans, Wolves, Fae… you name it.
Except him.
He had never been afraid of me, not since day one. At least, that was what I told myself. In reality, our past was a bit more complicated than that… more painful.
Tobias pushed his plate of food in my direction, and I bit back a smile as I grabbed a fry before sliding the ceramic dish back toward him. I wasn’t hungry, but I wouldn’t turn his offer down. His glass of water sat untouched in front of him, and I watched as a drop of condensation ran down the glass onto the paper coaster beneath it.
Tobias quickly pushed his thigh against mine, nudging me to grab my attention. The warmth of his body managed to make it through his jeans and into my skin. It was glorious, and I dropped my hands in my lap, hoping to hide the goosebumps that rose along my skin at his touch.
His rich brown eyes scanned my face, and I felt my breathing speed up when he briefly looked down at my body. When his eyes met mine again, I swallowed hard and had to turn away.
It was difficult enough for me to have to come here and ask him a favor. But seeing how he looked at me, his pupils dilated, and his lip pulled up ever so slightly on one side, always made my body feel warm and my mouth dry.
The man was a god, always just out of reach. If my family had been right, I was a demon.
The two didn’t mix.
Maybe I was afraid of him too.
“I need a favor,” I muttered, bitter that I had to show up in a place like this to ask for help. “But you’ve been avoiding me. Should I even ask, or should I go to someone else for help?”
My childhood best friend had challenged me a few months ago to toss my reservations aside and go for it with Tobias. But there was no point to it. He had a soulmate somewhere out there, and when he found her, she would be the luckiest woman in the world.
Yet, I did it anyway. Getting to be loved by Tobias, even for a limited time, would have been worth the heartbreak of him eventually leaving me for his soul mate.
I tried to get his attention by flirting with and touching him… He never responded. He wasn’t like the others. Other men fell at my feet if I approached them. They loved to be able to say they f*uc*ked me, The King’s Royal Advisor, but they never wanted anything more than that.
I wanted more than that, but I had only ever felt that way for Tobias; for the one man that rejected every advance I made and refused to touch me.
So, I gave up the constant humiliation of his repeated rejections. It wasn’t worth the pain if I never got the chance to be with him. But that didn’t mean it didn’t still hurt every time I saw him or was reminded that I wasn’t good enough for him. He made it easy and did everything he could to avoid me over the past two weeks. Now I was here, humiliating myself again in public to tell him that I wasn’t strong enough to do this on my own.
But he was the only one I trusted to keep it a secret, not only because there were very few people he would ever talk to, but because I trusted him not to. Tobias lifted his glass, the movement catching my attention. His eyes were open, holding steady on me as he sipped his ice water. I watched as he swallowed, the tanned skin of his neck moving slightly as he did so.
My mouth dried, and I took a large gulp of my beer, forcing my eyes away. “Don’t make me beg, Tobias,” I said, placing both hands around my beer mug as it hit the wooden top of the bar, staring at the wall of liquors in front of us. “I’ll do this alone if I have to, but please don’t make me.”
He raised his eyebrow, silently asking me to explain. But even thinking the words make a ball form in my throat. How did I tell him that the horror I had experienced as a child may have happened again to someone else? How do I tell him what I had seen in the mountains the night before the war?
I pushed my chair back, ready to tell him to forget about it. But I stopped when Tobias placed his hand over mine on the bar top. Sparks erupted across my skin, and I felt my breathing halt as I stared at our hands. It wasn’t the first time he had initiated contact between us. Still, it was the first time he didn’t pull away immediately.
His amusement at the situation had vanished. He nodded once before standing to fish his wallet out of his pocket and leave some money. My heart dropped when he let go of my hand, but I masked my emotions and did the same, leaving a couple hundred as an apology for clearing out the bartender’s pub.
From the corner of my eye, I watched as Tobias lifted his hand instinctively as if he were going to place it on my lower back. But he clenched his hand in a fist and pulled his arm back to his side.
I should have known he wouldn’t want to. He had made it very clear over the past couple of months that he wasn’t interested in any physical affection from me. The disappointment that he didn’t want to touch me was overshadowed by the humiliation when I looked up and saw the remaining patrons watching the interaction.
I held my head up as I walked calmly out of the building. Still, I knew they could hear my heart beating erratically and my uneven breathing as I shoved my feelings down. If he didn’t want to touch me or want me touching him anymore, I would do my best to avoid it at all costs.
“It’s about a day’s drive. If you’re up for it, we can leave now.” I pointed with my thumb over my shoulder. The dark lines on my arm caught my attention. They made me scowl as the familiar runic symbols and patterns that had been etched over my body stood out sharply.
They would forever remind me of that day, a day I wished more than anything I could forget.
Tobias let out a growl as I turned my back on him, but I ignored him and continued walking to the city’s edge, where the cars were stored.
We didn’t make it very far before he stopped me, grabbed my bicep, and turned me to face him. It wasn’t very often that I would travel anywhere on foot. I preferred to teleport. It was a complex casting, and very few witches could do it. But the last time I had done it, it had scarred me.
“What’s wrong with driving?” I asked as he looked down at me, his eyebrows pulled together like he was trying to understand me. My arm was still in his grip, and I felt my chest barely brushing against his as it rose with each breath. It was too much.
I pulled away quickly, my other hand rubbing my bicep as I stepped away from him. I couldn’t think when he was that close, let alone touching me.
Before the war, I had all the confidence in the world. But now that I finally accepted that he wasn’t interested, I was trying to do the right thing by respecting his space.
Tobias shook his head in response, and I grumbled as I debated trying to teleport with him. I wouldn’t be alone, and I knew he wouldn’t let anything happen to me. Even so, I was stronger now than I was then. The last time I teleported, I had a knife sticking out of my back. It was gruesome, and I almost didn’t return to this realm when my blood loss became too great.
“F*uc*k it,” I muttered, lifting my hand and holding it in the air as I stared at the one he held out to me. Tobias straightened his fingers impatiently, but I couldn’t grab it for some reason. Instead, I reached up and placed my hand on his shoulder. The thin cloth of his shirt did nothing to act as a barrier between us, but I knew it was better than nothing.
The world flickered around me, and I dug my fingers into him tighter as the color faded from our world, and we were sent spiraling through the darkness. It took only a minute before we arrived at the mountain’s base, and I could put some space between us again.
The darkness of death was all around. I looked over my shoulder to see the field had been cleaned of any remains, leaving behind hundreds of burn marks in the grass where the Queen, Natalie, had destroyed an entire species in seconds.
Tobias let out a growl as he inspected the surrounding area, his nose flaring as he searched for the scent of anyone nearby.
Knowing it was finally only the two of us, I knew he would eventually speak, but hearing his voice still sent a shiver down my spine.
It was the curse of unrequited love. Everything he did had an effect on me. “Why did you bring us here, Josie?”