Page 185 of Fractured Fate

“Alright, Kitten. Time to sleep like a normal person,” he whispered, lifting her from her peculiar position and placing her onto the bed proper. She snuggled into the bedding, a smile on her face. His chest tightened at the sight.

She had burrowed under his skin and made a home, and he wasn’t sure he wanted anything different. He wanted her as enamored with him as he felt for her. He questioned if his obsession with her was normal, but at least he wasn’t stalking her.

Of course, she never gave him a reason to.

Shaking the strange thought, he pulled the covers over her and turned to go back to his bed. He paused when her phone chimed on the nightstand.

It took him a moment to realize the growl disturbing the peaceful quiet of the room came from him. The sight of Noah’s name on her phone tossed rationality out the window. He snatched the phone from the nightstand. He couldn’t see the complete message, but he saw the preview.

Noah:

Did you talk to the headmistress? I haven’t talked to…

He gripped the phone. After what happened in the alley, and with Noah’s identity exposed, he didn’t think Charlotte would have anything to do with the guy again. What did he mean by talking to the headmistress? Had Charlotte spoken with him about the academy? Why would she want anything to do with him? The questions swirled in his mind, inflaming his irritation.

Trusting her had seemed like an easy decision. He didn’t have any reason to doubt her feelings or suspect her of anything. Now, he couldn’t ignore the uncomfortable thing slithering in his gut, agitated at the possibility something was happening between her and the rogue.

He didn’t have those answers, but he knew one thing without question: Charlotte was hiding something from him.

She wanted him to not hide things from her, but here she was hiding things from him. He wasn’t about to allow a double standard to cause a rift between them.

Tomorrow, he would get answers.

The entire time he sat on his bed playing with his phone waiting for Charlotte to finish her shower tested the limits of his patience. He wanted to go in there and demand answers, but acting like a neanderthal would get him nowhere.

He witnessed enough of the asshole posturing from his friends to know the kind of damage that behavior would do to his fragile bond. Even if he felt like throwing a fit, he wouldn’t do it.

The problem with good intentions was they tended to fly out the window when faced with reality and heightened emotions.

The bathroom door opened, and Charlotte stepped out into their dorm room. Her shoulders inched up, and she froze, looking at him with trepidation.

Lifting her phone from where it rested against his leg, he said, “What’s this about?” His voice was calm, but her body language hadn’t changed. His irritation flowed to her through their bond without restraint. He couldn’t hide it from her if he tried.

“What do you mean?”

She hadn’t checked her phone when she woke up, instead going straight to the bathroom. The unread message remained on the screen, taunting him.

He held the phone out. Afraid if he said anything, or moved, he would do or say something he would regret. While he would never harm her physically, he didn’t trust himself not to say something stupid and hurt her heart. The jealousy trying to steal his rationality surrounding the situation strangled him.

Closing the distance between them, she took the phone from his hand.

Her face fell, and confusion swept her features as she looked back up at him. “Are you upset Noah messaged me?”

His eye twitched. He closed his eyes and took a calming breath. His words were measured and slow as he said, “Of course I’m upset a rogue who had the audacity to attack you is texting you like you’re friends.”

She put a hand on her hip and angled her head. “We are friends—sort of. He didn’t attack me, though.”

He dropped his phone on the bed and stood, towering over her. She didn’t shrink back. Her chin tilted up so she could meet his eyes. He wasn’t angry like in the cafeteria, but her casual way of addressing the situation contributed to his volatility.

“How can you stand there and say that when he was with the rogue who bit you?”

“I talked to him the other day with Riley at my mom’s shop.”

His voice rose with anger infusing his tone. “You talked to him?” He only had so much patience.

Her eyes narrowed. “That’s what I said.”

“No. Absolutely not.”