father as if it was an old joke. “She’s a nice girl, but I just don’t feel anything for her anymore. We had fun, but it’s done.”
“And were you planning on telling her that you wanted to end the relationship?” Thea’s hands clenched in her lap, her worst fears confirmed. Liam appeared to have truly just stopped loving Rhiannon. “She’s very hurt that you chose to move on without telling her.”
For a brief moment, he felt that stabbing pain in his chest again, but his mind refused to comprehend the feeling. “I know, it was rude of me,” he said casually, the voice in his head feeding the words to him on cue. “I’ll go talk to her, make her see that it’s for the best.”
He rose to his feet, and Thea did as well, turning to face him. She was nearly the same height as he, and as she stared into his face, one she had thought she knew so well, she felt a violent fury rising within her. Her disappointment with him enveloped her like a cloak until she lost all reason, and without thinking her hand whipped out and struck his face in a swift slap, one that left the three of them stunned into silence.
Liam reached up to touch his cheek as his eyes met hers. He suddenly had a flashing memory of her smiling with wisdom and ethereal beauty, with power emanating from her very body in shimmering waves. His heart opened to the image, yearned toward it, and he knew his eyes had widened with the knowledge of what he had felt for her. He had never upset Thea, not once…God, what in the world had he done?
But the voice slapped sharply back into his mind as the image faded, and he tried to cling to it but within mere seconds, it was gone. His mind was wiped clean of all thoughts, and his face went calmly blank.
“Do you know where she is?” he asked, the old memory of Thea long gone.
Thea, chest heaving and pain and fury in her eyes, looked to Lucian incredulously. Lucian placed a tentative hand on his son’s shoulder, and urged him to turn around and look at him.
Both he and Thea knew it was very unlike Liam to ask for Rhiannon’s whereabouts. He usually had a kind of sixth sense in regards to her…
“I believe she’s in the back gardens,” Lucian murmured hollowly, his hand clenching on his son’s shoulder as a sudden urge to shake the sense back into Liam washed over him. But he refrained, and simply released him and watched Liam smile before walking away, as though he had no care in the world.
He found her on the back steps of the castle, sitting with her hands clenched in her lap and her face smoothly blank. He stepped toward her and sat at her side, a carefully prepared sheepish smile already on his face.
But when he turned to look at her, his heart clenched and thundered with pain, and he let out a sharp hissing sound as his hand came up to rub his chest.
Rhiannon immediately glanced over at him, worry in her eyes at seeing the anguish on his face.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, reaching out to him, her hand covering his as it clutched at his heart. At her touch, he met her eyes and saw the tears in them, and the memory of her collapsed in his arms in that very garden, sobbing against him as he held her tight and comforted her hit him like a stone cold wave.
She saw what she assumed was guilt on his face, and seeing it had her pulling her hand away and turning from him. She said nothing as she closed herself in, shutting all doors and locking them tight. She wouldn’t let anything he said upset her, couldn’t let it creep in to hurt her, not now, not ever.
Whatever excuses or reasons he had, she would listen to them objectively, and accept. But she wasn’t sure if she could ever forgive…
When he lost eye contact with her, he struggled to hold on to the image of her in the garden, but it slipped away as if blown by a swift and careless breeze. He tried to grasp the lingering remnants of it, but felt the fog settle in once more over his thoughts and shroud him in emptiness.
All that
“And were you planning on telling her that you wanted to end the relationship?” Thea’s hands clenched in her lap, her worst fears confirmed. Liam appeared to have truly just stopped loving Rhiannon. “She’s very hurt that you chose to move on without telling her.”
For a brief moment, he felt that stabbing pain in his chest again, but his mind refused to comprehend the feeling. “I know, it was rude of me,” he said casually, the voice in his head feeding the words to him on cue. “I’ll go talk to her, make her see that it’s for the best.”
He rose to his feet, and Thea did as well, turning to face him. She was nearly the same height as he, and as she stared into his face, one she had thought she knew so well, she felt a violent fury rising within her. Her disappointment with him enveloped her like a cloak until she lost all reason, and without thinking her hand whipped out and struck his face in a swift slap, one that left the three of them stunned into silence.
Liam reached up to touch his cheek as his eyes met hers. He suddenly had a flashing memory of her smiling with wisdom and ethereal beauty, with power emanating from her very body in shimmering waves. His heart opened to the image, yearned toward it, and he knew his eyes had widened with the knowledge of what he had felt for her. He had never upset Thea, not once…God, what in the world had he done?
But the voice slapped sharply back into his mind as the image faded, and he tried to cling to it but within mere seconds, it was gone. His mind was wiped clean of all thoughts, and his face went calmly blank.
“Do you know where she is?” he asked, the old memory of Thea long gone.
Thea, chest heaving and pain and fury in her eyes, looked to Lucian incredulously. Lucian placed a tentative hand on his son’s shoulder, and urged him to turn around and look at him.
Both he and Thea knew it was very unlike Liam to ask for Rhiannon’s whereabouts. He usually had a kind of sixth sense in regards to her…
“I believe she’s in the back gardens,” Lucian murmured hollowly, his hand clenching on his son’s shoulder as a sudden urge to shake the sense back into Liam washed over him. But he refrained, and simply released him and watched Liam smile before walking away, as though he had no care in the world.
He found her on the back steps of the castle, sitting with her hands clenched in her lap and her face smoothly blank. He stepped toward her and sat at her side, a carefully prepared sheepish smile already on his face.
But when he turned to look at her, his heart clenched and thundered with pain, and he let out a sharp hissing sound as his hand came up to rub his chest.
Rhiannon immediately glanced over at him, worry in her eyes at seeing the anguish on his face.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, reaching out to him, her hand covering his as it clutched at his heart. At her touch, he met her eyes and saw the tears in them, and the memory of her collapsed in his arms in that very garden, sobbing against him as he held her tight and comforted her hit him like a stone cold wave.
She saw what she assumed was guilt on his face, and seeing it had her pulling her hand away and turning from him. She said nothing as she closed herself in, shutting all doors and locking them tight. She wouldn’t let anything he said upset her, couldn’t let it creep in to hurt her, not now, not ever.
Whatever excuses or reasons he had, she would listen to them objectively, and accept. But she wasn’t sure if she could ever forgive…
When he lost eye contact with her, he struggled to hold on to the image of her in the garden, but it slipped away as if blown by a swift and careless breeze. He tried to grasp the lingering remnants of it, but felt the fog settle in once more over his thoughts and shroud him in emptiness.
All that
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