Content To Be Claimed (Beauty And The Beast #1)

Chapter 36

"Where are we going?" I asked tentatively.

"I wish to speak to father," he explained, drawing me to him. When I resisted, he raised a brow.

"Is your house too far to walk?"

He considered it. "About ten minutes. Why?"

"Can we walk, please? I wanna talk."

He nodded, still guarded, and we started walking. Warren didn't touch me but kept near me, gently steering me through the undergrowth. After minutes of walking in tense silence, I asked, "Are you still mad at me?"

His response was clipped. "Yes."

I sighed. "I'm really sorry, Warren."

He shook his head, his jaw clenched, and didn't say anything. I continued to stumble along beside him. After more silence, I fought back tears. This wasn't going the way I'd hoped at all. Warren had never been angry at me before, and he was scary like this. "Is it really so unforgivable?" I asked softly.

He stopped abruptly and turned to me. "You endangered your life, Annabelle," he ground out. "You are more precious than the entire world, and yet you risk yourself." He closed his eyes on a wince. "Have you any idea how crippling the fear was, the agony of possibly losing you? And over a food bag!"

"I'm sorry," I whispered helplessly, my tears slipping past the dam I'd erected. "I'm so sorry."

"What I require is an explanation!" he raged. "Do not apologize, just inform me why you thought it was plausible to take such a risk!"

"I just wanted to help, okay?" I was getting defensive now, unable to take his anger meekly. "I just wanted to feel useful, to feel like I was doing something about this problem I brought on us! It's all my fault, and I felt horrible knowing Roger was out there, all alone, just because I'm so weak and human!"

Warren grabbed my face in his hands, forcing me to look into his vivid emerald eyes. "What are you so convinced you are guilty of?"

"Vincent!" I yelled. "You said he barely ever came here before, that he was a nuisance but never hunted here, but all of that's changed because of me!" I fought to carry on past my sobs. "He keeps attacking, keeps coming back because of me, because he knows you'll do anything, risk anything, to protect me!" My voice lowered now as I whimpered, "You'll risk your family for me. Why can't I do something too? I didn't expect bringing Roger lunch to be all that dangerous. I just wanted to help."

He closed his eyes and exhaled, then drew me into his warmth, tucking my head under his chin. "You are so very mistaken, my love," he murmured. "To start, nothing about this situation is in any way your fault. Well, perhaps your misguided friendship with Thorne might have triggered your meeting with that wretch, but I believe that even had that not been the case, he would still have been taken with you." He kissed the crown of my head. "You are irresistible, my love, and that is through no fault of your own."

He drew back a little, cupping my chin so I looked up at him. "And on the second matter, I do not make a single decision lightly. Roger was in no danger - least of all of starvation. I monitored him through the day and Ashley monitored his surroundings, which is why we were a little lax on surveiling you."

He leaned in and touched his lips to mine in a soft kiss. "I do adore your compassionate nature but I cannot abide your inability to detect danger. Not only were you nearly mauled by a bear, you insisted on following Roger when he was high off tranquilizers. You clearly have not considered what would have occurred if he had lost all control and attacked you." I drew in a breath and he went on, "And I will not begin to mention the remorse that would have consumed him. For the final five seconds of his life before I killed him," he added flatly, making me smile.