Open for Negotiation

Chapter Ten

Author's Note: This chapter contains some light torture (that just sounds wrong but oh well) DM me if you want an edited version and I can soften it some for you.

**I would also love to hear from you if you have any other suggestions or feedback. And a question for you. Do you think Marcus' dream is real or is he just crazy? Comment and vote to give me your thoughts on it.

Her aunt was trying. Her deity that ruled the Underworld had already said that he couldn't involve himself but she should try.

Yet, try as she might, nothing was working. Nothing was bringing her niece's soul back together. Her matron had already informed her that nothing short of slavery or handfasting would stop the change itself.

She muttered a curse as her latest effort fizzled. Marcus stirred from where he had been watching her. Guarding her. Lorrielie still had her minions.

"You're doing everything you can." he pointed out. "Give yourself a break for a moment."

"I don't have time for breaks."

"You don't have time for mistakes either but if you don't rest for a moment, you'll start making them." He said bluntly. She turned, ready to unleash her temper and seen the weariness in his own eyes.

Take care of him, the words whispered through her mind.

"Why aren't you in bed already?" she asked instead. He blinked for a moment, a little surprised by her shifting gears.

"I'm not sleepy. Besides, a man I consider closer than a brother is depending on us both to keep his lover safe."

She sighed and turned back to her work space. "I know. Maybe if I stopped concentrating on it so hard, I could figure it out." Casually, she chose her herbs and began grinding them. "So who is Gwen?"

She heard him shift and stand. "Where did you hear that name?' he demanded.

"From you, during the consummation of our handfasting."

He stilled, anger fading. "I'm sorry for that. Truly." She waved it off. It had bothered her then but she understood the love he had had for her better now. It was something she was likely to have to get used to unless she wanted to be celibate. That sob had struck deep.

"You said before that the one thing they wouldn't dare take from you again is your queen. I take it Gwen was that queen?"

"Yes." the word was filled with a pain palpable enough to almost touch. "She was my queen. As well as my mate."

She turned her head and met his eyes. "I'm sorry," she said. He came over and put his arms around her.

"There is no need for you to be. I did point out that this would be based on chemistry alone. That is why. My heart belongs to her."

"Tell me about her." she invited, keeping her hands busy. He hesitated.

"Are you sure? Most women don't care to hear of the woman their lover was bound to before them. Especially if he is still calling out her name during sex."

"I'm not most women. And she was your mate. To respect you is to respect the man she loved. The one I hope to grow to love. Relax." she said as she felt him start to speak. "I'm not looking to replace her. But there are other kinds of love. Then there's that chemistry. The chemistry was really good." she teased. He smiled. "So tell me about her."

"She would have liked you, for starters," he said dryly. She laughed. "She was beautiful. A heart that was strong but still managed to hold all of faedom within it. She's the one who made me king, truth be told. I was her general before that, not even in the court. She didn't care."