“I’m so sorry about your mother, Guy.” I scraped one foot forward, touching my toe to his, needing some form of connection too.
“She had the biggest heart, the gentlest smile, and hair as black as midnight, so long it touched her waist, right about—” He smoothed down my sides and cupped my hips. “—here.”
Heat raced through my veins and I shuffled my other foot forward. Closer was better, and no doubt due to the bond at play. “You miss her?”
“Always.” He slid his thumbs into the small gap between the waistband of my cutoffs and t-shirt. “She was life itself, which is why I appreciate the here and now. You never know when someone will be gone.”
My chest tightened, his loss cutting into me far more than it should. “She sounds wonderful.”
“She was.” He pulled back a little and fingered his necklace. From the center of the thin strap of leather, a small gold ring dangled. “It’s been so long. I almost forgot. My mother bequeathed her ring to my mated one. She gave it to me to hold onto until the time we met.”
“What? No. We might be mated, but we’re not doing anything about it, right?”
“Right.” He lifted the necklace free of his head. “But I still made a promise.”
“No, really.” I shoved against his chest. “Stop. Put that back on. Promises like that can be broken.”
“Not this one. My mother wanted the woman I was mated with to know her in some way. This ring was her gift to you. I’m only the keeper, passing it along.”
I backed up until my shoulders knocked the hay bales. “I said stop.”
“Her wishes were precise.” He crowded me from the front, making it impossible to get away, and then slipped the necklace over my head. “This was what my mother wanted. It feels good to see to her last request. Don’t deny me that.”
Nothing could have shocked me more. Off balance, I rocked onto my heels, gripping the band of gold, his mother’s precious gift from the past. “This is crazy.”
“I’ll know you have it. That’s all that matters.” Guy’s brow pulled down as he clasped my hand. “We really should end things now, before our soul-bond deepens further.”
“You mean release each other?”
“Exactly. I’m the last enchanter in my line, and even though I’m only nineteen, Donaldo has already requested I find a warrior woman and continue it. I have to ensure the ability to enchant doesn’t die away with me.”
Damn, this was all happening so fast. “Shouldn’t we take some time before we decide on such a step?”
“My destiny is not with you, Silvie. It’s elsewhere.”
“For eighteen years I’ve dreamed of being mated.”
“We can’t move on until we release each other.”
The heaviness in my chest expanded. Geez, what a predicament. This was the right thing to do, even though it felt totally wrong.
“Don’t think too much about it.” He caught my face between his hands. “Just start. Speak the words I need to hear.”
“You’re this certain?”
“Yes. I’m sorry.” His voice scraped on the last word, as if he fought his emotions.
I could do this. I was strong, and surely didn’t need a warrior for a mate. I’d already seen how hard it was for Faith and Hope, and now, the future difficulties they faced. That wasn’t for me.
“Give me a second.” I wet my suddenly dry lips then forced them open. “Guy, I wish for you to find the right woman, to have a long and wonderful life with her.” Uh-huh, a good start. “That you’ll have the family you desire, and of course, that she be anyone other than me.”
“Thank you.” He kissed my cheek. “Silvie, I wish to release you, so you might find the right man. I wish for him to keep you safe and to cherish you, to give you all you desire, and…be anyone other than me.”
Tears welled in my eyes and I shoved them back. I would not cry over him.
“Do you want a breather?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll go wait outside until Faith returns. We did the right thing.”
“I know.” I slipped his mother’s ring under the neckline of my t-shirt as he strode away. I’d keep it safe, just as I would the other half of his soul, even though he was no longer mine.
A tear leaked past my guard and I swiped it away. Stupid bond, and I couldn’t stop myself from following him. I gripped the splintered edge of the doorway to halt my step. “Don’t go too far. This is Wincrest Station.”
“There’re no other warriors about. You’re safe.” He climbed the railing, and then cautiously approached the prancing stallion within. Gently, he cooed its name.
“Hey, Silvie.” Hope strolled in from the corridor in jeans and a red-checked outback shirt, Faith one step behind her. She wiped her hands on a raggedy towel hanging from her pocket.
“Hey back at ya. How’s the mare?”
“One very contented new mama. The foal is a little wobbly, but already up on her legs.”
Faith grinned at me. “It was incredible to watch the birth. A-maz-ing.” She glanced about the room and frowned. “Ah, where’s Guy?”