Dr. Luna
The Fairy’s Forbidden Mate Chapter 23

"I was able to purify his curse. Grayson won't have to suffer anymore." Rhea scooched herself up into a sitting position. She listened as Lee let out a deep breath of air. He then got up from the bed and walked to look out the window. Rhea could see from his posture that he was upset. She looked around the room. It was beautiful. There were statues of dragons sculpted from white stone in the room. A mural of a water dragon was painted on the wall beside the bed. There were small crystal lights that decorated the room that could be dimmed and brightened as needed. It was incredible. "Is this your room?" Rhea eyed the room one more time and then looked back to Lee.

"Yes." Lee's voice was terse and direct.

"Why am I in your room and not my own?" Rhea wasn't sure exactly why she was brought into his room. Why not just take her to her own room? "No one will bother us in my room." His voice was still curt and unfeeling.

Rhea sighed. He wouldn't even look at her. She swung her feet over the side of the bed and slowly put pressure on her feet. She tested her leg strength to make sure they would bear her weight. Without having her wolf something that drained her would take longer to recover than it would have for her mother. Once she managed to stand up, she took a few quiet steps around the bed and beside Lee so she could also look out the window. Not only did he have an awesome room, but the view was amazing. She looked out from the tall window. He had a stone balcony just off of his room that would give him a spectacular view of the valley below the mountainside. She thought wryly to herself, I guess being a deity gets you top of the line perks. "It's an amazing view." Still silence was all that was heard between them. That and the sound of their light breathing.

How did his breath even give her an intimate feeling? She tilted her head slightly so that she could side eye him better. His jaw was set, and his eyes were fixated off in the distance. A small timid smile rested on her face as she reached forward and touched the window in front of her. "How long was I asleep?"

"You mean how long were you passed out for? ... Two hours... You have been unconscious for two hours." His voice had a bit of a bite to it as he spoke.

"Oh... I guess I missed the rest of the party." She chuckled quietly. Lee snapped an irritated look her way and she sighed loudly for him to hear. "I'm not sure why you are angry with me."

"You are not? You have no clue why I would be angry with you?" Lee almost growled as he turned facing her. His light blue eyes shot daggers at her.

Rhea bit her cheek and met him with a glare of her own. "I was trying to help, and I did. For ONCE, I was able to actually help someone else and not be the one needing help."

"I'm glad that you were able to fill some self-satisfying mortal need of feeling useful." Lee's voice dripped with an icy tone.

Rhea bit her bottom lip. That one stung. It stung twice as much coming from Lee. "I'm sure these petty mortal feelings are hard for a god like yourself to understand." Rhea folded her arms as her voice snipped back at him.

"I don't want you getting hurt, Rhea. Is that too hard for you to understand." Lee raised his voice in irritation.

"I'm fine! I was able to save him from a miserable life and I ended up fine. I was able to use a power that I didn't even know I was capable of using. I learned about myself today Lee. I won't regret the actions I made. I can't" Rhea furrowed her eyes down at him. This was a big deal to her. It showed her that for once she was capable of more than she ever knew. It also gave her the confidence that she would be able to tackle the future head on.

Lee looked up at the ceiling with a small frown. "Grayson is a good guy... I am glad that he is freed from the curse. I just wish it hadn't been at your expense. I don't want you to try something else like that again. Rhea... curses are dangerous. All it takes is losing concentration just an ounce and it would have backfired viciously."

"How else do you learn except to experience things hands on? You act like I messed up. I didn't. He is fine and I am fine. You are worrying now about the what ifs..-"

"THAT'S BECAUSE YOU DON'T EVEN REALIZE THE WHATIF'S THAT COULD HAVE HAPPENED!" Lee shouted angrily while he glared at Rhea.

Rhea jumped back a bit startled. No one had ever yelled at her like that before. How could he? This was her life. These were her choices. He didn't own her. Why did he think he could control what she did?

"I know you see me as the naïve child who doesn't think danger exists... but I knew it was dangerous Lee. I knew it could have turned out bad... but I couldn't leave him like that. Not when I could help. You act like no one should light a fire because they could get burned... but without that fire's heat we could freeze. Sometimes you have to take risks for a greater reward."

"What is the reward here Rhea? You were able to use a power and now feel good about yourself?" Lee shot back sarcastically.

"NO! I just saved the dragon king of the east. If I am trying to win allies, I think I just earned major points with a big one!" Rhea whipped her hand out and tossed it to the side.

"So, you will try to gain allies no matter what it could cost you?" Lee's tone was low and quiet. It reminded her of a tiger getting ready to pounce.

"I am going to do everything in my power to save my people... to save my family and friends." Rhea's voice trailed quietly. "You did not see what I saw Lee..." She did not mean for it to happen, but her bottom lip quivered slightly. "It was awful. We were outnumbered... we didn't stand a chance. I have to change that." Rhea then looked up to him with her piercing blue eyes. "You were not there Lee. I was calling for you and you never came. What could have happened? Did you get hurt or killed because of me?" Rhea shook her head and closed her eyes shut as she felt the liquid begin to creep out. "I don't know what has shaken me more... the battle or the fact that you weren't there, and I don't know why... what if it is my fault?"

Lee's eyes softened and he reached out for her. He wrapped one arm around her as he pulled her close. "That future isn't for certain. I'm fine Rhea. Nothing is going to happen to me. Nothing could ever stop me from coming to you."

"That's what scares me Lee... if you didn't come to me... then what does that means..." Rhea couldn't finish her sentence as small crystals leaked from her eyes.

"No one is killing me Rhea." Lee chuckled at the absurdity of it. "I don't know what you saw or what it meant. I promise you that no one is killing me." Lee reached his hand up and patted her head gently.

This very gesture sent Rhea over the edge though. She pushed away from him and shook her head angrily. "Stop Lee! Stop treating me like your little sister." Her eyes looked at his shocked eyes with anger. "I didn't mean anything by it Rhea..."

"Just stop... you always see me as a little sister." Her voice softened and her blue orbs were now almost pleading with him to understand what she was saying.

Lee regarded her carefully. "I don't understand Rhea... How do you want me to see you then?"

Rhea felt exasperated and her shoulders slinked in defeat. "Don't worry about it... it's fine."

"Rhea... you brought it up. I didn't realize it bothered you. I am sorry. I was... I was just trying to be close to you. I'm sorry if it made you feel uncomfortable." Lee was feeling mixed emotions now. Was she wanting him to treat her more diplomatically? Like friends? He couldn't go back to just being acquaintances. He clenched his fist up to help control himself as he waited for her response.

"Lee...are you really not understanding what I am trying to say? Do you view me so much like a child that you can't comprehend what I am saying?" Rhea couldn't believe he did not know what she meant. That or he knew and he refused to acknowledge it. "I don't think of you as a child Rhea...trust me." His voice was quiet and controlled... if not strained as he spoke.

"I want you to look at me as a WOMAN Lee!" Rhea finally spit out. She was done dancing around the topic. She liked Titus and was attracted to him... but it was Lee. It was always Lee. He was the one who made her insides burn. He was the one who caused her heart to give herself away. She was in love with Lee. To hell with replaceing a mate and the mate bond. She was in love with Lee. Couldn't she just have him... was that too ridiculous to even think? Gosh she just made a fool of herself. She could tell by the shocked way he was staring at her. She was so beneath him that the idea of her being attracted to him was way over his head. If she could just replace a rock to crawl under for the rest of her life that would be great. Bring on the demon army... it had to be better than this humiliation. "Why... would... you... think... that I... EVER... saw... you... as... anything... but... a... woman?" Lee's voice came out in a low breath as he stared at the delicate woman in front of him. He watched her as she looked up at him with vulnerability flashing in her eyes. He met with her cool blue eyes. She was the one who didn't understand. He could see the look in her eyes. She looked vulnerable in that moment. She was feeling troubled and he had the overwhelming urge to comfort her. He silently cursed at himself in his head. Damn it. Damn all of it. He punched the side of the wall and set his gaze upon her. She had no clue how much he had been controlling himself. This wasn't some game to him. He couldn't just casually flirt with her so that she could feel like a woman. He had tried to control the animal inside of him, but he had finally lost. What he had managed to hold onto, for her protection, was gone. His eyes flickered with the animal within as he took long strides towards his prey.