wiped the wet tears that still rolled down her cheeks. "It's okay, Leta.
I've got you."
Leta sniffed back her tears as she stared into those eyes that were as green and stormy as a deep sea.
For once they weren't filled with hostility. They were open and caring, and that literally stole her breath.
She lifted her hand to lay it to his cheek where the stubble of his whiskers teased her palm. His masculine
scent filled her senses… it'd been so long since she last tasted passion. Since she'd been held by a man
who wasn't related to her. And in that moment, the pain of her own past overwhelmed her with misery.
Choking on the raw agony inside her, she leaned against him and tucked her head under his chin, against
his chest. She didn't like being in this dream. She didn't want these feelings anymore. Not having them
was so much better than what she felt now. If only she could banish them forever.
"How do you cope with it all?" she breathed against Aidan's chest.
"Don't think about it."
"Does that work?"
"Sometimes."
"And when it doesn't?"
He shrugged. "There's beer and cheap whiskey but not even that does anything more than add a
headache to what already plagues you. Sooner or later you sober up and it starts all over again."
That wasn't the answer she'd wanted from him. "I hate crying."
His eyes scalded her with their intense heat. "Then do what I do. Turn your tears into rage. Crying will
only make you sick. But anger… anger infuses you. It strengthens you. It crawls through your body until
you're forced to act. There's no dwindling of strength, no mewling blurry vision. It clears your head and
focuses your actions. Most of all, it empowers you."
"Is that why you stay angry?"
"Absolutely."
And his rage was strong enough to feed them both. But even so, she didn't understand it. Her anger had
always spiked quickly and then faded. More than that, her tears had always negated her anger. The
second her tears started, any rage she had evaporated underneath them. "How did you learn to stop
crying?"
His expression was harsh. "I nailed my heart shut and learned to stop caring about anyone except me.
They can't make you cry when you don't give a shit about them or their opinions. You can only be hurt
by the ones you love."
"And by the god of pain," she whispered. "He knows what weakens us. Look at what he's done to me."
"It's because he knows you and where to strike." Aidan shook his head. "He doesn't know anything
about me. There's nothing he can use to hurt me anymore. I let it all go except my anger."
Which was why Aidan had been able to fight Dolor even though Aidan was only a mortal man.
But she didn't know how to hold on to anger. Every time she thought of her daughter or her husband, it
brought her to her knees. They had been innocent of any crime except belonging to her and they had
been coldly executed by Dolor and his ilk. It was why she was here.
No more innocents would die.
Ever.
No one deserved the pain she felt. No one. And she would die before she allowed Dolor to destroy
another person this way. To take from them what they loved, and for what? Over one god's
vindictiveness because someone else played a prank on him and he lacked any sense of humor? It was
cruel and it was wrong.
"Teach me your anger, Aidan. Show me how to hold on to it no matter what."
He nodded grimly before he dropped his hands from her face. "Let go of your pain. If there's any
kindness inside you, kill it. Now, remember the only person in this life that matters to you is you. No one
else will ever care about you. No one. The only person who can protect you is you. Let everyone else go
to hell. In fact, rush them to it."
She couldn't believe what he was telling her. It seemed easy, if she were mad enough, but how did he
sustain it? "How do you manage to stay there?"
"Remember that whenever you were being kicked, there was no one standing beside you to soften the
blow. No one there to help you lick
I've got you."
Leta sniffed back her tears as she stared into those eyes that were as green and stormy as a deep sea.
For once they weren't filled with hostility. They were open and caring, and that literally stole her breath.
She lifted her hand to lay it to his cheek where the stubble of his whiskers teased her palm. His masculine
scent filled her senses… it'd been so long since she last tasted passion. Since she'd been held by a man
who wasn't related to her. And in that moment, the pain of her own past overwhelmed her with misery.
Choking on the raw agony inside her, she leaned against him and tucked her head under his chin, against
his chest. She didn't like being in this dream. She didn't want these feelings anymore. Not having them
was so much better than what she felt now. If only she could banish them forever.
"How do you cope with it all?" she breathed against Aidan's chest.
"Don't think about it."
"Does that work?"
"Sometimes."
"And when it doesn't?"
He shrugged. "There's beer and cheap whiskey but not even that does anything more than add a
headache to what already plagues you. Sooner or later you sober up and it starts all over again."
That wasn't the answer she'd wanted from him. "I hate crying."
His eyes scalded her with their intense heat. "Then do what I do. Turn your tears into rage. Crying will
only make you sick. But anger… anger infuses you. It strengthens you. It crawls through your body until
you're forced to act. There's no dwindling of strength, no mewling blurry vision. It clears your head and
focuses your actions. Most of all, it empowers you."
"Is that why you stay angry?"
"Absolutely."
And his rage was strong enough to feed them both. But even so, she didn't understand it. Her anger had
always spiked quickly and then faded. More than that, her tears had always negated her anger. The
second her tears started, any rage she had evaporated underneath them. "How did you learn to stop
crying?"
His expression was harsh. "I nailed my heart shut and learned to stop caring about anyone except me.
They can't make you cry when you don't give a shit about them or their opinions. You can only be hurt
by the ones you love."
"And by the god of pain," she whispered. "He knows what weakens us. Look at what he's done to me."
"It's because he knows you and where to strike." Aidan shook his head. "He doesn't know anything
about me. There's nothing he can use to hurt me anymore. I let it all go except my anger."
Which was why Aidan had been able to fight Dolor even though Aidan was only a mortal man.
But she didn't know how to hold on to anger. Every time she thought of her daughter or her husband, it
brought her to her knees. They had been innocent of any crime except belonging to her and they had
been coldly executed by Dolor and his ilk. It was why she was here.
No more innocents would die.
Ever.
No one deserved the pain she felt. No one. And she would die before she allowed Dolor to destroy
another person this way. To take from them what they loved, and for what? Over one god's
vindictiveness because someone else played a prank on him and he lacked any sense of humor? It was
cruel and it was wrong.
"Teach me your anger, Aidan. Show me how to hold on to it no matter what."
He nodded grimly before he dropped his hands from her face. "Let go of your pain. If there's any
kindness inside you, kill it. Now, remember the only person in this life that matters to you is you. No one
else will ever care about you. No one. The only person who can protect you is you. Let everyone else go
to hell. In fact, rush them to it."
She couldn't believe what he was telling her. It seemed easy, if she were mad enough, but how did he
sustain it? "How do you manage to stay there?"
"Remember that whenever you were being kicked, there was no one standing beside you to soften the
blow. No one there to help you lick
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