Belle made her way down the steps in a simple red dress that showed off her slender waist and belled at her hips, brushing her toes as she walked. Simone promised there were only a few more finishing touches that needed to be made to the ballgown, and that such extravagant things weren’t for boring affairs like signing paperwork.
Adam stood when she entered the room. The lawyer and notary followed suit, glancing between Adam and Belle and taking note of the vast improvement in Adam’s temperament in her presence. Introductions were made, papers were signed, and Belle wondered if things like this were always so quick, or if it was because Adam was who he was that guests wanted to make their visits brief.
They sat on the couch in the receiving room, his arm draped on the back while she blinked next to him, still floored at all that took place. “I can’t believe all of that just happened. I mean, just like that, I’m permanently in your life.”
“Just like that,” Adam smiled, looking more relaxed than he’d been in ages. He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a cell phone and a set of keys. “For you.”
“What’s for me?”
“Keys to the castle. You’ll need them, since the deed will soon be in your name. There’s a key to the silver Jag in the garage, too. I don’t use it anymore, so it’s yours.”
“What?” Belle shook her head, as if that would force his words to make sense. “Adam, you can’t just give me your car!”
“Why not?” he asked, unaffected. “Yours isn’t salvageable, and you need a car.” A frown tugged at the corners of his mouth. “Oh, you’re right to protest. You shouldn’t accept a hand-me-down gift. I’ll buy you a new one that’s just yours. One that no one else has ever sat in. I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking.”
Belle’s mouth hung open in shock. “Adam, of course I don’t need anything new. I’m saying you can’t give me your car because it’s too expensive, and it’s… You can’t give me a car!”
When Adam understood the source of her consternation, his worry wrinkles ironed out with an easy smile. “Oh, is that all? You’re funny when you get all worked up over something so small.”
“It’s not small. It’s a car.”
He shrugged. “To me, it’s small. Your happiness and safety are big.”
“Thank you, but I was saving up so I could buy one myself.”
“Why bother? I haven’t driven the silver Jag in ages. If you hadn’t noticed, I have four cars and I rarely leave the castle. It’s yours. Think of it was the company car, if you want. You’re my caretaker, so eventually you’ll need to drive me to the doctor’s and whatnot.”
Belle’s eyebrow raised. “You’ll let me take you to the doctor?”
“No,” Adam admitted with a small smirk. “This is yours, too. Your phone was lost in the snow, so I got you a new one with all the numbers of the board, my attorney, and anyone else you’ll need to contact when you take over the company. It’s got the newest security features, too. My security company doesn’t mess around when it comes to digital protection.”
Belle jumped up and backed away from the keys and phone as if they were scorpions. “No! I don’t want those things right now.”
“You don’t want keys to the house? I should’ve given you a set weeks ago.”
“This feels wrong, like you’re giving up that the curse might not come true. It’s possible, isn’t it? There’s still hope.” She started wringing her hands, anxiety coursing through her at the grand gestures. “Rory woke up from her curse. She beat Malaura!”
Adam pursed his lips, tilting his head to the side as he glanced up at her. “It’s going to happen, Belle. I don’t like it either, but make no mistake, Malaura always gets her way. Remus wasn’t there the counter my curse, so it stuck. It’s going to happen. I want you to be prepared.”
Emotion was thick in Belle’s voice, but she willed herself not to break down. “If I take those keys, somehow it all feels like there’s no going back. You may have given up hope, but I haven’t. There’s… Maybe it won’t work, but everyone knows what Remus Johnstone did for his niece. The only reason Rory had a chance at breaking Malaura’s curse is because her uncle gave up a portion of his life to alter it.”
Adam stilled, taking with caution the daring that flashed in her eyes. “Belle, you don’t know what you’re saying. Remus was reckless. Yes, it worked for them, but it cost Remus five years off his life!”
“Do you think it’s every day I meet a man who reads to me by the fire?” she shouted, her eyes watering.
Adam was out of his chair, and in the next breath, he was gripping her biceps with an earnest plea she couldn’t turn away from. “I won’t come into your life only to shorten it. Besides, Remus performed the counter-curse within the hour that Malaura cursed Rory. The magic was still fresh, so it was more easily manipulated.” He swallowed hard, picturing the memory as if it happened yesterday. “Besides, Audra and Lucien tried. Practically the entire staff offered themselves up and did their best to save me with a counter-curse the minute I was marked, but it didn’t take.” He motioned to his furry body. “Obviously. I’ve been living with this sword over my head for years. Trust me, Belle. There’s nothing you can do.”
“Or maybe it’s something only I can do. I need to take a sample of your blood. Please, Adam!”
Adam crushed her to him, willing himself to hold onto his temper. “You’re wrong. Everything about this is wrong. I won’t let you give up five years of your life for the chance at saving a miserable man like me. It won’t work, anyway.”
“Then what’s the harm?”
“You know the risks exactly as I do! If Remus had performed the counter-curse wrong, he could’ve died. He could’ve forfeited more than just the half a decade it’s going to cost him off the back end to save his niece, and that’s no small price to pay. And Remus is one of the most skilled people I’ve ever known. Thank goodness Audra and Lucien weren’t all that powerful. They could have truly hurt themselves in their attempt. You’re smart, and you’re capable of many things, but Remus is smarter than both of us. He barely survived, and he still ended up giving away a portion of his life to save Rory!” He held her tight, not caring if he was laying too many cards out on the table. “Don’t you dare try something so reckless, Belle. I won’t hear of it. I was selfish and stupid, and Malaura cursed me for it. I won’t be selfish with you.” His claws dug into her back without cutting. “So help me, I won’t let you do this.”
“But Adam, I…”
“I know, and the fact that you entertained such desperate means to save me will stay with me and keep me by your side after I turn. That you would offer to cut yourself down that it might save me? Belle, I don’t know what twist of fate landed me with you, but that’s all the mercy I’ll allow myself.”
“I won’t do nothing while you give up!”
“You don’t think there’s anything I wouldn’t give to be able to stay with you another year? Another month?”
Belle let out a bleat of agony. “How much time do you have left? Weeks?”
Adam lowered his chin and shook his head.
“A week?”
His jaw tightened, and again he turned his head from side to side.
“Days?” she choked out as heartbreak shot through her. “No! Tell me you’re lying! Tell me we have more time!”
“You are my torment, Belle. To know that if I hadn’t been so foolish as a younger man, I might’ve been able to stay with you? It kills me. It’s exactly the punishment I deserve, and you won’t rob me of it.” His tight grip loosened slightly, and his hand began to rub soothing circles into her back. “All I want is for you to stay with me – to remember the man I was to you when all that’s left is the beast.”
Belle remained in his arms, holding onto him while the world rocked the small boat they’d taken solace in. “If that’s what you want, I can do that.”
She couldn’t imagine forfeiting the feel of his massive chest, or the snuggly fur that poked out from his tuxedo shirt. There would be too much she would miss about him, and she wasn’t ready to give it all up. For the moment, though, she let Adam believe that she had, and swayed in his arms as he rocked them from side to side while the chaos of the moment settled between them.
They didn’t let go until the doorbell chimed.