Property of a Gordon

Chapter Twenty Six

"In my search, I found you. You were equivalent to the Protector I'd envisioned. I thought that perhaps if I crafted you into the Protector I desired emotionally, I would have no need to worry about the threat. Unfortunately, you were much more unpredictable than I anticipated. I soon became aware that taming you was no longer an option.

I thought about finding another Protector, but you fascinated me too much. I convinced myself multiple times that I was only likely to die in your hands. Yet subconsciously, I would find reasons to keep you. My subconscious won over reasoning each time.

Something I did not take into account was you as a person." By this point, Kendall was no longer speaking to me but to himself as his eyes gained a faraway look, and he stared at the tiled floor.

"I expected you to treat me in the way my servants do: with respect and formality, nothing more. The second I told you to call me by my given name, I destroyed any hopes of that. You were much more complex than expected, much more beautiful. When I first saw you, I thought your beauty would work in my favor; however, it only worked against me.

Over time, I grew feelings that should not be acquired towards one's Protector. I should feel gratitude towards you at the most, nothing more. But I grew fond of you. I felt adoration and so much more towards you as both a person and as a Protector.

That night, when I ran after you into the forest, I realized-" But Kendall cut himself off as he suddenly became very aware that I was still in the room.

By this point, my heart was beating five times faster than it should, and my mind whirled with too many emotions to comprehend. Kendall wasn't ready to share the rest and I was more than fine with that. I didn't want to hear the rest, not yet.

Kendall studied me, his blue eyes looking for some sort of reaction. But I looked away, refusing to give him access. His time was over, and I didn't plan for it to start again.

He suddenly stood up, straightening his suit. "I believe it is time to leave," he said, but I didn't reply.

"Nowhere in there did I hear an apology in any form," I said, my arms crossed. Kendall sighed, but I didn't budge. I had waited for him to visit, so the bastard could afford to wait.

My anger towards Kendall had slowly subsided, but Kendall was Kendall. In other words, he always managed to ruin it with his unknowing attitude.

"I am sorry, love, that you suffered at my expense-" Kendall started, his voice sincere. But my anger flared back quickly as I got out of the bed and interrupted him.

"Are you kidding me?" I snapped at him, watching as he frowned.

"What have I done wrong? I was doing as you wanted," Kendall claimed, and my hands clenched by my sides as I attempted not to reach out and strangle him.

"I didn't want you to apologize for my saving your sorry ass! It's my job whether I like it or not. What I wanted-" But I bit my tongue. I was in Kendall's realm, which revolved around him.

"Forget it; I'm just your Protector," I said lowly. All of this was my own fault. From now on, I would act as any Protector would towards his Master.

"We should go," I added, starting to walk out of the door. Right then, more than anything, I wanted Kendall to pull me back and realize his mistake. I wanted him to apologize for the right thing, not the wrong one.

And then, he did.

I felt Kendall's arm go around my waist before I felt myself being pulled towards him. He gently turned me around, his familiar blue eyes staring at me. I wasn't sure what to do, but apparently Kendall was.

"I am sorry-" Kendall paused as his lips trailed down my neck, teasing my bare skin. "-that you are trapped by the side of an arrogant, self-centered man."

My eyes were closing against their will as Kendall's lips pressed themselves to my shoulder. I leaned into him, my anger evaporating and completely forgotten about along with everything else.

"I am sorry-" His lips traveled from my shoulder to my neck, skimming the skin in between and landing there. "-that I cannot change how I am."

I felt a smile tug its way onto my face as his lips left my neck and fluttered to my ear, nipping it to show he remembered what I had told him. They then left my ear and met my jaw, cool against my face.

"I am truly sorry-" he paused again, his lips landing finally on my temple. I nuzzled closer to his head, resting my own on the crook of his neck. "-that I could not overcome my own grief to visit you."

He then pulled away just slightly, his arm remaining around me. I opened my eyes lazily as the other hand ran through my hair, stopping to cup my neck.

Kendall's lips abruptly pulled up into a Calyx-like smile before he said, "They do say the third time is the charm, do they not?"

His smile was then lost, and his lips were unexpectedly on mine.

*fun fact: I believe that this chapter is still the most voted and commented on chapter of the whole story!