Except, he had a feeling that the choice hadn’t been his.
It had been made for him.
Those damn Fates that the clan believed in had decided to play a cruel joke on him and Edna, pairing two incompatible people who had no way of making it work.
Not only that, but it also seemed that he was the only one feeling the pain, while Edna had retreated into her tortoiseshell and was perfectly fine.
No, that wasn’t true.
She hadn’t been okay before he’d pushed his way into her life, and she wasn’t now, which was one more reason for his obsession with her. He needed to fix her, or rather whatever was keeping her from living a full life.
Edna’s entire world was her dual job as a judge and councilwoman. Her only interactions with others were work-related, and she had no close friends and no social life.
It wasn’t lack of confidence or a personality flaw that had made her a recluse. She was an assertive woman, and even though she was pragmatic and strict, she was also compassionate and pleasant to be with.
Her isolation was self-induced, a result of some tragedy that had befallen her a long time ago, an injury so severe that she couldn’t recover from it on her own.
Rufsur was just the guy to help her heal.
But the problem was that Kalugal needed him more than Edna did. Not to run his business or to help him take over the world. His boss could do that without his help. But someone needed to keep an eye on Kalugal in case he slipped into insanity the way his father and grandfather had, and that someone could only be Rufsur.
Kalugal trusted him, which made Rufsur the only one who could stop him from doing crazy shit. Like his grandfather, who’d destroyed half the ancient world in a fit of anger, or like his father, who was enslaving an entire island to his will.
Leaving Kalugal was not an option.
The only way Rufsur could have a life with Edna was if she left the clan and joined him.
As if that was going to happen.
Even though the stubborn woman needed him more than he needed her, she wasn’t obsessing about their separation the way he was.
Rufsur was a fun-loving kind of guy, while Edna didn’t know what the word meant. Even if they could have a life together, what kind of a life would it be?
Not the kind he wanted, and he was old enough and wise enough to know that changing people was not possible unless they wanted to change, and most often not even then.
If Rufsur could turn his stupid heart off and think with his head instead, he could find a clan female who liked the same things he did, and who was perfect for him the way she was.
Perhaps he should beseech those damn Fates to free him from his fixation on Edna, so he could search for a more compatible mate.
2
Edna
Satisfied with the list of comments that she’d compiled regarding the latest revision to the land deal, Edna made a few minor corrections and forwarded it to Kian.
It was a complicated project that involved sixteen different landowners, who couldn’t all agree on the same terms. Hopefully, that was the last round, and this contract would be the one everyone finally signed.
Going over it had taken her most of the day, and since it was already after five in the afternoon, there was no sense in starting on another file. She could put in a couple more hours, but she was hungry, and with every growl her stomach emitted, a sandwich at the café seemed more and more appealing.
Except, Edna dreaded calling it a day so early. With nothing to occupy her mind, it would get filled with Rufsur, and that was the last thing she needed.
The past twelve days had been miserable, with her trying every trick possible not to think about him and failing. Perhaps she would have been more successful if not for the frequent emails he was sending her.
The guy wasn’t great at composing letters, and his emails usually contained only a few lines of text, telling her tidbits about his day and anecdotes from Kalugal and Jacki’s idyllic marriage. Sometimes, he would mention missing her, but not too often. Still, it was quite evident from the number of his daily emails.
But what he lacked in eloquence, Rufsur made up for with humor. Every email included a caricature, a meme, or a gif. As much as she tried to resist, Edna found herself opening them time and again. They were fun, and no matter how her day had been going, they brought a smile to her face. In fact, she looked forward to every new one, giddy with excitement at the prospect of opening it and finding out what Rufsur had sent her this time.
When did he have time to search for all those humorous tidbits?
Evidently, his job didn’t keep him too busy. Perhaps Rufsur wasn’t as critical to Kalugal’s organization as he believed he was? Could he part with his boss and join the clan?
Edna sighed. Even if that was on the table, which it was not, Rufsur wasn’t the right guy for her. They had nothing in common, and she doubted a long-lasting relationship could be built on lust alone.
He was a fine man, just not for her. And she wasn’t the right woman for him either. Rufsur needed someone as fun-loving as he was, someone uncomplicated and upbeat, someone who would make him happy and not drag him down.
She should be stronger and end this for both their sakes. Except, he wasn’t making it easy. In fact, he was making it damn hard.
At least she’d been smart enough not to give Rufsur her phone number and to limit their communications to emails. Her plan had been to put distance between them and try to get over her silly infatuation with him.
Hearing his voice or seeing his handsome face on a video call would have made it impossible.
Nevertheless, she was still thinking about him multiple times a day and dreaming about him at night. Lustful dreams from which she woke up sweaty, antsy, and needy.
With a sigh, Edna leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes.
Perhaps she could download a good book to take her mind off him. A long series would be best, something that could transport her into a different reality. If she read until her eyes got blurry, she might not dream at all, or if she did, dream only about the story she’d read.
Yeah, that sounded like a good plan. She could also binge-watch a series on Netflix. She’d been meaning to check out the latest Star Trek series but hadn’t gotten around to it.
With the prospects of going home seemingly less dreary, Edna stacked the files on her desk into a neat pile, wiped the surface clean, and headed out of her office.
A couple of doors down the hallway, Bridget stepped out of hers as well. “Are you going home?” she asked.
“I’m going to grab a sandwich at the café first.”
“Good. I’ll join you.” The doctor fell in step with her. “My fridge is empty. I didn’t have time to do grocery shopping, and Turner is out of town, so the café it is.”
Edna nodded. “Same here.”
Except, in her case, there was no significant other who was mostly there and only temporarily absent. Even if she accepted Rufsur, her guy would be mostly absent and only temporarily present.
Perhaps a friend with benefits was a better way to describe him than a significant other? It didn’t imply commitment, so it was less troublesome to accept.
Rufsur wanted more than that, but his idea of their having a child together was absurd. Even if conception was possible for her, which it might be with Merlin’s help, how could she be a mother? There were no babysitters or other caretakers in the village, and she couldn’t afford to become a full-time mother like Eva had done.