His cat wanted the same—as far as the beast was concerned, she already belonged to him and Camden. The tiger wanted her to be irrevocably bound to them both. “And what about what Aspen wants?” he unintentionally said aloud.
“If she wasn’t on the same page as you, she’d be outraged by the brand. She’s not, and she hasn’t covered it with concealer either. She’s wearing it with pride, whether she realizes it or not. My guess? You’re loving that.”
He was loving that. As was his tiger. But just because she wore the mark with pride didn’t mean she wished that it meant something. Camden knew she cared for him. Knew she wanted him. But it was one thing for her to care for and be attracted to him. It was a whole other thing for her to want him as her mate.
“Neither you nor her will be content with being mere friends again,” said Bailey. “You both want the same thing—more. I really don’t get why either of you are holding back.”
“Then you’re missing the obvious. It’s highly possible that I’m unable to form a mating bond with someone. And I don’t have to explain why I’d think that.”
“Okay, so you don’t seem to process emotions in the same way as others, or even feel the same range of emotions as the average person does. But people more … emotionally challenged than you have formed a mating bond. I don’t think it’s always about love, I think it’s about connection.
“Plus, you ‘feel’ much more deeply when it comes to Aspen. If you could form a bond with anyone, it’s her. I can’t envision anyone else ever mattering to you the way she does. She’s not at the center of your world. She is your world. No one else could ever be that for you—I firmly believe that.”
Bailey wasn’t wrong to hold such a belief. Like he’d told Aspen, she was a part of him. He’d pretty much attached himself to her when they were children, and he’d held tight to her ever since, needing to be tied to her somehow.
She was so many things to him—his best friend, his anchor, his moral compass, his savior. Without her, he wouldn’t be the same person.
He wouldn’t even know how to begin to detach himself from her. He couldn’t see himself ever putting another woman or man before her.
“When I look at you two, I see the foundations for a real relationship,” began Bailey, “and those foundations are tough as concrete.”
“Concrete can crack.”
She tossed him an irritable look. “Okay, let’s consider something else. You never liked it when Aspen had flings, even if they were short and shallow, but it placated you that she didn’t put those males before you. What do you think will happen if she gets serious about a guy? I can give you a fair idea of how it will go down. You won’t be the main man in her life anymore, and she won’t be able to be the main woman in yours. You’ll still be close friends—I don’t think anything could eat at that bond. But you’d spend less time together. You’d no longer be her main confidant. Her loyalty would be primarily to him from then on.
“Could you handle all that, Camden? Could you be happy for her? Could you see her committed to someone else without feeling cut up inside? Or would you find yourself regretting that you never made her yours?”
Maybe it made him an asshole, but pure dread filled Camden at the thought of Aspen happy with another man. He wouldn’t be pleased for her. He’d be jealous as fuck.
Although he’d hated it when she dated others, he’d never viewed them as a threat—none of them knew or understood her like he did. But if she was serious about another male, it would be different. They’d matter to her, learn her secrets, eat up her time and attention, and probably also insist that Camden take a backseat in her life.
Camden would detest the guy. With a passion. And the pressure that Camden currently felt to protect her might become the pressure to do something else—such as to hurt the man who’d stolen so many of Camden’s roles in her life. The confidant. The protector. The person she most relied on. And, yes, Camden would no doubt come to regret that he’d never tried to make her his.
Just as they finally neared the expansive glass case filled with meats, sandwich fixings, and condiments, Bailey said, “As I see it, you have two options: take a chance and act on what you want, or accept that one day someone else will claim her and then the choice will be taken from you.”
“If I took such a chance, I could end up losing her.”
“Or you could keep her forever.”