“Tell you what,” he says, as he begins to toss it from hand to hand. “I’ll let you have it back if you do something for me.”
I thought these fucking Tasks were over and done with.
“Anything,” I say instead, remembering that I’m trying to become the obedient wife he wants me to be.
“Do a good job on your little interview tomorrow.”
I raise an eyebrow at him. “That... That’s it?”
“That’s it,” he replies with a nod.
“Okay,” I say quietly, holding my hand out.
Pater balances the rock over my hand, but instead of dropping it where he promised, he closes his fist instead.
“I’m gonna hold on to this for a little while, if you don’t mind. I want to make sure you do a good job, if you catch my drift.”
With that, he leans down and gently kisses me on the lips, before he pulls back and grins again.
“Damn. Even after that stretch in the hole, your lips are still as soft as I remember.”
Before I have a chance to plead for the rock, he leaves me in the kitchen, shaking his head and laughing on his way out.
Chapter Twenty
I busy myself by tidying up the kitchen. I have a long day ahead of me, and once I’m done making this particular room spotless, I fully intend to go from room to room to locate Vaughn.
I take the dishtowel I’ve been using to wipe the island top with, and toss it into the sink. I quickly turn the faucet on and off, before I dry my hands on my legs and walk toward the living room. That’s the direction Pater had gone, and I have to make sure I know where he is so that I have free reign of the house.
He’s lying on the couch, the rock balanced on his stomach, and an arm bent behind his bed. The television is on, but it doesn’t seem that he’s paying it any mind.
“I was wondering when you were finally gonna join me,” he says quietly. His eyes are trained on the screen, yet it’s obvious he couldn’t care less what’s happening on the program he’s watching.
“I’m sorry, Pater. I was just cleaning up.”
“I know,” he says kindly, closing his eyes. “Come sit with me, baby girl.”
I swallow a sigh and obediently walk over so I can perch on the arm of the couch. Pater opens his eyes and turns them toward me, drops his legs, and motions with his chin for me to sit. As soon as I do, he props his legs across my lap and stares at me thoughtfully for a moment.
“Can I ask you something?”
It’s a rhetorical question; he’s the only one that ever gets to ask questions or make statements without needing permission, but I nod anyway just to humor him.
“Alright. There’s one thing that’s irking the fuck out of me, and I’m hoping to get some clarity,” he starts as he scratches his chin. “Do you love me because you want to, or because you feel you have to?”
I drape my hands over his legs and form my next words with deadly precision. “At first, I loved you because I felt I had to. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be here.” Even if this is Hell, at least it’s still something. “But I think I’m learning to love you because it’s what feels right.”
Pater scoffs and shifts his legs on my lap. “Then why are you constantly plotting behind my back? At what point in this will you realize that I’ll always know when you’re trying to trick me, Jocelyn?”
I have to ask him. If I don’t, it’ll drive me crazy for the little bit of life I know I have left.
“How is it you always know, Pater? I don’t understand how it’s possible to read the mind of another,” I question, trying to keep the hysterics out of my tone. If he can hear the frantic need to know, he’ll shut down and change the subject.
“How does a farmer always know their crops will spring from the ground? How does a gardener know that once a seed is planted, it’ll eventually bloom? I made you, Jocelyn. You’re a part of me, and I can feel you as deeply as you did with Eloy and Vaughn. It was never a trick, kiddo. Just an instinct, and you fucking fall for it every time,” he explains with a smug smirk.
How could I have not guessed something so simple? It makes perfect sense.
I fold my arms and fall back against the couch, absolutely astounded at his revelation and the fact that I've been blind to it this entire time.