He was watching him angrily. "You're the fool, Tristan. You don't even have evidence or proof." *** She nodded, sitting down.
Ellie stood up slowly, averting her eyes. "I'm going to go," she said, her voice soft as she watched the ground, her fingers brushing the table top. "I should have known that this wasn't going to work." * * * He sat next to her, draping an arm over her shoulder.
Xavier looked up, his brows furrowing as he stood as well, taking her hand gently. "Why don't we go on a walk in the garden, instead?" *** She rested against him, looking up. "Will you stay the night?"
She laughed slightly, but he would recognize the tremor in her voice as her trying to hold back a sob. Her siblings recognized it too and they both looked at her, with Tristan standing and coming over to them. "El... I didn't mean it. Don't cry; stay and talk with-" "Leave us alone," she replied sharply, squeezing Xavier's hand. Tristan frowned and grabbed her free wrist. "C'mon, stay and talk about this." * * * He shifted his head, looking down at her curiously. "Do you want me too?"
A strange look crossed Xavier's face as he moved between Tristan and Ellie. "Leave her be." *** She nodded slightly, glancing out the window. "I wouldn't want you walking out in this anyways. It's freezing."
He looked up at Xavier and tightened his grip on Ellie's wrist, pulling her towards himself. "You don't have a say here." * * * His arms encircled her waist as he pulled her closer. "Thanks for lookin' out."
His eyes narrowed as he watched him seriously. "Let her go, Tristan." *** She smiled. "You're lovely."
This seemed to anger him and he wrenched Ellie behind him, squeezing her arm tightly. She gasped slightly, and Xavier would see tears spring to her eyes. "Trist... Tristan, you're hurting me." "You have no say, here," Tristan said sharply to Xavier. "She doesn't belong to you." * * * "Because I don't want to go out in the snow?"
Xavier bristled. He casually rolled up his sleeves with a heavy sigh. "And she doesn't belong to you," he said, before pausing and pulling back, throwing a punch as he spoke again, " so let go of her!" *** She shook her head. "You're you."
Bernadette screamed as Tristan staggered back, letting go of Ellie’s arm. He recovered for a moment before lunging at Xavier, punching him in the face. *** “I am me, yes.”
Xavier stopped as soon as he let go of Ellie, stepping back after getting punched and holding the side of his face with a fire in his eyes. "I'm terribly sorry, Bernadette. I do hope we can have a better meal again eventually." He took Ellie's hand, starting away. "Let's go." *** "That is very good."
Ellie was silent throughout this whole thing. As they closed the door behind them, she stopped, turning to him and cupping his jaw gently. "Are you okay?" * * * "Oh, really?" he teased, planting small, sweet kisses on her jaw. "It's my dashing demeanor, isn't it?"
She fell silent, watching him with those clear, robin's egg eyes before she slipped her arms over his shoulders, pulling him into a deep kiss. * * * He laughed, shifting to rest his head in her lap. "You're just sayin' that 'cause you wanna steal my heart."
He seemed surprised, kissing her back. He pulled away after a moment. "What was that for?" *** She ran a hand through his hair, looking their before smirking. "It's just payback because you've already stolen mine."
"You are incredibly hot," she murmured quietly. "Thank you for protecting me." * * * A light flush crossed the bridge of his nose and he glared at her. "That was so bad."
He laughed, blushing. "Of course. He shouldn't have done that." *** She grinned down at him. "I know."
She held his face firmly in her hands, her eyes soft with adoration. "I love you," she told him clearly, as if telling him for the first time. "I love you so much." * * * He raised an eyebrow, a smile playing on his lips. "You're okay with that? You want this to be your legacy?"
He was watching her with a smile, his eye warm. "I love you too." *** She leaned down to kiss him. "Yup."
She was close, her nose brushing hers before she spoke, her voice almost hesitant. "Do you want to go back to the room...?" * * * "That was your first mistake," he muttered, kissing her back.
