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“Mmmm, this is nice. Maybe I should have joined you last night. Sounded like fun.” I can hear the smile in his voice as he rubs his cheek on Tor’s curls. Shifters really are a tactile bunch. My breath catches in my throat as I wait for Tor’s response. His snarl catches more than a little attention from those around us, as does Seff’s yip at Tor’s hard pinch to his waist.
“I will end you, pretty boy.”
Seff just laughs good-naturedly, giving us a last squeeze before pushing us away. “Keep dreaming, stud muffin.” He looks at our gear, all ready to go, and rubs his hand through his hair. “Seriously though, keep safe. And good luck finding your brother. If you guys need any help…” He leaves the offerthere, and I appreciate it. It’s been a long time since we had been a thing. It would be good to have him back as a friend, rather than the guy I mostly awkwardly ignored at the Black Stump. I nod and clap a hand to his shoulder, while Tor hefts his bag onto his shoulders.
“I’ll see you soon, man. We’ll have a drink.”
And with that, we are off again, hopefully a little closer to finding Theo.
Tor
Apparently, downing beers anddancing around a bonfire all night is not the best preparation for a hard day’s trek. Who knew? My legs are killing me and not for the first time, my boots are rubbing blisters on my feet. At least the fresh and greasy breakfast sandwich has settled my stomach.
Naturally, Caelan looks fresh as a daisy. Since he got used to the crush of the magic in the air, he is perfectly at home here in the Woods; it adds a whole new layer of anxiety to the already crushing weight on my soul.
I appreciated him opening up about how conflicted he was with the Everfyr pack this morning. Selfishly, it was nice to be able to be there for him. Apart from Theo, my friendships at home were so superficial and hollow. No one ever relied on me to be there for them, to comfort them. It was nice to be needed, to feel like I was more than just a pretty face and a deep bank account.
I had almost blown it too. The bigL-word. I hadn’t even been aware that it had been churning in the back of my head. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been gone for the guy since his first message. I saw that cheeky little smile under his beard in the middle of the Woods and something just wentboominside me, and I knew,knewthat this was it.Hewas it. And now that I am with him? I have no idea how I will be able to leave him behind when the time comes.
But would he want me? I know hewants me. We only have to look at each other for the sparks to fly and the air between us to catch fire. But would he wantme? Maybe I could just kidnap him, shove him in my suitcase and whisk him away somewhere secret until he is as desperate for me as I am for him. Sounds reasonable, right?
The idea of leaving behind my old life in Loqueaur isn’t as scary as it should be. I could happily walk away from it all without a second thought if he’d have me. Especially if I got to spend more time here in the Woods. I have spent plenty of time in sacred spaces over the years, but nothing ever like here, where the magic is so connected, so tangible.
It feels likehome. Now that I’ve been here, I don’t understand why beings ever left to join the human world in the first place. It all seems so beige in comparison to the vitality of Whisper Woods.
But I may not even have the choice to stay; we have no idea if we are going to find Theo, or worse, my faeknowingwarns, what condition he is going to be in if we do. It’s a thought that haunts me on top of the rest of the ever-growing baggage that I’m steadily trying to ignore.
Thankfully, ignoring problems is one of my personal strengths, a talent I’ve honed over many years of shirking my responsibilities.
Caelan’s strong, calloused hand in mine anchors me as he pulls me along, explaining the difference between the early fruits blossoming on the trees we pass and his plans for an orchard expansion on his farm. He is so stupidly handsome when he is being a dork about nature. His eyes shine with excitement as he talks. He looks younger, happier. It balances the dark swirling inside me.
Because we’ve kept a rather sluggish pace today, which was mostly my fault, we stop late for lunch. We find a pretty little spot in the sun on the rock bed next to the creek, well out of reach of any beastly beings, of course.
Snuggled up between Caelan’s thick, denim clad thighs while we bask in the watery sunlight, eating the sandwiches Margie had made, running my fingers over the hair on his forearm, I heave a sigh. A warm, heavy feeling, almost like contentment, settles in my gut as Caelan puts aside the remains of our lunch and gently starts nosing around my neck, tickling me with his beard, his breath, his soft kisses. I whimper as one of his hands burrows beneath my layers, his fingers lightly caressing my stomach. Reaching back to run my hand through his hair, my fingers curl into the strands, tugging him tighter against me.
“We need to keep moving.” His words are muffled against my neck as he proceeds to suck a hot kiss against the sensitive juncture there.
“I don’t wanna,” I whine petulantly, but only half-heartedly. He’s right, we need to get going, but my legs are like lead, lazy with sultry warmth. My skin is tingling from Caelan’s touch, my cock half-hard in my pants. I press myself further back into his chest, trying to move up to grind my ass against his crotch.
Caelan just breathes a huff of laughter into my neck, then bites down none too gently on the tendons there. It hurts, and I gasp, but a white hot bolt of lust shoots through me, my cock hardening with a jerk. He licks the spot with his wide tongue, then removes his wandering hand from where it had been petting my stomach.
“We have a fair way to go before the light leaves us. Come on.” My back feels achingly cold without his warmth as he stands and brushes himself off. He offers me his hand, and I take it grudgingly standing so we can leave our little oasis of calm.
Things feel different as we continue our walk. Like my fear and anxiety over Theo, our exhaustion, and the niggly pains building fromdaysof walking are just falling away. It all just feels… less. The energy weaves around us like a warm cloak, making everything just feelgood.
The trees are quiet, only the occasional squawk of a nearby phoenix or the ravens that dominate the Woods. Still though, as we walk, I try to keep an eye out for anything lurking in the shadows. The path here is at least dry. Earlier this morning, we had to trek through a sticky, muddy marsh area that had asmellabout it. My hand is tightly held in Caelan’s when he pulls me to a quick stop up against him.
“Shh!” He is hissing at me before I have a chance to ask what’s going on. A slow grin spreads across his face as he nods to the ferny underbrush lining the narrow path.
There is something in there. The ferns rustle vigorously for a moment, and then still before rustling once again. Caelan raises his eyebrows and nods his head towards the wriggling ferns.
“I think I saw something scurry in there. Grab one of those figs.” He whispers low and close to my ear, sending a shiver down my spine. I frown at him, torn between not wanting to be a wuss and explore with him, but also not wantingto nearly die. Again. His eager smile wins out, because it always does, doesn’t it? And I drop his hand to sneak over to the fig tree on the other side of the path. The bulbous green fruits look strangely alien growing in clusters along the branches.
I pick a couple for whatever Caelan had planned, but also snag a couple more to eat along the way, sticking them in the pocket of my jacket and jogging back to Caelan, who is watching the rustling bushes intently.
I hand him the fruit and he shoots me another one of his beard-twitching grins before quietly creeping over to the bushes, hunched low and ready to pounce. My heart is in my throat as he unclips his knife,hopefullyjust as a precaution, and holds it in his free hand before reaching in and pulling the branches apart.
It absolutelykillsme to not yell at him to be careful, but I don’t want to spook whatever is in there. I hear his little exclamation of “aha!” before he quickly slips the knife back in its holder on his belt and reaches in to pull out whatever he found.
