Page 32 of An Anomaly of Sunlight

“My mother graciously told me today... When I confessed the strange dreams I’d been having.” I make sure to leave out the part about what that particular dream had been about. “I guess you’ve known all along?” A lump forms in my throat.

“Not in the beginning.” Skyler admits. The emerald lights from the dash illuminate inside the car just enough to see the uncertainty in his eyes. “You call yourself human and I also believed that. Until you ran into me when leaving for your lunch that first day.”

His hand settles on my thigh, “With that touch, I knew you weren’t human because...” He trails off but I push the subject. I want to know everything. “Because?” I ask, tilting my head to look into his eyes.

Skyler inhales deeply as if he’s afraid of what he has to say. “Because that’s when your wolf must have awoken. That’s when I felt the fiery warmth in my left hand for the first time. The warmth of a bond — our bond.” I raise a brow, silently urging him to continue.

“Our mate bond.”

Oh! Creators... Skyler and I are mates? I’ve heard of the sacred bonds between shifters. Between all paranormal, really. Although it’s different for every species.

“I know this is all new to you. I can explain everything to you and answer any questions you might have. I’d also understand if you want to… reject the bond.” He winces at the words, and I clutch my chest. Just the thought of rejection is like twisting a knife in my heart.

“No!” I shake my head fiercely, reinforcing, “No, I don’t want that at all.” The inkling of pain I had felt over finding out he knew about me resurfaces. “It’s just... Why didn’t you tell me before now?” My fingers trace the knuckles of his hand still resting on my thigh.

Skyler glances my way, offering me a half smile. “All of the reasons are drenched in stupidity. The truth is, I should have told you when I realized it. Alas, I did not. And for that, I apologize, Amethyst.” He clicks on the blinker, easing into the left lane to pass some slower traffic. We’re well outside of Tarot Lake now.

“There were three reasons. First, the selfish part of me that didn’t want to lose you if you chose to,” he grits his teeth, “reject me.

“For a time, I was confused as to what you were. Then I started seeing you. The wolf you. You always just... disappeared. I thought I was losing my mind. I see now that was your affinity — even if I don’t know exactly what that entails.”

He traces gentle circles on my thigh. “Most importantly, I didn’t want to push you into something you weren’t ready for.” His lips turn down. “Even before you opened up to me, I could sense your pain, your troubled thoughts. I wanted you to come to me when you felt it was right.

“But it became increasingly clearer to me that you were unaware of your lineage. I knew I needed to tell you, and on the Goddess herself, I promise I was going to tell you today. I had decided you deserved to know the truth, no matter what that meant for me.”

Sliding my hand under his, I weave our fingers together. I believe him. I know there was no ulterior motive for keeping quiet about what I was. What I am. Skyler has never given me a reason to question how he feels about me.

Has he fallen as completely as I have?

My heart is beating too fast; my mind racing with all of this new information. Me and my family are inhuman. All along I had the power to save myself from Enzo. Skyler is my mate.

It’s too much and I can’t breathe.

Gasping for air, tears make their way down my cheeks. I hold onto Skyler’s hand like my life depends on it. In this moment, it might. That touch is the only thing holding me here. If I break the tether, I’ll float away, lost to my messy mind.

Wiping a stray tear I notice Skyler preparing to take an exit. “I’m okay.” The words are a whisper, hardly convincing. “Don’t stop.” I say with more conviction. He looks tormented but turns the blinker off as he picks up speed again.

“I just don’t know what to do with all of this.” With a deep, steadying breath, the words pour out. “My world was forever altered today. My mom is a witch apparently. What a great job she’s done hiding that fun fact for twenty-four years.”

“My dad’s the shifter, which made me one too. Which means I could’ve eaten that fucking vampire’s heart out. But no one deigned to tell me that tidbit.”

My free hand runs through my hair, wavey strands twisting around my finger, while the other continues holding tight to his. “And after harboring indifference for the paranormal all this time, after thinking of them as monsters, now I am one. My entire life has been a lie. What do I do now?”

“You are no monster, Sunlight.” Skyler’s answer sinks in, wrapping itself around my heart. His certainty makes me believe it too. “What one is does not determine its wickedness. Only actions can deem one a monster. Yours are the farthest from malicious.”

My vision is locked on him, my heart threatening to beat out of my chest, but I release the words anyway. “You had already changed my mind. You had made me see that just because someone was other, it didn’t mean they were hard wired to be vile.

“You make me see the light in this world, make me believe in dreams. Skyler, I’ve fallen for you. Even before I knew how intricately entwined our souls were, I fell.”

Skyler groans. The warmth from where our hands touch spreads through my body; every nerve set on fire by the longing hazel gaze now locked on me. His eyes devour me, and that warmth settles in my chest. An almost unbearable plead — touch me, kiss me, claim me.

With a strength that I clearly do not possess, Skyler keeps the car straight, steering us toward the correct exit according to the GPS. With a soft exhale comes his response, “Sunlight, from the moment you first stepped into Burrow’s I was drawn to you. I couldn’t make sense of it I just knew I was yours in every sense of the word.

“Getting to know you was like opening the door to a piece of my soul I didn’t realize was missing. Each day I fell deeper and deeper until I was hopelessly lost in you.” Even though we’re in a heavy spot of traffic, he sends a quick grin my way.

“The bond is just a bonus. With or without it I would’ve thrown myself at your feet and begged for even a drop of your radiance.” He gently squeezes my hand. “I am completely fucking gone for you, Amethyst.”

The blinker clicking is the only sound for a few heartbeats. I let his words settle into me and tuck them away into a secret corner of my mind. To keep them safe and remembered.