Edward followed him with relative ease, for the mage was not highly skilled in the art of water magic, but he had the basics under control. His movement was cumbersome and not defined, but he knew enough to allow him to escape most pursuers but not his beloved. Edward stayed a few seconds behind him as he made his way through the mist toward town. He stepped out of the mist at the Greyson Hotel and walked up the bank to the back of the hotel but stopped when he heard someone behind him.
Cooper was rightfully shocked to see Edward standing behind him when he turned back toward the river. "How did you do that?" He burst and took a couple of steps back. It was quite late, so there was no one outside, but Edward was still worried about being seen from the hotel.
"Which room is yours," Edward asked. Cooper didn't question how he knew he had a room at the hotel and simply gave him the number. Edward spirited them both to the room in a blink of an eye. Cooper lost his balance when they arrived in the room and fell backward onto the bed but quickly recovered himself. "Our business is private." Edward gave an explanation.
"Do we have a business?" Cooper questioned with a confused expression. He was starting to come to the conclusion that his little mage was indeed clueless.
Edward walked over to him very close and stared down at his upturned face. To his credit, he did not run or back further away. He held his ground. "My name is Edward." He began and slowly reached out to touch the tips of his fingers to Cooper's cheek, just a fleeting touch, but it felt so familiar, and he wanted more but pulled back for fear of disturbing the young man.
Cooper kept his eyes on Edward's hand as he pulled it away and unexpectedly reached out and took it in his clasping hands and holding for a few seconds before releasing him. "You have a strange energy. It's powerful and all over the place. You aren't constrained in any way. Your power is extraordinary." He still did not step away, which was pleasing. "You're a vampire, an old soul. I can feel vibes that radiate through the centuries, much like I felt when Master DuCane touched my wrist. But there is a different depth to you. It goes to a place of shadows."
“I wasn’t aware that water mages were also sensitives. How is it that you can read me?" Edward was impressed at his accuracy and his bravery in sharing these findings.
"I'm not sure, it doesn't always work, and I've never read anyone as clearly as I see you." Cooper was mystified, but Edward understood.
"You and I are connected. Cooper Fate sent me to you." Edward decided to start edging toward the truth. "I was at Coven DuCane this afternoon, and I felt something there. I went home and couldn't get the feeling out of my head. I was compelled to return and find the source of this compulsion. I followed the path, and it led me to the basement cells to one cell in particular, and it was empty." Edward took a half step closer, bringing him within a few inches of Cooper, who was still looking at him, deciding whether or not to trust.
"The water mage who had been occupying it had escaped on a drop of water that had leaked from the wall. I followed him and found him in the woods running scared. All I wanted to do was help him, but he was afraid of me." Edward bent and rubbed his cheek against the soft auburn curls of Cooper's hair and drank in the lovely aroma. "You smell like evening rain, so fresh and relaxing, so good."
"I'm not afraid of you now, you are a dark, mysterious stranger, but I don't feel afraid." Cooper leaned forward and breathed deeply, taking in Edward's aroma. "You smell like cotton candy. I smelled it in the woods and couldn't figure out where it was coming from. It was you."
"What is this all about? Just tell me I can handle it. I won't freak out on you." Cooper pressed for answers. Edward unclipped his cape and took it off, throwing it onto the bed. He was trying to decide what to tell him and what he would be prepared to understand at this stage of their relationship.
"Are you familiar with the term beloved?" Edward walked over to the chair beside the bed and sat down. Cooper took a seat across from him on the edge of the bed.
"Vampires have beloveds. They are their Fated bonds, and shifters and mages have mates, who are also considered Fated bonds. They are predestined and inescapable according to legend." Again, Cooper surprised him with a perfect understanding.
“How does a mage recognize their mate?”
"I was told my mate would smell like my favorite thing, something I would recognize and seek out. I would also be drawn to this person, and trust would come easy because of the Fated connection we would share." Cooper was saying it but was not drawing the connections.
“What is your favorite thing?”
"Cotton candy. I just love the smell and taste of cotton candy." Awareness started to dawn in those startled green eyes.
Cooper just sat and stared at the man for a few seconds as his words and situation started to come together and make sense. He smelled like cotton candy even before he knew the man, he experienced the aroma, and it called to him. Edward was his mate. He couldn't even imagine that being true. This man was so far out of his league that it was ridiculous. Edward was regal, an ancient vampire with power and station, and he was absolutely gorgeous.
Cooper had tried to run from him out in the woods because he'd felt completely overwhelmed by his presence. He wasn't afraid he just didn't understand what was happening and needed to get away and get his balance, but Edward followed and, with great ease, continued to work his way closer without pressure or force.
He looked into Edwards's dark eyes and saw that his assumptions were true. They have a connection, and Cooper could see so many things in that hard yet sorrowful gaze. But still, Cooper could not put his theory into words. He couldn't make that statement for fear he was dead wrong.
"You can say it," Edward told him with the same calm and ease he'd displayed since they first met. Cooper continued to stare as he tried to build his courage to state what it was that he was feeling. The man was so overpowering in every way. Just a look sent Cooper into nervous jitters. He knotted his fingers together in his lap, willing his response to calm.
"Are you my mate?" Cooper said it and then froze, waiting for an answer, and it came immediately with calm and acceptance.
"Yes, and you are my beloved." Edward leaned forward in his chair, which put them close enough for him to reach out and take Cooper's hands in his urging him to look up and see him once again. Cooper had no words as the shock of this discovery coursed through him and filled his mind with so many conflicting thoughts and images.
"Talk to me, Cooper. Tell me your thoughts." Damn, the man was so compelling, and Cooper wanted to give him whatever he asked. Was this real? Was it a glamour? It didn't feel like glamour. Cooper had endured such things before, and glamours were not sweet and gentle. They were brutal and uncomfortable for creatures like him. Using magic on magical beings was always uncomfortable for the receiver. He did not feel uncomfortable. There was no magic being used. This was real, or he was still lying out in the woods with a concussion, and this all was just a dream.
"I'm thinking that you could do better, and you know it. I'm thinking that there is no way that a man of your standing will be satisfied with a lowly water mage of zero standing." He was just speaking the truth, but the look Edward gave him looked startled, as if he was not expecting such a declaration.