“Yes!” Goddammit, what was wrong with her? She shouldn’t be so excited! For God’s sake, show some class and dignity. She brought her mannerisms down and accepted graciously. “Yes, I’d happily accept your offer. Thank you.”
Oh no. He knew. She couldn’t exactly explain how she knew that, but in that moment, she saw understanding flitter across his eyes. To be fair, they’d already had sex. It wasn’t a well-hidden secret that she was attracted to him. Nobody would be astonished to hear her confess that she was into him at this point. That bridge was long since burned.
He stuck his hand in his pocket. “However. You need to listen to my rules first.”
She studied him carefully, trying to decide if this was flirty or serious. Based on his face, serious. That was a bit of a letdown in a few ways. First off, it would not take much to get her into the idea of it being flirting, but also, she was broke as hell and serious demands that might involve money of any significance were only a short drive away from impossible. “Okay?”
Yep, definitely serious. His tone dropped and his mannerisms got more rigid. Not enough to worry her, but enough to show that this was no laughing matter. “First, you do as I say.”
A tingle rippled through her hips, coiling around her waist and pushing hard for a second. “Okay.”
“Second. You tell me the truth about everything. You can’t hide anything from me. Let me see it as it is.”
She shifted in her seat, letting her hand rest over her hips. She kept her eyes locked on him, trying to not get distracted. “Okay.”
“And third…” He paused for a second. “We agree to my fee.”
Her hopes came crashing down. A fee? Of course she couldn’t expect him to do it for free, but if he thought she had enough money to throw down a huge payment, he was going to learn something rather tragic—she had used her entire life savings to open the apothecary. Even if she wanted to, even if her life depended on it (and it probably did), she wasn’t at a place where she could dish out enough to make the likes of him satisfied. “Oh….uh. Yeah, of course! What is your fee?”
His lips turned up in a smile and a devilish glint shone in his eye for a quarter of a second. “Ah, it’s simple, really. It’ll cost you a favor.” He paused. “A favor I’ll call in sometime in the future.”
Oh. She settled into her chair. Was…was that it? He’d had some big build-up and she’d been expecting some exorbitant price gouging, maybe, or canceling his favor to her family. That was what she’d been mostly anticipating—him charging her the favor that her family had held for all those years. She might have given it to him. What other options did she have?
But since it was apparently not that and not vast amounts of money, a weight lifted off her shoulders and she bobbed her head with a smile. Besides, she wasn’t against owing him a favor, not at all—especially since it meant he’d stick around a bit longer. She’d not been able to come clean with her sisters about the mark. If the mark was right, if the griffin standing before her was actually her soulmate, then everything would work out anyway.
If it was wrong, well…her smile grew strained. That would be a different story. A very disappointing story, but one that she had to be prepared for. Yeah, according to legend, an Edenglow witch would have the mark appear after touching their mate that they were meant to be with. Hooray. Fantastic. But…a lot of confusion surrounded the mark.
Maybe she was the first one who was different. Maybe the mark was wrong somehow. Maybe her soulmate was actually one of the assholes who’d arrested her and stolen her powers, because she’d touched them too. Or, maybe the entire legend was wrong and it was just a fluke or a cute story that people liked to tell their kids, like kissing a frog and turning him into a prince. She’d kissed a lot of frogs growing up. No princes ever showed up to her door.
But as long as she didn’t outright tell him what she was thinking, she had nothing to lose. No shame or humiliation for going out on a limb and awkwardly explaining that he was supposed to be her soulmate. No risk of refusal, no anything. If she was wrong about the mark and it did mean nothing, then she’d lost nothing and everything was still good. But, if the mark was correct and the man standing before her was the right man for her, well, he should be feeling the same intense feelings for her.
He locked eyes with her. For a second, neither one of them moved a muscle. For that forever, she simply stared, seeking further than the surface and craving to see into him. What sort of man was he? She knew, mostly, but deep down, what was he? The special thing about looking in someone’s eyes was that it tended to give the real facts. She’d been tricked by her emotions before, led astray by her brain. But her gut instinct? It always knew, and she’d learned that the fastest way, and perhaps the only real way, to tell what kind of connection actually existed was to look someone in the eyes.
She looked. And looked. And looked.
And she liked everything she saw. She felt no pressure to look away, no desire to avert her eyes or focus on something else. For a second, everything fell away until all that was left was his face, and eventually, just his eyes.
He moved towards her, slowly. Her breath caught in her throat and she gulped, watching him advance on her. The rules said she wasn’t supposed to have contact with anyone, as it could taint the spell and make it convoluted to read. Well, fuck ‘em. There were more important things right now, things like the griffin before her.
He leaned down towards her until their faces were level, slipping one hand behind her head and angling her towards him. Her eyes closed as their lips met softly and slowly. His lips were warm and gave way slightly to hers, caressing her lips and gushing a warmth through her body.
Her fingers wrapped around his back, digging into him and pulling him closer as her passion grew more by the second. He pulled away for air and was back a second later. Her eyes remained closed. No need to open them, no need to see. All she wanted was to soak it in, to memorize every little detail about the moment. She memorized the way his lips tasted and felt against hers. She memorized the way his back moved under her grasp and the sheer warmth emanating off his brawny form. She memorized the sound of him breathing through his nose and the burst of warm air that scattered across her cheek.
When their lips parted, she felt the color rise to her cheeks. “One more.”
He bared his fangs in a smile before returning and kissing her once more. He took his time, seeming to relish her as much as she was him. There was nothing ferocious, nothing intense, about the moment. It simply felt right, like her body was praising her just as much as her mind was. It was beautiful and passionate and special, and with every second, she grew more confident that the mark had been accurate.
His arms wrapped around her back as he sat down next to her, cradling her and pulling her in closer with arms that felt like steel. They kissed forever and yet, when it was done, it was entirely too soon. Slowly, he pulled his lips away from hers but kept their foreheads pressed together.
His eyes locked on to hers, and a smile formed on his lips. “Would you like to know a secret?”
She nodded once, feeling herself return the smile. Whatever was happening here, whatever mysterious force was conjuring up the attraction to him, she owed it a drink and a hearty thank you.