Page 40 of Unbearable Attraction
The sacred grove fell silent as the last echoes of otherworldly power faded into the November morning, leaving behind a stillness that felt both profound and fragile. Leenah knelt among the ancient stones, her body trembling with exhaustion but her spirit soaring with an energy she'd never experienced before. She was alive. Against all odds, against every warning in her grandmother's journals, she had survived serving as a bridge between worlds.
But more than that, she was changed.
The spiritual bond that now connected her to Luka hummed beneath her consciousness like a second heartbeat, steady and warm and impossibly reassuring. She could feel his emotions flowing through their shared connection—relief so profound it brought tears to her eyes, protective love that wrapped around her like a physical embrace, and a bone-deep satisfaction that spoke to something fundamentally shifter in his nature.
"How are you feeling?" he asked softly, his large hand settling on her shoulder with gentle pressure.
"Different," she admitted, marveling at how the simple touch sent warmth cascading through the spiritual link between them."Like someone turned up the volume on everything I thought I knew about magic."
It was true. Her necromantic abilities, which had always felt like borrowed power that came with steep costs, now hummed through her consciousness with natural ease. The constant drain that accompanied spirit communication was gone, replaced by a balanced flow that felt sustainable rather than destructive.
"The bond we've formed," Aiyana said, her ethereal form still solid enough to participate in conversation despite the completion of the ritual, "it has changed how your gifts interact with the spiritual realm. You are no longer drawing solely on your own life force to bridge worlds."
"I can feel that," Leenah replied, flexing her fingers and marveling at how steady they were despite the magnitude of what they'd just accomplished. "It's like having a magical partner instead of trying to channel everything alone."
"That is exactly what you have," she confirmed. "A true spiritual partnership, rare and precious beyond measure."
Around them, the trapped spirits were beginning their final journey. One by one, they approached Leenah and Luka with expressions of gratitude and peaceful resolution, their forms growing brighter as they prepared to cross over to whatever realm awaited beyond the veil.
"Thank you," whispered an elderly shaman whose traditional dress shimmered with otherworldly light. "For seeing our suffering and choosing to act rather than simply acknowledge."
"For giving us hope when we had forgotten what it felt like," added a fae guardian.
Each spirit who approached them left a small gift of wisdom or blessing before fading into golden light. Knowledge about protective magic that could help safeguard Hollow Oak's sacred sites. Understanding of how to work with spiritual forces in ways that honored rather than exploited them. Techniques forbridging the gap between supernatural communities and the spirits who watched over them.
By the time the last spirit had crossed over, Leenah felt like a living repository of magical knowledge that stretched back centuries. But instead of overwhelming her, the accumulated wisdom felt natural, accessible, like information she'd always possessed but simply forgotten how to use.
"This is what we were meant to become," she realized aloud, turning to meet Luka's amber eyes. "Not just partners in love, but partners in purpose."
"Is that what we are?" he asked quietly. "Partners in love?"
The question made her pause, forcing her to examine the emotions flowing through their shared bond. What she found there was deeper than simple affection, more complex than physical attraction. It was recognition, understanding, the kind of soul-deep connection that made the idea of being without him feel like missing a fundamental part of herself.
"Yeah," she whispered, meaning every word. "I think we are."
Before he could respond, Aiyana stepped closer, her ancient eyes fixed on the way their hands had found each other without conscious thought. "The bond you have forged is mentioned in our oldest prophecies, though we had begun to doubt whether the foretold healers would ever appear."
"Prophecies?" Leenah asked, though part of her wasn't surprised. The ritual had felt too significant, too perfectly aligned with their individual gifts, to be mere coincidence.
"Stories passed down through generations about two souls who would arise in times of greatest need," Aiyana explained. "One who could speak with the dead, one who could anchor the living. Together, they would bridge worlds and heal wounds that seemed beyond repair."
"And you think that's us?" Luka's voice held skepticism mixed with hope.
"I think you have already proven it is," the medicine woman replied with gentle certainty. "The question now is what you will do with the responsibility that comes with such gifts."
The implications of their new bond began to settle around Leenah. They weren't just connected to each other now, but to every sacred site in Hollow Oak, every spirit that passed through their hidden valley, every supernatural being who called this place home. The weight of it should have been crushing, but instead it felt like finding a purpose she'd been searching for her entire adult life.
"The Council will need to be informed," Luka said, his practical nature asserting itself despite the profound spiritual experience they'd just shared. "They'll want to understand the terms of the new pact and what our role will be in maintaining it and their role as well."
"Will they accept it?" Leenah asked, though she suspected she already knew the answer. "The acknowledgment of historical wrongs, the commitment to protecting sacred sites, having us serve as permanent advocates for spiritual justice?"
"They will if they're smart," he replied grimly. "The alternative is watching Hollow Oak's protections fail completely as more spirits grow restless over broken promises."
Aiyana nodded approvingly. "Wisdom often comes from necessity rather than altruism. But however they reach their decision, the bond between you cannot be undone. You are connected now in ways that transcend individual choice or political maneuvering."
For someone who'd spent her entire adult life fiercely guarding her independence, the realization that she was now spiritually bound to another person should have triggered every defensive instinct she possessed. But instead of panic or resentment, she felt a deep sense of rightness, as if thisconnection was something she'd been moving toward her entire life without knowing it.
"Are you okay with that?" she asked Luka, suddenly uncertain. "Being bound to someone like me? Someone who's stubborn and independent and not particularly good at letting people take care of her?"
