Page 24 of Whisker me Away
He left the flowers on her counter and stepped outside, settling on the bench beneath her shop window with the patient contentment of a man secure in his place in her life. Through the glass, Freya could see him wave to neighbors passing by, every inch the respected member of the community who belonged.
"He loves you," Kieran said quietly once they were alone again.
"I know."
"And you're going to accept his proposal."
Freya stared out the window at Rowan's profile, at the future of stability and partnership he represented. "I should.He's everything a woman in my position should want. Kind, dependable, understanding about magic. He'd be a good partner."
"That's not what I asked."
"It's the only answer that matters." She turned away from the window and began gathering the research materials, needing something to do with her hands. "Personal feelings are a luxury I can't afford right now."
"Personal feelings might be the key to solving this." Kieran caught her wrist as she reached for another book, his touch sending electricity up her arm. "What if the answer isn't sacrifice? What if it's connection?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean maybe your ancestor didn't die alone. Maybe she had help. A partner whose strength combined with hers to create something more powerful than either could manage solo."
The possibility hit her like lightning as Lucien's words from the bookstore echoed in her mind. Joining with strength. Marking of mates. The binding requires two hearts, two souls, two sources of power working in perfect harmony. "A mated pair."
"It would explain why the binding lasted so long, why it's only failing now that you're alone and untrained." Kieran's thumb traced across her wrist, right over her pulse point. "Magic is always stronger when it's shared between people who trust each other completely."
"Lucien said something about this." Freya's voice came out breathless as pieces clicked into place. "At the bookstore. He mentioned that the original binding required joining with strength, marking of mates. I thought he was just being cryptic, but what if he meant literally a mated pair?"
"Which means you don't have to die to renew it." Kieran's voice carried relief and something deeper. "You just need to find the right partner."
Freya felt the truth settle in her bones like certainty. The mate bond she'd been fighting, the recognition that had flared between them during their kiss, wasn't just inconvenient attraction. It was the key to saving everything she loved.
But accepting it would mean breaking Rowan's heart. And she wasn't sure she was brave enough to choose her own happiness over someone else's pain, even if it might save them all.
14
KIERAN
Kieran stared at the ceiling of his apartment above the hardware store, watching shadows shift as dawn crept closer. He hadn't slept. Every time he closed his eyes, his tiger would surge forward with demands to check on Freya, to make sure she was safe, to claim what belonged to them.
She's having dinner with Rowan, he reminded himself. Discussing their future like the sensible people they are.
His tiger snarled in response, pacing restlessly beneath his skin. The mate bond might be incomplete, but it was strong enough to make him hyperaware of Freya's absence. Strong enough to make him want to track down Rowan Ashford and remind him exactly what kind of predator he was dealing with.
Kieran rolled out of bed, his movements sharp with frustration. A patrol would help. Physical activity always calmed his tiger, and Hollow Oak needed someone keeping watch while the corruption spread like poison through their community.
The pre-dawn air was crisp with autumn's promise, carrying the scent of dying leaves and wood smoke from early fires. Kieran walked the empty streets with predatory grace, his enhanced senses cataloging every sound and smell. Most ofHollow Oak still slept, but he could hear Mrs. Patterson letting her chickens out, the distant hum of Twyla firing up the coffee machines at The Griddle & Grind.
Normal sounds. Peaceful sounds. Nothing that suggested supernatural evil was slowly consuming their town.
But when Kieran reached the residential district where most families kept kitchen gardens, the wrongness hit him like a punch to the gut. Three more properties showed signs of overnight corruption. The Hendersons' prized vegetable patch was completely black now, their autumn squash twisted into unrecognizable shapes. Mrs. Patte's herb spiral looked like a battlefield, with once-thriving plants now weeping dark sap onto poisoned soil.
"Damn it," he muttered, pulling out his phone to document the damage. The council would want a full report, and the numbers were getting worse every day. Nearly a quarter of Hollow Oak's flora was gone, with new infections appearing faster than they could track them.
His phone buzzed with a text from Elder Varric: Council meeting at nine. Updates required.
Kieran stared at the message, his jaw tightening. What updates could he give that wouldn't betray Freya's confidence? The council wanted answers about the Thornweaver, about binding spells and bloodline magic, but all of that information came from her grandmother's private journal. Information she'd shared with him in trust, not as official council business. But then again she had been forced to collaborate with him, showing him those journals. It still felt wrong to share such information.
Another garden lost. Another family's livelihood destroyed. And he was caught between his duty to the community and his loyalty to his mate.
His mate who was probably accepting another man's proposal right now.
