Page 78 of Bewitched By the Djinn
I freeze. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you.”
He pushes himself up onto one elbow, blinking at me. “You didn’t. I can’t sleep either. What’s wrong?”
I shake my head. “Nothing. I just couldn’t fall sleep.”
He studies me for a moment before scooting back, making space. “Come here then.”
I should say no. I should go back to my dumb luxurious bed. Except last night was the best rest I’ve had in forever, and the man in front of me is most likely the reason I could close my eyes and relax without worry.
I step forward and slide under the covers beside him.
The warmth of his body seeps into mine immediately, cutting through the chill of my skin. I settle on my side, my back to him at first, but it doesn’t last long. A moment later, I turn to face him.
He’s watching me, his face a smudge in the dim light. “Are you worried about tomorrow?”
“Aren’t you?”
He runs a hand through his hair. “Of course.” He’s quiet for a long moment before his voice drops lower. “I keep wondering why? Why would he do this? If he’s behind all this, which seems the most likely explanation. Either that or a doppelganger took his place months ago, which I can’t quite believe.”
I don’t have an answer.
He shakes his head. “My whole life, he was there. I thought he loved me. Protected me. Now I don’t know what to think. He must have been the one to send the ifrit after me. I can’t think of any other explanation. I don’t understand why.”
I hesitate before reaching out, resting my hand over his. “It’s not your fault.”
“Isn’t it? He could have been plotting against us this whole time and I was too blind to see it.”
“When your parents died, you were only a child. You had no reason to not trust him. He was the one adult in your life you thought you could rely on. The fact that he broke that trust is on him alone.”
His hand turns over, fingers lacing with mine. “Your siblings are lucky they have you.”
I swallow a lump in my throat. “I worry I will fail them somehow. That I am failing them. How can I be good enough? I’m not a parent.”
“It’s obvious how much you care about them. Your love is a blinding light. Anyone can see it. They can too, and that’s all that matters. Everything else can be sorted.”
I blink. “You make it sound so simple.”
“I don’t mean to trivialize the loss of your parents.”
“No. You’re not. I know what you mean. Whatever happened to them, I might never know. I think that’s worse than knowing something terrible did happen. The not knowing. I wouldn’t be living in this roller coaster of hope and despair and fear and loss and rage.”
His hand squeezes mine.
We fall into an easy silence.
But despite the comfort of his presence, my thoughts spiral back to the swamp witches, their strange warning.The ones you seek are not gone.What did they mean? Did they know something about my parents? About me?
“What Helen said, about your parents needing a mortal with djinn blood to help,” I wave my free hand, “and mortals with magic, they must be part djinn, does that mean I have djinn blood?”
He considers me. “I suppose it must.”
So we could make babies together. Got it.
Don’t think about having babies while you’re inches from Bennet in a bed.
This still can’t happen.
We still come from different worlds. I absolutely could never leave my siblings, and obviously, he has some things to work through in Aetheria. We’ll figure out what the hell is happening in Aetheria, and then I will go back to my life.
