“Have a great day, love,” Briar said, combing his fingers through my bangs, then tucking them aside. I needed a haircut. “Be sure to rest.”
“I will.”
“Lake will tell me if you don’t.”
I cracked a smile at that. It was so simple, so small, but it was further proof that he and Maddox had accepted Lake. Welcomed him.
Once they left, Lake and I cleaned the kitchen. His tail occasionally bumped me as we washed dishes, and when our eyes met, a smile was never far behind. I then curled up with a book in the parlor, and he laid his head in my lap as I read.
We spent most of the day like that; cuddled together, stealing kisses at random, and enjoying each other’s company. Resting wasn’t so bad. It was nice being lazy every now and then.
Later, once the sun began to set, I started dinner. Summer was on its final breath, the warmth slowly turning to crisper air, especially in the evenings. I chopped potatoes, carrots, and celery and added them to a pot before preparing the meat. A hearty stew sounded amazing.
Lake had helped me make dough earlier, and we’d set it near the window to prove. I checked it and nodded, pleased by the rise, before putting it in the oven to bake. Once everything was cooking, I left the kitchen to find my wolf.
A creak came from above me.
Smiling, I took the stairs up the second floor and poked my head into his room. My smile fell once seeing him.
Lake stood by the window, staring at the trees. There was a wistfulness to his expression. A longing. Reality bled back in. I sometimes forgot he had another home out there. One he probably wanted to return to.
“Do you miss it?” I asked. “Your cottage?”
Lake turned to me. “A little, yes. It’s the only home I’ve ever known. It’s where my memories are.” His gaze returned to the trees outside the window. “Gardening with my father. Watching him whittle and then begging him to teach me too. Seeing him in the kitchen as he cooked. He used to grab a stool and place me on top of it so I could reach the counter. He taught me how to chop vegetables and eventually how to cook.”
His melancholic tone made my chest ache.
I stepped farther into the room. “As much as I love the idea of you living here, I know it’s not a place where you feel…” I struggled for the right word. “Safe.”
“I do feel safe with you,” he said.
“You do?”
He nodded. “But it’s not my safety I think of when you’re near me. It’s yours. In the weeks I’ve spent by your side, you’ve burrowed deep into my core. Like maybe you were always meant to be there.”
“Briar said I’m your mate. Is that… is that true?”
Lake lifted a hand to his chest, as if an impulsive response. “I believe so, yes. I have nothing to compare the feeling to. But it’s strong. Stronger than anything I’ve ever felt.” He approached and took hold of my hand. As he slid his fingers between mine, he softly smiled. “It’s how I found you. I sensed your life force and followed it.”
“Thanks for that. I would’ve been demon food otherwise.”
“Any demon that dares try to harm you again will have to go through me first.”
“What about Onyx?” I whispered, fear clouding the spaces between my ribs. Suffocating me from the inside. “He was surprised you were with us.”
“Are you worried I’ll join his side?”
“What? No. I don’t believe for a second you’d ever go with him. It’s just…” I looked at our joined hands. “I don’t know. You wouldn’t have to hide in his realm. You’d be accepted, just like all the other demi-humans who’ve sided with him.”
Lake cupped my cheek. “I go wherever you go. Simple as that.”
“But what if people learn about you, Lake? Sir Noah and Sir Anton already know about you. Thankfully, they’re okay with it, but what if someone else—”
Lake kissed me. I whimpered against his lips, the cracks in my chest closing.
“I love you, Evan,” he said. “More than I can even comprehend. When you went missing, a part of me was lost too. I didn’t feel whole again until you were back in my arms. I refuse to leave your side. Now or ever.”
Tears welled in my eyes. “I love you too.”
