Seriously?
I roll my eyes. If he’s making jokes like that, he can’t be on his deathbed. Even so, I’m not going to feel better until I know for sure.
Talon and Locklyn’s ride only has four seats, so we agree to leave Ensley, Titus, Kade, and Imogen behind, promising to come back with a larger car to get everyone shortly. Despite his bravado, Talon has to help Becks into the back seat of the Jeep.
I catch Locklyn staring at Kade and Imogen right before I climb into the car after Becks. They’re holding hands as Imogen chats animatedly, retelling how she helped me destroy the demon, while Kade watches her with his usual unreadable expression.
“I have so many questions about that,” she says with a shake of her head.
A laugh bursts from me, and the heaviness that’s weighed on my chest since last night’s attack eases just a little.
“You and me both,” I say with a grin. “Good thing we have all the time in the world now.”
Forty-Three
HAVEN
Becks pulls out my chair, and I settle into the cushioned seat, smiling up at him in thanks.
It still feels a little surreal that this is a date. Our first, officially.
No demons. No running. No blood or fire or fear pressing in from every side. Just us.
After three days in the human hospital, followed by an extended stay in the medical center in the Order headquarters, Becks was finally cleared a couple days ago. The first thing we did when he got his clean bill of health was—with Kade’s and Jade’s blessings—go to the creature world, where I was reunited with my parents and introduced to the couple who raised Locklyn, Braxton and Zia Belcourt. I find them to be some of the warmest people I’ve ever met, and they instantly treat me like one of their own.
Instead of feeling like Locklyn’s presence in my life meant I’d lost something, I now feel the opposite. Through her, I haven’t just gained a sister, I’ve gained so many other people I love and care about.
Becks and I haven’t made any decisions about the future, but once we were in his world, he wanted to show me his home and introduce me to his parents, which was one of the most intimidating experiences of my life. Becks’ parents are highly successful and deeply respected in their world. After chastising their son for leaving without warning, they welcomed him back, and me by extension, with open arms. They’re not quite as relatable as Locklyn’s adoptive parents, but there is a quiet warmth beneath their formality that puts me at ease.
After making all the rounds, Becks announced that he wanted to take me on a date. I couldn’t have said “yes” faster. The day started with him bringing me on a tour of all his favorite and most memorable spots in his town of Everton, which reminds me a bit of a cozy New England town, with a touch of magic.
We had lunch at Sloan’s Diner, where he talked me into ordering a chocolate milkshake that turned out to be the best I’ve ever had. We toured Nightshade, the high school he and Locklyn went to, which looks more like a castle than an actual school. We passed by the gym Locklyn practically lived in, Pete’s Gym, before he took me just outside of town, where we spent the rest of the afternoon flying side by side over the creature realm, cutting through open sky.
It was the first time I shifted since that horrible night. I worried it might be difficult to do again, but now that I’m not running from or trying to hide my powers, it all comes naturally.
As we soared through the air, watching the sunset, wind rushing past my wings, cool and steady, the land below glowed with rivers of light and forests that shimmered like living things. Becks kept pace with me the entire time, never pulling ahead, never holding back, just there, matching my speed, like it was exactly where he wanted to be.
The flying was a dream come true, and something we would never have been able to do together in the human world. Kade would have had our hides if we had tried pulling something like that. As it is, he and his members have been working overtime trying to quash and discredit the demon sightings that occurred right before the blood moon.
Luckily, for most people the idea of the supernatural is too far-fetched, and the world seems content to accept the lie that the “demon sightings” were just elaborate pranks staged by hackers.
After our flight, Becks drove me back to Locklyn’s parents’ house and told me to get ready for a night out. I didn’t bring anything formal with me, but apparently Becks gave my parents a heads-up, because they’d already purchased the most beautiful silver dress for me.
Delicate and frothy, with a soft V-neck that adds just enough allure, it instantly became my favorite thing to wear. And if Becks’ reaction was any indication, I’d say he agrees. When I came down the stairs to meet him, he was talking with my dad and fell silent the instant he spotted me. I’ve never felt more beautiful or more cherished than I did in that moment.
As Becks settles across from me at the small round table, I take in the wonders around us. He was mostly right when he once told me the creature world wasn’t so different than ours. But places like this steal my breath and leave me in awe in a way the human world never has.
The restaurant rises from the forest like it grew there, tables nestled among ancient roots and glowing leaves, soft faelight drifting through the branches overhead. It’s elegant without being stiff, magical without trying too hard. Enchanting is the word that keeps coming to mind. It’s easy in this setting to imagine myself a princess and Becks my noble prince.
“Why are you smiling like that?” Becks asks, his eyes alight with curiosity.
I duck my head, a little embarrassed by my whimsical thoughts.
Reaching out, he captures my hand and pulls it to the middle of the table so he can brush his fingertips back and forth over my knuckles. He does things like that a lot. An arm around my shoulder, a soft kiss on the mouth. He seems to always want to be close and touching in some way, and I don’t mind at all.
“I was just admiring this place. It’s magical,” I say, admitting some of the truth, if not all of it.
The smile that spreads over Becks’ face lights it up. “I’m glad you like it. Have I told you how beautiful you are?”
