Page 43 of The Soulmate Bakery

I laughed, a burst of a sound. Then I gestured between the two of us. ‘Then how is this the longest we’ve ever spoken, Silas?’

His smile widened. ‘That’s ’cause you’ve always been running from me. I’ve tried talking to you, but you’re always disappearing before I can get a word in edgewise.’

I think back on all the klutzy moments I’ve had with Silas, and whether I ever stuck around for Silas’s reaction. He was right – I usually fled.

‘Most of our interactions have been embarrassing for me,’ I confessed, hoping I wasn’t making the wrong choice by admitting that. Hoping it wasn’t obvious why I always seemed to mess up around him.

Silas’s gaze softened, and he leaned forward against the table. ‘Well, I’ve always liked to chase. And now that I’ve finally caught up to you, allow me to introduce myself.’

I raised an eyebrow, watching as he leaned back in his chair. I leaned back in my own chair, mimicking him, excitement buzzing through me.

‘Hi, I’m Silas Moon,’ he said, blue eyes glittering with mirth.

I realized now how right I was about Silas being my soulmate. His home, his family, him – all of it aligned perfectly with me. He was my soulmate, and the night of the autumn moon would prove it.

‘Hi, I’m Maya Reverie.’

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

For the first time in my life, I actually enjoyed going to school. Was it partially because I’d executed a number of spells in my charms practical, perfectly? Yes. But it was mostly because Silas spoke to me.

A lot.

Not only did the blonde werewolf drag his chair closer to mine in potions, at lunch he dropped on to the table with Sofia, Raven and I to make sure we were all coming to his game next week. And now he was walking me out of the school building, his usual group of friends seemingly forgotten.

‘So, question for the day: do you think studying with snacks is a distraction or an added bonus to the great time we’re going to have tomorrow?’ Silas questioned, reminding me that after school tomorrow, I was going to be joining him in the library.

‘Depends on the snack,’ I quipped back.

At first, I still found it a little hard to talk to Silas, but I reminded myself we were starting anew. The past was firmly behind us. It made it easier – made me feel like I was building a new person who was meeting Silas for the first time. Someone confident and witty and not, well, the old me.

‘If you’re talking celery sticks and hummus, I’m not sure how much of a bonus that is,’ I added.

‘I’m thinking more like these.’ He twisted his bag around, and pulled out a bag of sweets. ‘Peach rings!’

I wasn’t the biggest fan of them, but I was hardly going to turn down anything Silas wanted to share with me.

‘They’ll do,’ I teased, and he scoffed.

‘I used my ten-per-cent employee discount on these,’ Silas replied, mock offended.

‘Splurging on me already, Silas?’ I asked, eyebrow raised.

‘Gotta keep my lucky charm happy,’ he said back, pushing open the doors of Maple Falls High, and leading us out to the parking lot.

I found Raven and Sofia already there, both waiting for me with wide eyes and tense expressions. I could tell something had happened.

‘Ah, looks like you’re needed,’ Silas murmured, and gently knocked his shoulder to mine. ‘I’ll see you tomorrow, Maya.’

I was sad to see him walk away, but as soon as he’d turned, I sped towards Raven and Sofia.

‘Are you two OK?’ I asked, worriedly. I raked my gaze over both of them – Raven was armed with books for the MAC exam and Sofia had a satchel that was equally full. The two of them were going to be joining me at the Treasure Trove today, studying while I baked and practised with Orion.

‘Aside from the fact that the MAC exam is made by an evil goblin,’ Raven sniped, ‘we’ve been waiting for you to come outside because Orion has been blowing up the group chat.’

‘He has?’

I pulled my phone from my pocket and found that I had it on silent.