Page 63 of The Soulmate Bakery

It was an abrupt stop that made me jostle. A whine slipped out of me; I was starting to feel a little sick.

‘Get out of my way, wolf,’ the voice was hard-edged, unrelenting.

‘Are you sure you should be the one to take her?’ Silas asked. I knew it had to be him because what other werewolf could it be? ‘She said you two weren’t even friends.’

The arms holding me stiffened, and I heard the audible click of a jaw snapping shut.

‘I have known Maya Reverie since I was eight years old.’ The voice was vibrating with anger. ‘I have watched out for her since then. So let me make this very, very clear to you: if you don’t move out of my way so I can get her home, I will burn you to a crisp. And no, that isn’t an exaggeration, I will literally, burn you. I don’t care if that breaks a thousand magical laws, I will end you and have no regrets while doing so.’

I turned my head to see Silas’s smudged form standing before me and my rescuer. I couldn’t make out his face, but he was holding himself so still. And his eyes, I could see those. But that’s because they had gone from blue to gold. Bright gold. I knew that a sign of a werewolf shifting was the same as a dragon’s – their eyes changed first.

But Silas didn’t shift fully, he just stepped closer. The arms around me stiffened even further.

Silas’s expression finally came into focus. A concerned frown was etched on to his face, his brows knitted together. His eyes were so gold, like two coins. And his hair was so soft-looking, like sunlight shining through candyfloss.

I felt a sigh leave my body. He was so pretty.

A smile tugged his frown upwards a little. ‘You’re so pretty too, Maya.’

I grinned – guess I said that out loud too.

‘Wonderful, now that we’ve established that,’ the voice holding me said, irritably. ‘We need to leave. So, like I said, wolf, move out of my way.’

Silas looked up, his smile slipping away again. I saw him bristle, the muscles in his neck flexed. He didn’t take his eyes off the person holding me – not until Raven appeared.

‘All right, boys,’ Raven said, her voice full of authority. ‘As delightful as this male posturing is, Maya needs to get whatever potion was slipped into her drink out of her system.’

‘How do we know he didn’t put it in there?’ the voice holding me accused.

Silas let out a growl that made the forest leaves shake, and Raven’s admonishment came quick.

‘Orion,’ she hissed.

It hit me like a ton of bricks.

Of course. Of course, the voice belonged to Orion.

I lifted my head slightly and, with the steady heartbeat against my ear, I forced my world to focus. To really focus. The blurring faded inch by inch, revealing the sharp curve of Orion’s jaw, the black tendril of hair that slipped over his forehead, the sharpness of his silver eyes as he looked down at me. His heartbeat was still steady, but his breathing felt deliberate. Controlled. Waiting.

‘I’m sorry, Silas,’ Raven said, stepping in front of her brother and me. ‘But Orion’s got her, OK? He won’t let anything happen to her.’

Silas’s gaze flicked down to my best friend. His jaw was still tight, but he stepped aside, letting Orion pass.

‘Find out who did this to her, Raven,’ Orion commanded, not stopping for a breath.

My best friend’s reply was instantaneous. ‘I’m already on it.’

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

The car ride was delightful. Even though Orion didn’t let me stick my head out of the window to feel the cool air whip against my cheeks because, according to him, although I had feelings for a dog, I wasn’t supposed to act like one. I promptly informed him that calling Silas a dog would be like someone calling Orion a giant lizard.

After that, we stopped talking, I kept my hand out of the window, and Orion drove us through the streets of Maple Falls with practised ease; the kind of surety that came from someone who knew these roads like the lines on his palms. I allowed my eyes to flutter shut, to just enjoy the motion of the car. I only cracked open my lids when I felt Orion open my door.

I staggered out of the car, stumbling when I felt that fuzziness hit my system again, making the world around me tilt. Orion placed his arm around my shoulders, holding me upright, as he steered me somewhere. The streets were quiet and unrecognizable to me in the dark. I didn’t really understand where we were until Orion stopped outside a building, used one hand to open the door and ushered me inside.

Once we were in, he hit the lights, and I was blinded momentarily. It made my head pulse with pain and my stomach revolt. His arm remained sure around me, holding me upright, as he grabbed a stepping stool shaped like a tree stump with his free hand and pushed it against a wooden counter. Then, he gently prompted me to step on the stump, and I plopped down on to the counter.

‘Where are we?’ I mumbled, rubbing my eyes so the black spots would dissipate.