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Malix dives under, and I startle, looking around for him. Is he coming for me?
I turn my back on the shore and wade a little further, only to realize it’s much too deep for me to touch here. I’m forced to go back a couple feet, only for Malix to surface right beside me.
I glare at him. “Can I have some privacy please?”
His hand emerges from the water. “Thought you might like some soap.”
I stare at the small round bar in his hand, all the bluster fading from me. “Oh. Yeah, actually, that would be cool.”
As I pluck the soap from his fingers, he gives me an amused grin and then backs off, giving me extra space.
Turning around, I start rubbing the soap over my body beneath the water. Not the best way to scrub myself, but I’m not too keen on walking further inland and having Malix stare at my naked body while I wash.
Well, maybe I’m too keen on that. And that’s scarier.
I rub the bar through my hair to get a good lather going, then offer it back to Malix. “Thanks.”
“No problem, kitty.”
Shoving my hands into my hair, I roll my eyes and start scrubbing. I listen to the water lapping at Malix’s body as he washes up, trying desperately not to think of his nakedness below the surface.
I rinse my hair out by ducking beneath the water, then resurface, turning my face into the cool breeze.
Don’t think about Malix.
Don’t think about Malix.
Don’t think about Malix.
Chanting it in your head is thinking about Malix, you fucking dumbass.
Giving in to my insanity, I glance over my shoulder at him. He’s not much taller than me, so most of his body is underwater here, too. The emphasis is on his neck and shoulders, both of which are strong. Corded.
Biteable.
Jesus, I need a distraction.
“So,” I say, “once we’re done with the antidote, are you guys going to go back to that place where you sensed the shadow realm?”
“Sure will,” he replies cheerfully. “You gonna try to stop us, kitty?”
“Sure will,” I parrot back in my sweetest voice, making sure there’s an edge of challenge beneath it.
We glance at each other. Malix has that stupidly charming grin on his face, as always, and against my better judgment, I grin back.
“I’m pretty sure you just told me to fuck off in kitty speak,” he says, tossing the soap between his hands twice before he chucks it at the shore. We watch it bounce across the rocks and then come to rest.
“Not even a week in my presence and you just know me so well,” I quip.
Malix chuckles. “See, that’s why I like you, kitty. Funny, smart, give no fucks...” He trails off, and it feels like he was going to say something else.
I catch his violet gaze, and something shifts in the air between us. The acknowledgement that he likes me settles into a sudden, charged silence.
For the briefest of seconds, I consider telling him that I like him, too. Or I would, if I let myself like him. He’s a lot like me—strong, stubborn, loyal to the people he loves. Malix reminds me every day that he’s meant to be my mate, simply by being himself.
If we weren’t diametrically at odds, all three of them would be my perfect complements.
Our teasing banter vanishes under the weight of the silence between us.
