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“And you were in my bed?”
“Yeah…”
“Did you shift back at any point?”
I watch as he squirms a little on my sofa.
“You did, didn’t you?”
“I’m sorry. I couldn’t control it. I’m not used to staying in fennec form for so long. It’s how I tidied up the kitchen. Sorry about that.”
“I dreamt that strong arms were holding me.” I blush.
“That was me. I like to cuddle. When I woke up as me, I couldn’t resist. It was only for a brief moment, and then I went to tidy up.”
“Why did you trash my kitchen anyway? It better not have been to just get into my bed!”
“I smelt danger.”
“You can smell danger?” I ask, disbelieving.
“Usually, yes. But since meeting you, I smell it all the time so maybe it’s broken.”
“Or it’s a warning to stay away from me,” I point out.
“Or it’s a warning that you’re in danger and I need to protect you better.”
“Look, Ash. I think you’re a nice guy—”
“Uh-oh.” He sighs.
“What?”
“You’re going to give me the ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ speech, aren’t you?”
“Well, no. I was just going to say that I don’t want you to stay with me because of some sense of duty. You don’t have to protect me and you don’t have to choose me because of some stupid bond.”
Ash’s golden eyes flare with an emotion I’ve not seen on him before: anger. He opens his mouth to reply but I’m saved by the doorbell ringing. I race to answer it and pay for the food, and then hastily duck into the kitchen to plate up. Ash doesn’t join me.
When I go back to the lounge, he’s still sitting on the sofa, but he seems tense. There’s an atmosphere now that I didn’t intend to create.
“Ash, I’m sorry—” I begin but he cuts me off.
“I told you this morning that the second a shifter locks eyes with their mate, they know. Don’t tell me my bond is stupid.” His tone is low and hurt. I immediately feel bad.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that,” I say. And I mean it. It wasn’t my intention to upset him. “But what if you meet a girl tomorrow who you’re crazy about? I don’t want you to feel stuck with me because of the bond, especially if it’s not the real deal. It could just be a dodgy spell going wonky on us. You could find someone you have a real connection with.”
Ash shakes his head. To be fair to him, he did listen to what I had to say before disagreeing. I think the others would have just cut me off.
“It’s not like that. You are the one. The real connection. The bond. You don’t see it or feel it yet because this is new to you, but…” he pauses and sighs. “Promise you won’t freak out?”
My eyes widen, because those words are never a good sign, but I nod. I promise I will try not to freak out anyway.
“Okay, so the only way to really describe it is like I’m an almost completed jigsaw puzzle. One tiny piece is missing, but you can still see the overall picture. It doesn’t really affect the puzzle, but it’s not the same as being complete. Does that make sense?”
“Yeah,” I say, because it does. You don’t need every piece to see the overall picture. From my line of work, I know that.
“Then, I met you. And you were the missing piece. You slotted right into place in the part of me that was missing, and now I’m complete.”
