AllFreeNovel
Share Us
When Ivy and Tariq joined us after a while, we all fell into a comfortable conversation. And I wondered, for the first time in a decade, if maybe itwaspossible after all for me to find the forever kind of happiness without burning anyone or anything down in the process.
Our days fell into a rhythm,after that. Tariq taught me a little, and left me to my own devices as I struggled. The other ex-human chicks, besides Harper, continued training too. Unlike mine, their magic was useful enough for them to help with things that were actually important, like the city’s water system and buildings and whatnot.
Odin spent his days sitting up against a tree near me, working on the city too, with his hands buried in the dirt.
It only took about two weeks for him to finish completely, and then the city looked entirely new and perfectly put together. It seemed foreign to me, but the people in it were thrilled, and grateful to my mate for everything he’d done for them.
He wasn’t as uncomfortable with their gratitude as I was, which I figured was probably a good thing.
After one last night of chatting with the other kings and ex-humans, we plopped down on the wonderful mattress we’d gotten just a few days earlier. Now that there was some stability in the city, the other places that hadn’t been hit by an insane Storm were sending all kinds of supplies over.
“So, on to the next city?” I asked Odin, my voice playful.
“On to the next,” he agreed, dragging me into his arms and squeezing me tightly.
We traveledto the next city in the morning. It was much, much smaller than the first one, but was in even worse shape than the first. The fae who had remained were living in tents in the forest outside the city, and when I asked why they hadn’t left, they fervently proclaimed that this was their home, no matter what.
I spent the day talking to the fae and helping them carry food and other supplies into houses that Odin had rebuilt. It was strange to be so immersed in fae culture, but not in a bad way. Not even a little.
They were intrigued by the stories I told of Earth, and I was enthralled by the ones they told of Bluhm. The time went by quickly, and when Odin and I collapsed in an empty house he had rebuilt that day (the people had refused to let us take a tent), we were so exhausted that we fell asleep without even trading a damn kiss.
We spent a week in that city—or town, I suppose—before transporting to the next. I wasn’t spending much time practicing with my fire, though there was still a lot to learn. Flame even thought I’d be able to transport when I got my shit figured out. But even just spending time keeping my fire from building up took a lot of focus; I had to step away and let my fists burn every time my emotions changed.
Theoretically, it would get more natural over time. And the fire hopefully wouldn’t build up quite so quickly.
Until then, though, I was making it work.
The third wind fae city was almost exactly like the second one. The people were kind, and excited to have us there. Odin and I both helped in our own ways—me, by hauling shit and chatting, and him literally rebuilding the city himself—and when it was time to leave, I was a little sad to say goodbye.
We traveled throughout the entire wind fae land that way, over the next two months. Though Odin and I didn’t spend a whole lot of time together, we made the time we did have count.
And though it definitely, definitely should’ve, the topic of birth control never came up. It just… didn’t. I’d eaten the plants to prevent fertility in the castle with the other women, but since we’d left, I hadn’t sought them out.
While it crossed my mind a few times, interacting with the children in the cities made me think that maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to be parents. And that maybe Odin and I would be really damn good at it. Him, because of his whole personality. Me, because I’d seen so many examples of how to do it wrong.
By the last night we spent with the wind fae, I was lost in my thoughts, staring up at the ceiling. We were both bare on the floor. The scent of our pleasure was in the air, and my ear rested against Odin’s chest. His heartbeat thudded rhythmically in my ear, relaxing me completely.
“You’re quiet,” Odin murmured, sliding his hand over my hip.
“Just thinking.” I closed my eyes, breathing in the smell of the man who had come to mean everything to me.
“About what?” He stroked my skin lightly, and I knew from experience that if I told him I didn’t want to talk about it, he wouldn’t push.
I didn’t answer right away, considering my options for a few long minutes before finally whispering, “How does a female fae know if she’s pregnant?”
I hadn’t had a period since I came to Bluhm, but me and the other girls assumed that had something to do with the land’s magic somehow, since we were all affected that way. And I could’ve asked one of the many female fae I’d befriended over the past weeks, but I didn’t want to ask them.
I wanted to ask Odin.
His fingers paused on my skin.
“Shit,” he whispered.
I stayed quiet, waiting for his answer.
“She’ll feel the baby’s pull on her magic,” he finally said, voice low and soft. “That’s the only sign, until she feels the baby move.”
I nodded slowly. “What would the pull on your magic feel like?”
