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“I think you just insulted me.” He slowed and glanced over at me, feigning suspicion.
I couldn’t hold back a snort. “It was an unintentional insult, at least. You don’t look your age.”
“That only makes it slightly better.” He turned me around and started walking back up the hill. I fought a groan as I started feeling the burn in my calves and thighs. It wasn’t nearly as painful as I had expected, but I could still certainly feel it.
“If it’s any consolation, you’ve proven yourself to be great with human women in their twenties.” I paused. “Or at least, with me. If you use your charm to win over any other women now, I’ll have to castrate you.”
“It would be well-deserved in that case. And you have my permission.”
I held back a sarcastic response and started walking again. My chest rose and fell a bit faster, but nowhere near as fast as I expected.
Somehow, I had gotten in much better shape since the time I had left Earth.
Something told me it had more to do with the magic than with the many fruits and veggies I’d been eating, because as far as I knew, no amount of Evare’s version of broccoli could make me legitimately stronger.
By some miracle, the burning in my lungs and muscles as we trekked back up the steep trail reduced my itching to nearly nothing.
“How did you know this would help?” I panted to Ivaylo.
“It was just a guess. I’m glad it worked,” he admitted, still holding my hand firmly in his own.
I flashed him a tired smile. “So am I.”
He stepped closer to me, and our arms brushed as we continued walking.
A couple holding hands met us partway down the trail. They looked like they were in their late twenties or early thirties, and I couldn’t help but look between the man and Ivaylo. Their faces were nearly identical. They had the same light gray hair and eyes, the same muscles, and the same body shape.
The woman had bright orange hair and glowing blue eyes, but she looked like my mate too. Her grin was similar to his, and their noses were the same too.
Neither of them had the tattoos Ivaylo’s pack sported, but I assumed that was a conversation for another time.
The couple had to be his parents.
And damn, that was bizarre.
I knew from his stories that he hadn’t called them “mom” or “dad” for ages. Their relationship had become one of friends or siblings after a century.
It was strange to think of living that long. I wasn’t sure I could even imagine it, but I guess I’d have plenty of time to come around to it.
If I remembered correctly, his mom’s name was Bevvi, and his dad’s was Rell. He had never told me whether the names were short for anything, but I figured it made the most sense for me to call them by the same nickname Ivaylo did.
“Please tell me the mark on her neck is yours,” Bevvi said to Ivaylo, her eyes flooded with hope.
“It is.” Ivaylo stepped closer to me, stopping where we were. “This is Ezra. My mate.”
Neither of them seemed disappointed by his lack of matching claim mark.
Bevvi’s eyes flooded with tears, and she surged toward us, taking me by surprise when she threw her arms around me. “Thank you,” she whispered, her words full of emotion. “Veil, thank you so much.”
I wasn’t sure what to say in response, so I stayed quiet.
It would feel silly to tell her she was welcome for me mating with Ivaylo. Technically, I still hadn’t bitten him, so she didn’t have anything to thank me for.
Besides that, staying with him wasn’t something I’d done to earn her gratitude. I stayed with him because I cared about him even more than I wanted to admit at that moment.
Thankfully, Bevvi pulled away without waiting for me to respond, wiping at the tears in her eyes. Rell released Ivaylo from a massive hug, grinning broadly. Bevvi flashed Ivaylo a look that I thought was supposed to be chastising, but was far too happy to come off that way. “You didn’t tell us Serae finally figured out her spell.”
“We didn’t know if it would work,” Ivaylo admitted. “She insisted, but you know how she is.”
