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He grabs a water bottle from the small fridge and sits down to watch his girlfriend sleep. He doesn’t know how much time passes, but he’s in no hurry to interrupt her.
Finally, her eyes flutter open, and her gaze lands on Caleb. The corners of her eyes crinkle, and her lips curl in a smile.
His love swells, sending a rush of power surging through him. It’s under control, probably thanks to the runes he wears.
“Hey, there,” she says, her voice raspy from overnight disuse. She reaches for him, opening and closing her hand. “Come back to bed.”
Caleb grabs a bag of blood and crosses the room. When she lifts the bed cover, he slips beneath, but he hands her breakfast. After Maddy finishes it, she scoots closer, and he wraps his arms around her. He kisses her bare shoulder and rests his head against her.
“I’m glad we had some time last night,” he says. “The world is so broken that we haven’t had time for us. I feel less…” He frowns and glances to the side, trying to figure out how to word what he wants to say.
“Chaotic?”
“Yes. That’s part of it.”
“Tumultuous on the inside?”
“That, too.” Peering into her eyes is almost like seeing into her soul, and he could lose himself there. It would be easy to hide away somewhere and forget everything Orion might be planning. “It’s like being anchored before the tide rushes out and tries to take me with it. Between the change I didn’t ask for and the power I didn’t ask for either, sometimes, it feels like I’m losing myself.”
Her mouth pinches, and she studies his face as though she’s searching for something she can’t find. She presses her lips to the top of his head. “I won’t ever let it sweep you away, Caleb. I won’t let it happen.”
It’s easier to forget with her in his arms, and he wants to stay there forever.
“But we can’t,” he murmurs.
She boops his chin and grins as though the weight of everything isn’t weighing on her either. “Can’t what?”
He hesitates a moment, knowing it’ll kill the tender moment between them. “We can’t stay here forever.”
“No, we can’t,” she agrees. “But sticking together is the key. Throughout everything, we’ve managed to keep each other from losing it in all the ways we might have.”
“So, that’s our secret sauce?”
“I think so.”
He squeezes her in a quick hug. “You ready to go out there?”
“Can’t put it off forever.” She pauses. “I guess.”
* * *
Back in themain room of Veritas Caleb and Maddy loiter close together, waiting for the others to make an appearance.
Cora’s the first to arrive, and she frowns at them both. She has a paper bag filled with food he can smell. It makes his stomach growl. “Did Maddy get something to eat?”
“She did.”I took care of her.In more ways than one.
Cora quirks her eyebrow and jerks her head toward the hallway. “Come on. They’re in the reading room.”
Caleb frowns, and he starts after Cora. “They've been here the whole time?”
Maddy glares at the back of Cora’s head. “Why didn’t they tell us?”
“I’m sure they thought you were busy.” Cora doesn’t glance back at them, but she hurries down the corridor. “They’re trying to decipher what’s in the Faerie book.”
Maddy grumbles under her breath. When her mouth opens, Caleb squeezes her hand, and she doesn’t say whatever she's got on her mind.
Caleb leans closer. “Let it go. I’m glad they left us alone. Aren’t you?”
