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“I can see that,” he replied. “Would you mind telling me what I did wrong to make that happen?”
“You didn’t do anything wrong,” I told him, feeling suddenly tired. “But I have to go back to school. And nothing, not the mate bond, not whatever spell you and the witches put on me, is going to stop that from happening.”
“Spell?” he asked, looking genuinely confused.
“Please don’t pretend you don’t know what I mean,” I said. “At first I was attracted to you and I could feel that pull that I figured must be the mate bond. But now, there’s something else, something so much stronger. I can’t stop thinking about you night and day, I can’t concentrate in class, or on my friendships. I’m having a hard time remembering my priorities, because all I can think of is you. It has to be some kind of spell.”
“Bella,” he said with the hint of a smile in his voice. “There is no spell.”
“Of course there is,” I told him. “Everything changed for me after our second night together. It was like I wasn’t in control anymore.”
“It changed for me too,” he told me. “It changed because I got to know you, because I care for you.”
“No,” I said. But as I thought back to that night, I realized there might be some truth to what he was saying.
“I love you, Bella, mate bond aside,” he told me softly. “Which means I want you to be happy.”
He took a deep breath and kissed my forehead.
“Bella,” he went on. “You can refuse our bond. I will honor your wishes and I won’t try to change your mind. You’ve spent your three nights with me, so you’ve fulfilled your obligation. You can go back to the school and be free. I’ll take you there myself. I don’t want you to stay with me for one more minute, if you don’t want to.”
“I do want to stay with you,” I heard myself say. “But I don’t want to leave school. There’s so much I need to learn.”
“Who said you have to leave the school?” he asked.
I blinked up at him, shocked.
“All witches leave the school when they are chosen. That’s what everyone says.”
He frowned and then seemed to make a decision.
“Mates never go back to the school because of the old tradition,” he said thoughtfully. “I think it’s time for us to start making some new traditions.”
