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As the door closed behind him, I realized we hadn’t discussed any of the things that really mattered, like the fact that he’d almost shifted despite the charmed watch.
Chapter 8
Zayn
Sybilwasleaving.Leaving.I peered through the gap in my curtains as she loaded yet another box into the rental van.
I’d been avoiding her since our kiss last week, which meant avoiding being in the hallway as well as my balcony.
The spell she’d cast on the watch worked to a degree to stop the unwanted shifts, but my snake got more ornery every day I kept him in. I never went back into a half-shift, though, like the day that idiot had grabbed her.
Sybil had knocked on my door several times since then, and even once earlier today, right before she started moving her things to the van. I’d ignored them all, worried that against my better judgement I’d grab her, pull her into my apartment and make her do all the unspeakable things I wanted but couldn’t afford to do.
And now, she was leaving.
I touched the watch on my wrist. I couldn’t take it off since it was still linked to her. That was probably why she’d been trying to contact me all week.
I could blame the watch for making me think of her and our little kiss all I liked, but that would be a lie. It was all me. And my snake. The idiot believed she was our mate, which was just ridiculous. She was a human witch, not a naga.
Nagas could marry and have children with ordinary humans and other magical folks, but true mates were found only among our own kind. It was rare that happened now, because there weren’t many of us left, and everyone was related in some way or another.
My mother wasn’t a naga, which explained how my father could even leave her at all. She hadn’t known about my father’s snake until it went rogue. My father had hidden it well, only letting his naga and snake out during “business trips.” He’d hoped that by marrying a human, he wouldn’t pass on the curse.
Ha. No such luck.
Sybil closed the van door and started back up to our floor, and I found myself walking over to her door without thinking.
Shit. What was I doing? What was I even supposed to say to her?Sorry I’ve been ignoring you. I want to fuck your brains out, but I’m afraid my snake won’t let you go afterward. Yeah, not so much.
The elevator doors dinged open, and she walked out.
“Zayn.” She looked surprised to see me.
“You’re moving,” I said, running my hands through my hair.
“Kinda. Not really, not yet. I just rented a van so I can take a few things over to my great granny’s old place and start cleaning it out. It’s a bit of a mess. I figured it might take several weeks.” She fidgeted with her keys. “I knocked on your door earlier.”
“I must have had my headphones on,” I lied. It didn’t feel right fibbing to her, even a little white lie like that.
“That’s okay. You’re here now.” She opened her door and gestured for me to come in. “Better to talk inside, maybe?”
I stepped into her home. It smelled strongly of her, and I parted my lips to inhale through my mouth, indulging my snake’s need to scent and taste her. There was some other smell too. Rodents. That was what I’d smelled on her before.
Sure enough, there was a big cage against the wall next to a cat tree, and two rats were curled up in a carrier on a coffee table that was shaped like a mouse. Next to the table was a shiny black hard-sided suitcase.
There were several boxes on the floor, but most of her furniture was still in place. A burgundy-colored couch sat on one side of the coffee table and several large velvet floor cushions on the other side.
Sybil leaned against a console table lined with crystals and candles. Her dark hair was pulled up in a messy bun on top of her head, with several wayward strands falling forward into her face. She tucked one of the loose strands behind her ear, looking wary, which surprised me. She didn’t seem the type to get nervous about much.
Shit. Was it me?
I checked myself quickly in the mirror hung over the console, worried I had half-shifted or was otherwise letting my snake show. My eyes were more silver than usual, but nothing that would scare a witch like her, especially since she’d seen my serpent before.
So what had her so anxious?
“If this is about the watch,” I started. “I don’t mind wearing it.”
“No…I mean, that isn’t what I wanted to talk about. I’m glad it’s helping, though.” She tilted her head. “It is helping, isn’t it?”
