8. Asa

CHAPTER 8

Asa

I can’t believe it. I can’t believe my dream has become reality. That I get to touch her under the moonlight. That I get to feel her with every fiber of my being and that it’s better than any time that’s come before.

Which is why I can’t stop telling her I love you every chance I get. With every caress, every kiss, every thrust. I need her to know I’m hers and hers only.

From dusk to dawn and beyond.

And it doesn’t matter that she doesn’t say I love you back. It’s not a word to utter lightly, without thought or consequence. She’s only just met me. I don’t expect her to love me. I just expect her to let me love her in every way possible.

I can’t even stop when she falls asleep in my arms. I can’t stop watching her, memorizing her features as if for the first time, combing her silky hair with my fingers, giving her my undivided attention. I don’t even notice when the first rays of sunlight hit through the window.

I barely have time to relax my hold on her before I turn into a statue beside her. I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Even though I can’t move I can see her, I can still watch her, admire her beauty. I can do it for hours. Years. Centuries. There’s no one else for me. No one else but my soulmate.

It’s been a while when she stirs and a little longer when she blinks her eyes open and notices me frozen next to her.

“Asa?” She runs her fingers across my marbled face, their warmth making me pulse underneath.

When I don’t respond she sits up and dives out of bed toward the armchair where her Book of Shadows is.

She leafs through the pages with reverence for its age and purpose before she stops and reads a passage, stealing glances at me.

“Asa? Can you hear me?” She asks without moving her lips.

Wait. Did I imagine that?

“No, you haven’t Asa. I cast a spell so I can talk to you.”

“Oh. Then I can hear you, all right. Can you hear me?”

Sapphire smiles and approaches me.

“Sure I can, silly. How else do you think I can respond to you?”

“I’m sorry I didn’t say goodnight before I turned.”

She cups my cheek and cocks her head to the side.

“It’s okay. You can’t help it. Does it hurt? When you turn?”

I try to shake my head before I remember I can’t.

“No. It doesn’t. The only thing that hurts is my heart for leaving you behind.”

She smiles again.

“You’re the gentlest giant I’ve ever met.”

“Your love made me soft,” I tell her, because it’s the truth. Twenty years of her energy, her presence will do that to someone. “I wasn’t a nice guy before I met you in my dreams.”

“I don’t believe that for a second.”

“It’s the truth.”

She sighs and rests her hand on my chest.

“Thank you for a lovely night. For helping me find Grams and for…well, this.” She glances at the bed with a smirk.

“It was my pleasure.” I chuckle.

“You know…” she starts and looks down at my lap. “You were in my dreams all night.”

“I was?”

She nods.

“Yeah. I think I dreamed what you’ve been dreaming all this time. You didn’t tell me we had kids.”

“You barely believed me when I said we were a couple, I didn’t want to completely freak you out.”

“That’s fair.” She nods and looks up at me again. “They’re beautiful.”

“They take after you.”

That makes her grin and she brushes a strand of hair behind ear.

“This is all so…strange. Having my powers unlocked. Being able to see all our possible lives together. Knowing how much we mean to each other. I never thought I’d ever get to be a witch and now I’ve got so much more.”

“It’s overwhelming.”

“It is.”

“That’s understandable. It’s a lot.”

“You really are the perfect mate, aren’t you?”

I gaze into her ocean blue eyes and my heart skips a beat.

“Only because you make me.”

She takes a deep breath and purses her lips, looking at me through narrow eyes.

“Goddess! You’re making this so hard.”

I want to touch her, to kiss her, to show her I don’t think any less of her but I can’t do any of those things.

“You’re leaving.”

It’s clear to see on her face, on her moves, hell it’s even apparent in her sad voice ringing in my head.

“I’m sorry, Asa. I really am. But?—”

“You’ve got to get back to your family and return their Book of Shadows. Of course. I understand.”

A tear spills from her right eye and it starts a whole stream of them. She hugs me. I feel her salty teardrops wet my rocky skin. A sharp pain cuts through my chest. Through my whole body.

Eventually she pulls away from me and packs her clothes, which is a quick job since she only has a handful of them and stands in front of me.

“I really am sorry,” she says, this time using her real voice and she leans in to kiss my lips.

Then she leaves the room.

And it’s as if a small weight lifts off my shoulders and my ghostly form rises out of my stone and follows Sapphire downstairs, where Esme is waiting with a breakfast tray.

“Off so soon, my dear?”

She hugs Esme and cries some more before she lets go.

“At least eat your breakfast dear. You don’t want to waste away.”

Sapphie laughs at that and after a little more convincing she follows Esme to the dining room where they sit down and share breakfast.

“Did you find what you were looking for, dear?”

“And so much more,” she replies, burying her face in her hands for a moment before she composes herself.

“I’m glad.” Esme pats Sapphire’s hand and after a few more words exchanged and a little more eating she leads her to the front door.

“I don’t have enough to cover the stay—” she says.

“Don’t worry about it, dear. You brought life back to this place. That’s more than anyone could have asked for.”

Sapphie shakes head.

“You’re too kind but…I feel bad. Oh, I know.” She puts her bags down and looks through her purse, taking out a piece of paper and a pen. “I’ll write you an IOU and when this curse lifts you can come shove it in my face.”

Esme laughs.

“Or I can just frame it to show people this gorgeous young lady named Sapphire Nightingale passed through our town.”

Sapphire shrugs. “You can do both,” she says and hugs Esme again. “Thank you for everything.” She turns, picks up her bags and walks out the door. “Oh. Almost forgot. There’s a gargoyle in my bedroom. Don’t be alarmed. Asa will awaken again tonight.”

Esme laughs again and winks at Sapphire and then she’s off, walking toward the town center but before she reaches it, she turns into a side street that leads her to the edge of town.

Look at that. She’s only been here two days and she already knows her way around.

She walks the long empty road out of town until she gets to the sign and stops. She turns and for a moment it’s like she’s looking right at me but she doesn’t acknowledge me. She’s simply taking one last look at Beastly Falls before she leaves forever.

“Right. You can do this Sapphire. You have to.” She says to herself and with a deep breath she steps forward and out of town.

Out of my life.

And everything goes dark.