Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

Nati

Warm arms hold me tightly and it takes me a while to remember that I’m not alone. I let out a contented sigh, nestling further into Meic and enjoying the warmth of the blankets surrounding us.

“You’re awake?” Meic asks gruffly.

“Mmhmm.” I twist around in his arms so I can face him. I reach out and trace the lines of his face with my fingers. “We fell asleep.”

“We did,” he responds.

“Hopefully, we haven’t been missed.”

“Oh, you’re definitely going to get the third degree from Anja,” he jokes.

“Maybe I’ll just stay here instead. Who needs the rest of my education.”

He chuckles.

I lean in and press my lips against his, a sweet and tender kiss that’s full of emotions. There’s no doubt in my mind that last night was important for us both.

We break apart and Meic runs a finger down my cheek.

“How are you feeling?” he asks.

“Great,” I respond.

He lets out a sigh of relief. “I worried you were going to be sore?”

I frown and consider the statement. “Only in a good way,” I promise.

“There’s a good way to be sore?”

I give a half-shrug, which is impressive when I’m lying down. “It’s more like I can tell that we spent the night together, but it doesn’t hurt.”

“Good.”

“What about you?” I ask. “You were so nervous about it.”

“It was amazing,” he responds. “ You were amazing.”

“I didn’t really do anything,” I point out.

“You accepted me,” he murmurs. “You weren’t scared.”

“Why would I be scared? You’ve never done anything to hurt me, and I don’t think you ever would.” It hurts me to think that he’d think I could be scared of him like that.

“A lot of people would be,” he points out. “I’m a ghoul, and you were locked to me, at least for a little bit.”

“And I’m a gorgon. Can you imagine how bad it would have been if Frank had bitten you and I’d turned you into stone again?” I was too busy enjoying myself last night to even have considered that could happen, and I regret it now that I’m realising exactly how badly that could have gone.

“I didn’t even think of that,” he responds.

“I guess that’s how I feel about you being a ghoul,” I say. “It’s not something I think about. Well, that’s not entirely true, I suppose there’s one part of you being a ghoul that I thought about a lot last night.”

He chuckles. “I’m not surprised.”

“Though seriously, next time, we need to keep that potion within reach, because if one of the snakes does decide to bite you, we’re in real trouble.”

“Mmm. Though they seem to be behaving.”

I reach up to my turban. It’s slightly askew from sleep, but the snakes still seem to be slumbering and leaving us be. They’ll be awake before too long, but I might be able to take advantage of them not paying me any attention. “They are.”

“Maybe Frank is even starting to like me,” Meic jokes, though there’s a hint of hope in his words. And I feel it too. I don’t think Frank is going to be on Team Meic any time soon, but hopefully, he’s going to get there sometime soon.

“You’ve probably got a few more treats to give him first,” I suggest.

“I’m determined to make it happen,” he promises. “By this time next year, he’ll be my best friend.”

I let out a surprisingly loud laugh. “What do Cethin and Afan have to say about that?”

“Cethin will understand, you’re my fated mate.” He rests a hand on my waist, his touch more than welcome. “Afan will grumble about fated mates and how he doesn’t believe it’s possible they exist. If he hasn’t met his by then.”

“You seem convinced that he’s going to.”

“Of course he is. Everyone knows that saying you don’t want your fated mate is the quickest way to attract them,” he says.

“I suppose that makes sense. Why is he so against it?” I trace a circle on his chest, not really thinking about what I’m doing with my hands, just wanting to make the most of every minute we get to spend together.

“That’s something I’d love to know. But I have no idea. I doubt it’s just because Cethin and I found our fated mates.”

“It does seem like it’s stronger than that,” I agree.

“But I also don’t want to talk about him right now.”

“Mmm, fair. Do you have class first thing?”

“You know I do. It’s Divination ,” he reminds me.

I groan. “But I don’t want to go and look at tea leaves I can’t read.”

“You are spectacularly bad at it,” he admits. “Maybe you’ll be better at Divination when we move on to the next type.”

“I can’t be worse,” I point out. “You’ve had to help me the entire time.”

“I’m not complaining.”

“No, me neither.” I can’t help the smile that spreads over my face. I’ve actually been enjoying having his help in Divination class. “If you hadn’t helped me, then we wouldn’t be here.”

He shifts in the makeshift bed, and the blanket falls away from us. The cool air prickles against my skin, and only increases the contrast with the warmth of Meic’s hand where it’s trailing down to my hip.

“We could skip Divination ,” I murmur.

“We don’t need to,” he responds. “We still have an hour or so.”

“Oh, good.” I lean in. “I plan on making the most of that time,” I murmur against his lips.

He chuckles, the sound vibrating through me, full of promise and something more. “Is that so?”

Instead of answering him, I press my lips against his. He responds instantly, pulling me closer and kissing me back with an intensity I don’t expect.

I sink into him, giving myself over to the way it feels to have his body against mine and hoping for more of it.