14. Shane

"Well?"Liam repeated.

I remained silent, my jaw clenched, unable to meet his gaze.

"So, what? After your bodyguarding duties, when all this is over, you're just going to sell the house and leave?"

Annoyance prickled beneath my skin. "Isn't that what you're going to do too? When your grandpa tells you everything's all clear, you're going to go running back?"

Liam"s hurt expression cut through me, but I couldn't take back the words once they left my mouth.

I didn't mean to hurt him. I took a deep breath, trying to calm the storm of emotions raging inside me.

As Liam turned to leave, I reached out, grasping his arm. "Wait," I said, my voice softer now. "Please, sit down."

Reluctantly, Liam allowed himself to be led back to the sofa. I knelt in front of him, meeting his gaze.

"I did plan to sell the house, Liam," I confessed. "But things are different now. That was before I met you, before us." I paused, struggling to find the right words. "You"ve changed everything for me."

Liam remained silent, but I could see the weight of his thoughts in his eyes. "I... I just don"t know what to do," he finally admitted, his voice barely above a whisper.

I understood more than he realized. His cousin"s visit likely stirred up a myriad of emotions, from his own personal struggles with magic to uncertainties about his future with his family.

"I"m willing to wait," I said, my hand cupping his cheek tenderly. "As long as I"m with you."

Liam let out a shaky breath. "We don"t have to talk about this now, okay?" I suggested, giving him an out.

Liam nodded in agreement, his shoulders sagging with relief. I leaned in, pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead, silently promising him that everything would be alright.

Together, we quietly finished cleaning up the kitchen, not saying a word to each other.

I knocked on the porch door, finding Liam seated in his favorite armchair, looking more relaxed than he had since our mini-fight the other day. I felt a pang of guilt as I approached him, not wanting to interrupt his peace.

"I"m leaving for the pack festival soon. Are you coming?" I asked, trying to keep my tone casual.

Liam furrowed his brow, lost in thought. It wasn"t really a question; we both knew he had to come along.

There was no one else to keep watch over him while I was there. I tried to avoid using the words ‘bodyguard' or ‘protect' or any other variation. Those words seemed to be taboo nowadays between us.

But we both knew what I meant with my question. We had made no progress on identifying his attacker, and there were no other witnesses or CCTV footage to rely on.

We still didn"t know if the assailant at the library really was after Liam or if it was simply a random mugging. But I couldn"t afford to dismiss anything.

"Do I really have to go?" Liam asked, pursing his lips.

"Yeah," I replied simply, knowing there was no other choice.

I could see his gears turning as he contemplated my words. "Ollie"s going to be there," I added, hoping to lift his spirits. He seemed to brighten up a little at that and finally nodded.

I waited for Liam by my bike in the garage as he got ready. He hesitated slightly before putting on his helmet and climbed on behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist.

I could feel the flush of his body against my back, and I realized how much I had missed his warmth. I placed my hand over his, relieved when he didn"t flinch or pull away. Instead, he held on tighter, leaning against my back for support.

"Ready?" I asked, feeling him nodding against me.

With his silent confirmation, we headed to the pack lands.

Once we arrived, I immediately got to work setting up the makeshift bar at the open square outside the Pack House. I noticed James and Ollie were already busy at their BBQ booth.

Liam, on the other hand, seemed a bit nervous. It must be his first time being around so many shifters. In shifter territory to boot.

However, his expression softened with relief when he spotted Ollie waving for him to come over.

"Do you mind?" Liam asked, gesturing toward James" barbecue booth.

"Sure. I"ll just be here," I said, giving him a reassuring smile.

I knew Liam would be safe here in the pack lands. Even if I were too busy in my booth or if he wanted to wander around with Ollie, I wasn't worried.

Surrounded by fellow fox shifters in Fox Haven, the territory provided a secure haven where no mage or supernatural entity could easily intrude. The only non-shifters allowed were those who were mates of pack members. Liam was only here because Owen granted him special permission.

As people started streaming in, the atmosphere grew lively, and the festival picked up momentum.

Despite being busy serving drinks, I kept an eye on Liam, who remained at James and Ollie's booth. It was good to see him finally relax and enjoy himself a little.

Back home, things weren't exactly tense, but there was a lingering sense of unresolved issues. However, today, there seemed to be a positive shift. Maybe after the festival, when we get back, Liam will be ready to talk about us.

"Can I get a drink?" Without looking up, I automatically handed the customer a beer, my mind elsewhere. Well, mostly thinking about what I planned to do to Liam tonight.

I was on my way to the back of the booth to refill the ice when the same voice called after me.

"What, you don't remember my favorite drink?"

I stopped in my tracks. It was a voice I knew all too well. Finally, I turned to face him, narrowing my eyes as I recognized Chris, my ex.

"That's all we have," I said curtly, busying myself with clearing the empty bottles of beer along the bar.

"That's too bad," Chris replied. "I was hoping for something a bit more... special."

I slammed the rag a little too loudly on the table, drawing a few curious glances. "What do you want? Why are you here?"

My inner fox stirred within me, anger bubbling to the surface, threatening to spill over.

Before I could cause a scene, another voice intervened, instantly calming me down.

"Shane?" Liam"s voice cut through the tension.

Despite feeling comforted by his presence, I didn"t want Liam to see me like this. All I wanted right now was to take him back home.

Chris eyed Liam up and down, scrunching his nose and sniffing in disbelief before turning his attention back to me. "Him? Seriously?"

Liam"s expression hardened. "Excuse me?" he asked sharply.

"You heard me," Chris retorted.

I clenched my fists, feeling my patience wearing thin. Anger surged within me, but I knew I shouldn't do anything that could escalate the situation.

As if he knew I wouldn't act, Chris smirked and pushed Liam lightly.

I swiftly moved around the booth, pulling Liam away behind me. "That"s enough," I growled, my voice low and dangerous, as I positioned myself between Chris and Liam.

Now that I was closer, there was a strong smell of alcohol coming from Chris.

Suddenly, he made a grab for Liam, triggering something primal in me. Before I knew it, my hand was at his throat. As the chaos escalated, the situation became a mess, with shouts filling the air and a crowd starting to form around us.

I felt a strong pair of arms restraining me—it was James. Meanwhile, one of Chris"s friends attempted to pull him away from me. Eventually, I released my grip on Chris.

James leaned in close, whispering, "You better go. I can handle this."

I grasped Liam"s hand firmly and quickly pushed our way out of the crowd to the parking lot.

"You"ll never be good enough for him! You'll never be one of us!" Chris shouted after us, his voice laced with bitterness and resentment.

We shouldn't have come here. I should have called in sick or found some excuse not to attend the festival. But how did I know Chris would cause a scene?

Liam stopped and tugged his arm away. "That was your ex, right?" When I didn"t respond, he continued in a barely audible whisper, "He"s right, you know."

Despite the quiet of the parking lot and the faint music emanating from the square, his words struck me like a punch to the gut.

I turned to look at him, blinking in surprise. It hadn"t occurred to me that it mattered to him. The fact that we were different.

In Fox Haven, mages and shifters didn"t exactly mix well. Our relationship wasn"t hostile per se, but rather something along the lines of forced tolerance and simmering tension. Owen had explained it once, describing it as more of an "avoid if you can" situation.

But did any of that matter if Liam was my mate?

I moved closer to Liam and gently took his hands in mine. "He"s wrong. And even if he was, which he isn't," I said, trying to reassure him. Liam finally broke into a smile. "What about Ollie?" I continued.

"But Ollie isn"t... I mean, he was already part of the town and everything," Liam said slowly, biting his lip.

I understood what Liam meant, despite his attempt to cover it up. Although Ollie was also a mage, his circumstances were different—he didn't practice magic and had an estranged relationship with his family.

The same couldn't be said for Liam. His family expected him to return home.

As the possible future head of the coven, he held a prominent position within the McGowan coven, carrying the weight of these expectations heavily on his shoulders.

Entering into a relationship with Liam could potentially upset the delicate balance between shifters and mages.

However, even knowing all this, instead of wanting to take a step back and maintain an actual professional bodyguard and client relationship, every time I looked at Liam, I could only feel a flutter in my chest.

Liam must have taken my silence to mean something else. He looked at me with widened eyes. "And what about you? What if you got into trouble with your pack? What if my family does something to you?"

I couldn"t help but smile as I gave his temple a light peck. My mage, my mate, was worrying so much about me, about us.

I took another step closer, wrapping my arms around him.

"Hey! Say something!" he pouted, hitting his fists lightly on my chest.

I just chuckled and moved his arms to clasp around my neck. I moved my hands down to his waist, pulling him even closer, eliminating any space between us, and started swaying us side to side.

"If anyone has a problem with us, I"ll take care of it," I reassured him.

Liam looked down, and I could feel his hands tensing around my neck. "But what if…"

I gently tipped his chin up. "Or we could just run away," I suggested.

Finally, his eyes softened, and I sensed him beginning to relax. "What we should be, who we should be... I don"t care about any of that," I said plainly, meeting his gaze.

Liam nodded and leaned his head on my shoulder as we fell into a comfortable silence, still swaying side to side.

After a few moments, he looked up, realization dawning on his face. "Wait, are we dancing?"

I gave him a lazy smile. "It"s not even in tune with the music," he pointed out.

Leaning in to whisper, I could feel his cheeks flush. "We could just make our own."