OLIVIA…
From the back, I listened to Michelle ask, “And you?”
“If I were a selfish man, I would regret not going with her. But I’m not. I’m looking forward to these two finding Mates and having some grandcubs for me. Speaking of that, I hear congratulations are in order.”
I wondered if Jim had any regrets. He hadn’t spoken to me since his mom and dad slipped into the void.
“The family would like to invite everyone downstairs for a light meal,” an older lady announced from the arched opening.
My stomach rumbled at the thought of food. I felt someone nearby and looked up at Jim. He held out a hand to me.
“Let’s get something to eat,” he said.
I tentatively accepted his touch.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I wasn’t sure.”
“About what?”
“What would happen now that the Judgement was done. Now that I knew my purpose was to die with you.”
“I don’t understand.”
“When I first saw you, the pain of the oath almost killed me. Something changed. My thinking. I knew we were meant to be together for a reason. After that reason disappeared…” He swallowed hard. “I wasn’t sure what would happen if I thought of you as a Mate.”
“And?”
He smiled slightly.
“I’ve acknowledged my interest and lived. I’ve thought of your teeth nipping my neck and lived. I think it’s safe for me to say this now. Olivia, would you like to go on a date with me?”
I smiled and nodded.
HENRY…
I walked down the steps behind Dad. Something smelled amazing. What was it about grief that made a guy so hungry?
Dad cleared the doorway, and I looked ahead at the spread of food. A girl stood behind the table. She had sympathy in her eyes as she handed Aden a cookie. My heart skipped a beat. Then another. A tug started in my gut, and I inhaled deeply and stepped around Dad to get to her. She looked up at me with soft green eyes that reminded me of the forest.
“Hi,” she said. “Would you like a plate?”
I inhaled deeply again. Human.
“Yes please.”
“Henry?” Grey asked, standing close to me. I hadn’t even noticed him in the room. “Is everything okay?”
“Things are…different,” I said, unsure what else to say as she handed me a plate.
“Does anything smell good to you?”
“Oh, yeah. That’s weird, though, right?”
Are you sure?he sent me.
Very. How can I feel the pull for a human?I sent back.
Grey glanced at the girl. I did, too.
