But Finnisn’tmy mate.
I need to find Owen and transfer this longing to him.
There’s a sudden pressure behind my eyes, and a moment later, tears start to flow down my cheeks.
Wrong, a voice shouts inside of me, but I can’t solve the puzzle. I don’t know where the piece fits. Where I fit.
Finn sleeps heavy enough that I successfully slide out of his hold without him waking.
But the minute I’m free, I want his arms to capture me again. My body still hums from what we did last night.
All I want is to wake him up and see if we can surpass three.
Instead, I remind myself of the dictate the gods gave me all those years ago. But their divine voices have never been quieter. I pull on the borrowed sleep clothes I didn’t end up wearing to bed and leave the room. Downstairs, wonderful sweet and savory smells waft from the kitchen, and I find most of the MacNamara clan up and eating along with a few more guests.
“Morning, honey.” Sorcha offers me a relaxed smile while she waits by the French press. “Fill your plate. There’s plenty to go around.”
“Thank you. Am I the last one up?” I already know the answer is no, seeing as how I just left Finn in my bed. But in my initial scan of the room, I didn’t spot Owen.
She glances around. “Still a few stragglers behind you. I told everyone they should sleep in. Didn’t stop Owen and Ramona from getting on the road before the sun was up.”
My hand freezes over a stack of waffles. “On the road?”
Sorcha nods, covering a yawn with her hand. “They’re driving down to Key West for the week. Wanted to avoid traffic best they could.”
He’s gone.
The man I am fated to mate is gone. Drove off with another woman. Probably going to have a week full of unending orgasms together.
I should sigh.
I should be frustrated.
I should be jealous.
Instead, I’m relieved. As I work my way around the counter, gathering more food, I poke at the emotion, wondering why my heart can’t follow the gods’ simple dictate.
Fall in love with the person who saves you.
Aka Owen MacNamara. The man who pulled me from the water after I was clipped by a boat propeller and almost drowned. Or bled to death. There were lots of life risks he saved me from that night.
I crunch on a salty strip of bacon as I gaze out of the house’s panoramic windows, overlooking the sprawling waters of Lake Galen. The gentle, glittering waves bring clarity.
Maybe Owen has the right of it.
What’s the rush? We could wait another year. Another ten. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, right?
And in the meantime, I can pursue other things.
My mind continues churning as I head toward the stairs, balancing my breakfast plate in one hand.
When I play with the idea of partnering myself to Owen ten years from now, the deadline still looms too close.
How about never?
I pause with my hand on the knob of the bedroom door, experiencing another rush of relief at that thought.
I don’t need a mate.
