“All good,” she said, sounding a little too chipper.
He wondered if she was picking up on both his and Raphael’s strange behavior.
“They’re exactly the same,” Miryam said. “Like,exactly. How is that possible? Not a single detail even a smidge off. And umm, did they move?”
“It’s supernatural,” Lola said, as if it made perfect sense. “And yes, they do move. Don’t ask me why, because I have no clue. The fact that they’re identical is what confirmed me as Callon’s mate. I know it’s a lot. But, I can tell you I wouldn’t change it. There is a choice. You don’t have to choose this life. Nico can make you a null, which essentially means you’ll no longer have the magic that would make it possible for you to mate with a Damarian. You can go back to your human life and forget any of this ever happened.”
Morgan eased forward where she sat and rested her elbows on her knees. “So how’d you end up with him?” She nodded toward Callon, who wasstillstaring at Lola. Though now, he was tracing her two toned skin on her neck with a finger. “And are they always so touchy?”
Lola’s grin turned a little sheepish. “Yes, to the second question. Maintaining boundaries is not one of his strong suits.”
“You’re mine,” Callon rumbled, as if that was explanation enough. And to their males, it was.
“As far as how I ended up with him,” Lola continued. “This is where it gets weird. Shortly after I met the strange guys in NNP, I started feeling like I was being watched. You know that feeling you get? The hairs on the back of your neck rising and that swirling in your gut?”
All three females nodded at the same time.
“Turns out Iwasbeing watched.” She turned her head to look at Callon.
“I was keeping you safe,” Callon justified.
“Let’s call it what it was,” she said, turning back to them with a smirk. “He stalked me. Even still, I never felt like I was in danger. I really was more annoyed than anything. Finally, one night, when I was walking home, I just stopped, turned around, and told him to show himself. A minute later, this huge dude dropped from the air, landing much too gracefully for someonehis size. And yeah, I thought I’d somehow landed in the middle of one of my books.”
Miryam’s voice was a whisper, full of awe and nerves. “Were you scared?”
Lola nodded, honesty clear in her eyes. “Of course. I thought I was losing my mind. But Callon was persistent and had no plans of letting me walk away without me hearing him out. I was incredibly stupid because I let the giant walk me home, and then sat on the fire escape of my room and talked to him. He told me about mates, about this world, about what the tattoo meant. I was scared, but I was more intrigued, and my curiosity has always been a tad unhealthy. I agreed to spend more time with him. Aside from a brief moment of stupidity on his part, I fell for him and haven’t looked back.”
“What was the brief moment of stupidity?” Akira asked.
Callon visibly winced as he pressed his face into Lola’s neck, as if he still felt shame from his actions. Nico had heard what the lion shifter had done, and Nico could understand why Callon reacted in such a way. He’d rejected her–though, thankfully, he came to his senses very quickly.
Lola entwined her fingers with her mate’s as her face softened. “Let’s just say he had a brief moment of cold feet when it came to having a mate.”
“Never again,” Callon said, loud enough for them to hear and with an intensity that was palpable, even through the phone. “I will never forgive myself for what I did.”
Lola nudged him. “I’ve forgiven you. And you’ve more than made up for it. Let it go, babe.”
Morgan’s own curiosity seemed to be slowly winning over her skepticism. “So you’re still with him? Even though he hurt you?”
Lola’s face glowed. “Yeah. Turns out, fate knows what it’s doing. He’s a pain, but he’s my pain. He treats me like aqueen. Though he’s a little overbearing, bossy, possessive, and territorial to an unhealthy degree. It’s worth it.”
Miryam snorted. “Is that all?”
She shot her a grin. “There’s more, but we’re not close enough for those conversations yet.”
Nico chuckled. Callon certainly had his hands full with his female.
“You don’t have to trust these two right away,” Lola said, her voice growing serious again,“but you can trust this: as I said, they’ll give you a choice. That’s more than many have gotten in the past.”
Callon’s head turned away from his mate, his gold eyes looking at the females. “If Nico or Raphael screws up, you call me. My father, the prime of our kingdom, will help you. And I’m always up for a good fight.”
Morgan smirked, almost smiling. “Noted.”
Nico grinned, hand to his chest, feigning injury. “You all act like I’m the world’s most dangerous shaman.”
Raphael, who’d been quietly watching Miryam, finally spoke, his voice rich like velvet and a touch dark. “You are. Your unpredictability and defiance make you dangerous. But you’re also the only one I’d trust with this.” His eyes never strayed from her.
Miryam’s cheeks pinked, and Nico caught the way Raphael’s fingers flexed, as if he had to restrain himself from reaching out.
