Collapsed on top of him. Breathing ragged. Hearts pounding. Magic faded slowly, leaving the room dim.
His fingers traced the area where my mouth had been. “You bit me.”
I stiffened. “Yes.”
“Why? Is that a shifter thing?”
I sighed. “It is. But I had no business doing that since I’m not whole.”
He turned my face to his and kissed me—soft, lingering. “Listen to me, Gideon. You’re perfect as you are. Wolf or no wolf.”
I held him. Inhaled his scent—sex, magic, home. The emptiness remained. A hollow space where my wolf should howl its triumph. But Declan’s light filled the cracks. For now.
It would have to be enough.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Love languaging and unexpected discoveries
Declan
Waking up warm and cozy as the little spoon was marvelous.
Gideon’s arm was around my waist, holding me close. His chest moved against my back in a steady rhythm that suggested he was still sleeping. A quick glance at the old school clock by his bed told me we still had plenty of time before we had to get up. I didn’t want to wake him, so I closed my eyes and enjoyed the feeling of being like this with him. Before Josh and I had broken up, we’d slept in different beds more often than not, and I’d forgotten how wonderful it was to greet a new day with your lover by your side.
Then again, that was probably just the Gideon effect.
He was…
Well, let’s just say I was falling hard. I hadn’t realized I could feel so much for someone after knowing them for such ashort time. Was this the mate thing Elwood was talking about yesterday? I needed to find out more about that.
It already felt like Josh was a shadowy memory from the distant past and Gideon was my future, which was why I needed to show the big lug that his not being able to shift didn’t make him any less worthy.
Something had happened when we’d made love—and, yes, I was being deliberate in my word choice because what we’d shared hadn’t been just sex—and I didn’t quite understand what it was. I was missing something. He’d seemed disappointed—not in me or what we’d done, because that was the hottest sex I’d ever had and that only happened when the stars aligned, and both people were completely into one another—but in himself. Like the moment had been bittersweet somehow, because of his inability to shift.
Although I didn’t understand how shifting had anything to do with sex.
I hoped Gideon would soon trust me enough to confide in me about what he meant by wishing he hadn’t bitten me. Would his apartment shed any light on what was bothering him? It was possible. But to explore it, I’d need to get up, and I wasn’t ready to leave Gideon’s embrace yet. And that’d be an invasion of his privacy.
It’d be better just to show him he was perfect, and perfect for me, just the way he was. No snooping required.
Yeah. That was a better plan. I’d make him the most amazing breakfast he’d ever had and show him how I felt. I’d never thought about it before, but food had always been my love language. That had to be because it was connected to my magic.
Did that mean my breakfast would be a love spell?
Elwood hadn’t said my magic could be dangerous, and a love spell sounded dangerous. I’d have to be clear about my intentions. I wanted to show my love to Gideon, not to wish forhim to fall for me. Although I suspected he was falling for me as much as I was falling for him.
“What are you thinking about?” Gideon asked. His voice was rough with sleep. His breath fanned across the back of my neck.Oh. Now that was nice, but it could get a lot nicer. My arousal was on a hair trigger where he was concerned.
“You’re awake.” I smiled and snuggled closer to him.
“Mhmm… you’re thinking pretty loudly over there.” His lips brushed across my skin. My breath caught, and I arched into him. Breakfast could wait a little longer.
I turned in his arms and kissed him.
As we stumbled down the stairs to the pub’s kitchen a long while later, I realized if someone asked me what Gideon’s apartment was like, I wouldn’t be able to answer. I’d been too focused on him to notice anything else.Oops.
“Are you sure I can use the kitchen in The Den?” I asked. “Your cook won’t mind?”
