He nodded, smiling. “No, I get it.”
“I’m just so glad there’s no surprises for you any longer, wandering around wondering when your next shifting could be your last. I can’t even imagine what that felt like.”
“The last part of the curse was the worst though, the thoughts that weren’t mine, but they were inside my head…the constant chattering…”
“I’m so sorry.”
“If it wasn’t for you, they’d still be happening.”
I shook my head. “No, someone else would have figured it out.”
“Not true. I can guarantee you that no one in Stonewick would have trusted Gideon enough to ask, let alone invite him into our village, the Wilds, the Academy.” He sighed. “But you did, and you saved me.”
My chest tightened. “Thanks for thinking so highly of me, but I don’t see it that way.”
He shrugged. “It’s the truth, and now my mind is….quiet again.”
“I’m glad. It must be such an amazing change.”
“It is,” he said, then looked at me. “And terrifying.”
I laughed softly. “Of course it is. I can only imagine the thoughts that go through that brain of yours now.”
“Let me just say that having your ex hop around the halls was a true stretch for me, and my restraint was tested.”
“And I was impressed.” I rested my head on his shoulder, knowing this would possibly be one of the last quiet moments before we started again.
“I’m glad,” I said finally. “That you get this, you know…with the orcs.”
“And I thought you were going to say how good we fit together.”
“Can you say that again?” I lifted my head and turned to see him.
“Say what?” he teased. “I used to think partnership meant standing beside someone because you were bound to because of duty and expectation. It was the shifter way.”
“And here you are…” I smiled. “Standing beside me without anyone telling you to.”
He shrugged, but I sensed something more. “That’s the part I like.”
“The standing?” I teased.
“The choosing,” He corrected with a wry smile. “You don’t need me glued to your side. I’m not attached to your hip. You don’t need my permission. You just move forward, and I move with you. Or in many cases, I step back if that’s what you need.”
“And if I trip?”
Keegan’s smile widened, and his eyes steadied on mine. “Then I catch you.”
“And if I don’t want catching?”
“I guard the perimeter and let you fall magnificently.”
I chuckled and nodded. “I feel like we’ve experimented with that.”
“You’re an amazing woman, Maeve. You’re an amazing mom.” He smiled as I rested my head on his shoulder again. “And you’re the most enlightened witch I’ve met.”
“That’s one way of putting it, but thank you.”
“I couldn’t imagine ever standing by someone else.” He kissed the top of my head, and I melted into him like I was a teenager again.
