"Sorry," I said, rubbing my thumb over his hand in an apologetic gesture. "Didn't word that properly. What I meant to say is that no, there's no one else I've been flirting with."
"Do you want to?" Red asked bluntly. Even in human form, the foxy glare he was shooting at me—whether intentional or not—made me shiver with excitement. He was a predator, after all. Lurking inside his gorgeous body was a beast with fangs and claws. I'd never been with someone like that before and the temptation of it thrilled me.
I looked Red straight in the eyes. "You want my honest answer?"
"Yes."
"Then here it is: no."
Red watched me, then narrowed his eyes suspiciously. It made me chuckle.
"What's with that look?" I asked.
The suspicion gave way to a sly smirk, like he was in on the joke too. "I'm usually good at telling when someone is lying. But you don't seem like you are."
"That's because I'm not," I said honestly. "I swear on my left wing."
To say that was a grand statement in raven shifter culture. It meant hinging your honour on one half of yourself. The promise was so weighty that I'd never actually sworn it in my life before, not even with my ex-mate—until now. The strangest part of all was that it felt completely natural. I didn't feel bogged down by my promise of truth to Red.
What was it about him that was so special?
"Your left wing?" Red said in surprise. He seemed to understand the gravity of what I’d just said. "But then you wouldn't be able to fly."
I winked. "So now you know how serious I am being. Do you believe me now?"
Warmth sparkled in Red's eyes. Gods, they were really something. They glimmered more beautifully than the surface of any lake on a crisp morning.
"I do," he grinned. "Do you really think it's a good idea making promises to a fox? I might steal your promises and run."
I saw right through him. I knew what he was doing and it wasn't going to work. A slow smile spread over my lips. "You won't."
"And how can you be so sure?"
"Because I've known the type of men who do that, and you're not one of them." I raised my brow playfully. "Also, didn't we already go over the fox thing? If you are untrustworthy—and you're not—then a raven is just as bad as you are."
"But you're not," Red said.
"Exactly. See? Now we’re going in circles." I laughed. "How about we both agree that we’re two peas in a pod? A sly fox and a sly raven. Deal?"
I raise my hand to shake on it. My trembling had stopped, which was a testament to all of Red's hard work. Or at least, that was what I'd like to think. Even if my body did most of the work in healing, he’d definitely helped.
Red seemed to glow as he firmly clutched my hand and shook it, careful not to do it too hard. "Deal."
7
Red
Orpheus had calledus two peas in a pod. How fucking adorable was that?
I left him alone shortly after so he could take a nap. All the rest was speeding up his recovery, which relieved me. When he first arrived he could barely stand, but now he managed to walk for ten minutes around the grove each day, and was getting better lifting his arms without getting exhausted.
I beamed as I left the alcove. I couldn't stop thinking about what he said. My anxiety about him being a playboy wasn't exactly true after all. That conversation eased my mind and made me think upon Orpheus with growing fondness. He'd been so eager to apologize when he thought he'd done something wrong, even though he hadn't. It was my own mental weakness that had put me in a bad mood, but obviously he couldn't know that.
The ugly, jealous part of me was also glad to hear about how much he disliked his ex-mate. The way he spoke about him was enough for me to understand that he never wanted to get back together with him. I mean, hell, Orpheus was trying to get as far away as possible, and before his wings were injured, he’d had the means to do it. It was a stark difference to how the fated mates in the pack behaved towards each other. That meant that whatever kind of relationship Orpheus had with his ex wasn't true love, and they definitely weren't fated.
But that doesn't mean you are,a dark voice in the back of my head nagged.
Shut the hell up, I told it.
