“It’s not like I’ll be deciding where to send them, Camellia and Wren already did the hard work, I’ll just pop off with the soul, drop them off and head right back.”
Brogan blinks at me a few times as we reach his little apartment, still not answering me as he gestures for me to go ahead, but he’s not outright rejecting the idea like Soren.
“You think you could do it, babe?”
I honestly don’t know. But then again, I had no idea if I could abscond with Jet and turn my weaver skills to create a successful business, but I did exactly that and it all worked out okay. I smile at Brogan with more confidence than I feel right now.
“I think so.”
What could it hurt trying, right? Unless I accidentally drop the soul off at the wrong place or, like, trap myself and them in a hellish afterlife, or something.
“Did your other destiny weaver leave any notes or an instruction manual or something before she…” I trail off, hoping that might encourage Brogan to explain what the heck happened to her or why they’ve got a basement filled with souls.
Brogan doesn’t deliver though, in fact, he sees right through my ploy to get information out of him. “Soren’s… sensitive about it. Sorry, babe, he’ll tell you the details when he’s ready.”
“So no notebook anywhere? Nothing?” I ask lightly.
He shakes his head, popping in some toast and setting the kettle to boil. “Sorry, babe.”
For about half a second, I consider contacting Madame. If anyone knows what would be involved in destiny weaving here in the garden, it’d be her. But I really don’t want to talk to her. She has this uncanny knack of making me feel like a terrible person who makes terrible decisions. Not something I need.
So… I guess I’m going to wing it.
???
“So you and Finn bonded, huh?”
I try to smother my smile but fail miserably. Luckily, Brogan seems happy for me and smiles back.
“Will you…” I feel awkward asking so the words come out stilted. “Will you stay with him, keep an eye on things while I’m gone? Not sure how long this’ll take.”
He pulls me in close and softly presses a kiss to my lips. “I would have anyway, but now I’ve got even more motivation for keeping him safe.”
“How do you mean?”
His forehead crinkles adorably. “Because you’re bonded. You won’t be able to be apart too much for the next few weeks and if one of you is hurt, or worse, it hurts the other. Could even lose you if it’s bad enough.”
Welp, that’s news to me. I blink at him, once again regretting that this whole bonding thing didn’t come with at least an infosheet about what’s involved.
Would it have stopped me from bonding with Finn if I’d known all that stuff? Probably not, but it means that I won’t be leaving the garden for any length of time. It hits me then that I’ve just made my life here a lot more permanent.
“I, er, probably should have talked to you and Soren and Cam before I bonded with Finn. We didn’t exactly talk it through and—”
Brogan shakes his head, clearly recognizing that I’m having a mini freakout.
“Baby, I can’t tell you how happy I am that you guys bonded. Finn’s been alone a long time, and he’s great at giving things he cares about a lot of focus and attention. I think he’ll do his best to make you happy.” He cups my cheek gently. “Plus, on a more selfish note, it means your ties to this place are growing stronger, and that means I get to see more of you, which makes me incredibly happy.”
I lean into his touch, and he rubs his thumb over my jaw.
“Don’t think that I’m expecting anything either. I don’t care if we take five days or five years, we’ll take the next step if and when it feels right for you. And until that happens—” He shrugs and gives a rueful grin that makes my stomach flip over. “I guess my hand will get a thorough workout every day that I see you and can’t touch you, but I don’t want you to base your decision on feeling like you have to bond me for the sake of me or my dick.” Pausing, he smiles again. “It might take Soren a little while longer to get there.”
“He’s mad at me again.”
“He’s sensitive about certain things, don’t take it personally. I am, however, gonna give him a nut punch or two for how he talked to you. That was a real dick move, even if he doesn’t mean the shit that comes out of his mouth. That’s not okay, Echo, and he knows it.” He claps his hands and then threads our fingers together, tugging me toward the room filled with souls. The soul chamber, as Brogan creepily calls it. “Now, let's go get some souls where they’re supposed to be.”
I enter the soul chamber alone, slightly regretting that my hair is still damp from my shower. It feels just a tad disrespectful, but better than coming here reeking of blood and sex. And I don’t know exactly how long I’ll have before Soren cottons on to what I’m doing and puts his foot down, so I didn’t want to waste hours waiting for my hair to dry.
Staring around at the quivering shelves, I glance at the doorway and then straighten my shoulders, breathing in a sense of confidence I don’t really feel.
