“No more than a week, I promise.” His smile was forced. He knew how much this would affect me. His promise was assuring, but I still worried I wouldn’t be able to behave. My fingers were literally trembling as I fought the urge to rip his pants off and rub his soft skin.
“Okay,” I relented, knowing I had to honor my mate’s wishes. I wanted to be the best mate ever for Harpy. “But please tell me this doesn’t mean that we can’t see each other the whole week, too.” It would kill me if I couldn’t be with my fated, especially now that we’d sealed our bond.
“Of course not!” Harpy shook his head, his expression serious. “I wouldn’t want to be parted from you. But I think it would be best if I waited to shift, too, even if I’m dying to try my new dragon form out.”
A relieved sigh left me, leaving me drained from all the excitement. “If you shift to your dragon mine will definitely come out to play and I won’t be able to stop it.”
He nodded, biting his bottom lip. Did he perhaps like the thought of me losing control like that?
“I would like to take you out on a date,” I decided, fully invested in courting my mate, especially now that I had to be good for a week.
Harpy seemed surprised by that, a musical laugh escaping his mouth when he realized I was serious.
“I would love that,” he beamed, his eyes gleaming with happiness.
Harpy’s past relationship with Casey would still linger between us, but Harpy seemed determined to prove he was in this too now. I could respect that his heart still needed time to adjust to no longer belonging to Casey but now me. The sealed bond between us made that easier, the knowing, the proof that Harpy truly was mine. It helped those possessive urges to mark my mate’s flesh with bites and scratches for all to see. I could be good.
Maybe.
Casey offered me a pained smile when I returned to our shared room, his eyes red and puffy. Guilt flooded my veins, but I couldn’t allow myself to drown in it. Casey would soon find his own fated and then everyone would be happy.
Offering an understanding smile back at him, I got ready for bed. Harpy had agreed to a date tomorrow after our classes. I had never dated anyone, waiting for the day I would meet my fated. What should I even do? Take him for a walk? Or was that too boring? I would’ve loved to fly him around, show him the wonders of the sky, but shifting was out of the question, so what was I left with?
“How did it go?” Casey asked, his tone hesitant, like he wasn’t sure if he truly wanted to know or not.
“It went well,” I replied, keeping it at that. I had the urge to comfort him, but maybe that would make him feel even worse. Beforethinking it through, I said, “You can eat breakfast with me and my family tomorrow. I already asked Harpy if he wanted to join and meet everyone. They would love to get to know you better too.”
“Really?” he sounded surprised and happy to be invited.
“Sure,” I shrugged, stepping out of my pants before removing my shirt.
“Thank you.”
“Of course. Harpy wants to keep you in his life, Casey. You might not be fated, but he still loves you.” It hurt to say it, but I knew Casey would always be important to Harpy, and I wanted them to keep that love, just as a platonic sort of thing now.
“And you’re okay with that? Me being friends with him?”
“Of course, why wouldn’t I be?” I turned to face him, sitting on my bed to get comfy.
“Because you’re a dragon?”
I laughed. “Trust me, my dragon isn’t thrilled, but it wants Harpy to be happy and with our bond sealed now, he feels confident in his claim on Harpy.”
Casey’s eyes widened, his eyes glistening. “So, you did seal the bond.”
Oh. I nodded. “We did.”
Casey wiped his eyes. “I guess that’s a good thing. Then Harpy truly can move on.”
“And so will you,” I assured him. “I can even help you find your fated.”
He laughed but it still sounded sort of broken. “I wish it was as easy for me to spot my fated as it had been for you and Harpy. Hell, even I could tell you two belonged together.”
“Your fated is at this school, Casey, and you have two whole years to claim them.”
He smiled. “Yeah, I hope you’re right.”
Knowing I was seeing Harpy at breakfast, I fell asleep fast, wanting to speed through the hours we were kept apart. I dreamed only of Harpy and his musical laughter.
