“Then why do you say it doesn’t matter?” I needed to make sense of this.
“Because whether we lumines or not, I know who I’ll be spending the rest of my life with. I know who my kira-si is.”
We, could he be referring to him and I?
“Who might that be?” I wanted to be sure. “Is it Beatrice?”
“It’s not Beatrice,” Axon smiled, as if he knew exactly what game I was playing.
“Is it Anusha?”
“It’s not Anusha.”
“Is it someone from the other dekes?”
“It’s not someone from the other dekes,” heshook his head.
“Who is it then?” I nervously held my breath as I waited for his answer. Thankfully, I didn’t have to wait long.
Axon cupped my face in his hands as he stared down at me with the warm intensity of staring directly into a bright fire.
“It’s you Ashley. It’s always been you.”
A parade of butterflies burst through my stomach as I took in his words.
“I want to be with you too,” I breathed.
“Well, want no longer. Be with me.” He squeezed my hand, and I squeezed his back.
“Okay, I’ll be with you. Luminescence or not, you are mine and I am yours.”
Axon’s breath hitched and a tear streamed down his face. I reached up and wiped it away as he nestled his cheek against my palm.
“Together forever, okay?” he confirmed through watery words.
“Forever,” I agreed.
He pulled me into his chest and I rested my head on his heart.
“Don’t ever let me go, Axon.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it.”
We stayed that way for a long time, until the meat started to burn, and even then Axon held onto me with one hand and continued cooking with the other. He was as obsessed with holding me as I wasobsessed with being held. We were perfect for each other. There was no denying that.
Chapter 21
Axon
I held Ashley tucked under my arm as I finished cooking our breakfast and I was over the moon with joy. We would be together whether luminescence chose us or not. I’d never seen anyone fight luminescence before, but I’m sure it could be done. I hoped it wouldn’t be necessary though. I’d known in my heart since the moment I laid eyes on Ashley that she was the one for me. Surely luminescence would confirm that. I would just have to work harder at coaxing it along. Perhaps if we touched each other enough, or maybe even mated before the next full moon, we’d be chosen for each other.
The idea sounded silly in my head, but it was worth a try. It would be no great burden to lie with Ashley in the furs. The real question was if I’d be able to handle it. If we came upon the time of the month that Ashley wished to mate, and if I couldn’t do it, would that doom us to never glow for each other? What would be the point of her glowing for me if I could not satisfy her as a male should?
“Axon, I think that’s about as cooked as it’s going to get,” Ashley teased, which brought myattention back to the here and now.
The meat was indeed burning. I used a clean stick to place one piece of meat on a plate of leaves and handed it to her. Then I placed the other piece on a plate of leaves for myself.
“Sorry about that. Do you think it’s still edible?”
