Or my chest bursting with pride when he shared his latest newsletter. Something I assumed he did as a joke, but soon realised he took great pride in. It also has a surprisingly large and active readership.
But my favourite thing about our lives is that while Ketill doesn’t need much sleep, when I find him snuggled in our bed when I come home from a long day, huddled under a mountain of blankets and hugging my pillow, my heart always settles.
My soulmate might enjoy living on the wild side, but with me, he can find the comfort he deserves.
“It’s too bad your family couldn’t visit,” Ketill says, bringing me out of my thoughts. “I was excited to finally meet the mysterious Kai and Teagan.”
“Me too,” I admit. “I don’t know why my brothers have been so secretive this last year. But I guess I’ve kept my own…”
Ketill grins. “I do love being your dirty little secret.”
“You are not a dirty secret,” I correct, nudging him with my hip. “But I would like to explain the whole soulmate and vampire thing to them at least. It’d be nice to have someone to talk to, and hopefully they’d understand.”
“Especially since you’ll be a vampire soon,” he says, brushing a kiss against my jaw.
I nod, chewing on my bottom lip. Not nervous, but impatient.
After our Scottish adventure, I expected Ketill to demand that I be made into a vampire right away. He demanded to be a part of my life, following me back to Japan and forcing his way into my one-bedroom flat and making no apologies for it. Not that I put up much of a resistance. But when he never even brought the vampire subject up, I was worried his feelings had changed, and doubt began to spread in my gut until I could no longer keep my worries trapped.
‘Do you not love me?’I burst out one evening, the ice bag Ketill held against my back not doing much against the suffocating summer heat and humidity.
‘Where is this coming from?’he asked, sounding genuinely confused and a little hurt.
‘You don’t want to turn me into a vampire!’I complained, hating that I couldn’t stop my bottom lip from trembling.
‘Well, of course not. We’re waiting for you to graduate. Your education is important to you, Thomas. You can’t get distracted.’
Even now, I can feel the back of my neck getting hot from embarrassment at being reprimanded by him. But this was a matter he took seriously, even while he had an ice cube chipmunked in his cheek.
‘Once you’ve finished school, and you’ve introduced me to your family, I will. That was always the plan, treasure,”he explained as if it was obvious.“I wrote all about it in my newsletter!’
A metallic wheeze approaches, white steam billowing around us as a train slowly stops at our platform.
“So…” Ketill begins.
“So…”
The train comes to a jolting stop.
“Do you love me yet?”
My mouth stretches into a wide smile. I take hold of Ketill’s arm and tug him towards the door of the steam train, stepping inside.
“Haven’t you figured it out yet?” I ask.
Ketill pulls me into our seats, the window open to allow the blossom-scented breeze in. “I might need some help, treasure,” he replies, grinning. “You know what I’m like as a student.”
A year ago, Ketill crashed into my life, and while many things have changed since that spiralling moment, one thing hasn’t. And back in those first chaotic hours of meeting him—or twenty-eight minutes—I might’ve been able to deny the connection thatpingedand took hold the second our eyes locked, but now…
I lean against Ketill’s ear, my heart expanding.
“I’ve always loved you,” I whisper.
My grinning soulmate pulls me close and slots our mouths together in a hungry kiss.
“Knew it,” Ketill says with quiet satisfaction and a knowing smile, his eyes hooded and our noses pressed together. The corner of his mouth arrowed into his single dimple.
I roll my eyes and shut him up with another kiss as the train pulls away.
