“Thanks. Gotta get this boy home before his mum notices he’s missing.”
When I look up, Yolanda is watching me.
“What?”
“You look happy, Sebastian.”
“I am.”
“She’s always been the one for you, hasn’t she?”
I look up, nervous about the tone of her voice. I never wanted to hurt her.
Yolanda smiles, and there’s no menace in it. “I am so happy you two were able to work it out. We were rooting for you.”
I exhale sharply. “Thanks.”
“I didn’t know what was missing. Until,” she’s gazing at Grigori, who is talking to Harry. The pair of them are laughinguntil they are both red in the face. He walked into Sunshine Cove and just fit, the same way Fox and Katsu do.
“He’s amazing.”
“He is.”
The sun breaks through the clouds, and the grey turns, for a moment, bright silver. Gale nickers. I stroke his neck and wave goodbye to everyone, then take him home.
When I get to his paddock, I stare at the shut gate.
I turn back to the horse, then back to the fence.
“How?”
He blinks at me innocently.
“How did you…you know what, I don’t even care. In you go, and stay there.”
Gale drags his hooves, looking completely miserable as I usher him into his paddock. I go into the stables and grab the giant sook a carrot.
“Stay here, and I will send Fox to pat you tonight.”
He bucks around, rearing and being an overgrown colt, then comes back for the carrot. As soon as he’s done, he turns away from me, dismissing me again. Our truce is over.
I lean on the railing, watching him, thinking about this day, thinking about life and how excited I am for tomorrow.
So much has changed, and I haven’t had a minute to get used to it.
I make my way home and find the house empty, so I pull out my drawing tablet and get to work on the next Lynn Marino cover and artwork, and for the first time in years, I feel like I can take a deep breath.
Chapter 27
Cordelia
Fox grabs my hand and leads me to the table. He sits down, and I sit in the chair opposite him, but he doesn’t let go of my hand. There’s something so serious and off about him. It scares me. Sebastian’s tablet is still on the table where he left it last night when we got home. He and Katsu are around, I can feel them in the house.
“We need to talk.”
Has anyone ever said those words in a way that was good?
My stomach falls through an endless cavern. “We do?”
