“How long did it take you to figure it out, though?” she asks quietly. “Personally, I have zero qualms wandering around half-naked if just my cat is home, but I’d certainly be covering up if I knew there was a mage-owl in the house.”
“Rowan told me immediately. There was absolutely no half-naked wandering.”
She presses her lips together to hide a laugh. “Goodness, he’s good-looking. Did you have heart failure when he turned back?”
“No,” I whisper. “But I almost passed out when I learned that the reversal process fused our magic, and now we’re basically the mage/pixie equivalent of bonded shifters.”
It takes Nadine several moments to process that. Her mug hovers inches from her mouth, and her eyes go wide. Slowly, she lowers the tea. “You’re what?”
“You heard me.”
“I did, but I don’t understand.”
“No one does. Not Rowan, who’s studied magic for years. Not even Ansel, our local full-fledged sorcerer.”
“You’re bonded mates?” she whispers.
I nod.
She looks at Rowan, blinking, looking more like an owl than he does at the moment. “Lucky.”
Startled, a giggle escapes me.
Nadine pulls me into the kitchen, desperate for details.
“What’s it like?” she demands. “Thebond. How does it feel? I’ve read shifter fiction, but most of it is written by humans.”
“I get jealous easily, which is uncomfortable. If I’m not around him, I’m thinking about him. And I want to touch himallthe time.” I wince. “And it gets kind of weird.”
“What does?” she whispers, intrigued.
How do I even say this? “I suddenly have this desire to start a family with him. He mentioned children earlier, and I felt…”
Nadine bites back a smile. “Sparkly?”
I groan, embarrassed.
“Come on, Kit. You’re twenty-six years old, and that man is gorgeous. Any normal woman in your position would think warm thoughts if he mentioned babies.”
I rub my forehead. “Having this conversation is also weird.”
“Remember Celia?” Nadine finishes her tea and sets the mug on the counter. “She swore she was a lone wolf, didn’t want kids at all, and then she and Dan bonded, and all she could think about was cubs. I don’t know much about shifter magic, but I know that this is pretty standard.”
“But we’re not actually shifters,” I argue. “Our magic is only mimicking that bond.”
She frowns. “It’s so bizarre.”
“Yeah.”
“You know, if you’re feeling all that because of the bond, then Rowan is also getting jealous easily, thinking about you when you’re not around, and wants to touch youall the timetoo.”
“It’s likely.”
“Andhe wants you to mother his gorgeous mage children.”
I nod, feeling my cheeks go pink.
“Sign me up. How do I find a hot mage to bond with?”
