13. Chapter Thirteen
~Felix~
Perfect.
That one word kept going around my head as I stared down the bright passage towards my mate on the other end.
She was perfect.
Tiny, but perfect.
All I could see was her head, while on my end, I had to bend down to look through the opening. She must have been a foot shorter than me, at least. If the prince who captured me was anything to go by, people in this realm seemed to be shorter in general, so it didn’t really surprise me that Evalina would be on the short side too.
Evalina. Even her name sounded perfect.
I couldn’t even see her all that clearly. The sun behind her created a backlit effect, blocking out the details of her delicate features, but my chest still constricted with near-boundless joy at every little glimpse I did get. Those small pieces were enough to confirm how lucky I was.
Perfectly lucky.
Unfortunately, she also seemed to have no idea we were mates. I knew that could happen with other species, so I tried not to take it personally. Hell, even Calista didn’t recognize Vaughan as her mate until her wolf broke through. Fae didn’t have wolves, so Evalina might never feel the mate bond in the same way I did, but she felt something , I’d have put money on it.
And damn , could she cook. My stomach growled unhappily as I pushed the food away from me, trying to get rid of the temptation. Calista’s words rang in my ears, reminding me that eating food in the fae realm would bind me there forever, and even though my mate lived there, I had no intention of remaining permanently. Wherever we made our home once I convinced her to accept me, I’d still like to be able to visit the other realm.
Was I getting ahead of myself? Maybe a little.
I would have to tell her about our connection eventually, but during my incarceration didn't seem like the best time to break that news. I could think of a hundred better places to do it.
She stared at me while my mind wandered, a shy smile sprouting on the corners of her lips. “Well?”
“Well what?” I’d completely forgotten what we’d been talking about.
“You said you’ll tell me all about where you come from.”
Right. I did say that, but first, I had another question for her. “It was you I spoke to last night, wasn’t it? You came to my world through the portal.”
Her head swivelled left and right, checking to see if anyone else might be listening. Seemingly satisfied, she turned back to me and lowered her voice to a whisper. “Yes, but I’m not supposed to. Please don’t tell anyone you saw me there.”
“I would never do anything that would put you in danger,” I assured her fiercely. “And besides, I didn’t see you.”
Her head tilted to the side curiously, giving me just a glint of her pretty eyes. I couldn’t even tell for sure what colour they were, but damn, they were pretty. “Then how did you know I was there?”
“I have a very good sense of smell and you smell… so good.” The last words came out a little strangled, probably making me sound like some kind of pervert. Clearing my throat, I hurriedly moved on. “What were you doing there?”
She looked to the side again and I could see her chewing on her bottom lip, debating whether or not to answer me. I waited as patiently as possible and eventually, she nodded to herself and turned back. “Have you ever heard of something called silver?”
It took a great deal of effort not to laugh but I forced my lips to stay straight, not wanting her to think I was laughing at her. “Yes. It’s relatively common where I’m from. What does it do in this realm? Your prince was after it too.”
Even with the light from the sun obscuring her face, I could see her eyes widen. “Tarron got more silver?”
“Is that his name? All I know is that he stole from some friends of mine and locked me up in here. I’m not his biggest fan.”
I could have sworn she smiled, but it vanished so quickly, I couldn’t be certain. “He’s dangerous. You should try not to upset him.”
“I think it’s a little late for that.” I tried to keep my tone light, but the way she described him as dangerous concerned me. The walls around me seemed to hum with a faint magical energy, a constant reminder that I was out of my element. My wolf stirred uneasily. “What has he done to you?”
She glanced away again, double-checking no one lurked nearby. “Nothing too bad yet, but I’m afraid of what he might do. I need silver and he’s the only one I know who has any, but what he wants in exchange, I’m not willing to give.”
What the fuck does that mean? Kai growled in my head. What does that skinny little twerp want from her?
Taking a deep breath, I tried to stay calm despite the leaden feeling in my stomach. If I let out another growl like before, I might scare her off right when she was opening up to me.
“I can get you any silver you need,” I offered, the words tumbling out even though she still hadn’t told me what she needed it for. I just knew I couldn’t let her rely on someone who made her feel afraid. “You don’t need him.”
Evalina stiffened at the other end of the passage. “And what do you want in return?”
It broke my heart that she assumed my intentions were anything less than pure, but I had to remind myself that I was still a stranger to her and she didn’t feel the connection between us the same way I did. She didn’t know yet that I would never ask anything of her that would make her uncomfortable.
Saying I didn’t want anything might make her suspicious, though. Why would a complete stranger offer to help her? I would have to think of something to ask for, and it didn’t take me long to land on something I actually needed quite desperately.
“Can you get me out of here? Stuck in this cell, I can’t do anything, but if you can break me out, I’ll be free to help you.”
Again, that bottom lip disappeared beneath her teeth. “There’s magical protection over the prison and I don’t have the power to break it.”
Damn it. I might have to wait for Vaughan and Calista to show up, but I had no idea how long it would take or what Tarron might have in store for me in the meantime. If nothing else, I needed to eat eventually.
Evalina hadn’t finished yet, though. “I have an idea, if you’re sure you don’t want to eat that food.”
“I’m sure,” I said, reluctantly pushing the plate further towards her. Fuck, it smelled good.
She had to jump up to reach far enough into the passage to grab it, rather adorably. How could someone so small already hold so much power over my heart?
When she had the plate in hand, her eyes flicked to my shoulders briefly, almost as if measuring me in return. “I’ll be back as soon as I can. Wait here.”
“I’m not going anywhere.”
A flash of white teeth answered me, and she disappeared from my view, her scent fading with her as she went. Kai sighed in my head, both of us just as smitten as each other with our mate that we’d still only barely seen. How could we not be?
She was absolutely perfect.