Chapter 32
· Aubrey ·
His calling knocked me out, and Goddess only knows how long I’ve been out for.
When I come to, it’s to him muttering under his breath.
”I’m half tempted to cut it off and use it as a feather duster.
” he snorts and my eyes flutter open to see him swat at something.
He is propped up on his pillow, reading beside me.
“What are you reading?” I ask groggily, rolling over. I reach for the bottle of water I know is always on my bedside table.
“Trying to read, though I’m not getting much reading done,” he mumbles as I unscrew the cap. My mouth is dry and I drink the entire bottle in two gulps before huffing that I need to get another. There comes a sharp tug on my tailbone.
I growl, turning to find Soren has my tail which is eagerly smacking his face.
An embarrassing squeak leaves my lips as I jerk away from him.
He lets my tail go and I grab the bastard of a thing, it has a mind of its own, I swear.
I snatch it with two hands and the tip swishes from side to side while I growl at it.
Soren shakes his head. “Your tail is quite fascinated with smacking me in the head.”
I sigh heavily. “Why does it keep doing that, I’m not even shifted!” I snarl angrily at it.
Soren snorts. “I think it’s cute but annoying when I’m reading.”
I roll my eyes at him. “Yes, until I put on a dress and it decides to flash my ass to everyone!” I smack my tail and it then smacks me back, making Soren snicker. The angry snarl that leaves me as my teeth elongate is savage but before I can angrily chomp on it, Soren’s hands grip my face.
“No biting!” he tells me and I scrunch up my face.
“I want to chop it off!”
“That also won’t be happening. You’ll learn how to control it eventually. Now leave your tail alone. If anyone is lobbing it off, it will be me,” he laughs letting me go. I growl and reluctantly let it go from my death grip.
“I was thinking tonight we can go for a run?”
“A run? Isn’t that a bad idea after today?” I ask him.
“Only way to control your urges is to shift as much as possible. I can’t have you do that during the day or around Max, so I’ll take you for a run tonight. I’ll have Damian push the guards back further, you’ll be perfectly safe.”
“I’m not worried about me, I am worried about…” I start to complain when he speaks over me.
“You can’t hurt me.”
I know that, I’m worried about what would happen if I escaped him and ran into someone else.
“And you won’t get past my guard either so no more excuses, we’re going.”
I huff, slightly annoyed that he has answers for all my excuses.
“And what if I don’t want to go tonight?” I try, giving him a tired look.
Soren merely raises an eyebrow at me, “Aubrey, don’t be stubborn. This is for your own good. I will drag you there kicking and screaming if needed.”
I sigh in resignation, a part of me knowing he’s right. My grip on shifting is slippery at best, and dangerous at worst. If I don’t gain control soon, there will be repercussions.
“Fine,” I give in, only to have him chuckle in response.
“Now get dressed, we need to go have dinner soon, you’ve slept the entire day away.”
“I wonder who’s fault that is.”
He smiles. “Get dressed.’
“Can’t I eat up here, I don’t want to go down and have everyone stare after today’s embarrassment.”
Soren sets his book aside and rolls on his side to stare at me.
“Everyone here has been where you are, they understand. You have nothing to be embarrassed about. Now put some loose clothes on, we leave after dinner,” he tells me.
Reluctantly, I force myself up and head for the closet, finding a loose fitting, airy dress.
I slip it on, and groan when I notice in the floor length mirror my tail trailing behind me.
Soren, catching my groan, glances over at me where I see him still lying on the bed. His eyes fall upon the offending appendage jauntily wagging behind me and he chuckles.
“Relax, it’s not even poking out of your dress.” He grins and I turn to scowl at him, about to retort when the door to our room swings open, revealing Damian.
“Dinner is being served,” Damian says as he leans on the door frame, in his typical all black uniform. His eyes wander over me and down to my tail. He raises an eyebrow. “Interesting choice of accessory,” he comments. I glare at him and he only smirks.
“Leave her alone, she is moody and already doesn’t want to go to dinner,” Soren snaps. Damian chuckles, shaking his head and wandering off.
I grab the errant tail, carefully tucking it up under the dress. If only it would stay put. I wonder if we have duct tape, I could strap the damn thing to my leg.
“Ugh, this tail is a real nuisance,” I mutter under my breath; Soren chuckles behind me and I glare at him.
“Are you laughing at me?” I ask with mock outrage.
“No, darling, not at all.” The grin on his face tells me otherwise. He is enjoying my torment. He gets up from the bed and comes over to wrap his arms around me from behind. I meet our reflection in the mirror; him smiling behind me, his eyes full of love and amusement.
“You’re as charming as a feral cat right now.” He plants a kiss on my cheek.
“I could show you feral…” I grumble in response, but can’t help the blush that creeps up my cheeks as my tail decides to wrap around his leg.
“I’d love to see it,” he murmurs into my ear before releasing me and unwrapping my tail that decided to twist around him like a snake. “But first, dinner; then you can be as feral as you want, just in the forest, not here.”
With a resigned sigh, I glance once more down at my tail, which has managed to slip loose again and is currently swishing back and forth as if taunting me.
With a last look at my reflection in the mirror—a messy-haired girl with a tail that has a mind of its own—I leave our room and head toward dinner with Soren right beside me.
Despite the day’s stress and impending run tonight, having him there is a comfort that puts my bond at ease even if my thoughts are racing.
Something tells me that perhaps learning to control this new aspect of myself won’t be so bad… as long as I’ve got Soren by my side.
“Come on, stop stalling, let’s get dinner over with.” Soren holds his hand out to me, with a heavy sigh I take it and follow him down the hall.
Down the spiraling staircase, through the darkened hallways, we trudge toward the dining room.
My heart fills with a nervous flutter as we near the arched double doors, but that nervousness falls away when I see Max’s cherubic face light up.
Relief floods me when he rushes over, his little body colliding with me.
His arms wrap around my waist as he hugs me.
At least he isn’t scared of me after earlier.
“Come sit with me,” he chirps excitedly while Maribel is surrounded by bridal magazines. I glance at Soren who pays no attention to me, instead he walks into the room and drags out my chair. I take a seat between him and Max. Maribel slides a magazine across to me.
“What about these colors?” she asks and I glance at the magazine, its table decorations. Peering over at Soren, he leans forward to look at what she is showing me before glancing at me.
“Aubrey?” he questions and my brows furrow in confusion.
“What’s going on?” I ask, chewing my lip.
“The wedding is going ahead, we are finalizing the last arrangements then you two need to pick a date, but which color, for the table settings? Do you like the dark purple plates or the violet?” she asks.
“Maybe we’ll take a look tomorrow, Ma. You’re overwhelming her, I haven’t had a chance to tell her yet,” Soren cuts in.
Maribel sighs.
“Can’t we go with the prior arrangements,” I ask.
“Depends when the date is going to be set; what we had originally planned will take time,” she looks at Soren who shrugs.
“We can discuss it more tomorrow, I’m taking her for a run after dinner.” Soren looks around me at Damian at the end of the table next to his father.
“Everything is already organized, the guards pushed the perimeters back and we have tranquilizers if needed.” That does not make me feel any better. Tranquilizers? I look at Soren slightly alarmed but then the kitchen staff file in with dinner.
The rest of the dinner goes in a blur. Everyone is making polite conversation, discussing trivial matters about the town and some upcoming events Maribel is canceling so she can focus on the wedding, but my mind is elsewhere.
My thoughts on guards, perimeters, tranquilizers? I have to wonder if going for a run is a good idea if they need to take such precautions.
“Are you okay?” Soren’s voice whispering into my ear has me snapping my head toward him. His eyes full of concern boring into mine are enough for me to push away all the impending thoughts of the night ahead.
“I’m fine,” I assure him, mustering the most convincing smile I can achieve under the circumstances. One thing about Soren, he always sees right through me. His lips curve up slightly, but I note a hint of worry still lingering in his eyes.
Soon dinner is over and staff come in to clear the room. Dread fills me knowing soon I will have to shift. I stroke my fingers through Max’s hair who has fallen asleep halfway through dinner and is curled up in my lap.
“It will be alright,” Soren assures me, reaching out his hand to gently caress mine on top of the table. He glances at Max sleeping peacefully against me and lets out a soft sigh.
“We should put him to bed,” I comment and I’m about to pick him up when Maribel comes over and holds her arms out.
“I’ll get him to bed, go enjoy yourself, it’s quite warm out tonight,” she says and I sigh, handing Max over to her while Soren pushes his chair back, his hand falling gently on my shoulder.
“Come on, you’re scaring yourself for no reason. Believe me once you’re out there you’ll realize you worried for nothing.”
I nod, standing as he does.