EPILOGUE #2
“What about Mia and Olivia?” I ask. “I haven’t heard much from them lately.”
“Ah,” he says. “There is a bit of drama there.”
I push an errant fern leaf out of my way, holding it back so Jasper can duck past. “Tell me more.”
“Long distance wasn’t working and the whole splitting time between the two packs was making them both crazy, so they’ve decided to stick with one pack for now.”
“Oh? Which one?”
Jasper chews his lip.
“Ours,” he says. “Olivia said that until the Rocky Pack becomes as welcoming to rogues and outsiders as we’re trying to be, they don’t want to be there. Which is totally fair. But Morven isn’t too happy about it.”
“Sometimes you gotta make people uncomfortable if you want things to change,” I say. “Are they staying in the city? I’ll check in on them after, you know, we’re done here.”
“Yeah, a place in Queens. It’s cute.”
Instinctively, my hand rises to my chest where a small ache has taken hold.
I know I’ve made the right choice and the work I’m doing out in the world is important.
But still it hurts my soul a little not to be here with my friends, helping them out during tricky times, or just enjoying being near them.
“And what about the others?” Jasper says vaguely, though I know exactly who he’s talking about. Even after all this time I get a cheeky thrill knowing he’s resistant to mentioning Omar by name.
“Last I heard they were trying to make things work as well. But obviously Mason’s dad’s not as cool as yours or Morven. I think they’re finding the mountain a little hard to climb.”
“That sucks.”
“Yeah, actually now that I think about it, it’s been a few months since I heard from either of them.”
“Maybe things have improved?”
“Maybe. I should check in.”
It’s easier than I thought to lose track of time and correspondence when you move around as much as I have been. I send out a little prayer to the moon gods that Mason and Omar are doing okay and promise myself I’ll check in after tonight.
“Here we are,” Jasper says, moving a last pine-laden branch out of our way and opening up the path to the clearing.
As I step from the shade of the forest into the open space I’m hit with an immediate burst of lunar energy. The moon is hanging in the middle of the sky, right above our heads, as always.
We move to the middle of the soft grass and stand still for a moment, bathing in her light. I take a big, long breath.
“I’m glad we came here,” I say.
Jasper shrugs. “We made a promise. I always keep my promises.”
He turns to me with a devious smirk and hungry eyes. The moon juice must be pumping up his libido. Mine too.
We crash into each other at full force.
Lips pressing.
Hands roaming.
Bodies inseparable.
When at last Jasper rears back gasping for air I notice his fangs are elongated.
He whips his head to the side like there’s something clouding his vision.
“You okay?”
“Yeah,” he says, panting deep breaths. “I just . . . It’s been a while.”
We both laugh. “Yeah, for me too.”
Again, our mouths meet.
Air travels from my lungs to his.
His warmth and his strength bolster me up, and thank the moon gods, because my legs are so freaking weak. They’re quivering so much I’m worried they might topple out from under me.
“Wait,” Jasper says, ripping himself away once more.
“What is it?” I ask.
He wipes his face with a hand.
“Ugh, I mean, probably nothing.”
“No.” I squeeze him a little tighter. “Tell me. What is it?”
His eyes roll back for a second and then he lets out a sigh and shakes his shoulders like he’s tossing off a shiver.
“You won’t believe it, but Tobias has been on me again.”
Oh, this.
“About the marking ceremony? Really?”
“I know, I know. But he said with you off traveling around helping rogues it might . . . look better, I guess, for the pack if we were—if there was—”
“If we were committed to each other publicly.”
Jasper exhales sharply, relieved to have gotten this out. “Exactly.”
“But you know I love you right? You know there’s nothing out there that can change that?”
“Of course, of course I do.” He runs both hands up and down my back. “And I feel the same. I will never stop loving you. No matter what.”
“But you want it, don’t you?” I ask.
He doesn’t say anything back, but his eyes suddenly look sort of wistful, like a sad puppy’s, melting my heart.
“I’m not saying I never want to be marked.” I cradle his face in one hand. “Before, it felt too soon, and maybe it doesn’t feel so out of the question now. But . . .”
I let my head drop because, whether I want us to be marked or not, there is one aspect of this whole scenario that’s always given me the ick.
“But what?” he says, and he looks so lost all of a sudden, so vulnerable.
“But if we did do it, I don’t know that I’d want it to be this big public thing. I think I’d like it to be private. Something that’s shared just between you and me. The pack can find out after the whole thing has gone down.”
“Totally understandable,” he says, clearly relieved. “And I’m not saying I want to make it a whole big spectacle either.”
“Yeah, I mean, I get why it’s important to the pack, but this isn’t about the pack for me. It’s about us.”
Under the moonlight Jasper looks so freaking gorgeous. His features, which used to seem so hard and intimidating, now seem soft and open. His eyes shine a brilliant shade of emerald, his freckles are popping. His lips are ones I could kiss endlessly.
“You know,” I say. “Traditionally it’s the alpha who marks the luna, right?”
He squints questioningly. “Yes?”
“Since when have we ever done things the traditional way?”
He shakes his head like he can’t quite comprehend. “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying, you’re ready for this, and I think I still need a little more time, so for now what if instead of you marking me—” I pause, a little bit to steel myself for what I’m about to say, and also a little for effect, because I’m still a sucker for a touch of drama. “What if I marked you?”
Jasper casts his gaze to the ground, his cheeks obviously flushing even in the dim light.
“I—I guess I hadn’t thought about it.”
“We don’t have to do it right now, I didn’t mean to say we should—”
“Yes,” he says, meeting my eyes with new intensity.
I swallow the baseball in my throat. “Yes?”
He nods, determined.
“Yes, Maximilian Remus, I would be honored to bear your mark.”
“Wait, wait, wait, is this just the moonlight talking? Or is it the long-distance thing, or—”
“No,” he says. “I don’t need moonlight to know I love you, and I will go on loving you long after the moon stops shining. I want you to mark me—tonight—now.”
I can’t stop shaking my head in disbelief, but I also can’t stop smiling.
Neither can he.
“I want it more than anything,” he says, leaning closer, growling softly. “Mark me, Bonehead.”
I can’t believe he just . . .
My fangs elongate and a growl rolls in my throat. “You know I hate it when you call me that.”
Jasper grins and tilts his head to the side, exposing the soft skin of his neck, inviting me in.
“Mark me, Max.”
And in the pale light of the moon . . .
I sink my teeth into him.