Chapter 16
Chapter Sixteen
Viraat
She's asleep between us, all soft exhales and flushed skin, tangled in the sheets like some fever-dream angel. Her scent clings to everything. Skin, stone, the air itself. And I can still feel her.
The bond is faint but pulsing. A tether made of heat and heart.
Our knots finally begin to deflate. The moment we disconnect physically, something else coils tight inside me. Something less than pleasant.
Regret isn't the right word. It's more like dread. A creeping fear that I've just made the most beautiful mistake of my long, miserable existence.
She sighs in her sleep, turning toward me instinctively, and my arm moves without thought. I gather her in, press my lips to her temple, and breathe her in like I need her to live.
Which I do.
Fuck.
I'm in trouble. So much bloody trouble.
Not because of what we just shared with her. That part was inevitable. We are fated after all. This was always going to happen. We'd find her, fall for her, claim her.
But I didn't expect this.
The tenderness winding its way through my body like ivy climbing onto stone and digging in, and rooting inside me.
This warmth isn't lust, but something deeper. Softer. Sturdier.
Our mate bond.
I can feel it. Threading through my core, reaching for hers.
But it doesn't change the fact that she's human.
She might not even be able to feel it. Not fully.
Not like we do. And if she can't feel it, will it ever strengthen enough to link us the way gargoyles are meant to be bound?
Will she ever hear us in her mind, like we hear each other?
Or is this a one-way pull, doomed to ache and echo unanswered until the day she departs this earth. .. way too soon.
The idea makes my gut twist.
I glance across her to Jodrick. He's watching her too, eyes soft and glowing faintly in the dark. The love he feels for her is plain to see on his face.
There's no fear in him. Or maybe he's better at pretending.
I'm not.
I'm not built for this kind of vulnerability. Not after everything we've lived through.
Avalon lets out this little whimper, and her hand fumbles toward me in her sleep, reaching.
I catch it instantly, wrap my claws carefully around her fingers, and her whole body settles.
Holy fucking shit.
I feel it.
She trusts me.
And it ruins me.
Because she deserves everything, and I don't know how we're supposed to give it to her. How are we ever going to be enough? With her for only half the time she has left.
Unsure if our bond will ever, even truly form.
Regardless of the turmoil roiling through me, I shift closer, curling around her, protective instinct kicking in even now. Even in this haze of post-mating exhaustion and emotional whiplash.
Jorick meets my gaze, and for once, there's no teasing there. No smugness. Just understanding, solidarity, and brotherhood.
We're in this together.
So together we'll figure it out.
By unspoken agreement, we slip from the bed once we're sure she's deep in sleep. The room feels too quiet without her heartbeat between us. I miss it instantly. I miss her. And she's right bloody there.
Fucking pathetic.
The plan—if you can call it that—is simple. Make her something to eat.
Avalon hadn't had dinner yet, as we pretty much set about devouring her right after we awoke.
So she's going to be hungry when she wakes up from her nap, and if I can't figure out the bond or buy her more years on this damned planet, I can at least fix her a plate of food. Right?
Problem is... I haven't ever had to cook anything.
Jodrick's in the same boat.
"She likes eggs," he says, holding up a carton with a befuddled expression.
"She also likes not getting salmonella," I mutter, snatching it from him. "Where the hell's the butter?"
He opens the wrong cabinet. Then the fridge. Then the drawer. "Why do humans have so many storage units in one room?"
I finally find the butter, stab it into the pan, and realize we didn't get the bread ready. "Toast," I mutter. "We need toast."
"She likes it thick-cut and golden," Jodrick says, moving toward the loaf on the counter with a determined expression on his face.
"Great. Go whisper sweet nothings to the bread while I figure out how the hell to use this damn pan."
It's not as easy as she makes it look.
The eggs go into the pan early.
Then they stick.
The cheese clumps, and one of the yolks breaks. I hiss under my breath like it personally betrayed me as I stare at it, willing it to just... I don't know… fix itself.
I hate this. I hate how my claws are too big, and how I can't even manage a simple breakfast for my mate.
And more than anything? I hate how soft and damn squishy I'm being.
"Flip it?" Jodrick offers, hovering like he might jump in and take over.
"It's not a fucking pancake."
He holds his hands up in surrender. "Maybe we should have done pancakes instead."
I grunt.
"At least it doesn't smell bad, even if it doesn't look pretty," he says as we're plating the Frankenstein egg on toast to the best of our abilities.
That's when I hear it. Soft footfalls pad across the tile.
I turn around, eager to get my first look at her.
Avalon stands there in a nightshirt that's way too big, hair sleep-mussed, face crinkled from the pillow, and eyes barely open. She looks like something from a dream.
"Hi," she says, voice raspy. Her eyes land on the plate, then us, and her smile turns warm, sleepy, and stunned. "Did you two make me cheesy egg toast?"
Jodrick beams. I scowl.
"It's edible," I say gruffly. "Probably."
She crosses the kitchen and kisses my cheek without hesitation, like it's the most natural thing in the world. "Thank you, Daddy."
Then she turns to Jodrick, kisses him, too. "This looks good," she fibs.
Something dangerous swells in my chest. Something that tastes like happiness.
"Now I need to taste it and see if it lives up to its expectations," she teases, climbing up onto the counter.
We watch her eat. Every bite. The way she seems to be enjoying the monstrosity we made for her warms my cold, dead heart.
"Best toast I've ever had," she announces, licking a bit of cheese from her fingertip.
"You know," I say, scowling at her. "Little girls that fib, especially when talking to their Daddies, should get a hiding."
She giggles.
"Who says I'm fibbing? Did you taste it?" She beams at us before hopping off the counter and putting the plate in the dishwasher.
When she's done she turns around, resting her hip against the counter. "But maybe, we will leave the cooking for the guests up to me?"
"Oh you little minx," Jodrick mock-growls before reaching across to snatch her up, but before he can she flounces away, rushing back out the door.
"You can only spank my ass if you can catch me!" she shouts at us as she disappears down the passageway.
"And when I do, I'll spank it even harder for running in the fucking house!" I threaten right back as we both chase her down.