Epilogue #2
Maya slid her arm through his, then gripped his hand with both of hers. “What about shifting? Can you really teach me to shift?”
He moved his other hand to her back and slid it down to rest on the side of her hip.
“When we return. While we are here, I want to be able to do things with you that will tire your body in a way that could make shifting more challenging. And if you are willing to wait, I will even teach you to fly.”
“Really?” Maya’s eyes shone.
“It would be my honor. Then we could teach Misty when she gets a few years older.”
Maya sighed as they walked out the back door and headed toward the maze.
“Then we could teach our other children when they are of an appropriate age. I wish we could start growing our family while we are here. It seems like this island provides exactly the kind of curse that makes people’s lives better—even if it isn’t what they want. ”
Apollo laughed, then he moved around in front of her, his hands taking each of hers. “We may not be able to succeed yet, but we can certainly practice.”
“Yes, please,” Maya said, allowing him to pull her into the maze. “You know, I’ve never celebrated Valentine’s Day before.”
Before he could answer, the sound of voices caught their attention. Apollo held a finger up to his lips, and then he pulled her quietly toward the source.
“We failed. The old king will have our heads for sure. How did Miss Madison even find out we were here?”
Apollo and Maya shared a look, then Apollo leaned closer as the man said, “I’ll bet it was that storm dragon. He’s been insufferable.”
“I’m sure it was that wolf. She took off and lured us away, giving the dragon time to escape. They must have found a way to—”
Apollo sighed, then he pulled out a little device that looked very much like a cellphone, but something was off about it. He hit a few keys, then held it up. A few seconds passed, then words flashed on the screen.
Thank you, Apollo. I’ll be there shortly to remove them from the island. The amount of work we have to cover this up—I don’t even want to think about it. We’ll need to ensure the old king is exiled so he cannot further try to undermine his son.
Apollo quickly tapped out a response, then hit send. They waited for a few minutes, ensuring that the couple did not run before Miss Madison and other matchmakers arrived.
Without saying anything, he pulled Maya away from the plotting couple.
“You have a direct connection to the matchmakers?”
“I do. Which was why I foolishly thought they wouldn’t pull me onto the island. I know too much about their inner workings. After all, someone has to help when the guests get hurt.”
Maya looked at him, shocked that a healer would be on call for such a place. “Is it common?”
“Much more than anyone is willing to admit. But Sasha—and now you—are the only ones who have ever been in real peril. Everyone else, well, their problems were easily fixed.”
Maya tugged on his hand, indicating for him to stop. When he looked at her, she said, “How is it that you have no mate? You are the perfect shifter, Apollo. Kind, caring, capable, I just—I can’t understand why you would want me.”
His eyes moved over her face. “Just like you, people never want me for me, Maya. They see what they want to see.”
As the words sank in, Maya asked, “So, you are interested in me because I … wasn’t interested in you? In fact, I was downright cruel to you in the beginning.”
He ran his hand through her hair. “If that had been all it was, I would not have been drawn to you. I would not have felt so broken when you rejected my help. No, Maya, you are someone who has always deserved more, but you have accepted less. That’s why Naomi frustrates you so.
She’s making the mistakes you did, and you don’t want that for her. ”
Maya blinked a few times, his words playing in her mind. “But … she is adversely affected by her family.”
“As are you. Even if it is only their ghosts.”
“But I …” Maya couldn’t think of a single comeback. It was as if Apollo were seeing a part of her that she loathed. But he was not disgusted like anyone else would be. “You are too good for me, Apollo. Far, far too good.”
He smiled softly at her. “I will never be good enough for you, Maya. But I will always try to be the shifter you deserve.”
Shaking her head, Maya stopped the circular argument by wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him.
While he was distracted, she opened a portal behind him and pushed him through and onto the bed in the cabin.
He fell backward onto the bed, his arms wrapping tightly around her, pulling her down with him.
Straddling him, she slid her hands under his shirt, enjoying the feel of his taut muscles under her fingers.
She leaned down and whispered, “Happy Valentine’s Day, my heart. ”
He looked up at her, a knowing smile on his face. “You are making a pun of my last name.”
She looked down, realizing what he meant. “Yes.” Then she looked back into his eyes. “When the red-eyed woman said your name, it seemed very appropriate. It’s only more recently that I felt you had become a part of my own heart.”
He took her hand in his, then kissed it as he replied, “My dear Maya, you sound like a cheesy romantic.”
“Only for someone who proved that he cares about something beyond what I have to offer his station. Only for you, Apollo.”
Placing her hand over his heart, he murmured, “And you have proven you deserve so much more than you have been giving. I hope to someday give you the kind of life you should have had from the start. To wake to your gorgeous smile and fall asleep with you in my arms.”
As saccharine sweet as his words were, they made Maya smile.
Pressing her hand against his heart, she lowered her body over his and gave him a soft kiss.
His hand moved up her back, then he rolled so that she was pinned under this body.
Apollo sat up, keeping eye contact as he removed his clothing.
Then slowly, reverently, he began to make love to her.