Jake
Iknow I should ask Jasmine questions. I mean, we’re in a closet. Why? It doesn’t matter now—not with her lips on mine.
My fingers leave a trail on her waist as I pull her close, giving in to the moment. She leans into me, wrapping her hands around my neck. Like moth to flame, this kiss has solidified our fate.
There’s no space between us, yet I want her closer. Every thought I’ve had of her in the past day, I put into this kiss. If I can’t tell her about the bond, I want to show her how it’s affecting me.
Every smile, every glance, is enough to have my heart flutter.
Before Jasmine, there was no future mate for me. I gave up entertaining that idea a long time ago, knowing I dedicated my life to protecting the pack.
But now?
Now that I’ve met her?
I’d do anything to protect her.
I trace small patterns up and down her back, imagining every feeling spilling from the tips of my fingers onto her, coating her with every ounce of my want.
Jasmine doesn’t know it yet, but she was mine when our eyes first met. The kiss between us acts like a promise of what’s to come, regardless of what secrets lie between us.
The moment ends as quickly as it began, our foreheads resting against one another. For a moment, no one speaks. We breathe in tandem, the bond pulsing between us.
“I’m not complaining…” I interrupt the silence and bring a hand near her face to lightly brush her cheek. “But I didn’t take you as the type to be so forward.”
I lean back, trying to search her face in the dark, but all I see are rosy cheeks.
“I’m sorry, it’s just…” Jasmine trails off, her gaze lowering to the ground. “I’m…I’m not human, Jake.”
My hand stills near her side, and I’m momentarily frozen in a state of shock. It isn’t until Jasmine takes a step back that I come to. My fingers grip her chin, and I gently lift until our eyes meet.
Her eyes still divert from me, even when I’m begging for her attention, even when I’m trying to show her I’m not angry.
“You’re not human?” I ask. My voice is quieter than I expect, but she bites her lip and shakes her head. “What happened?”
Jasmine’s chest rises and falls as she takes a deep breath. I drop my hand, letting it rest on her arm.
“There was a demon outside. I sensed it.”
My brows furrow. “I could have dealt with it.”
Jasmine’s voice is a whisper when she says, “I didn’t want you to deal with it.”
“I…Is it safe to leave this closet? I’d like to see your face when I have this conversation.”
“Yeah, it’s safe.”
I open the door, peeking around each corner to double-check before heading to our table.
After grabbing my backpack, I turn to Jasmine. “How do you feel about going to my hotel room?”
“Shouldn’t we grab a few books?”
Right. “I’ll go grab what I need, and you do the same?”
“Yes, I won’t be long.”
We go our separate ways, even though my body aches when I lose sight of her.
And as I search for the few texts I need, it hits me.
Jasmine isn’t human. She’s…a witch? Maybe? Either way, she’s aware of the bond.
She’s aware and said nothing.
It’s hard to stay focused searching for books when my mind is trying to convince me Jasmine didn’t tell me because she doesn’t want the bond, but I somehow find five books.
One on demon history, two on Fernhollow, and one on general paranormal creatures.
I doubt they will be helpful, but I didn’t want to go to my room empty-handed.
When I have sight of our table, Jasmine’s sitting there. She’s flipping through one of the three books she grabbed, her dark hair falling over the pages. One of her fingers traces horizontal lines on the page as she’s reading, and I’m stuck staring at her, anxious about what’s to come.
Without me having to say anything, her gaze lifts and finds mine.
We stare at each other, letting unspoken words flow through the bond. I’ve never thought to ask Silas about his bond with Junie.
My parents weren’t fated mates. They chose each other and loved each other as if fate pulled them together, but they wouldn’t have been able to tell me what a mate bond feels like.
The connection with Jasmine is…otherworldly.
As a shifter, I’m familiar with having a tether to something, though it’s different with my wolf.
He’s been a part of me since I was thirteen and shifted on the first full moon.
From there, we had to learn to read each other’s emotions and understand what it’s like to work together in distress.
It’s not like that with Jasmine. Instead of being like a puzzle piece, easily slotting into my existing life, this bond is like a tornado. It’s unpredictable. It’s a back-and-forth tug between the two of us.
Maybe someday it’ll feel like a puzzle, or maybe a third limb…but that day isn’t today.
Today, we still have secrets to discuss, and I want to know why she didn’t trust me, even though my intentions through the bond should have been clear.
I tilt my head toward the library entrance, posing the question of leaving. Jasmine nods, making her way over to me with her books and bag.
“Ready?” I ask.
“Yeah.” A wary smile from Jasmine is all I need to know we’ll likely have a lot to talk about when we get to the hotel.
After checking out our books, me with my guest pass and Jasmine with her card, we exit the library.
We walk side by side the few blocks to where I’m staying. Couples and families pass us, all smiling and chatty.
What would life look like if I lived here? Would we live here? It’s hard not to let thoughts get ahead of the current moment, but as I take in the small town, I see our future clear as day.
We would spend weekends grabbing coffee at Fernhollow Coffee and visiting the local farmers’ market.
We’d shop at the local boutiques and buy a summer pass for the outdoor concert series I saw a sign for yesterday.
Our house wouldn’t be on the main strip, but in a private area on the east side of town where I could shift and run in the forest, and Jasmine could be close to work.
“Is this all a little insane?” I ask, sneaking a glance at Jasmine.
“What do you mean?”
“Well.” I quicken my pace so I can turn around and walk backward in front of her. “There are a few reasons. Me being in Fernhollow is one.”
She narrows her brows. “You don’t think you would have visited?”
I shake my head. “It’s not often I leave home.”
“Which is…”
“Oh, Starview.” I palm the back of my neck.
“Well, you’d be missing out on all the town’s fun puns if you never visited Fernhollow.”
“Don’t you mean fern puns?”
Jasmine chuckles.
“And,” I continue, taking a deep breath before I break the ice. “There’s this unspoken tether that you”—I point to Jasmine—“knew about yesterday and didn’t tell me.”
“I—” Jasmine sighs but doesn’t look away. “Yeah.”
“Do you not…like it?” I cringe as I ask, knowing I’d much rather ask if her side of the bond feels as strongly as mine.
“No—”
“No?” I nearly trip over a crack in the pavement, but when I turn around, we’re one building away from the hotel.
Jasmine playfully shoves me, then yelps in surprise when I snag her hand. She’s not getting away from me.
“What I was going to say…is nothing has felt like this before. And before you ask, it’s in a good way.”
I hold open the door for Jasmine. “I wasn’t going to ask.”
She chuckles and squeezes my hand in response.
I lead us over to the elevator. “My room is spelled, by the way. So, anything we share inside the room won’t be heard outside. It was a pricey upgrade, but Silas was adamant about it.”
“Silas? The werewolf alpha?”
The entire world seemed to make a spectacle of the packs coming together when Silas took over.
It seemed like humans and paranormals were talking about the progress on the news and online blogs for months after the packs merged, so it’s common knowledge about who the alpha is.
He’s here to protect the north, after all, and anyone who lives in this region respects that.
“Let’s get upstairs first, then I’ll tell you more.”
We ride the elevator in silence up to the third floor.
“Wow,” Jasmine says when we enter my room. “Cozy.”
“You’ve never stayed here?”
She shakes her head. “I found my apartment right away when I, um, moved here.”
“Ah.”
Jasmine doesn’t elaborate further, and I don’t push her. Instead, I guide us to the table nestled in the back corner of the room.
“You have a lot of secrets,” I say when we sit down, our hands slipping apart.
“Jake, I…” Jasmine looks anywhere but at me.
The urge to know her, to protect her, is too much. I clench my fists to stop myself from reaching for her, to give her space.
The truth is, we don’t know each other. Even if it feels longer than a day, I can’t convince her to lay her heart down for me just like she can’t ask me to do the same.
A moment later, Jasmine sighs and looks back at me. “I just…There’s so much I want to tell you.”
“I’m not going to push you, but there will come a day when I hope you can trust me.”
Jasmine dips her head.
“Is there anything you can tell me about what happened at the library? How were you able to sense demons when I couldn’t?”
She tucks her lips inward, which only makes my wolf worry about her. Even he’s noticed her nervous habits.
“I have magic,” she says with caution. “And one of my abilities is being able to sense those around me, even if they don’t want to be found.”
“So, you’re not a human?”
Jasmine shakes her head.
“Witch?”
She tilts her head from side to side. “Sort of.”
“Okay.” Again, I don’t push for more; I let her lead the conversation.
“I’m not great at trusting people, Jake.”
“Well, we can start small. The bond doesn’t define our relationship. I’m practically a stranger.”
She kicks my foot. “Not a stranger, remember?”
My cheeks heat. “Right, none of that stranger bullshit.”
We both chuckle.
“So, you have magic.” I’m sitting here, still in disbelief. It wouldn’t normally be a thing, but after believing her to be human and unaware of our bond, it’s hard to believe she knew about me and our connection and didn’t mention it. “Why didn’t you feel comfortable telling me?”
Jasmine shrugs. “I’m a creature of habit, I suppose.”
“I get that. This is my first trip in years.” I lean back in my chair, lifting my right ankle to rest on my left leg. “Before this, I didn’t leave Starview much.”
“Why not?” Jasmine leans forward, resting her elbows on the table.
“How much do you want to know?”
“Everything.”