Chapter 31 #2
Her stomach lurched as the frigid water swallowed them.
Cold pierced into her bones like knives, her muscles seizing.
For a heartbeat, she couldn’t think, could only feel the shock of it as they were suspended beneath the waves, the calm beneath the storm.
It was rougher than she thought, the waves pushing and pulling them towards the rocky edge.
Currents tugged at her dress, trying to twist her around.
She kicked hard, fighting to orient herself in the churning dark.
It was violent and beautiful all at the same time.
The force of it tried to separate them, but she clung to him and pulled them upward.
Their heads broke the surface, Felix gasping desperately for breath.
He flapped and flailed, trying to swim, but instead pulled them under the water again.
His weight dragged her down. Water filled her mouth, her nose, and panic spiked through her chest before she kicked harder, hauled them both up.
“Felix!” she managed to scream before he yet again pulled them under the surface.
Once again, she pulled them up and grabbed a hold of his face, shaking it. “For the last fucking time, calm down! You’ll drown us!” she yelled over the roar of the waves.
For a moment, he calmed on the surface, at least. She felt his legs thrashing, trying to keep his head afloat. His chest heaved against hers, his eyes wide and wild.
“Shift!” Avery yelled at him.
“Why?” he said through gargled breath.
“Just trust me.”
He gave her one last look, as if he was about to die, and he was memorizing her face for the final time. It took Avery all of her willpower not to slap him.
Felix shifted into a cat, looking like a soggy rat as she scooped him into her. She winced as his claws dug into her shoulder and onto her scalp. Finally, he settled on her head, like a very fashionable cat tail hat. But her arms were free, and she wasn’t getting kicked or dragged under the waves.
A piercing yowl wailed in her ear as she swam toward the entrance of the cave and fought against the dark waves while Felix’s tail obscured her vision.
Hopefully, all this splashing around didn’t attract the sharks.
Felix would never even look at the water again.
The silver moonlight lit her path, almost as if the goddess were guiding her towards it.
She even saw dust bunnies riding the waves. So they didn’t disintegrate.
The water became calmer as she swam into a deep pool cut off from the rolling waves, the sudden stillness disorienting.
Gigantic rocks shot out from the water and formed a protective barrier between them and the force of nature, the sound of the waves quietening.
She could only just touch the bottom by the time they reached the entrance.
She had been here before. It was a well-known spot on the island that only the strongest swimmers could get to. She and Wren used to jump off the cliffs and swim into the cave at midnight, much to the chagrin of her mother, who, in hindsight, only cared about Wren’s safety; she was sure.
They had come right on time. Despite it being called the midnight cave, it actually opened up a bit before that.
The top lip of the entrance became visible as scarlet water bled out from the cave, mixing with the blue like an artist’s palette.
She forgot how beautiful it was; it was truly a wonder of the island.
It almost made sense that this would be where the final riddle would be solved.
There were always rumors that this was where the ley lines converged on the island.
Avery waited until the water came low enough to fit her and her new hat underneath the mouth. Dust bunnies dived under with them, swimming into the cave. She ducked, holding onto Felix with one hand and using the slimy top as a guide with the other.
Moving through the tunnel, she noticed that the water that touched her created luminous ripples cascading outward, as if it were alive. That was new. The deeper she went, the more heated the water became, almost like a natural spring. All the cold left her body, replaced by a delightful warmth.
At the end of the tunnel, it opened up to an enormous cavern. Every other time she had been here, it had been pitch black. She and her sister had fumbled around in the dark with flashlights for hours just to find their way back out before the water swallowed the entrance once again.
But this time, she could see everything. Her lips parted as she looked around. Slowly, she watched as every inch of the cave walls lit up red, twinkling like a night sky. Even the plants that hung from the ceiling were a brilliant crimson color. It was another world entirely.
She waded through the water until her feet met a soft bed of sand, like silk beneath her feet.
Time to get this hat off. She gently coaxed Felix into the water like she had weeks ago in the bath. The memory brought a soft smile to her face. He clung to her hair, taking some of it with him as she lowered him towards the water. “You can shift back now.”
Felix made a displeased hiss as his paws met the water.
For a moment, he flailed as she held him afloat.
Then he shifted, looking exactly like the day she met him, wet and pissed off.
This time, she wasn’t scared. This time, his eyes had softened just a touch.
She slid her hands over his chest, the red glow of the water reflecting in his eyes.
As much as he hated getting wet, he looked so handsome when he was absolutely drenched.
Water streamed down his face, dripping from his hair onto his shoulders, making his skin gleam in the strange light.
Avery let out a laugh as she moved a piece of his hair from his face.
“See? Not so bad, is it?” she teased.
“You terrify me,” he said softly, so quiet she almost missed it.
“A magicless witch scares a shifter? Someone call the news.”
“You are not magicless anymore, not with me.”
For how much longer? She wanted to ask. But she didn’t. Instead, she looked away from him, not able to keep the emotion from drenching every feature. It was futile. He knew. He always knew. He caught her chin and brought her back to face him, cocking his head.
Despite her mind telling her not to, the words tumbled from her lips. “What happens when we break the bond?”
Felix swallowed, as if he were hesitating. “Do you want that?” he asked. The tone in his voice had a fracture forming in her chest.
“I…” Avery hesitated. She knew what she wanted. She wanted him.
Without him, she had no magic. She would go back to being useless, or at least she would be by her mother’s standards. It wasn’t about the magic anymore, not really. She had gone her whole life without magic; she could survive without it. But the thought of not being bonded to Felix?
That bond was her now. Woven into her skin and bones. It was a far scarier reality than being magicless ever was.
But when she opened her mouth, nothing came out.
A sad smile fell onto Felix’s face.
No, say something! Her heart screamed at her to fix it, to tell him not to break the bond, for them to figure it out.
But before she could speak, Felix was kissing her.
He didn’t ask for permission; he took what he wanted and stole her breath along with the last string of her heart that was still holding onto a world where she could live without him in it.
“Just one more,” he said, stealing a quick kiss before pulling away. It must have been close to midnight. Close to when the goddess would break the bond.
An unspoken feeling bloomed between them that they would be bonded until that time. And they were going to fucking act like it.
“One more,” he said.
He didn’t waste any more time. A fervent heat overtook them as his lips found hers again.
It wasn’t delicate by any means; he was hungry.
No. Ravenous for her. Their tongues twisted over each other, his rough one playing with the soft parts of her mouth.
Nerves sang as Felix devoured her with the savageness of a man who had nothing left to lose.
Nothing else would ever feel this good again. She was absolutely sure of it.
His hands tightened around her waist as he pulled her closer, goose bumps exploding over her skin.
She wrapped her legs around him as he walked them back through the glowing water to the cave wall, the water lapping at their waists.
Her back met the cold stone, but she didn’t care, not when this man was in front of her.
Hands explored her body like he couldn’t get enough of it, grabbing and pulling, desperate for her to be closer.
His shadow pants fell away, dissolving into the water and forgotten entirely.
Not long after, her dress was coming over her head, flung somewhere she didn’t care.
All she cared about was that every inch of her was touched, and even still, it wasn’t enough.
He tore away again, his eyes burning into hers. “Fuck my pride, fuck everything. I want you. No, I fucking need you, Avery.”
Her heart soared at the words, flooding her with warmth and need. Because she needed him, too. It wasn’t a question anymore. The bond whipped between them, wild and untamed, demanding that they collide. That they meld into one.
“Come back to the den with me,” he said, softer this time. “Please.”
He wanted her to come back to the den with her?
The vulnerability in his gaze broke something in her. How could she say no?
Before she could answer, his claws raked against her ass—not hard enough to cut, but enough to make her gasp, taking any sort of coherent thought away from her.
The scrape of them against her skin sent shivers racing up her spine, making her arch into him.
Using his shadows, he slid down her panties, careful not to shred them this time.