20. Jax
20
JAX
I ignore the tug, not wanting to leave Jolie a moment sooner than I need to. When I arrive at the meeting hall, a handful of icy eyes glower in my direction. Even Dad and Pops seem less than pleased with my appearance, or lack thereof. From the looks of things, the meeting is already far over.
Shit.
“Where were you?” Aneira asks, pushing through a cluster of Blizzard players. They’re still in their hockey gear, metallic silver jerseys glistening in the dim light beaming between the stalactites above Nivea.
“Earthside.” I don’t say more than that, but from her expression, she knows what kept me there…or rather who . “What did I miss?”
A few of the hockey players snarl and mutter under their breaths from behind her. Probably because they already don’t like that I’ve opted to play for the Polar Bears instead of their team my next season off.
I’ve always had a natural inclination toward the sport. It’s one of the faint echoes left behind of my mortal life. I was young when I died, only fourteen when Fate claimed me. Many seasons have come and gone since, and each one that passes I remember less and less. Every so often I’ll recall the silhouette of my mother stirring cocoa on the stove, my father carting me over his shoulder as a kid, making snow angels with my little brother.
I try not to dwell on the dimmed memories and be grateful for the ones I have. It brings me a strange sense of peace, despite the turmoil it’s caused, that Jolie has gotten so much more time than me. That she’ll have even more.
Aneira unleashes a snarl of annoyance that pulls me out of my head.
“You missed the whole meeting,” she tuts.
“Am I in trouble?” Not that I care. I’m so close to Jolie seeing me.
“I covered for you.” She elbows me and shakes her head, looping her arm through mine to guide us away from the crowd. “Told them I’d asked you to refreeze a few forests in New Hampshire.”
I rest my head on her shoulder as we skate somewhere quiet. “Thanks, Ani.”
“You’re welcome. Good thing everyone believes you’re a dutiful little Frost. They don’t know better, but I do. You went to see her, didn’t you?” I don’t respond, giving her all the answer she needs. Stopping at an ice-carved bench at the edge of the city center, we sit side by side. Aneira’s eyes dart around, her voice lowering with mirth. “I’ll tell you what you’ve missed, but in exchange you’re going to do something for me.”
“What’s that?” My gaze meets her piercing periwinkle irises.
“You’re going to tell me everything about her.” She breaks into a grin, voice giddy. “It’s not every day someone has a mortal mate, and I want all the juicy details.”
The fewer people who know about Jolie, the better. While I technically haven’t done anything outright to interfere, I’m also not not interfering. I trust Aneira, though. Other than my fathers, she’s the closest thing to family I’ve got.
“Someone’s nosey.”
She scoffs. “You bet your ass I am.”
She’s been so excited for me since I told her about the mate mark after finding Jolie this winter. I’m surprised she hasn’t followed me to get a closer look at her. Though maybe she has? It’s not like I’d notice. When I’m around Jolie, the world stops. Whether on a bustling city street or alone in her bedroom, she’s all I see.
I chuckle, then stand and head over to drop a few frosted coins on the flavored ice counter, pointing at the pictures on the board. Grabbing the two cups, I skate back to Aneira, handing hers off after I sit down. She spoons out a heap of black winterberry and peanut butter, humming in approval.
“Fine.” I inhale deeply, tapping the top of my red velvet treat, denting the icy flecks. “I’ll tell you. What did I miss?”
“No surprise, Phil was too lazy to notice his shadow,” Aneira says between spoonfuls. “Spring’s coming early. The Blooms are annoyingly excited, as usual.” She rolls her eyes.
“Of course they are.” More spring means more flourishes, their own version of frost marks. Phil’s been doing his gig for too damn long, not realizing that his simple decision surrounding his shadow is what can make or break harbinger careers. It only really affects the North American winter harbingers, though. It’s also why Aneira and I refuse to work this as our only season each year. Most take on one season earthside, the next season they hibernate and then relax in Nivea the other two, repeating the process over and over. Unlike some of the other Frosts, Ani and I both have goals. “So when do we have to start reducing our workload?”
I shovel some ice into my mouth, savoring its sweetness.
“A week to begin peeling back, and maybe an extra few days until our earthside access will be revoked.”
I choke on my flavored ice, nearly dropping the cup from my hands. “They can’t be serious. That’s not any time at all.”
“It’s a quick turnaround but nothing we haven’t been able to manage before,” Aneira continues, but I’m barely listening as she drones on about final preparations.
One fucking week to finish my work, maybe stretching it a few more days to see Jolie as much as I can. I’m so close, so fucking close, to her finally seeing me. Even feeling her run her fingers through my coat was a comfort. Anytime we are seen in our earthside forms, it usually sends mortals and wildlife skittering away. Easier to get our work done in the quiet. But my fearless mate invited me into her bed to warm her feet and scratch my ears. Just because she’s beginning to accept my wolf, though, doesn’t mean she’s willing to accept the rest of me.
Of us.
I want to tell her about the bond, but how do you explain the unexplainable? The time isn’t right yet, but it’s melting away right before my eyes. Once spring comes, I won’t be able to reach her for months. Even if I insist on delivering another winter, I’ll be limited to that region experiencing the season. She seems so relieved she’ll be able to call on me. Now that will only be for a number of days, not weeks.
“Hey.” I’m elbowed in the ribs and brought back to the present, flavored ice dripping on my pants. Aneira’s eyes soften with my attention, voice lowering, trying to reassure me. “Everything is going to work out. Fate’s on your side.”
Sure doesn’t feel like it.
When I don’t respond, weighing how I should handle my final days earthside, she adds, “Now, I got you caught up and covered for you. It’s time for you to tell me about your mate.”
I can’t deny the smile that graces her lips. It pulls one from my own.
For the next hour, I tell her everything from the beginning, including what I discovered during my visit with Fate. After she’s gotten the full update, I wait for her to tell me to be patient, that one day things will come together for us. That trying to get Jolie to see me is crazy and goes against what we stand for as Frosts. That I cannot break the cardinal rule we’ve been brought up to honor dutifully.
Instead, she just grins and asks, “When do I get to meet her?”