Chapter Four #2
Landon blew out a heavy breath.
Had I pushed too far? Said too much? Would he ask me to walk away?
Landon gestured between us. “Are you sure you even want a human who’s going to awkwardly stumble through this whole fated-mate thing and not be able to commit until I sort myself out? And then there’s no guarantee I’ll want this either.”
“I have always known that I would accept my fated no matter who or what they were.” My stomach rolled, but I added, “Even if you do not want me in the end.”
“How can you be so calm about this?”
I considered the question carefully. “I am calm because if I fully allowed myself to feel everything this bond inspires… I believe I would overwhelm you.”
Landon blinked. “Oh.” The single syllable came out faintly, and then I watched realization spread across his face. He was now aware just how strongly I felt for him. At least that was what I thought.
His throat worked once before he quickly looked away and took another drink.
“Right. Ah….” He blew out a breath. “So, um, does that mean you would’ve been angry when that woman was here?”
“Yes,” I admitted quietly.
His eyes widened slightly. “At her and me?”
“No. Never you.”
“Why her then? She was just—”
“She touched you.”
Landon barked out a startled laugh. “You cannot be serious.”
“I am entirely serious.”
The amusement drained from his face as he realized I meant exactly what I said. “Wait.” He frowned. “You were actually angry?”
“Yes.”
“How angry?”
I remained silent one second too long.
Landon straightened. “Dashiel, how angry?”
I exhaled slowly. “I considered burning this establishment to the ground.”
He nearly dropped his drink as he spluttered over the word. “What?”
Several humans glanced briefly in our direction before immediately losing interest again.
Landon leaned closer sharply. “Wait, you can do that?”
“I can.”
“You can burn down buildings?”
“Yes.” I nodded as I lifted a hand and drew out the flames that were always ready under my skin. It was only for a second.
Enough for my fated to gawk and breathe, “Jesus Christ.” His alarm quickly changed into what looked like guilt. “Shit. I’m sorry for making you angry.”
The apology startled me deeply. “You have nothing to apologize for.”
“But—”
“You did nothing wrong,” I interrupted gently. “My reaction was my responsibility.”
Landon stared at me for several long moments.
Most would have become defensive or frightened, even. Instead, Landon looked troubled on my behalf. As though my anger concerned him more than he was worried for himself.
“You wanted to burn the place down because a woman touched my arm,” he muttered finally.
“When you phrase it that way, it does sound excessive.”
His abrupt bark of laughter had me smiling. He shook his head and leaned in. “It sounds insane.”
I nodded. “That as well.”
To my surprise, a beautiful smile tugged at the corner of his mouth before disappearing again as he admitted, “I don’t know what I’m supposed to think anymore.”
“I understand.” And softly, truthfully, I added, “All of this is a great deal for you to process.”
Some tension eased from his shoulders. I never wanted to pressure him. I just wanted to see him, talk with him, have him get to know me and consider a life with me.
Inwardly, I groaned. It really was a lot for a man who was used to being with women to even think about being with someone like me.
Not only male but another species. My kind, as well as others who had been around for centuries, had long stopped caring about gender.
What mattered was the spark beneath it. But I knew that many humans weren’t as forthcoming about giving a chance to something they were not used to.
My stomach rolled at the predicament I had placed my beloved in. Yet, I still said, “I would simply like to talk with you, if possible.”
Landon studied me carefully. Finally, he sighed and muttered, “Yeah, I think I can handle talking.”
Relief washed through me.
Landon glanced toward the bartender before turning back to me. “How old are you?”
The abruptness of the question caught me off guard. “You wish to know my age?”
“Yeah.” He gestured vaguely toward me. “Aren’t you worried about being seen with an older guy?”
For one long moment, I simply stared at him, and then when understanding struck, a soft and genuine laugh escaped me before I could stop it.
Landon blinked rapidly, clearly offended. “What?”
“You believe yourself older than me?”
“Well…” He frowned slightly. “Aren’t I?”
I smiled fully since I was unable not to. “My beloved,” I said softly, “I am over two hundred years old.”
When Landon choked violently on his drink, I moved instantly. I placed one hand on his back to pat him while with the other, I caught the glass before it fell.
“You’re what?” he choked.
“Two hundred and thirteen.”
His eyes widened impossibly far. “You look twenty-eight!”
“I do not know whether that is complimentary.”
“It’s horrifying.”
Another quiet laugh escaped me.
Landon stared openly in disbelief and shock. “You’re serious,” he muttered.
“Yes.”
“That means you were alive before electricity.”
“Yes. But I am also from another dimension. I was born where the fae reside. Where my father rules and my brothers stand at his side. I wasn’t interested in the title.
I wanted a place somewhere quiet and away from it all.
I moved to this realm. In the country west from here, which I would love to show you one day. Only if you wish.”
Landon blinked. He opened his mouth and closed it again. He let out a groan and scrubbed a hand over his face. “Do you mean…? Are you saying you’re a prince?”
“Yes. But again, I have asked not to be classed as one. I want a simple and quiet life.”
“I… I really don’t know what to say.”
“Does this mean the shock of my age has passed?”
He snorted. “That took a back burner after you mentioned dimensions and princes, but now you’ve brought it back up… are you saying you’ve been around for two hundred years, waiting for some random accountant to show up?”
The way he phrased it nearly made me smile again. “Not consciously.”
“But now?” he pressed. His eyes shone with confusion, uncertainty, and a kindness that I very much liked seeing.
Which was why I gave him the truth again. “Now,” I said softly, “I cannot imagine my life without you in it.”
Landon stopped breathing for half a second, then immediately looked away as his cheeks tinted. He exhaled slowly before muttering, “You really don’t do anything halfway, huh?”
“No.”
“That’s terrifying too.”
“I am beginning to think humans find many things about elves unsettling.”
His lips twitched. “You wanted to commit arson because a woman flirted with me.”
“As you continue repeating it, it sounds progressively worse.”
“It should.” He chuckled, and I found myself utterly captivated by it.
Perhaps sensing the intensity of my attention, Landon cleared his throat and looked back down at his drink. “You know, this was supposed to help me figure things out.”
“What things?”
His jaw tightened slightly. “I came here because I wanted to make sure women still caught my attention.”
Pain flickered sharply through me before I could suppress it.
Landon noticed immediately. He winced. “Sorry if that’s hard to hear.”
It depended on the answer, and I was suddenly too scared to ask.
He sighed, then shrugged. “I should say, I like women plenty, but I’m not… I don’t know, drawn to try and be with one right now.”
Blood rushed through my body. “And what do you feel when I am around?”
I should not have asked.
That was wrong of me.
It was pushing when I promised I would not.
Shaking my head, I told him, “Do not answer. I’m here just to talk. To get to know each other.”
Landon nodded and he took a sip of his drink, gaze flicking over me before he asked, “Do you want a drink?”
Hope bloomed. At least he wasn’t demanding I go away.
Smiling, I nodded. “I would. As long as it is not coffee.” I screwed up my nose, which Landon grinned at.
“What do you prefer to drink?” he asked.
“Tea. However, I doubt they would have that here, so I shall once more partake in what you are drinking.”
His lips twitched. “And if you don’t like it?”
“I will suffer like I did trying coffee.”
That drew out another loud laugh, and for a small moment, I thought his gaze stopped on my lips, but he quickly turned and called for the bartender.