When my stomach growls, Reeve and I get dressed, leaving Crew’s house in search of food. We stop at one of my brother’s favorite dinner spots and grab two slices of pizza. Reeve and I settle next to each other on a rock in the park a few blocks down that overlooks the city below. There are people and families milling about, and a few stray paparazzi trying to snap a picture of the great Reeve Bennett while he’s supposed to be recovering.
We sit on the edge, pizza in hand, the sun warming our skin, just like it’s done so many times in the past when we’ve done this. Only now the scenery is different. We’re different.
I let out a deep sigh, still feeling utterly unsettled. I don’t know how to feel about everything. A part of me is happy that I know the truth, happy that Reeve isn’t the cheater I thought he was, but I’m still angry. I still feel deeply betrayed. I’ve been lied to, cheated out of a relationship, and led to believe the worst of someone when it wasn’t his fault at all.
As much as I want to place most of the blame on my brother—though, in fact, most of it does lie with him—I know Reeve holds a lot of the blame, too. He made a decision that night, four, almost five years ago, and decided to protect his friend instead of protecting me.
“So, where do we go from here?”
Reeve shifts, glancing at me, and my heart doubles over in my chest. I’ve missed this. I’ve missed him.
“We go wherever you want to go, princess.” He sets his plate down between us, and his hand slides around the back of my neck, drawing me to him. He presses his lips against mine softly. We both freeze when we hear the yelling followed by the snapping.
“Mr. Bennett!”
“Reeve!”
“Who is the mystery woman?”
“Are you really off the market?”
“Is she the reason your recovery is taking so long?”
Reeve and I pull apart from each other slowly, sharing a look. He’s wearing that sexy crooked smirk that I’ve missed wholeheartedly over the past four years, and I can’t contain the smile that takes over my face.
“So much for remaining under the radar.”
Reeve chuckles warmly against my lips, leaning into me. “I prefer it this way, anyway, Camila. Now the world knows you’re mine.”
THE END…FOR NOW.
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BOUND
* * *
A Fae Realm short story
CATHLIN SHAHRIARY
ONE
ONE MORE STEP would mean certain death. She teetered forward, shifting her center of gravity. Her arms pinwheeled out, attempting to counteract her inevitable plunge. Thankfully, two strong arms wrapped around her stomach and yanked her backward, slamming her against his hard chest.
“Did you not hear me when I told you to slow down? Or were you under the impression that you know more about your budding powers than the one you got them from?” Evin hissed in her ear.
She panted, attempting to catch her breath despite the fact that she didn’t feel winded. He released his tight hold on her, and she stumbled forward until his arms caught her again, more gently this time. He moved to face her. Her chest still heaved from the adrenaline pumping through her veins. She’d had no idea she could move that quickly, and her misstep could have proven fatal.
Evin tipped her chin up and brushed back a lock of her auburn hair that had come loose from her ponytail, running his finger over the top of her ear, which had recently changed from rounded to slightly pointed.
“I’m sorry,” she huffed between gulps of air. “I didn’t know.”
“I know,” he soothed, the backs of his fingers brushing her cheek. Scolding her for a common mistake wasn’t helping, and her racing pulse told him how badly she had scared herself. Evin could remember a time or two when he had made mistakes while learning the boundaries of his own speed. Luckily, Reid had usually been there to save him.
He pressed a kiss to her forehead, smoothing out her breathing with his reassurance. As he pulled away, her hazel eyes stared up at him, shimmering with flecks that mirrored his own golden eyes.
“What?” Callie asked, reading the slight raise of his brow.
“Your eyes,” he whispered.
Her gaze widened, the golden specks fading back into hazel.
“There were glowing flecks of gold, like stars.” He marveled at her.
“Should I be worried?” She chewed on her bottom lip. So much had changed since she left for college. It wasn’t just starting her freshman year but