“They’re yours, then.”
Chapter 24
I cannot hide how I feel.
Serlotminden landed the shuttle in an open space near the roaring ocean. Kal and Seth were the first to leap out of the open hatch. Kal swept his mate into his arms and nuzzled his neck; Seth, in turn, held him in a tight embrace. A shot of longing went through me. My arms ached to hold Caleb.
Caleb grinned at me before racing to the deep blue water. Violent waves crashed onto the purple sand, then swept back into the ocean. “Be careful,” I called after him. “I mean it, Caleb. Do not get too close.”
He didn’t even look at me as he raced along the shore.
The towering trees with rich green trunks and wide black leaves lined the beach. Undisturbed sand, as this wasn’t afavorite beach for locals to visit, was decorated with shells in a variety of colors. None of which I could focus on as I usually did.
When my family and I visited the ocean, I normally studied the plant life, inspected the shells, or sometimes I sat beside the water and watched the towering waves. None of that was possible with my mate so close by.
A tail wrapped around mine, and I barely glanced at Serlotminden, keeping my gaze on Caleb. I had to make sure he was safe. The water was full of dangerous creatures and that wasn’t even talking about the waves themselves, which were powerful. They could rip a person out into the ocean and drag them under.
I tried to logically parse through my sweeping instincts. Caleb couldn’t be injured by the creatures or swept away by the current. But he could, and probably would like to explore the seabed. That was much too far from me to be safe.
“Caleb,” I called again when he bent over the water, sticking his feet in. He peeked back at me. “Do not wander from my side. Please.” He chuckled but stepped back, earning a satisfied grunt from me.
“You’re courting Caleb, aren’t you?” Serlotminden asked.
I crossed my arms, wings fluttering against my back. “Pest told you.”
“No,” he replied. “He hasn’t said anything.”
“Then how?”
He flicked the point of my tapered ear, and I hissed at the sharp sting. “You did.”
I gaped at him, and he laughed.
“I’m not just beautiful, Bloom. I can be rather intelligent, and I know you. You’re acting differently. Stars, you are being protective.” Setlotminden gestured to Kalvoxrencol who kept a secure hold on Seth as they approached the water. “You’re acting like Pest and Hallonnixmin with their mates.”
Kalvoxrencol was exceedingly protective of his Seth, not that I’d witnessed much of their relationship. Hallonnixmin was as protective of Gilvaxtin as she was of him. It was the drakcol way. Our mates were ours. Our other half. We would do anything to keep them safe.
“Yes,” I forced out, muscles tightening in preparation for a battle, not that Serlotminden would physically attack me. If he did, we were evenly matched. As my elder brother, though, he was equally protective of me as Kalvoxrencol was.
“You can’t make this love thing easy, can you?” he teased, arm coming around my shoulders and tugging me securely against him. He rested his forehead on my temple, but he didn’t scent mark me. When we were young, our family members would scent mark us, claiming us. That ended as we grew, usually nearing our tenth cycle; we no longer tolerated it.
“You’re not upset?”
“At you? No. Pest? Yes. He should’ve told me. Don’t worry, I shall repay him for that,” he said, but his playful grin stole any heat from his words. Serlotminden gently shook me, his wing drawing me even tighter in his embrace. “I worry, Zoltilvoxfyn, as I imagine Kalvoxrencol does. I worry when Caleb vanishes, he will take your soul with him. I can't lose you, Bloom. I love you too much.”
Tears burned the backs of my eyes at his admission, but my brother was right. I kept my gaze trained on Caleb as he dashed over the purple sand, laughing. If Caleb passed on, he would take all that I was with him. I couldn’t even promise that I wouldn’t wither away. Most drakcol didn’t survive their mate’s loss, and I doubted I would. He was too integral to my existence.
“He’s going to stay,” I said.
“For how long?”
“I assume forever, but we haven’t discussed a timeline.”
“Why not?”
There was no answer to his question, so I didn’t try to formulate one. There were several conversations that Caleb and I needed to have.
“You cannot avoid the truth with your mate. I might not have the experience that Hallonnixmin or Kalvoxrencol have, but even I know you need to be honest with your Caleb.”
