But there was something different about Leveret—something I was afraid to think too hard about.
As much as I enjoyed his company, I couldn't go down that path.
I'd already paid too big a price for falling for a mortal once. Never again.
Even if Leveret's hands on my skindidfeel amazing. A little indulgence couldn't hurt, right? It was possible to accept whatever he offered without falling in love. Putting up walls was easy. Gods knew I had plenty of practice at being a villain.
The only problem with this sly scheme was pushing Leveret away when the time came. It was simple in theory. But whenever he met my gaze with those soft, honest eyes... my resolve slipped.
After escaping the radius of Terranus's tantrum, we sheltered in the nearby forest. Asking him point-blank to return my magic was, of course, a complete and utter disaster. I knew it was impossible from the beginning, but Leveret's pure and honest belief in family had pushed me to try, if only for his sake.
Maybe now he'd understand that not all families were perfect.
I sat on a smooth boulder to catch my breath, waiting for Leveret to return from wherever he'd gone. After I suggested we leave the area, neither of us spoke. We walked in silence into the woods. The air felt charged with anticipation, but it didn't burst. I was oddly disappointed when we reached the forest clearing and Leveret told me to stay put before shifting and running off.
What a strange alpha. I would'velikedhim to keep touching me, but instead he explored the undergrowth.
I sighed and closed my eyes. The rest was much-needed. To my chagrin, my magic reserve drained faster than I expected. My lids slowly opened and I gazed down at my hand.
All that magic. All that power...
Gone.
Stolen by the spirits who were my only kin.
Now all that was left were scraps donated to me by the fated mates in Leveret's pack.
A melancholy smile crept over my face. Terranus was wrong about mortals. They weren'tallbad. The people in Leveret's pack were—dare I say it?—nice.
But the mortal who tricked me was nice at first, too.
My smile fell.
"Animus."
I lifted my head. Leveret ran into the clearing on paws before shifting to human form. There was a flower in his hand.
This boy, always with the flowers...
I couldn't help but snort in amusement. "Now what's this?" I asked.
I examined the bright little flower. It had a round yellow center like a sun, surrounded by dainty white petals.
"Chamomile," Leveret said, thrusting it at me. "Here. It's good for you."
"For me?"
"Yes. You were tired. This will relax you."
At his insistence, I took the flower gingerly from his fingers. Our skin brushed by accident—I tried not to notice the way a spark jolted up my arm.
“Thank you,” I murmured, staring down at the flower so Leveret couldn’t see the inevitable blush warming my cheeks. “Erm... What do you want me to do with it?”
He tilted his head. “You can eat it, or brew it to make tea. Or just look at it. It’s up to you.”
“I’ll keep it for now, thanks.”
He nodded. I thought that was the end of that until he sat next to me, his gaze lingering on the sunny white petals. His elbow touched mine.