Total pages in book: 142
Estimated words: 135522 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 678(@200wpm)___ 542(@250wpm)___ 452(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 135522 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 678(@200wpm)___ 542(@250wpm)___ 452(@300wpm)
Then quite suddenly the result arrives: “That’s okay.”
My tone of voice must throw Cole for a loop. “It … It is?”
“Malcolm is working with Mrs. Strong to ensure the event is a success. He has something at stake, too. Also, you already share a brief history of trust with each other after what happened this past Christmas. So, all factors considered, I believe he’s an ideal person for you to confide in. He’s the least likely to be reckless with our secret.”
After my speech, I can’t tell if it’s shock or amazement that floods Cole’s face. “Noah …”
“I appreciate that you told me so soon. And thank you for the apology for breaking our promise, but …” I frown. “Maybe it was unreasonable of me to demand such secrecy. Unfair, even. This isn’t an ideal set of circumstances upon which to begin and build a relationship. It’s much like the demon sorcerer and the curse that his parents invited onto their family by crossing a demon. He can’t help his situation. But he made do when he met the paladin, even despite the paladin’s rigid beliefs in what’s right and wrong. They are both a little right. They are both a little wrong. But they make do, and they can’t ignore how they feel about each other.”
Cole is surprisingly with me. “That’s so true. They are us.”
“With the exception that I don’t know dark magic and don’t have the voice of an enslaved demon familiar in my brain.” I gaze into Cole’s eyes. “But I know I have my paladin. My goodhearted guy who will protect me … if all of this starts to get out of hand.”
Cole wraps me into his arms so suddenly, I make an uncomely squeak of surprise before settling against his firm, strong body. I try to glance one way or another, in search of anyone who might still be on the street and pay witness to this intimate moment, but no matter which way I turn, all I see is Cole’s chest.
Then I realize maybe that’s the point. It doesn’t matter who’s looking. It’s no one’s business what’s happening between us, even if I only partially understand it myself. Considering my clear lack of experience in romance, it’s no wonder I’m taking Cole’s lead in careening headfirst into whatever this is between us.
Whatever this is, it feels good. It feels right.
It feels a little scary, too.
But perhaps that’s just the variable of chaos I can’t hope to control in any formulaic makeup of our relationship.
“Maybe I’m the sorcerer dude,” murmurs Cole against my ear, sending shivers of delight up my neck and tingles over my scalp. “I think sometimes it’s my family who invited a curse on me. A curse I have to fight against and hope I don’t someday succumb to.” He squeezes me even tighter. His voice softens. “I’m not the perfect guy everyone thinks I am. Every day feels like a fight to do what’s right, except everything I do feels wrong. Maybe I’m fighting some kind of curse, too.” He lets out a gentle sigh, then places a sweet, sensitive kiss on the side of my head. “I sure hope the two of them end up together in the end.”
My fingers curl into the back of his shirt. “Cole?”
“Yes, Noah?”
“I want … I want to help you fight that curse. Whatever it is.”
“Hmm. You sure about that?”
“Yes.”
“Totally sure?”
“I said yes, didn’t I?”
“You don’t even know what the curse is.”
I hear the humor in his voice. He’s teasing me. “I have demon magic at my disposal to protect you. Or a paladin’s sword, I think. I forget who’s who here. Our metaphor is growing muddled.”
He pulls back from me to get a look at my face. I watch a smile slowly spread from cheek to cheek. “Despite all the obstacles we faced tonight, you make me feel like I’m not cursed at all.”
“Cole … tonight was one of the best nights I’ve ever had.”
That surprises him. “Is the bar really set that low?”
“I’m serious.” I grip him tighter. “I had so much fun with you. Facing obstacles with you was thrilling. I felt safe, happy, and …” My eyes meet his. Am I really saying this? Is this really me? “And I want to keep seeing you. I want to keep … facing things with you.”
He brushes strands of hair off my forehead. “Well, I sure hope you’re feeling brave, because tonight’s just the first of many we’ll be facing together.”
Chapter 16
Cole
I wasn’t wrong.
We spend many more nights together.
And face all sorts of obstacles.
Obstacles such as our clothes getting in the way of touching each other’s bare skin.
Obstacles like realizing that no amount of kisses is enough.
As it turns out, it’s fun to face “obstacles” with Noah.
Many of our nights are spent together, as I begin to make staying over at his house a habit. On nights when I work late at the Spruce Fitness Zone (and Nadine doesn’t try finagling me out of my shift to do something pageant-related), I feel like a curfew-breaking kid sneaking into his boyfriend’s bedroom while trying not to wake up the parents. Mrs. Reed always acts surprised to see my face in the morning, then insists on making us a hearty breakfast that most likely will have one or two faces on it. Then there are other nights when Noah and I feel entirely alone and able to enjoy each other with no sense of the world around us, free from the pressures of being caught, seen, or otherwise nosed into by the general Spruce population. Even the handful of nights when I do take him out, we grow smarter about which places to go to, dodging the ones with the most onlookers.