A Gift from the Goddess

Chapter Fifty–Eight 

‘So handsome,‘ I thought to myself as I watched Cai sleeping next to me. 

I wasn‘t sure how long I‘d slept for but I‘d woken up to find him by my side. He looked so peaceful; his hair had tousled into a mess as his chest softly rose and fell. I could have watched him for hours. 

I lost track of time as I recounted the events that had transpired the evening prior but soon Cai stirred next to me. In his slumber, a strand of hair fell across his face and I couldn‘t help but reach out and gently brush it away back into place. It was so silky to touch. 

As my eyes drifted back to his face though I froze, realising he was now awake and watching me. 

“Morning,” he mumbled sleepily, reaching out to pull me close to him. 

Thad fallen asleep in one of his t–shirts but could still feel his warmth through the fabric. If not for the confusion of his words, I would have melted myself into his touch willingly. But the nagging in my mind prevented me, forcing me to pick up on the oddity. How could it still be morning when I knew I‘d slept for a t least a few hours? 

“...Morning?” I asked slowly. “How long have I been asleep?” 

“Just over a day. You were dead to the world, completely comatose.” 

I tensed up immediately realising that, if that were true, then I‘d disappeared without notice for over an entire day. Were my parents freaked out? I knew I was exhausted from using that newfound authority but I hadn‘t realised I‘d be out cold for so long. The tax it took on my body must have been far more severe than I thought. 

I sat up and knew I needed to leave as soon as possible. If they already had people out looking for me then this was the last place they should find me. 

“Why didn‘t you wake me?!” 

I tried to squirm off the bed but he held me back, his arm around my waist. 

“Relax! I already handled it all. I told your attendant you were safe but had a rough night and were staying with a friend.” 

I turned back to look at him. “...No one can know I‘m here, Cai.” 

With a sleepy sigh and completely unphased by my stress, he shifted into a sitting position to tighten his grip on me. “I already figured you‘d say that so I told her to be discreet with the information.” 

It took a few seconds to fully process his words but finally, I exhaled in relief knowing that Lucy would make up an adequate excuse to appease my parents. At least there was no search party out looking for m 

“Come on,” he said, guiding me to lie back down again. 

He pulled me up against his chest once more so we were face–to–face and softly kissed my forehead between my knitted brows. I could already guess what he was thinking. 

“You worry too much,” he grumbled, confirming my suspicion. 

“You need to take this seriously, Cai,” I said quietly. ‘Do you realise what would happen if word got out?” 

“I‘m aware,” he replied, much to my surprise. 

“...If you know then why did you pursue me in the first place? ...Why come back to the Winter Mist?” 

wanity Light 

His eyes were serious, a sharpness to them I rarely saw. He was like a different person when he was this focused, so contrasted to his normally playful manner. 

“Because it‘s avoidable,” he said. “The issues are surrounding our positions and Aleric, right? There are ways around it.” 

well then he was just as insane as m e for trying to

me really worth starting a war, Cai?”

avoided my eyes as he remained deep in thought. “...Maybe,”

normal demeanour returning. “Maybe... Well, since one of the issues is because of my future status, then maybe I‘ll just... let it go. Personally, I think I‘ve missed my

at him

just abandon your

said I‘d want you as my Luna anyway? You‘d probably be terrible at it. Only those with *seven years o f Luna experience need apply for the future entry–level job offered at the Silver Lake pack. Unfortunately, you‘re one year short of the minimum

started to play fight him much to his amusement. He quickly restrained me within his

doesn‘t bother me. If it means being with you then

you‘re just as crazy as me,” I replied. “This is literally the worst

shrugged. “Possibly,

don‘t see a way where we can ever

time to argue about whether we go public or not. And besides, it‘s not really much of an argument when I could just....” He started kissing his way up from my chest, along my shoulder... up until I could feel his warm breath on my neck. “...Do

of my neck, the exact spot where a mate mark would go, and a shiver of pleasure spread throughout my whole body. I could picture it so clearly and knew how amazing it would feel to wear

full commitment and becoming one. But a mark had its own complicated downsides; one of which was that if we were to go through a mate rejection post–marking, the process would potentially kill us. Our wolves were unlikely to survive the intense heartache associated with rejection from a mate already fully bonded; a rejection considered

could be no other mate until one of the bonded died. It was unquestionable, final. And

and, by extension, his pack; something that Tytus would want to prevent at all costs... And yet a

be too

battle inside me raging as he continued to kiss me along that area of m y neck.

he

he wouldn‘t actually do it, not here and definitely not today, but the excitement it caused was involuntary. That feeling of knowing it was so

his shirt I wore, working its way along my waist and upwards towards my chest. These feelings he gave me, this... intense… desire to be close to him, as if he were a force of nature pulling me in via gravity... It was

forcing my body to feel unimaginable

yet, when we were completely exhausted once more, wrapped in each other‘s arms, I couldn‘t help but

anywhere...,” Cai asked softly afterwards, holding me against him, “doing anything at all right now in a perfect world, where would

no such thing as a perfect world, just one where death

thought about it...,” I said slowly.

you could do but couldn‘t? You‘ve lived two lives but it

think. What would I want

another few moments, I knew.

I would be living a quiet life where no one

it all in. “Living in a

picture it clearly now, a small smile forming on my lips as I envisioned it. “In the woods. A small house just big enough for me that no one would find. I‘d be sure to spread

big enough for you? No partner?” he asked, hinting at

laughed. “You want to join me in my little cottage? I thought you‘d be too busy in this alternate reality, living up a more exciting life. Why bother entertaining a

got you to myself. In this world maybe no one will come looking for me too. I don‘t exactly enjoy

planner to build some extra rooms then. I‘ll definitely need the extra space

kids then the

the unwelcome reminder assaulting me over something I‘d become uncertain

meet his eyes. “I need

to explain. I already had a feeling based on the things you told me about Thea. There are other options though if we really wanted... or maybe I‘ll decide not to share you with a bunch

head, grateful he was so understanding. But I didn‘t have the heart to tell him yet about my suspicions. Suspicions I‘d been thinking for a while now regarding a certain dead rogue doctor in a cave. However, if it turned out to be irrelevant then I didn‘t want to give him

about you…?” I finally asked after a few moments of silence. “If you could be doing anything right now in a perfect world, what

I be doing...?” he repeated as he thought. “...You. I‘d be