Page 9 of Fated Guardian

“Shit. Shoot. Sorry. Um. So sorry, I thought you knew I was standing here.”

I look up. I can’t help the blush that floods my face.

Nolan is standing right in front of me. He seems so incredibly close. I’m used to seeing him from a very, very safe distance. This time, he’s so close that I can see how the sunlight filters through his hair, sparking different colors of brown to emerge. Or how his hazel eyes look almost green against the green of my meadow. Or how big he is. Or how good he smells, like sage and oak. Or…

A piece of meadow grass brushes against my foot, jarring me out of my reverie. I’m acutely aware of how I’m obsessing over him. I look down, so that I’m not making continued, awkward eye contact with him.

I really need to get out more.

The isolation explains it. There’s no other reason for me to be so… bent out of shape about him. That’s it. I’m just out of practice with my social skills. Nothing to worry about.

There’s a noise, like he’s clearing his throat.

Oh. He’s still standing there, staring at me, and I haven’t said anything to him. What was the last thing he said? It was in that really nice, deep, rumbling voice…

“I swear, I didn’t mean to startle you. I’m Nolan. I’m one of the pack’s… I’m helping with security in the pack,” he says.

Nolan. Lyra told me his name earlier, but for the fae, names hold a lot of power. Giving someone your name in person, yourself, is different than hearing it from someone else. It’s a magic that I feel uncomfortable holding, because Nolan doesn’t know he’s given it to me.

He’s staring at me now.

Oh. Right.

I’m supposed to give him my name, too.

The urge to tell him my true name is very, very strong. He gave me his, without any kind of expectation or understanding about what it means. But I shouldn’t do that.

“I’m… Coral,” I say haltingly.

Nolan’s eyebrows raise, and I know that I’ve done something weird. Again.

“Are you sure?”

I blink. “What?”

“You just… you said your name like you weren’t really sure who that was. So I was just asking if you were sure your name was Coral.”

I look down. “Oh.”

“Shit. Listen. Sorry. I was just trying to be funny. Obviously you know what your name is?—”

“It’s a fae thing. Names are really important for us. We all have kind of like a nickname and a full name.”

Nolan nods, his gaze blissfully neutral and fully accepting of the information. “So is Coral your full name?”

“No,” I say quietly. “It’s what I want people to call me, though.”

“Ah. I see.”

There are four heartbeats of awkward silence. It’s enough to make me feel like my skin is itching.

Nolan clears his throat again. “Um. Your fingers. They’re…”

I look down and sigh. There are tiny morning glory vines weaving up from the grasses, extending to touch me in an act of comfort.

Bless you, sweet babies.

“I do that, sometimes. When I’m nervous.”

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