Page 40 of My Fated Minotaur Hero

But how can this be?

My knees literally go weak, but I keep my footing.

"Kalen!" I cry out, my voice cracking with emotion.

He whirls around, his eyes widening in disbelief. "Olivia?"

And then I'm running, and he's running, and we collide in the middle of the street in a tangle of limbs and laughter and tears.

"I suddenly got an urge to take one more walk around town. And then just now, I thought maybe I'd heard something ... but I ... Gods, I thought I’d lost you!" Kalen wraps his arms tightly around me.

"I'm so sorry," I sob into his chest. "I never should have wandered off. I was just so caught up in the mystery and-"

"No, Liv, it's my fault," he interrupts. "I should have been paying attention, not showing off for some stupid elves."

“No...Mo! I love your charming side. It’s my fault. I was just being stupid!”

But then I pull back, meeting his gaze. "I am more important than those elves, right?"

He chuckles, pressing his forehead to mine. But then he pulls back and brings a hand to his chin. “I mean, it is close...”

I slap him on the chest playfully.

“You are all that matters to me Olivia.”

As we stand there, holding each other in the empty street, I feel something shift inside me. All my carefully constructed walls, my lists and plans and need for control - they crumble away. Because this, right here? This is what matters.

“But I just don’t understand, where did you come from? Where did you go?”

“There’s time for that later. Right now, I just want to feel you hug me again.”

He pulls me in for another squeeze.

"I love you Kalen," I blurt out, surprising myself with the intensity of the words. "I know it's crazy, we barely know each other, but I do. I love you. When I was apart...I mean, God I have to tell you about that, and I will ... but all I could think of was that I might never see you again. If that ever happens ... I want you to know..."

His eyes widen, and for a heart-stopping moment, I think I've made a terrible mistake. But then his face breaks into the most beautiful smile I've ever seen.

"Olivia," he breathes, pulling me close. "You have no idea how much that means to me. I..." He trails off, his brow furrowing slightly as if searching for the right words.

I wait patiently for him to tell me he feels the same ... but nope.

Men.

For an instant, I feel a tiny pang of disappointment that he doesn't say it back.

You’re supposed to say the words!

But then I see the intensity in his eyes, the way he's looking at me like I'm the most precious thing in the world, and I realize - some things go beyond words.

Kalen's expression turns serious. "There's something we need to do," he says, his voice low and urgent. "Something I should have done right from the start."

I raise an eyebrow, my heart racing. "Oh?"

He takes a deep breath. "I need to claim you. Properly. As my mate."

"I have no idea what that means," I admit, a thrill of excitement running through me. "But yes. Absolutely yes."

Kalen grins, scooping me up into his arms. As he carries me towards his cottage, I nestle against his chest, feeling safer and more cherished than I ever have in my life.

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