Page 97 of By the Fae

“Not until six this evening. If it’s later than that, Taur can drive you home.” She looked at her husband. “Babe, you’re gonna be late for work.”

“Shit!” He snatched his phone from his pocket, glanced at the screen, and shoved it back in. “Love you.” He kissed his wife, and my stomach gave an envious stab. “Call you in a bit, okay?” He turned to me and sighed. “I hope I see you around, Holly.”

I couldn’t muster a response.

He left the room, Dima on his heels. The vampire paused in the doorway.

I’m sorry, he said.I really wish there were some way we could bring him back.

I said nothing. Didn’t even have the strength to reply mentally.

We’ve lost our friend today, too,he said.

I sat on Goldie’s bed, staring at the indent on his pillow, resisting the urge to suck in the scent of him through his stupid wingball jersey he’d left on his chair. Did he really up and leave, just like that? Without saying goodbye to his friends?

He couldn’t have . . . He wasn’t that heartless . . . He loved his friends . . .

I couldn’t wrap my brain around it.

And Goldie loved me. I knew that. I think I’d known it for a while, but his flatmate had provided the evidence. Taurin’s words echoed in my mind.

If he thought he might be falling in love. If he developed true feelings.

I put Joey’s dress on. A red bodycon type thing that, I guessed on her, was knee length, but on me ended somewhere mid-calf. It gaped at the breasts and hung off my hips, but still managed to be uncomfortably snug around the tummy.

I texted August to let her know I’d be working from home today, and most likely tomorrow, too. She messaged back, told me to get Goldie to show me how to input the WFH request on the system.

The centimetre-squared thumbnail of his golden blonde head stared up at me from my phone screen. Even in that, he was scowling, and despite everything, I smiled. This was the picture he’d chosen to represent himself to every person who called or texted him. It was so Goldie.

I wrote out a text to him. Deleted it. Wrote another one. Deleted that. The third message I’d written I hit send before I could overthink my way out of it.

Goldie, I’m so sorry. I never meant for this to happen. You were right. Of course you were right. Humans are selfish, love-obsessed idiots. I was stupid, and I’ve been selfish. I thought I had more control over my emotions. Please come back. I will leave you alone if that’s what you need. Just, please, don’t take this out on your friends.

Immediately, his phone buzzed on the bedside table.

“Fuck!” I said out loud. I swore. He made me swear. “Fucking fae!”

I needed to get out of there. I grabbed Abby’s sweat ruined black dress and stuffed it inside my handbag, along with Goldie’s wingball jersey. Because if I was going to pine, I needed something to wipe my tears away with. Then, I don’t know what possessed me, but I swiped his phone from the nightstand and tucked that inside my bag, too.

I carried my boots and tried to quietly, or as quietly as a human could, sneak out of his apartment. When I got to the elevators, I’d pull them on. I didn’t want Joey to drive me home. I didn’t want to burden any of them any more than I already had. I’d driven their friend away. Their family. And for Joey and Taurin, that time he was gone would be the same for them as it would be for me.

A couple of decades.

An inhuman amount of time to wait, I realised.

If the circumstances were reversed, I’d never have forgiven me for doing that. Especially after having been warned so many times.

I’d reached the entrance hall when I heard a deep male voice and saw the shadows of a pair of wings disappear into the living room.

“His car is gone,” Mal said. I froze to the spot. My heart leapt at the mention ofhim. “I’ve tried to call him, but it went straight to voicemail.”

I hugged my bag closer to my chest.

“Can you try his parents?” Joey said. Her voice was breaking. She’d been crying.

“It takes a day and a half to reach the Kingdom. I’ll call them tomorrow.”

“I just want him back, Mal. He didn’t even say goodbye. Two fucking decades. I’ll probably be a grandmother by then. Selfish fucking asshole.” Her words were muffled, as though spoken into Mal’s shoulder. There was no sign of Dima.

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