Page 61 of The Botanist and the Beast

"Maybe my family is unique, but that doesn't make them nymphs."

"Theo, I saw you use nymph magic."

"What?" He was sure he misheard but Sebastian went on.

"You reached out and roots sprung from the veil and ensnared Lyle. You wielded them and nearly killed him. Then some snaked around you and healed your burns. I haven't seen something like that since before the curse swallowed the kingdom."

"You're sure I did that? Maybe it was one of you."

"I'm positive. Jacques is a floral nymph, but he certainly didn't do it. He was just as stunned as the rest of us."

"There has to be another explanation."

"You know, after the curse hit me, I felt this pull in my chest. An urgent yank towards something outside the gate. I thought it was because I was trapped. It persisted for years day in and day out. It got worse on spring nights. It was so bad it was borderline painful. I only ever mentioned it to Henri because he noticed I behaved strangely and confronted me about it. We were all trapped, and we were all suffering, so I felt selfish mentioning it to anyone else. Then one night, ten years later, you showed up mentioning your nightly travels every spring."

He laced his fingers in Theo's and smiled down at them. "The moment you arrived, the pull quieted. It got slightly louder the night you tried to escape with the lantern, and I wanted to find you. It guided me your direction like a compass. I thought I was imagining things. Then it came back full force the night you left, and I thought I'd never see you again. The moment you were back, the tug vanished. I wasn't being called outside the gate because I was trapped. I was being pulled to you. For some reason ten years ago, I was tethered you. Every time you walked into the veil it was like I could feel the fact that we were that much closer in my bones.

"I fought the signs because it didn't make sense at the time. It had to all be a coincidence. No matter how optimistic, a humantouch won't break a curse." Sebastian's eyes welled slightly now but he still smiled. "My chosen mate is someone that can free us. It makes sense that my Chosen would be a nymph. It makes more sense that they'd be a floral nymph at that. From the moment I saw you, no matter how much I denied it, I wanted to be close to you. I wanted to consume you but also to hold you. Theo, in this endless winter, you are my summer. You can't be human because I'm certain what I feel for you is real. I love you. I love you so much it terrifies me. I don't know definitively what you are, but I know that you're mine."

Theo pulled Sebastian into his arms on the bed and held him tight. "I love you, too." His voice cracked and his heart swelled as he said it. "I love you so much. I don't know how I'm a nymph, but I'll do everything I can to be worthy of being your Chosen and fix things. Then I'll take you to hot springs, rivers, lakes, and the sea. I'll take you wherever you want to go."

Sebastian held his face and kissed him lightly on the lips. "I can't wait."

Chapter Thirty-Five

"Iknew you two were chosen for each other. I can always tell," Jacques said excitedly as they crossed the castle grounds the next day. "But how did you wind up being a nymph in the human world?"

"I don't know," Theo admitted, his eyes on the snow falling from the grey blanket of clouds. "My parents never told me, which is odd." A lump formed in his throat as he thought of them lying to him every day by omission. "I'm still reconciling with their secret but trying to focus on the potential to break the curse."

"No wonder you needed restraints with Theo," Oliver said with a laugh, slinging an arm around Sebastian. "When I first found Jacques, I could barely keep my hands off him. If arousal and hunger are linked, you must've been on edge for a while."

"Anyway," Sebastian said, clearing his throat as his antlers flared a shade of pink that reminded Theo of windflowers. "I'm trusting you both to keep this between us for now. Theo has a long way to go, and we don't need added pressure. And I can't risk someone else being certain Theo isn't the key and trying to hurt him because they want me to look elsewhere."

"Where is Lyle?" Theo asked, glancing at Sebastian. "You never told me."

"He's locked away for now. I don't know what to do about him yet. I don't want any more death, but if I'm honest, I feel a lot of rage towards him after what he did to you. I don't trust myself to see him at the moment."

"Aw, seeing you so protective is precious," Jacques swooned. "It's normal to feel a bit overly reactive in terms of your chosen."

"Let's stop here," Sebastian stammered, clearly still a bit embarrassed.

I could get used to being this special to someone.He leaned into Sebastain and placed a soft kiss on his shoulder.

The clouds roiled overhead as Theo sat on a blanket in the snow with Sebastian by his side. Following his instructions, he put his hands in the small patch of dead grass after they were cleared away.

"You need to try and feel the veil's energy." Sebastian smiled a bit wistfully. "The veil is brimming with magical energy and as children of the veil, we can feel it."

"What is it supposed to feel like?" Theo asked, unsure as he touched the earth with gloved hands.

"Life," Sebastian said. "It's comforting yet energizing. I'm a water nymph so I often feel a flow, but it differs among nymph types, and even then it differs person to person."

"I feel a light sear on my hand, like the start of flames," Oliver chimed in.

"I feel more of a tingle," Jacques said, closing his eyes. "You know it when you feel it. Since we're both floral nymphs, I'm guessing it'll be something similar."

"I've heard and felt a heartbeat in the veil before," Theo said slowly. "But I've never felt it in the kingdom."

"That's probably it. That's a good sign," Sebastian said, brightening. "You didn't know how to harness it before, but now you can tap into it. Try to be calm, breathe, and let the connection find you."

---