Page 59 of Two Thousand Shadows

“You have your moments,” Junije murmured.

“How about we make this one of those moments where I’mnota very good influence?”

A tiny voice in his head screamed that this was a bad idea. This was not the time or place, but it felt like forever since he’d last kissed Leo. His entire body moved closer without him commanding it to, as if he were magically drawn to Leo and he couldn’t stop himself.

Just one kiss.

What harm would it do?

One small, brief?—

“Gege, car!” A bright-red plastic car suddenly appeared right before his eyes, stopping mere centimeters from crashing intohis nose. He jerked, his heart leaping into his throat. A gasp broke from Leo as he jolted upright and away from Junjie.

It appeared his brain needed an extra couple of seconds to register that he hadn’t even heard Erik’s approach from the toy chest. He blinked, his eyes focusing on the smiling two-year-old who was dragging the large bunny by the ear in one hand and holding one of his favorite toy cars in the other.

“You little stinker!” Leo snatched up the child and cradled him in his arms while blowing raspberries against his neck and cheeks. “Did you get jealous? Are you not willing to share your precious gege with me?” With each question, he tickled Erik more, wringing wild laughter from the boy.

After nearly a full minute, Leo put Erik on his feet only to have the child collapse in Junjie’s lap. The car had been lost in the initial struggle, and the rabbit was also forgotten. It didn’t matter. Erik rested his flushed cheek on Junjie’s chest and wrapped his fingers in Junjie’s shirt.

“My gege!” he shouted at Leo, but there was a wide grin on his face as if he were expecting Leo to attack him again as “punishment.”

“Oh, really?” Leo picked up the rabbit that rested between them and wedged it into Erik’s lap, causing more giggles. He scooted closer and wrapped one arm across Junjie’s back, drawing them in close so that they were touching from shoulder to thigh. “Well, you need to learn to share, but I’ve never met a cator kittenwho could take from me what I wanted.”

Erik lifted his head from where it rested on Junjie’s chest. He pointed at Junjie and proclaimed, “My gege.” He pointed at Leo. “My kitty mao.”

Leo’s lips twitched as he looked at Junjie. “Kitty mao?”

Junjie shrugged. “Learning a language is always a work in progress.”

“Fine. I’ll be a kitty mao.” Leo dipped his head and placed a quick kiss right behind Junjie’s ear before resting his head on Junjie’s shoulder.

This.Junjie wantedthisforever.

He just had to find a way to preserve it. To convince Leo to travel across the ocean with them.

Chapter 16

Zhang Junjie

Astorm was rolling in.

Junjie stepped into a small clearing and stared at the black sky. There were no moon and stars tonight. Thick, dark clouds poured across the heavens like a billowing cape, blotting out all light. A fierce wind rose and fell, causing the canopy to sway and the limbs to creak. The noise was wonderful for masking their movements, but it also hid the approach of the fae.

“Rei, can you tell if this storm is naturally occurring?” Xiao Dan inquired, lifting his voice to be heard over the rustling of the leaves.

Junjie’s stomach twisted as his mind filled in the rest.Or is the storm the result of fae magic?

Rei looked up and frowned. “I’m inclined to say yes, with a little bit of no.”

Yichen bumped him with his shoulder, his lips twisted into a smirk. “You’re going to need to do better than that, darling.”

He paid for that snarky comment. The wind shifted direction, and the vampire got a face full of his long hair. Yichen growled as he shoved it away while Rei snickered at his mate. Both of them wore their hair long, but Rei had been smart enough to weave hisinto a long braid before they set out. Yichen had made do with only part of his hair pulled into a high ponytail.

Junjie smoothed his expression, taking this as a sign to ask Mei Lian to trim his hair. He’d been considering growing his hair long like Yichen, but this was a friendly reminder of what a nuisance it could be.

“I believe the storm itself is naturally occurring,” Rei continued, pausing to stick his tongue out at Yichen, then looking at Xiao Dan again. “However, there’s a bit of magic in the air. I can’t tell if Trin is intentionally intensifying the storm or if there’s more magic than normal because of the eradication of the humans.”

That was a lovely reminder that the fae were growing stronger with every city devoured by the forest and every human home that was abandoned as they moved west to safety.

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