Page 36 of Caged Love

Seeing him in battle, though, my mate is a warrior, through and through. His sword skills are so impressive, and his body is a weapon in itself. And then to use our magic for the first time with no practice?

He was incredible.

Now I have to sit here and watch Astrid with her hands on his bare bicep as she heals him. His ripped muscles are all on show, and I know that shouldn’t bother me considering the situation, but it kind of does. I don’t want her seeing him like this.

August doesn’t let go of his touch on me, keeping us connected. After seeing her on the battlefield, I know how incredible she is. It’s hard not to feel a little intimidated by that. But now that I can feel some of August’s emotions through the bond, I know that what he feels for her isn’t romantic. It’s a solid friendship built on years of history.

But it doesn’t change the fact that he once wanted her.

The cut seals up in front of my eyes. Astrid opens her eyes and lets go of him. “There you go, as good as new.”

“Thank you,” he comments but keeps those warm chocolate depths on me.

“I’m going to go and help anyone else who needs it,” she says, turning to me and offering me a small smile. “You’re free, Milana. I see nothing but happiness for you both.”

She zips away, and August pulls me closer to his body so I’m draped over him. “She’s right, you are free now.”

“I’m right where I want to be,” I reply, pressing a kiss to his hard chest. “I want to keep training, August. I want to be able to fight next time.”

“We’ll keep training you,” he promises me, kissing my temple. “You’ll be a warrior in no time.”

My lip twitches. “How did it feel using our magic?”

“Powerful,” he admits, rubbing soothing circles over my back. “I don’t know. It just felt natural. I could feel it there under my skin, begging for me to use it.”

I hum in agreement, knowing exactly how he felt.

Suddenly, the door opens wide, and I glance up to see the last person I expected to see here—my best friend, Halia.

“There you are,” she calls out, walking over to me and giving me a once-over. “You’re okay? When I heard what was going down, I came straight here.” Her eyes move to August, checking out his ripped body. “Damn, I hope my mate is as sexy as yours.”

August smirks. I roll my eyes and move to hug her. “August, this is Halia. Halia, my mate, August.”

“Nice to finally meet you,” Halia says, offering him a wide smile.

“Same to you.”

“You missed all the action,” I say, happy to see her. My mate and my best friend are with me. It doesn’t get much better than this.

“Typical.” She grins, flipping her long red hair over her shoulder. “By the way, Rave didn’t look very happy to see me.”

A bubble of laughter escapes me. “Just stay away from him. I’ve had my quota of drama for the month.”

She rolls her eyes. “I’m not even looking in the direction of anyone who’s bonded. I wouldn’t mind asking Astrid if sheknows who my mate is, though, because I’m getting tired of waiting around for his ass.”

When we head back downstairs, Astrid is sitting on the couch talking with Salem while Rave stands in front of them, watching closely.

“What’s that about?” I ask August, who shrugs. He’s taken a shower and dressed in a white shirt. His curly hair is damp, and he looks so good I don’t want him to leave the room.

“He’s hot,” Halia comments, checking out Salem.

“No,” August and I say at the same time.

“What? Why? I think a tear just ran down my leg,” she whispers.

I make a choking sound while August throws back his head and laughs. This gets everyone’s attention—all eyes now on Halia.

Rave looks annoyed.

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