Page 152 of Magical Mission
Keegan.
Leaning slightly to one side, hands in his coat pockets, hair tousled like he hadn’t bothered to tame it after sleep. His smile bloomed when he saw me, that slow, lopsided grin that somehow made my heart skip and my knees weaken.
“And here I was worried I’d be the one late,” he said.
I laughed, breathless and still tangled in the remnants of dreaming.
Of him.
“No. You’re on time. I’m just… I haven’t slept that solidly in weeks. Maybe months.”
“Good,” he said, his gaze warming. “You needed it.”
I stepped back and waved him in, already trying not to trip over my own nervous energy.
“Come in. Give me fifteen minutes. And you,” I turned to my dad, who had cracked one eye open in mild annoyance, “keep him company.”
Keegan chuckled and crouched beside Frank as I ducked into the bathroom.
I heard him mutter something like, “Guess it’s a boys’ club now,” and my dad’s snort of agreement made me smile.
I turned the shower on and stepped under the hot spray, letting the water ease the tightness in my chest.
It’s happening.
Today, I would step into the calling path not alone, but still into the unknown.
I scrubbed my skin, trying not to let the nerves build. The water helped a little. So did the rhythmic thrum of the pipes, the faint scent of the rose shampoo, but knowing Keegan was only a few feet away made my heart speed a little faster.
I dried off quickly, towel wrapped around my hair, and pulled on a soft tunic and leather boots. Functional. Simple. The kind of thing someone should wear when facing ancient magic that might test the very fabric of one’s soul.
My hands trembled slightly as I fastened the buttons.
Steady, Maeve.
You’ve walked into worse.
You’velivedthrough worse.
And this time, you’re not walking alone.
When I reentered the room, Keegan was sitting by the window with my dad sprawled at his feet, snoring like a thundercloud.
Keegan looked up, eyes catching mine, but there was a stillness in his expression I hadn’t seen before.
“You ready?” he asked.
Almost.
Not quite.
But I nodded anyway.
“Yeah,” I said softly. “Thanks for waiting.”
“I’d wait longer if you needed,” he said.
I smiled as I crossed the room to grab my coat. “If you keep saying things like that, I’m going to take you up on it.”
