Page 4 of Fated Wings
“The microwave?” Vaughn asked, pushing off the counter so he could point at it.
“What’s it for?” The fae nodded. “Can you show me how it works?”
“Heats food fast.”
He took a mug from the rack, filled it halfway from the tap, and set it inside. Buttons beeped under his thumb as he tapped thirty seconds. The hum rolled out, that oddly comforting low thrum, and the turntable started its lazy circle. Vaughn kept his gaze on the mug because looking up meant meeting those eyes again.
They warned me you wouldn’t break easily.
But Vaughn had broken in irrevocable ways. Vex would laugh with joy if he knew the damage he’d caused.
Vaughn’s fingers curled before he even realized he'd moved. Jaw clenched tight, teeth grinding. He closed his eyes, and for a moment, things blurred into the torches and cold stone of the dungeon where Vex liked to play his games.
He opened his eyes and watched steam ghost off the water, let the ordinary sound pull him back into a kitchen where the worst thing that might happen was a boiled-over mug.
“Heat without fire,” the guy murmured, as if cataloging a miracle.
The machine beeped. Vaughn opened the door and slid the mug out, testing the heat with his fingertips before he handed it up. Too high. Right. He set it on the counter instead and gestured. “It’s very hot right now. Be careful.”
The fae drifted even lower, fascinated by steam. He angled to see the numbers, hair swinging forward and brushing his cheekbone. Those eyes seemed to soak up every detail.
“How do you not know what a microwave is?” Vaughn asked. It came out more curious than judgmental, which felt like a win. “They’re everywhere.”
A small shrug from above, wings whispering. “It’s my first time in the human realm,” he said.
If he was lying, Vaughn couldn’t smell it. Just clean sweat, a faint sweetness he couldn’t place, and the forest, which had clearly attacked him by the looks of him.
First time here and he’d already picked up a parade of vampires. Not exactly the guided tour he deserved. His innocence accounted for the awe, the fumbling flight path, the way he had ping-ponged off half the house. Also explained the hazard-level purple glow earlier.
“Never put metal inside a microwave unless you like fireworks and house fires.”
A tiny nod. The fae drifted another inch, gaze glued to the digital clock like it might teach him a new spell if he stared long enough.
“Do you have a name?” He kept his tone gentle, the same one he used with the other mates. “I’m Vaughn, but you already knew that.”
Still, making his own introduction knocked something loose inside of him.
The pause wasn’t long, but Vaughn noticed it. “Newt.”
Of course it was something that soft. Small and whole. Vaughn filed it away like it mattered. Because it did, whether he wanted to admit it or not. Just because he was broken on multiple levels didn’t mean he had to be hostile. Kindness cost nothing.
Silence stretched a heartbeat. He watched a swallow slide down a slender throat and hated that he noticed. The fae’s wings gave a quiet, delicate twitch that sounded like paper moving.
“Newt,” he said, setting the mug closer to the edge in case those bare feet actually touched ground. “Welcome to very boring appliances.”
The barest smile curved Newt’s lips, soft and unsure.
“Hungry?” Vaughn heard himself ask.
Newt looked from the mug to him and back again, hovering like a question mark as the hum of the fridge filled the space between them.
“I’m fine.” Newt’s gaze slid back to the numbers like they were safer than eye contact. “Thank you for…showing me.”
“Any time.” Vaughn lifted the mug and held it out, careful not to crowd. “Sip. It’s hot.”
A cautious descent brought Newt close enough that warmth brushed Vaughn’s fingers when the mug changed hands. Those eyes flicked up once, quick and bright, then retreated back to the safe, sensible box with numbers like it was a miracle.
Vaughn didn’t deserve a mate. He didn’t have much to offer other than nightmares and a fear of the dark. But Newt was in the human realm, running from vampires, and so small Vaughn wanted to fold his mate into his arms.
