Page 39 of Soulmates

“You aren’t naked?”

“How would we have gotten naked?” Jake said as Santiago swung the door open.

“Half-naked, then?”

“Not at all naked,” Maddox said.

“Great!” Santiago said as she strolled in. “Aren’t you two cute? Here.” She handed over some bottles of water and granola bars. “In case you get hungry. I’m going to call Maggie and then go to bed. Do you need anything? Shirts off?”

Maddox didn’t want to move. He shook his head and looked at Jake.

“No. Thanks, Santiago,” Jake said.

“Alright. See you two in the morning. Let’s get this done. I have shit to do.” But she smiled as she walked out the door, and Maddox knew if Jake was in trouble, Santiago wanted to be there for it.

He tucked into Jake’s side. Jake was so warm and the quilt so soft.

“The light in here dims and brightens when you blink your eyes, which could be an amazing pickup line if it wasn’t literally happening,” Jake said. And it was the last thing Maddox heard that night. As he slept, he had the sense of Jake caressing him, reassuring him, and holding him. And in his dreams, he watched Jake, who smiled and played with a ball of blue magic. He tossed it up and down from hand to hand, staring at Maddox.

Chapter 26

Jake woke with Maddox’s head heavy on his chest. And warm, so warm. He carefully shifted over to his side then brushed Maddox’s beautiful curls off his forehead. He hated to wake him, but Cricket had warned them that Maddox could become difficult, or even impossible, to rouse the longer the bond was incomplete. Jake gently stroked down Maddox’s arm while whispering his name. Nothing. He gave Maddox a gentle shake and said his name louder a few times. Maddox finally stirred and blinked open his eyes, which were gleaming even in the daylight coming through the window.

“Hey there,” Jake said, his smile strained.

“Hey, yourself. What’s wrong? Was it hard to wake me up?” Maddox said.

“No. Your eyes. They’re brighter.”

Maddox quirked his brows, crinkling his nose adorably. “I wish I could see it.”

“I know. You need to drink this potion. How are you feeling?”

“Better, I think. Less foggy. Less like I’m underwater trying to reach you.”

Jake handed over the potion and watched Maddox grimace as he dutifully drank it down. He waited for Maddox’s eyes to dim, but they didn’t. Giving Maddox a few minutes to stretch, Jake asked, “Do you feel any different?”

“Yes. The potion clears the fog, and I feel more awake, like drinking an energy drink but without the heart palpitations.”

“Such a caffeine wimp.”

“Hush.”

Jake laughed. “Let’s get up and moving. Maybe we can find the answers today.”

When they got downstairs, they found Santiago and Cricket already awake, each with a stack of books in front of them.

“Morning,” Jake said from the bottom of the stairs.

They both looked up, and Cricket said, “Your eyes are worse.”

“So I hear,” Maddox responded.

“You drank the potion.” Not a question.

“I did, but Jake said my eyes stayed the same. It helped with the tiredness and difficulty thinking.”

“Good enough,” Cricket said. “I have two more doses for today and three for tomorrow and another batch setting in the cupboard. It has to sit in the dark for a day before it’s fully effective.”

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