Page 62 of Soulmates

“We’re going to have to do something about that.”

Jake hummed. “Maybe Cricket will have some ideas. It’s so strange, all the theories of magic he knows and even more he’s read about. Why haven’t we been taught any of it? Just the few things he’s told us about so far… I feel so much more agile. Like my reflexes are better and I can do more at once. I’m not more powerful; I just feel more…something.”

“I think we might actually be more powerful than we thought. I tapped into water magic, and I’ve never done anything like that before.”

Maddox yawned widely. Jake brushed a lock of hair back from his forehead. “Maybe we should talk more about it tomorrow.”

“I want to talk now,” Maddox protested.

“Okay, talk. What do you want to talk about?”

“Everything. You. Me. What’s next? We’re bonded, but what does that mean for us? What does it mean for you?”

“I guess it’s supposed to automatically mean we ride off into the sunset. I want that, but I won’t push you for it if it’s not what you want.”

Maddox leaped at Jake, wrapping him up with his whole body. “Of course I want that. Right before I fell asleep, I thought about how I wanted to lie forever in the arms of my boyfriend. But then boyfriend seems like too small a word. We can use whatever word we want, I guess. But I want to be with you.”

“Well, if you’ll unravel enough to let me breathe…”

“Not likely.”

“…I can tell you that boyfriend works for me. I just want to be with you always. I’ve wanted it for a long time, but now I’m not sure if I could stand not being with you. I want to touch you and wrap myself around you.”

“Beat you to it.”

Jake laughed. It sounded so beautiful to Maddox. Free and fearless.

“I love you, Maddy.”

“I love you too. Maybe we could get some sleep before Cricket and Santiago descend upon us in the morning.”

“Am I supposed to sleep with you wrapped around me like an octopus?”

“Yes.”

Jake sighed but settled on his back with Maddox on top of him, Maddox’s limbs wrapped tightly around him. Maddox had no intention of letting go, and Jake seemed content to run his hands up and down his back until Maddox dropped off into a dreamless sleep.

Chapter 36

A slamming door and too many voices woke Jake. Maddox had rolled off him sometime in the night but had found his way into the crook of Jake’s neck and was snuggled tight into his body. His arm was asleep, but it was worth it.

Considering that he could hear Santiago’s loud ass as one of the voices, he figured they weren’t in any immediate danger. He rolled to his side to wake Maddox up and noted with no small amount of amusement that rubbing Maddox’s hair with a towel the night before and then rolling him all over the bed didn’t do his hair any favors. He looked like he’d lost a fight with some hedges.

“What are you laughing at this early?” Maddox mumbled from under the blanket.

“Your hair.”

Maddox ran a hand through his hair, or tried to, but it got stuck. “Ugh. Your fault.”

Jake laughed. “Oh, I know.”

“Coffee?”

“We have to get dressed. There are people downstairs.”

“More than Cricket and Santiago?”

“Yes. I’m not sure how many, but there are more.”

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