Sunny Eve

by Shayla Hyde

  Sebastian suddenly stepped outside. I hadn’t seen him in so long that I’d initially assumed he’d left. He nodded to Kaden and me as he made a beeline for Iris. I curiously gazed at him, then elbowed Kaden in the ribs.

  Kaden chuckled, “Don’t ask me. I don’t know what he’s doing.”

  Sebastian and Iris were murmuring to each other just below my hearing range, but I knew Kaden could hear them.

  “What are they saying?” I whispered sharply.

  Sebastian suddenly wrapped his arms around Iris’s shoulders, and she embraced him.

  “He’s paying his condolences,” Kaden whispered back.

  “That’s all he’s doing, right?” I raised my eyebrows at him.

  “I mean, I hope so,” he chuckled. “I told you, I don’t know.”

  Sebastian took Iris’s hand, and they stepped toward the cabin together. Iris had tears on her cheeks, but now, she was wearing a smile, as well.

  “Oh, my gosh,” I sighed, rubbing my face.

  “Don’t worry,” Kaden pulled me closer to him, “Sebastian is doing very well. He won’t do anything stupid.”

  I nodded, choosing to trust him. I glanced up at him with a soft grin.

  “What?” Kaden smiled back.

  “I’m just… happy, I guess.”

  Kaden took my hand in his and softly pressed his cool lips against my

  wrist. “Me, too,” he shrugged, “I guess.”

  I giggled, “You know what I mean.”

  Kaden’s eyes fell on my birthmark, and he reached for it, tracing it with his icy fingertips. My birthmark hadn’t acted up a single time since the battle against the Primevals. It was like the light had burned out that night.

  “I have to say… It is comforting to know that your mark isn’t going to kill me when I do this,” he leaned forward, pressing his cold lips against the flesh of my neck. He chuckled against my skin.

  “Yeah…” I agreed, “in that way, I’m glad. But…” “But what?” Kaden scanned me.

  “What if I need it again someday and it doesn’t work?” I narrowed my eyes.

  “You won’t need it again,” he shook his head. “There’s no more danger.”

  “I hope you’re right,” I sighed, staring at the ground.

  “I’m right,” he winked, “and even if I am wrong just this once, you know I wouldn’t let anything happen to you.”

  I rested my head against his shoulder, but he gently smoothed his thumb across my cheek, pulling my face closer to his.

  “It took so many decades for me to find someone like you,” he smiled, his cool breath on my lips, “but that wait was worth every second.”

  I felt the butterflies in my stomach awake and spread their wings. Kaden’s midnight blue eyes traveled to my mouth as he inched even closer, finally pressing his lips against mine.

  I’d never expected the rabbit hole I’d be thrown down after meeting Kaden Warren, but despite everything, at that moment, I was so thankful I had. I wanted to stay lost in that moment for all of infinity, or, at the very least, for the rest of my lifetime.