Celestial Tears

by Holly Evans

  The apartment building and Logan’s hand on my lower back pulled me away from those awful philosophical thoughts to something more solid and happy: the comfort of a good home and the potential of a bright and shining future with people I loved.

  Erin dove in the shower before Logan or I had half a chance to try and get in there. Wispy flew around the living area at top speed while emitting a high squeak that I took to be relief at being home. I couldn’t blame him, I dare say I would have shot around the room singing if I could fly. I drank an entire pitcher of lavender lemonade and finally started to feel a little more like myself again.

  "Do we need to talk, Kit?" Logan asked as he ran his thumb over my bottom lip.

  I leaned in and kissed him hard while digging my fingers into his hair. I needed him in that moment. I needed to ground myself in the security and happiness of his embrace. He was my anchor.

  "What would we need to talk about?" I asked.

  "Us," he whispered before he kissed down my throat and rolled his palms over my hips.

  Goosebumps ran over my shoulders and my breath hitched. Talking definitely wasn't on the table at that point in time.

  "We haven't admitted our feelings for each other before," Logan whispered as he ran his fingers just below the top of my shorts, his eyes meeting mine.

  "You never almost died on me before," I said impishly before I pressed myself against his hard body and bit my way down his neck.

  It wasn't the time for gentle affection.

  "Could you maybe take that to the bedroom?" Erin asked with a smile.

  "Shower?" I asked Logan.

  He picked me up, and I wrapped my legs around his waist as he carried me to the shower and I kissed down his throat drawing delightful growls from him. Needless to say, we enjoyed a very long and thorough shower before we hid in our bedroom until long into the following day.

  I loved him. It was more than that, I was madly in love with him. The idea of losing him, of living a life without him in it broke my heart. I traced small circles over Logan’s sternum as we lay tangled together on our bed quietly watching a movie about a dream-walker detective trying to track down the source of darkness that was invading the city’s consciousness. For the first time in my life, I really felt at home; everything had fallen together perfectly, and I was happy. Really happy.

  Logan ran his fingers through my hair, carefully untangling a small knot near the nape of my neck.

  “You’re my world, Kit, I don’t want to exist without you,” he whispered.

  I brushed my lips over his, savouring the contact.

  “You never need fear that,” I whispered back.

  Maybe the gods weren’t such a bad thing, not if they gave me such peace and contentment as I had in that moment.

  43

  Erin had been withdrawn and quiet during the afternoon and into the evening. Logan went out into the city with some of his friends, leaving me to try and help Erin. We put Elle Kyne on the TV and filled the table in front of us with our favourite snacks. She barely spoke. She would normally have been bubbly and talking about her favourite Elle Kyne moments and potential plots for the night's shows.

  I put my arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple, hoping to comfort her.

  "I was alone, and I couldn't do anything. I fought and fought, but I couldn't do anything. I was so sure that I was going to die on that slab," she said softly.

  "We'd never let that happen," I said.

  She turned to face me, and I ran my fingers through her soft hair.

  "I had too many regrets, too many things I still desperately want to experience," she said quietly, her eyes intense.

  I smiled. "You have plenty of time to experience them."

  She leaned in closer, and my heart caught in my throat. I could so easily fall for her, but she threatened to be my downfall. I remembered how she had reacted after we slept together. I couldn’t afford to go through that again.

  It was as though she read my thoughts. She looked away, creases formed at the corners of her eyes.

  "I'm sorry for how I reacted when we slept together. I panicked. I didn't know how I felt, I'm still not sure that I do," she whispered.

  Her lips were agonisingly close to mine, her warm breath curled against my skin. I remained still, worried that I'd frighten her and ruin the moment. Or perhaps, if I were being honest with myself, I had frozen from fear. Did I want this to happen? Things were perfect with Logan, and yet here was the possibility for something more. We had no plans on being entirely monogamous, maybe there was a sliver of a chance that this moment would be what we needed.

  Erin brushed her lips over mine, testing. I couldn't move. I was caught up in her gaze and entirely lost for the first time in my life. She'd had that effect on me from the moment I'd first laid eyes on her. I found myself torn. How would Logan react to this? His roguish grin appeared in my mind. He’d make some comment about how he’d join us for the fun. Neither of us had ever been the jealous type, but then we’d never admitted to the depth of our feelings before. My stomach twisted.

  Erin kissed me, gently at first, exploring my mouth with a tenderness I hadn't experienced before. Slowly we leaned into each other and the passion ignited. It felt so right.

  I pulled away, my heart hammering in my chest.

  "I won't run away this time," she whispered.

  I looked away and calmed myself.

  "Logan and I don't sleep with other people when we're in the same city, not unless it's a threeway," I said softly.

  I didn't want to hurt or offend her, but there was nothing in that world that was going to make me risk what I had with Logan.

  She leaned in and whispered huskily, "Then tell him to come home."

  I ran my thumb over her cheekbone and bit my bottom lip. The pain blossomed, strengthening my resolve. This wasn’t a decision to make lightly. If we took the next step, it would be far more than a night of casual sex. There was a weight there that had to be considered.

  "If this is really what you want, then we'll take our time, and do it properly," I said.

  She smiled and tucked her feet up next to her before she rested her head on my shoulder.

  "Whose ass do you think Elle Kyne's going to kick tonight?" she asked.

  And just like that, my world turned upside down. I didn’t know if she had been screwing with me, or if that was her way of acknowledging that yes, she wanted to take it slowly. She showed no further sign of trying to be intimate, things were back to as they had been. I couldn’t relax or get into the tv show, my mind kept going over the kiss again and again, looking for some clue that I’d missed.

  I told Logan what had happened the moment he got home. He took it very good-naturedly, and we decided to talk to her the next day. We couldn’t let things stay as they were. It would eat at me and turn things sour.

  Erin was out getting groceries when we got up. I had decided that that was the day I was going to get fitter so I could take whatever the gods threw at me. I’d always been fit enough, thanks to a mix of martial arts and regular climbing, but I needed to improve my stamina if we were going to keep fighting groups of Garou and such. The idea of a gym didn't appeal to me, so I was starting with a run around the largest park in the area while I considered other potential options. Logan had said he’d spar with me and help me find a sparring partner for when he was out of the city. Swimming was a good all-round exercise too. That would help me reduce my fear of water, too. I refused to be held back by fear.

  Two cats were sitting on the edge of the path in front of our building when I stepped out into the bright sunny day. They both looked at me with intelligent eyes. I couldn't tell you exactly what it was that set them apart from normal housecats, but I knew they were familiars. Something caught my attention in the corner of my eye. It took me a moment to pick out what it was. A small bundle of plant material had been carefully knotted and placed against the wall under the living room window.

  The witches were sending
a message, and I wasn’t going to take their threat lying down.

  Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it! If you’d like to read more books set in this world, check out Stolen Ink. It follows Dacian, a tattoo magician.

  If you could take a moment to write a short review, I’m sure other readers would appreciate seeing your thoughts on this book. Thanks!