Wolf Bound

Chapter 19: Closer Than You Think

The loud chirping of birds in the area echoed inside the tunnels. The noises caved in around us, from the outside, where we entered through the woods. Our candle lit path was beginning to fade as we neared the other side, opening to Vincent's estate. Vincent turned his head mid-walk, his eyes meeting mine.

"You're improving," he commented.

"Am I?" I said.

"Mhm-hmm. At this rate, I think you'll be prepared to shift before the next full moon."

"Really? You think so?" I stopped and gasped. A grin settled on my lips as I beamed at him, my hands clapping together with glee. Vincent stopped, slipping the front half of his hands into his sweatpants pockets.

"I do. But that also depends on how you continue improving moving forward. We'll just have to make sure you stay focused. We don't have much time," he said.

"Awe, look at you. Are you playing nice again? Don't tell me you've gone all soft on me," I teased him. Vincent rolled his eyes, and walked forward, ignoring me.

"Hey, wait! I was kidding! Don't leave me alone here!" I yelled after him, jogging his pace.

"Lo siento, no hablo inglés," he called back.

My eyebrows knitted together, my scrunched nose following the movements. "Was that Spanish? Hey, that was Spanish! I took Spanish in high school and college, you know, you liar. It was basic Spanish but I'll have you know, I understood that perfectly well!" I scoffed.

He acted like he didn't hear me, stretching his arms above his head, and closing his eyes, while his ears twitched at my voice.

"You may have softened up, but you definitely haven't lightened up," I mumbled. He released a scoff of his own. The cocky smile, he was fighting to keep off his lips, wasn't doing him any justice though. But when he looked down, it was cleaned off his face for good.

"Watch your step." I heard his voice before I processed his words. Vincent's hand reached out for my waist. He curled me into his side, my body molding into his perfectly, while I gripped onto his arms through his trench coat. I squeaked and looked down, noticing the small hole in the floor, staring back at me.

"Oh shit, I didn't even see that," I said, relaxing. My nervous laughter soon turned into actual laughter. "U-uh, thank you. For that. Um, Vincent."

He'd saved me just in time, before the pointy end of my sneaker got caught in the hole, and I tripped on my face. Whew, I would've definitely been a goner. Cue the exaggeration.

"Don't mention it," he said. Now, his full undivided attention was on his phone. His fingers tapped away at the screen as if nothing happened here. Meanwhile, I was still recovering. And my heart had only calmed a few notches.

No matter how many times he did things like that these past few days, I still found myself overthinking it. How could he be so casual? It was like he never thought before he did—as if his actions were becoming less and less intended. At least, consciously. What kind of reflexes were those? Not normal ones, that was for sure.

I gave my cheeks a soft slap with both hands, throwing my head back and forth in a quick attempt to adjust my focus back on the objective. Walking. Needless to say, it didn't work.

My eyes traveled to Vincent's face again. I studied the calm arch in his eyebrows, and the relaxed state of his slouched shoulders. Vincent hardly slouched. At least, not around other people. His shoulders were almost always stiff with good posture.

I couldn't deny there'd been a change in Vincent's attitude towards me. I noticed it. Mariah noticed it. I was sure anyone in the group closest to him noticed it. Everyone but him. According to him, we were imagining things. But I never missed a chance to tease him about it. However, this whole week had been a rollercoaster of mind games with him.