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32. Interlude (Pt. 2)

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You huffed as you adjusted your fur-lined leathers in the small bathroom mirror. Eris had left a note explaining that the clothes had been enchanted to fit you, but . . .

You twisted in the mirror and immediately burned up.

Your ass—

Cauldron.

Fortunately, the clothes fit you well.

Unfortunately, they fit you too well. You tugged at the long sleeve wrap, wishing it had more give around your breasts, but after a few minutes, you gave up.

You took a deep breath before opening the bedroom door. To your left was a steep staircase, so you took your time going down it. Once you got to the bottom, you lifted your gaze — and was pleasantly surprised by how homey the rest of the cottage looked. It was like a studio apartment because there were no walls. A small, cream-tiled kitchen was in front of you, and then, to your right, was a cozy living room and a fireplace.

Azriel stood by the back door, adjusting his gloves.

You were about to say something when your gaze drifted to the couch — and the blanket.

Your eyes widened. "Azriel." The male turned around, startled. "Please tell me you haven't been sleeping on that couch this whole time." He started to speak, but you approached the piece of furniture, sizing it up. "How did you—? You don't even fit on it, do you?"

Azriel laughed through his nose, looking you up and down. "Speaking of things fitting . . ."

You rolled your eyes, trying to act unbothered, but heat pooled in your gut.

"Besides," Azriel said, walking around the couch, "I didn't always sleep down here."

"Oh, really?"

"Yes." Azriel smirked, glancing behind you. "Sometimes I slept on the stairs."

You swung your left wing at his head, making him stumble back. "Azriel. You should've just . . . I mean, the bed . . ."

He gave you a teasing look, but the light in his eyes faded away a bit. "You . . . You would've freaked out. You barely recognized me sometimes."

You opened your mouth to argue but noticed that the fireplace was empty — and had gone unused. "And you didn't even light a fire?!" You groaned, turning away from him. "I feel like shit now."

"The house is warded, but I didn't want to take any chances with smoke." Azriel chuckled. "Trust me, it's fine. You were struggling. The least I could do is give you the bed. And besides, I had — fun down here."

You lowered one of your wings so you could shoot him a look over your shoulder. "Yeah. You and your layered sweaters."

Azriel smiled, but it was fleeting.

You turned back around, thinking, wringing your hands.

After you'd let the bond breathe last night, you'd felt so light, so good, and you still did. You figured that opening up to him and feeling better because of it was an instinctual reaction; he was, after all, your mate, handspun for you by the universe, and vice versa. But how long would that feeling last? And what about tomorrow?

You didn't know what tomorrow would hold for you and Azriel, but not because the world was unpredictable.

You didn't know what tomorrow would hold for you and Azriel because he was unpredictable. All you knew was that so far, giving in to him and the bond had spectacularly blown up in your face, and you didn't want a repeat of that.