Chapter 46: Warmth in the Dark

Chapter 46: Warmth in the Dark
Kade POV

I couldn’t sleep. I lay on my bed and stared up at the ceiling. I couldn’t stop replaying the whole thing out in my head. The cave. The stones. The words that had been spoken. And then, in the middle of all of it, was Sasha. And to top it all off, her mother, who had cast a spell on us. I groaned just as someone knocked on my bedroom door. I frowned as I pushed myself up onto my elbows.

“Come in,” I called out. I wasn’t even surprised to see Delia slip into my room. She shut the door behind her and smiled.

“I saw you earlier…you looked rough then, and you look even worse now,” she said, and I sighed.

“Thanks,”

“Let me help,” she offered. I immediately nodded. I wasn’t about to say no. Unexpectedly, sex between us was good. Filled with passion. Delia slid under the blanket and faced me. Her fingers traced my chest, slow and steady, asking before taking. I met her mouth and let the noise inside me go quiet. We moved together without rush, learning the pace that eased the tightness out of breath and bone. Heat, skin, the small sounds people make when they want to be here. It was a connection, not a war. A way to stop thinking for a while. I didn’t say a word when she climbed on top of me. I merely gripped her hips and enjoyed every second of the warmth she provided.

“So tight,” I groaned out as she moved faster and faster. Delia smirked, and it was over far too soon. She tightened even more around me as she reached her climax. I filled her a moment later. But this time, she stayed in bed. We cuddled, and I went back to staring up at the ceiling.

“Talk to me, Kade. What is going on?”

“Sasha found out about her mother tonight,” I said softly. Delia gasped in surprise. “But get this…her mother practiced magic and she placed a pair-bond spell on me and Sasha,” Delia went rigid, and then she sat up to face me.

“What?”

“Yeah, she cast a spell. Sasha and I were never mated,” I said. Delia was quiet as she stared at me.

“So…wait…huh?”

“I know, it’s a lot. I cant seem to wrap my head around it. I’m just…like, why did she do that?”

“Any ideas why she did?” she asked, but sadly, I shook my head. “I mean…this is…this is big, right?”

“Yes and no. Sasha and I aren’t together. We aren’t mates and we didn’t choose each other. Yes, the feelings were real, but the reason behind it wasn’t,”

“That’s crazy,” she said as she lay back down and cuddled against my chest. “How do you feel about it?” she then asked.

“I don’t…I’m angry about it. But the woman is dead. It’s not like I can confront her about it. Sasha said there was a way to undo it, so…I am curious to see what happens after that,” I admitted.

“What do you mean?” Delia asked.

“I still love her, Delia,” I said as I glanced down at her, and she flinched. “But what if this…like, what if when she reverses it, those feelings just disappear?”

“I don’t…know,”

“Exactly. It feels complicated because I am so sure of my feelings for her. But then…then I wonder if her mother did this to us, what else did she do? How do we even know that she is really dead? And who is her father?”

“A lot of questions and no answers,” she whispered, and I nodded in agreement. “What are you going to do if you still love her?”

“What can I do, Delia? I chose you, remember? And she is with Ronan now…there is nothing I can do. All I can do now is move forward with my life,”

“And Ronan?” she asked, and I knew what she was asking me.

“No,” I answered simply. “As much as I would like to kill my brother, I can’t do it. He is family. Blood of my blood. I could never,”

“Well, in that case, be prepared to deal with him all the time now,” she said, and I understood. Ronan was already getting on my nerves. He was everywhere. He always had to interrupt or interfere.

“Yeah, yeah,” I nodded, and then I turned to her and kissed her nose. “You love me, right?” I asked, and she blushed. “No, I’m being serious, Delia,”

“Yes, I love you, Kade,” she whispered, and my heart skipped a beat.

“Do you…what if…” I took a deep breath and tried again. “What if you and I are mates?” her eyes went wide. “What if…I mean, how do we know that when she cast that spell, she didn’t fuck things up?”

“I don’t…it’s magic, Kade. What do we really know about it?”

“Not much, I know,” I said with a nod. “But just…what if,”

“I have always been drawn to you, Kade. I fell in love with you as soon as I was old enough,” she admitted, and something inside of me warmed.

“Do you mean that?” I asked.

“I do. But you were always interested in Sasha. No matter how hard I tried to get your attention, you just…ignored me,”

“I’m sorry,” I don’t know why I suddenly felt the need to apologize to her. We weren’t even friends. “I don’t…this is just sex, Delia,” I suddenly blurted out. She stared at me, and then she made a move to leave. “Ok, no, that came out horribly wrong,” I hurriedly said as I stopped her from leaving. “I just…I have grown to care for you, Delia, and I enjoy this closeness…yes, the sex is great, but this is nice too,”

“I know you still love her, Kade. I have always known. And to be honest with you, I don’t think some reversal spell is going to change that,” she said. I thought she would leave, but then Delia settled back down.

“That doesn’t mean I won’t ever love you,” I said before I could stop myself. Hope filled her eyes, and I realized I meant it. I leaned in and kissed her deeply. Delia might not have been my first choice, but she was my only friend. Despite everything she had done since becoming Luna, she was here now. She listened. She offered advice. She wanted to be here with me, and that meant a lot.

“Thank you,” she whispered when she pulled apart.

“No, thank you,” I said. Delia made a move to leave, but I wrapped my arm around her tighter. “What? We can have sex, but we can’t sleep together?” she looked at me in surprise.

“You want me to stay?”

“Yes. Stay,” I said firmly. Delia smiled, and then she snuggled up against me. I sighed softly as I closed my eyes. My mind felt clearer now, more at ease. I knew I had her to thank for that. Tomorrow was another day, but it was also the day we would find out the truth. I wanted that reversal done. Pronto.