He shook his head and frowned. “We’re not fully mated. And I’m a bear. I’m not going to give you or get an STD.”
“What?”
“We’re fated mates, Sage. We can’t get pregnant without the mating mark. And that’s not what we’re doing tonight. If and when we decide to go there, there are herbs you can take for that. Or birth control. STDs aren’t spread among my kind. I can’t get you sick, and you can’t hurt me.”
I blinked. “That’s nice to know,” I said and then nearly swallowed my tongue as he slowly pulled himself out of his pants. He was thick, his cock wide and long, and I had a feeling I wouldn’t be able to even wrap my hand around him.
I reached out and slowly played with the droplet of moisture at the tip of his dick. “Um, Rome. I’m not sure that’s going to fit,” I said.
“I’m pretty sure we can make it work,” he said as he slowly leaned over me and captured my lips again. The head of his cock played with my folds, and I groaned, letting my legs fall to the sides. “Don’t worry. I’ll be gentle.”
I looked up at him then and only thought of Rome, nothing else. I wasn’t the same person I had been before. Someone I would never be again. I was here, and this was now, and it was who I needed to be.
It might be magic, or it might be something I didn’t understand fully just yet. Regardless, it didn’t matter. Because this was the place I wanted to be right now, the person I wanted to be with. As he slowly entered me, I met his gaze and let my lips part, needing to say his name, wanting to say something. But I couldn’t. All I could do was hold onto him and know that this was the beginning. The start of everything. He slowly slid deep inside me, my body stretching to accommodate him. He was thick and pulsating, nearly ready to come just like I was. Then his mouth was on mine, and he kissed me softly, his hands on my breasts before they tangled with mine as he slowly thrust in and out of me, treating me with such tender care that I almost cried. But I didn’t. Not yet. I simply let myself fall. After so long of being scared to do more than just be, I let myself fall. I let myself be with him.
He kissed me, over and over again, his body filling mine. I looked up to see the bear in his eyes, the anchor on his body looking at me, all of us one. The water rose from the pond, my magic sustaining it as it twinkled under the lights from the forest. I knew this was now. This was who I needed to be. When I needed to be. This was forever. This was what I wanted, what I needed. And when Rome came, roaring my name, I saw his fangs elongate. My eyes widened, and he shook his head and lowered his brow. “Sage,” he growled, and my fingernails dug into his back. I nearly tilted my head, almost let him bite me. Let him mark me. But this wasn’t the time. Not yet. As we came together under the sky, surrounded by the forest that was his, and the water that was mine, I knew it was inevitable. We were inevitable. I would fall in love with Rome, and nothing would stop me—not my past, not my future, and not the magic running through my veins.
He fell to the side, bringing me with him, his hardness still deep within me. I sighed, needing more.
Needing everything.
Soon, we would figure out who Faith was and what the darkness wanted. But I was here now, a witch, part of something more than I had ever been before.
The veil of uncertainty that had been wrapped around me for my entire life was gone. I was here.
I was a witch. I had power. And soon, I would be Rome’s.
All the choices I had made. Choices I would make. They were forever mine.
Chapter Fourteen
Sage
“Sage, darling, will you work on this for me?” Aunt Penelope asked as she handed over an herb packet, as well as a vase of water.
I frowned and looked at it. “What do you need me to do?”
“It’s a housewarming spell. I like to re-up it every month for this reading room. I’ll add the flowers to it, new cuts whenever the blooms start to fade, and it’ll be nice for whoever needs to sit in here and find comfort.”
“Oh, I know this spell.” I smiled as the magic within me rose.
She nodded and patted my hand. “It’s a spell that I can do, so I’m sure you’ll thrive with it. Maybe only add a pinch of the herbs rather than the whole sachet like I do since you have more power than I do.”
It was so odd to hear her speak of that. My mother had no power, and yet I was told I had so much. I felt it, too. Yet if I could share some with my aunt, I would try.
I shook my head. “Are you sure? Maybe I should ask Rowen.”
“Rowen wrote instructions right on that little scroll of paper attached to it. And knowing Rowen, she probably wrote instructions for you specifically.” I laughed at that and unrolled the tiny scroll attached to the sachet.
Penelope, use the packet. A little pinch for Sage. She knows what she’s doing. And good luck for hearth and home.
She had written out the spell, and I nodded, memorizing it.
“Okay, I can do this. I feel like I’m helping.”
Aunt Penelope stopped what she was doing and looked at me before cupping my face. “You, my darling niece, always know what you’re doing.”
I sighed. “That doesn’t seem to be the case all the time.”
“You seem to know what you’re doing with learning the magic, becoming part of the town, and learning to be a witch.”
“True, but I don’t know everything.”
“Maybe we should talk about a certain bear you should invite over for dinner.”
I blushed. “Aunt Penelope.”
“What? Your mother isn’t here. She can’t get on your case about the very handsome man.”
“I wouldn’t be able to tell Mom about everything.”
My aunt frowned. “No, my sister wouldn’t be allowed to know everything. It’s understandable.”
“She must know some, right? I mean, she kept her maiden name even after she married Dad.”
My aunt smiled. “Because she still believed in some things when she was younger and married your father. I think that memory faded away over time. Our family keeps our maiden names so the Prince line stays strong.”
I frowned. “But I changed my name when I got married.”
“You did, but you are strong. And the Prince family still lives in you.”
“Did I harm us by not knowing? I should have known at least some of this.”
“Your mother wanted to keep you safe. And then she didn’t remember what Ravenwood was at all.”
“Sometimes, I feel like it hindered me.”
“There was a reason she kept you in the dark. There’s a reason she doesn’t remember much from Ravenwood. Once you leave the town, memories fade. And, honestly, I think that’s on purpose.”
“I don’t know how I feel about that.”
“We’re all learning, darling. About who we are, and who we need to be.”
“And yet I feel like I’m making a mistake. That I’m missing something.”
“You are still figuring out who you are and who you need to be. And, yes, you may be taking things a little slow with a certain bear in our lives, but I trust Rome. And I like the idea of him for you.”