Celeste felt a whirlwind of emotions before she climbed up to the roof.
Was she really going to have a heart-to-heart with Jeremy? The thought made her skin itch nervously. But as soon as she reached the roof, the noises in her mind subsided.
She stood on the edge of the roof and gazed at the vast forest that stretched to the horizon and the sun that was slowly sinking behind the trees, painting the sky with a radiant palette of orange and red hues. Wispy clouds drifted across the sky, creating a mesmerizing spectacle of shapes and colors.
For a short moment, she was lost in sight. She stepped closer to the edge of the roof, the wind tugging at her hair and clothes.
She looked to her side and found Jeremy was also staring at the land and the sky far away from them.
They sat on the eaves, leaning against the warm brick wall of the house. They enjoyed the silence and peace that enveloped them. Neither of them felt the need to say anything.
The air was fresh and crisp. Celeste could still smell the scent of barbecue on the tip of her nose and the hint of woods. The gentle breeze caressed her skin, making her feel sleepy and relaxed. She took a deep breath.
"So, when did you find out?" Her mind was a swirling whirlpool of questions, each one jostling for attention. But somehow, this question slipped out of her mouth first. She felt a slight pang of regret as the question hung in the air, wondering if it made any sense at all.
Jeremy's response was a long, thoughtful silence.
She watched as he pursed his lips and leaned back, his eyes fixed on the sky. She could see the faint outline of his jawline, the curve of his neck, and the way his hair brushed against his forehead. Then he turned his head towards her and caught her gaze at him.
A smile tugged at his lips. A bittersweet one. "Since the moment I first turned into a wolf, I've known," he said, his voice soft and low. "Specifically, when you touched my fur with your finger, I felt it in my heart."
As he spoke, she felt a strange feeling in her own heart, a fluttering that spread through her chest like a wave. She remembered last night, when Jeremy's wolf had been so close, and she had run her fingers through his fur. The sensation of running her hands through fields of wheat.
She could almost feel the softness of his fur against her skin, the warmth of his breath on her neck.
Her fingers began to itch. She couldn't resist rubbing them together, trying to recapture that feeling. But as soon as she realized what she was doing, she quickly separated her hands, feeling a little caught and guilty. She looked up at Jeremy, hoping he hadn't noticed her actions, but the man was lost in thought, staring down at his own hands.
"I see…" she whispered. So he had sensed the mate bond between them from the very beginning, as she had suspected.
"And then you ran away." The words slipped out of Celeste's mouth again before she could even think. She had been so lost in her thoughts that she didn't realize she was speaking out loud. The wind picked up, rustling the leaves. She hoped the rusting had carried away her murmurs from Jeremy's ears.
But it clearly hadn't.
"Yes, and then I ran away." His voice was barely above a whisper, but Celeste could hear the pain and regret in his words. "I'm sorry. I've cursed myself countless times, calling myself a coward, but I couldn't face you. I didn't know how to face you. Every time you came looking for me, I wanted to tell you everything, but I couldn't find the words. I couldn't even imagine looking you in the eye. Every time we got close, I felt..." He trailed off, unable to finish his sentence.
What did he feel?
She held her breath and listened to his following confession. But she waited for so long, and Jeremy still didn't finish his words.
Even so, even if Jeremy didn't speak the feeling out loud, Celeste knew what it was like deep down. She had felt it too, every time they had been close. The wolf's desire for a mate was unstoppable. It was the elephant in the room that they were both trying to avoid.
Jeremy lifted his gaze and met Celeste's stare. A hint of unease washed over his face, and he quickly looked away, fixating on his own hands. Celeste wondered what was so interesting in them when Jeremy spoke again, "Then I told myself to wait. To wait for one more day, and maybe then you'll understand what I'm feeling and I don't need to explain."
"Except I never turned into a wolf."
Jeremy stiffened for a moment before he forced himself to relax. "No, you never did. At first, I thought I could ask my wolf to hold on a little longer, but eventually, I failed. I tried to keep my wolf at bay, but I couldn't completely silence its influence on me. My wolf's hatred for me grew stronger with each passing day, until that night when the moon gave him the power to break free from my grip. I'm sorry."
"I'm sorry, too." Celeste's words of apology hung heavy in the air. She knew it was not only the moon that gave the wolf power. Her constant taunting of him also added to the weight. "I shouldn't have been there that night… I should have listened to you when you asked me to go."
Jeremy shook his head. "You didn't know, and I know you were just worried about me."
"You were able to control your wolf, and you didn't hurt me," she said, her voice gentle.
"That was just luck," Jeremy's words were laden with regret. "After that night, I couldn't bear the thought of you getting hurt because of me. So..."
"So you made sure you went a lot further this time," Celeste finished for him, her voice somehow turning out cool and distant.