Page 18

Finn

It'd been four days since the night I had my episode, and I'd made a decision.

If I wanted to do this thing right, if I wanted to be with Levi for the rest of our lives, I had to get better. I'd allowed my past to drag me down again and again, but I couldn't let it keep doing that. Not when it meant dragging Levi down with me.

We'd spent the night together again once, and thankfully, I hadn't had a nightmare then.

I did have one the next night, and not being with Levi had made it that much worse, because I'd dreamed of his death again, and not being able to make sure he was okay had been terrifying.

I'd ended up calling him, and he'd assured me he was okay over the phone, then sent Greta to cuddle with me.

It had helped more than he could imagine, but I'd felt guilty about waking him, especially since he had work the next day .

I'd been debating with myself since, but today, I was done. I knew what I had to do.

Picking up my phone, I scrolled through my contacts until I found the one. I hadn't called this number in a while, but I hit dial before I could talk myself out of it.

The phone rang for a few seconds before a cheerful voice answered, "Dr. Celeste Griffin's office. How may I help you?"

"Ah, hello. This is Finn. Finn Presley. I was hoping to make an appointment with Dr. Griffin if they have an opening anytime soon."

"Let me check. Please stay on the line."

"Sure thing," I said, tapping my fingers on the desk as I waited. It'd been a while since I'd seen Dr. Griffin, but they had helped me out plenty before. It wasn't their fault I hadn't told them everything. They could only help so much when I wasn't letting them in.

"All right. Dr. Griffin had a cancellation tomorrow, if six p.m. works for you?"

Tomorrow was Friday, but Levi and I hadn't really made any plans yet. I could make that work.

"It does, thank you. It's been a while since my last appointment. Is their office still at the cabin?"

"Yes, same place. I've added you to their calendar."

"Thank you."

"Do you need anything else, Mr. Presley?"

"No, thank you. Have a good day."

"You too! "

The call ended, and I placed my phone on the desk, then sighed. I'd always struggled when it came to talking to Dr. Griffin, but my reasons for it had been different back then.

When I was a kid, I'd been worried they would tell the dads anything I shared with them, despite their promise not to.

At that point in my life, I'd believed adults weren't dependable.

I'd struggled to trust even Dad and Papa, and it had taken me years to feel completely at ease around them, to believe them when they told me they loved me.

Of course, it was then that I discovered what I was, and turned Papa to stone on the night of my eighteenth birthday.

That night had somehow been worse than all the time I'd spent in captivity.

I'd been terrified that it was what would finally make my dads decide to kick me out, throw me away because I wasn't good enough.

After all, my birth parents had done the same, so why shouldn't my dads?

Instead, the first thing Papa had done after turning back was hug me. Then Dad had joined the hug, and they'd both held me until I felt better. That was when I'd finally accepted my dads really loved me and would never abandon me.

I'd seen Dr. Griffin again after that, and we'd talked a little about my basilisk side, and how it felt like a separate person inside me now that it was 'awake.' I hadn't brought up my childhood then, and maybe if I had, things would be different now.

Shaking my head, I woke up my laptop, then spent a minute glaring at the spreadsheet I was supposed to be working on before getting to it.

Focusing on the data helped me push all other thoughts to the back of my mind, and I spent the next few hours blissfully lost in a world of numbers, rows, columns, formulas, and lots of data to sort and clean up.

At dinner, Dad and Papa asked me how things were going with Levi, and I shared some of the tamer details with them. They—especially Dad—were delighted by my new relationship, and I was glad they both liked Levi. He was pretty damned likeable.

"When you two are ready, we should have a clan get-together so Levi can meet everyone and officially join," Dad suggested, and I bit my tongue as I mulled over it. I knew Levi was excited to meet the clan—some more than others. Was it wrong of me to want to keep him to myself for a while longer?

The clan had a tendency of being a little...much, and I wasn't ready to share Levi with all of them. I'd already had to introduce him to my parents, my siblings, and the others. I didn't want the whole clan hogging up his time, not when I only got the weekends with him myself.

"Maybe in a few weeks," I finally said, and Dad opened his mouth, probably to protest, but Papa placed his hand over Dad's, stopping him.

"Angel, they've only been together for a short time. Let them do this at their pace, okay? Finn will tell us when he's ready for it."

I shot Papa a grateful look, and he gave me a wink, then stood up. "Come on. Help me with the dishes. "

Dad gathered the rest of the dishes, including mine, before following Papa to the sink. I watched them go, then stood up, figuring I'd go back to my room and maybe call Levi. He should be home by now.

Before I could take a step, Padfoot rushed over to me, gave a woof, then raced into the living room. I'd known him long enough to understand exactly what he wanted, and I sighed.

"Papa, I'm taking Pads out for a walk!"

"Be careful!" Papa called back, and I rolled my eyes. Mistvale had to be the safest place on the planet, yet he always said that when any of his kids went out.

I grabbed Padfoot's leash from its hook, then led him outside, breathing in the clear night air. I wondered what Levi was up to.

Levi

Gardening at night was an...interesting experience, but with work and Finn, this was the only time I could find.

My tomato plants were big enough to start bearing fruit soon, and I was excited.

I loved taking care of my plants and watching them grow.

Knowing they were healthy and growing because of my magic made me feel accomplished in a way my job didn't.

My phone rang, breaking my concentration just as I was about give a boost to some herbs that had been struggling to grow .

Dusting my hands off, I stood up, then walked over to the patio where I'd left my phone. Seeing Finn's name, I quickly answered the call, then sat down on the patio. Greta raced over to me from the garden, then climbed onto my lap, leaving dirt tracks on my pants.

"Hey, Finn," I greeted him as I shot Greta an admonishing glare she chose to ignore.

"Hey, Levi. Are you busy?"

I eyed my garden and all the plants that still needed tending, then bit back a sigh. "Not at all. What's up?"

"Just out walking Padfoot and I felt like talking to you," Finn confessed in a low voice, and I smiled.

"I'm glad you called."

"Yeah?"

"Yep. I've been thinking about you all day," I said, and he sucked in a breath. Was he blushing? I wished I could see him, touch him.

"Are you just saying that?"

"Nope. Caleb looked ready to throttle me because I kept daydreaming when I should've been working."

"You have to be careful. You could get hurt." The seriousness in his voice made me smile, but I tried not to let it show in my voice when I spoke.

"I'll be careful. I promise. What do you want to do on Saturday?"

"I don't know. I'm up for anything as long as we're together," he said, then cleared his throat .

"Are you blushing?" I asked, and he scoffed.

"No."

"You are blushing."

"Shut up."

"Admit it, and I will," I teased, and he huffed, making me wish again he was in front of me so I could kiss those pouty lips of his.

"Fine. You made me blush, okay? Are you happy now?"

"Very. And I thought we could spend the weekend at my place again. Just the two of us this time."

Finn went quiet, and I wondered if it had been a bad idea. He'd seemed to enjoy our weekend together if you ignored the nightmare and his subsequent actions.

"Or we can do something else."

"No, no. Weekend at yours sounds good."

"Yeah?"

"Yup. Oi, Pads! Stop pulling!" There was a clatter, some growling—probably Pads, but it could also be Finn.

He did that when he got annoyed—and then Finn was back, his voice a little breathless and harsh.

"Sorry about that. Pads saw a squirrel that wasn't Neya and thought he could befriend it by scaring it to death. "

"Aww, poor Padfoot. He just wants to make friends."

"Don't take his side. He made me drop my phone, and almost ruined another sweater. He's a jerk. "

Padfoot whined pitifully in the background, and I laughed. If I didn't know better, I'd think he'd understood Finn perfectly.

"Don't worry, baby. I'm always on your side," I assured him, and he went quiet. It took me a moment to realize what I'd said. "Should I stick to Gin?"

"No, I...I liked it."

I smiled, then ran my fingers through Greta's fur as I imagined the expression on Finn's face. Why hadn't we done a video call instead? It was too dark outside for the camera to catch much of Finn's expression, but it would still be better than this.

"All right. Then I'll call you that, baby."

"I should come up with a nickname for you too," he mumbled, and I chuckled.

"You don't have to, but I'm sure I'd love anything."

"Oh, really?" Finn asked in a tone that told me I might've just made the biggest mistake of my life. But because I was an idiot and halfway in love with the man, I found myself agreeing.

"Yep. You could call me Darth Vader and I'd love it."

Finn snorted, and I grinned.

"Give me some time, and I'll come up with something good."

"I have faith in you."

Finn chuckled, then sighed. "I'm almost home. I should let you go. You have work tomorrow, don't you?"

"Yeah. So do you, I'd imagine. "

"I do, but it's not a lot. I'll probably finish early."

"Can I call you once I'm home tomorrow?"

"Of course! I like talking to you," Finn said, and his earnestness made me smile. A lot of things about Finn had changed, but that stayed the same, and I was glad.

We wished each other good night, and then Finn ended the call.

I glanced down at Greta, who was happily napping, and sighed.

"Come on, my sweet familiar. Let's finish up here so you can sleep in a bed."

Greta made a grumbling sound as she stood up, then hopped off my lap.

"I know, I know. Just twenty more minutes, then we can go inside."

Together, Greta and I worked on the rest of my plants, then went inside to clean up and head to bed.

That night, I dreamed of Finn, of kissing him, holding him, making love to him. Of never letting him go.

It was the sweetest of dreams, and I woke up with a smile on my face, eager to get through the day so I could talk to him again.