Page 78 of Miles's Pact
I eyed him for a moment, taking in the harried expression on his face. I could hear his heart racing in his chest, and his hand felt clammy against mine. I couldn't force him through more rooms, not when he was this scared.
"I can see them anytime, Miles. I'll come back with Mateo later. I should've done this with him in the first place. I'm sorry."
Miles shook his head, giving me a soft look. "I said yes. I didn't realize how terrifying it would be. I have to give Cam and Mateo props for this. They brought this place to life."
"That is true. Come on—let's get out of here."
"Mateo will give me so much shit for wimping out," he grumbled, and I rolled my eyes at him.
"You're not wimping out. You don't have to prove anything to anyone, and I'll deal with Mateo if he says anything," I said, and a soft smile spread across his lips.
"Yeah? You'll protect my honor?" he teased, and I leaned over to press a soft kiss on his lips.
"Of course I will. You're mine, aren't you?"
"I am."
His heartbeat was much calmer now, and I smiled, turning my attention to the hallway and eyeing the long corridor. "The exit has to be somewhere at the end of the hallway, right?"
"I guess so. Then again, this place feels a lot bigger on the inside, so who knows. They must've asked Dad or Rhiannon for help."
Mateo had told me a little about how they'd designed the whole place, and I'd found it fascinating how many people had helped just because. They didn't want money or credit. They didit simply because Cam—that was, a member of the clan—was building this place. I'd never belonged to a community like this before, but I was excited to be a part of it now.
"Does this hallway feel a little weird to you? How long have we been walking?" Miles asked, and as I opened my mouth to agree, an exit sign flickered to life above a door a few feet down the hallway that hadn't been visible until now.
"Well..." I trailed off, waving toward it, and Miles shook his head, squeezing my hand tighter.
We pushed through the door, but instead of coming out of the house, we found ourselves in another damn hallway.
"Fuck!" Miles exclaimed, pushing into me as a vine reached out of the wall to caress his cheek. Another grabbed at my leg, and I jerked away, almost tripping Miles.
"Run!" he demanded, and we raced down the hallway, dodging vines and hands that reached out of the wall. We took a right, then a left, but the hallway was never-ending.
"Wait, what's that?" I panted as I spotted a flicker of something white move around another bend. We raced after it, and I sucked in a breath when I finally spotted it. It was a unicorn. Or at least, the illusion of one, since I knew it wasn't Alden. This unicorn had a complete horn, unlike Alden's broken one.
It glanced at us, then threw its head back, and we followed after it. It led us through a couple more hallways before stopping in front of a door and stepping aside.
Miles looked uneasy as I slowly opened the door, then exhaled in relief as fresh air blew in.
"Finally," he exclaimed, and I glanced back at the unicorn, who dipped its head at me before trotting off.
We stepped outside, and the door slammed shut behind us with a bang, making Miles jump.
"I amneverdoing that again," he declared as we walked down the steps, and I paused, turning to pull him into my arms.
"Thank you for saying yes despite your fears. I enjoyed doing this with you."
"I didn't hate every moment of it because it was with you."
I laughed because I knew he was being completely honest.
"I'm happy I made you hate it a little less. Can I try to kiss it better?"
Miles smiled, then nodded, and I leaned down, pressing my lips against his. I kissed him, brushing my lips against his in a gentle caress as I ran my palm up and down his back.
Slowly, the last of the tension seeped out of him, and he sank into me as his fear dissolved completely.
Pulling back, I cupped his face between my palms, and pressed a kiss on his forehead.
