Page 21 of Selkie AU: Beyond the Storm

After lunch, he let me have more “cookies” and “snacks” too. And whenever he tried to take them off me, I could just pout mylips and flutter my eyelashes, and he’d give in and let me have some more. It was awesome.

Then I needed some seal time, and Rowan built the fire up again so I could have a lovely nap in my nest, all toasty and warm.

When I woke up, he was sitting on the big soft chair behind me, something in his hands.

“What’s that?” I projected my voice at him, testing to see if he could hear me in this form. He wasn’t a selkie, but maybe if my goddess wanted him to be my mate, she’d also let him hear me. He didn’t react, and I only felt slightly disappointed by that. I peeled off my coat. “What’s that?” I asked again.

His eyes flickered to me. “It’s a book.”

“What’s a book?”

“A story.”

He was holding a story in his hands? Humans really were amazing.

“Can I see?” I asked, and he handed me the book.

I opened it, but it didn’t make any sense to me. There were just weird patterns inside.

“Selkies don’t read, huh? I guess that makes sense.”

I handed it back to him. “Will you tell it to me?”

He huffed. “You want me to read the book to you?”

I nodded quickly.

He hesitated. “I don’t really have a good reading voice.”

“Please?” I pouted, and he sighed again before nodding.

The story was about a chaotic witch and a more serious but equally lovely alpha werewolf. I’d asked Rowan what those were, and he explained to me they weren’t real, just a myth, but he’d also thought selkies were a myth before meeting me, so I liked to believe they were real too. The people in the story reminded me of us, so when it became obvious to me that they were going to be mates, I loved it even more.

I frowned as he closed the book before the story was over.

“Why did you stop?” I asked.

The very edge of Rowan’s lips curved up in a faint smile. “Because I have to make us dinner now.”

As if he’d been speaking directly to my stomach, it grumbled. Even though I’d eaten more food these last two days than I normally would have in like ten back home, I’d still never get enough of human food. Especially when Rowan made it.

Being his mate probably meant I was going to get a lot thicker, but I quickly decided that was an acceptable outcome.

“Can I help?”

He pondered that for a moment before firmly nodding once.

I stood, planning to rush ahead of him into the kitchen, only for my foot to get tangled in one of my blankets, and my heart skipped as my body toppled.

A strong arm shot out in front of me as Rowan caught me before I could fall. His hand was so large and warm, my pulse kicked up for a whole new reason. Sparks seemed to echo over my whole body when he touched me.

Then it was gone, and a very pink Rowan set me to my feet before briskly walking away. Hehadto have felt it too.

If just having his hand on my chest for so brief a moment made me feel so warm, I wondered what it would feel like to have him touch other parts of me.

It was a thought that distracted me a little as Rowan tried to show me how to cut the vegetables into nice, neat little pieces. When he demonstrated, I was fixated on the way his veins and tendons moved in his strong hands.

Then the food was in the pan over the fire, and there wasn’t much to do but wait for it. It already smelled amazing, but nothing could ever smell as amazing as Rowan.