Chapter 233

[ 936 words ]

Emilia’s POV

Listening to Sebastian’s low voice coaxing me to sleep, something warm bloomed in my chest, not just from his body heat, but from realizing what he’d done.

He’d tracked me across the country, climbed a mountain in a blizzard, shifted to keep me warm, and now he was staying awake to watch over me.

Maybe… maybe I’d overreacted. Just a little.

“Sebastian?” I whispered.

“Hmm?”

“How did you know I came to Japan?”

“You mentioned wanting to see the Snow Diamond once, remember? Back when we were planning our trip. I upset you yesterday, so I figured, where else would a dramatic wife run off to but to chase some romantic legend?”

I wanted to be offended by the “dramatic” part, but he wasn’t wrong.

“And how did you find me up here? Those search teams couldn’t.”

His tail tightened around me possessively. “Ryder could sense Eve. The bond between mates is stronger than any mind-block, Emilia. Even when you’re trying to shut me out, I’ll always find you.”

“That’s creepy.”

“That’s love.”

I didn’t know what to say to that, so I changed the subject. “You took advantage back there, you know. Forcing your way into my mind like that.”

“I saved your life. You’re welcome, by the way.”

“Who asked you to?” I shot back. “If you’d let me freeze to death, you could’ve gotten back together with Abigail. Isn’t that what you really want anyway?”

The words came out sharper than I meant them to, and I felt his whole body tense.

“Believe it or not, I’ll drag you deeper into this cave if you bring her up again,” he growled.

“Fine,” I muttered. “I won’t say it. Doesn’t make it less true, though.”

I turned my back to him. Or tried to, since I was basically wrapped up in a wolf burrito. His head came down over me, trapping me in place.

“Emilia, listen to me. I told you I won’t leave you, and I meant it. Maybe I can’t completely let go of what happened with Abigail yet, but I’m trying. I’m trying to move forward with you. Can you at least give me some credit for that?”

I didn’t answer. I was too tired, too wrung out, and honestly too comfortable in his warm fur to keep arguing.

He kept talking, saying things I was probably meant to pay attention to, but exhaustion pulled me under. The last thing I felt was his tail settling around me, tucking me in like a blanket.

“Emilia. Emilia, wake up.”

A hand gently shook my shoulder. I blinked my eyes open and found Sebastian crouched beside me. Human Sebastian, fully dressed.

“What time is it?” I mumbled.

“Dawn. Don’t you want to see the Snow Diamond?”

The Snow Diamond! I bolted upright, regretting it at once as my stiff muscles screamed in protest. But I pushed through the pain and scrambled out of the cave, Sebastian close behind.

The snow had stopped, though a few stray flakes still drifted through the air. I picked my way carefully through the deep snow to where the sun would rise, my breath clouding in the frigid air.

Sebastian stood beside me, shaking his head, amused. “You’re really serious about this.”

“Of course I am! Do you know how rare this is?”

We waited. And waited. Snowflakes landed in my hair, melting and leaving me wet and cold all over again. Half an hour passed.

“Emilia, let’s go,” Sebastian said gently. “It’s just a legend. How can there really be Snow Diamonds?”

“There is! My classmate saw it once. Let’s wait a little longer.”

“Maybe she was hallucinating.”

I glared at him. “You’re the one who’s hallucinating!”

Another twenty minutes passed. We were both covered in snow, looking like a pair of walking snowmen, and still nothing appeared. Sebastian was clearly losing patience.

“Honey, let’s give up on this Snow Diamond hunt, okay? If you like diamonds that much, I’ll buy you a whole jewelry store tomorrow. Let’s not stand here freezing like idiots.”

“You just don’t believe in the legend, do you?” I accused.

“No, I don’t,” he admitted.

I lifted my leg and kicked him hard in the shin. “Then go down the mountain yourself! No one’s forcing you to stay!”

“If I could get down safely on my own, I wouldn’t have climbed up here last night,” he said, rubbing his leg. “If we go down, we go together. If we wait, we wait together.”

“Then stop complaining and wait patiently.”

I turned back to the sky, determination set in every line of me. I had to see it. I had to believe that Sebastian and I could last forever, no matter what reality looked like.

The morning dragged on. My stomach growled.

“Aren’t you hungry?” Sebastian asked, sounding defeated.

I shook my head, disappointment crushing my chest. “I’m not hungry.”

“You’re this disappointed just because you didn’t see what you wanted?”

“Let’s just go back,” I said quietly, turning toward the trail down.

My feet moved sluggishly, my heart even heavier. I wasn’t just sad about missing the Snow Diamond. I was scared of what it meant. In my head, that legend had turned into a symbol. If we didn’t see it together, did that mean we were doomed?

It was stupid. Irrational. But standing there in the cold, having run from my problems instead of facing them, I realized I’d been pinning all my faith on myths and legends.

“Emilia, wait.” Sebastian started to say something.

But I kept walking, my vision blurring with tears I refused to let fall.

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