Outside, the quiet and cool air was refreshing. We walked for a few minutes in comfortable silence, with her hands wrapped around my arm.

"What did you think of your first time dancing there? I mean, it's not a club or anything, but it's as close as you can get around here."

"I've never been to a club, but I had a great time; I would enjoy being anywhere with you."

She smiled, "I had fun too."

We were already getting close to her house, and I wasn't ready to say goodnight. "Do you want to stop at the park again?"

"Sure!"

We walked up the hill and straight for the swings. Sitting next to each other, I said, "I noticed earlier that Clara called me your boyfriend."

She flushed and looked away from me, "Yeah, well, you know Clara, no filter."

"Am I your boyfriend?"

"You would know if you were," she was uncomfortable but wasn't sure why.

"What would I have to do to be your boyfriend?"

She glanced at me with confusion, "What do you mean?"

I grabbed the chain on her swing and brought her closer, "I mean, I want you to be my girlfriend, but I don't know how to make that happen."

Whispering, she said, "You'd just have to ask."

"That's all?"

She nodded, and I stood to pull her to her feet in front of me. I wrapped my arms around her, "I've never been happier than I've been with you. Will you be my girlfriend?"

I thought she might say something, but she just stared. She was nervous, and that made me nervous too, "Did I say something wrong?"

She shook her head, "No."

Reaching up, she put her hands on my shoulders and leaned against me, sliding one hand behind my neck. Gentle pressure pulled my face down to hers, and I thought my heart would beat out of my chest.

I was so overwhelmed. I wasn't sure where my emotions stopped, and hers started; there was so much nervous excitement and need. She brushed her lips on mine, so softly, testing, and my breath hitched in my throat.

She looked at me from under dark lashes, then her lips were on mine again, stronger this time. With one hand on her back and one gliding up through the hair at the nape of her neck, I pressed her against me and felt her heart beating wildly.

She kissed me like I was air, and she'd been trapped underwater. I'd never felt anything as amazing as being wanted by this girl. We stayed wrapped around each other until my mind was blissfully blank, and she was the only thing I could feel.

She pulled back with a soft inhale, I loosened my hold on her, but I wasn't ready to let go. Resting my forehead against hers, I whispered, "Thank you."

She giggled, "You don't have to thank me."

"Maybe not, but I am grateful," I grinned, and she laughed.

"Does this mean I can call you my girlfriend?"

She smiled, "It definitely does." Taking my hand, she stepped back, "We should probably get going. If Mom and Mark both beat me home, Mom will have way too many questions."

The next morning I was helping Tate work in Fawn's vegetable garden when my phone beeped. It was a text from Jolie.

Jolie: Good morning!

"By the way, you're grinning like a fool; I'm guessing that's Jolie," Tate stopped to lean on his rake and look at me.

I smiled, "It is!"

"You were just with her last night. What could she have to say already?"

"She said, good morning. I'm glad she texted, I wanted to talk to her, but I didn't want to be a bother. Today is girls' day for her and her mom. They do it twice a month."

I texted her back, with Tate watching me.

Me: Good morning! I've been thinking about you since I woke up.

"What does that mean? She isn't supposed to talk to boys?"

I shook my head, "No. It's just a day they shop and have lunch, I think. Her mom works a lot; it's time for them to spend together. She said they've been doing it since she was little."

Tate went back to the weeding when my phone signaled another text.

Jolie: I was thinking about you too. Sorry, we can't hang out today.

I would like to see her, but she seemed to look forward to these days and I didn't want her to feel bad about going.

Me: That's OK. Have fun with your mom. I'll see you tomorrow.

Jolie: Maybe if we get back early enough, you could come by? :)

Her words brightened my whole day. It was exciting to know she didn't want to go without seeing me either.

Me: That would be great, but don't rush. Let me know when you get home.

Jolie: OK, I will! It'll probably be after dinner time.

Me: No problem! I'll see you later.

Slipping my phone in my pocket, I went back to raking the dirt to remove the old plants.

"Alright, you've been giddy since you stepped outside this morning. Are you going to tell me what's going on?"

Chuckling, I said, "I'm happy. Jolie wants to see me when she gets home tonight, so that's something to look forward to."

"You see her almost every day. How is that exciting?"

"Last night, we kissed. Tate, it was amazing."

He laughed, "Finally, that's great! I'm glad you're happy, but it was just a kiss. You need to make sure you're thinking all of this through."

"Just a kiss? Since I met her, I've been happier than I've ever been in my life. Just getting to talk to her, is better than any day I've ever spent back home."

I stopped talking, and tried to rein in my annoyance. Taking a deep breath I decide I might as well tell him everything. "I love her, and I think she loves me too."

He stared silently; he was worried and confused. Eventually, he said, "What does that mean? Do you want to stay here? The Queen won't let you, and if you stayed without her blessing, you could never go home again. You'd lose your magic."

"I don't know what to do. For now, I'm not going to do anything. I'll keep living here, visiting home, and spending as much time with Jolie as I can."

Tate rested his hand on my arm. I knew he was touching my skin to make sure I felt his concern. "Can you at least promise to talk to me before you make any big decisions? Please, don't change your whole life without telling me first."

"Of course not, you're my family. I won't change anything without talking to you," I smiled and he relaxed. "I plan on asking Jolie to go with me tomorrow to see Fawn at work, and then I want to bring her back here."

"Why?" Tate asked in confusion.

"Because I've been to her home many times and she's never been here. I know her friends, but she doesn't know mine. She's asked a few questions and I've been truthful, but vague. I think it's time she met you."

"I have met her."

"Yes, but she didn't know who you are to me. She knows you as the guy that leads the hikes Clara enjoys."

He laughed, "Yeah, Clara really likes me. Now, there's a girl that has her head on straight," he winked, making me laugh.

"I don't know why you flirt with all those women if you're not interested in them."

"Of course, I'm interested. I find Clara interesting." At my doubtful look he said, "What? She's fun, and she makes me laugh. OK, so I'm not really into any of them, but flirting is fun. Who doesn't like being called pretty?"

"I'd rather not be."

"Well, good, because you're not," he laughed. "Women do like it though, and they all leave happy, so no harm done."

We finished weeding the garden. "I know Fawn wants us to put the little fence up, but do you think it could wait until tomorrow morning?"

"I don't think she'd mind. Why, do you have something else you need to do?"

"I thought since Jolie will be gone most of the day, I should use this time to go home for a few hours and rest. Do you want to go?"

"Sure. I just went a few nights ago, but it wouldn't hurt to go again. I'd really rather if you didn't go by yourself. I don't trust Queen Crystal. I'm surprised she's left you alone this long."

"I'm sure I'd be fine, but I'd enjoy the company. If we're going I want to leave now, so I can be back in time to visit Jolie when she gets home."

Tate and I were sitting in the woods behind the house talking about what we'd heard at home.  He was troubled, angrily picking sticks up off the ground and breaking them into tiny pieces.

With a huff, he said, "The two courts can't be combined! We've lived separately for thousands of years for a reason. They have no respect for life! Any non-fae is a bug to them, something to be squashed at their whim.

"This is why she's made these changes. She's using them to weed out those who disagree. Too many of us won't go along with this. This is the war she's preparing for."

Resting my head back against a tree, I tried to stay calm. This was bad news for our people and our way of life, it was hard not to feed off of Tate's anger.

"There's a chance that what we heard could be wrong. Even if it's not, there are enough who oppose her to keep this from happening. The Seelie and Unseelie Courts are too different. Everyone knows that," I said, trying to calm him.

"Maybe that's why she started with small changes. No one wants to fight her over something as insignificant as limiting our travel, but it reinforces the idea that humans are unsafe. That lines up perfectly with the Unseelie's view on things. If she makes everyone afraid of humans, that's one step closer to hating them."

"What you're saying makes sense, but I can't believe our people would let this happen."

Tate shook his head, "No one has stopped her so far. Between the Seer and you, she could find all who oppose her and make sure they're no longer a problem.

"I won't help her do this to our people."

"She'll make sure you do what she wants, willingly or not."

I was livid at the thought of her using me. "That makes me think I should stay here. She can't make me do anything if she can't get to me. I'd have to be careful for a while, but once my magic was gone, she'd have no use for me."

Tate looked at me sadly, "Your magic is part of who you are; you shouldn't be so quick to give it up. Let's make that a last resort."

He stopped pacing to sit next to me. Rubbing his hands roughly over his face, he took a deep breath. I could feel him trying to quiet his temper and it helped me relax. "You shouldn't make any decisions based on today. We need to think this through."

Nodding, I said, "You're right. Since I was a child, she's been in power; things have only started changing in the last couple of years. Even if she does have something planned, it could be a very long time before anything started."

"Yes," he bumped my leg with his fist, "we'll stay vigilant, but there's no need to do anything until we know more."

We sat with our own thoughts until the sun went down. Then Tate stood, "I'm going back to the house. I think it's best if we don't say anything to the girls until we know for sure what's going on."

"Agreed, I won't say anything. I'm going to stay here for a while. Hopefully, Jolie will get home soon, and I can visit with her before she needs to sleep tonight."

Tate smiled, "Have a good time."

I leaned back on the grass, waiting for Jolie's call and enjoying the last of the days warmth.

I'm dedicating this chapter to Alwyn_Knighton !!! Romance is her favorite, and my boy finally got a kiss! 💜 Alwyn's books are all awesome. Check her out!!