Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 65856 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 329(@200wpm)___ 263(@250wpm)___ 220(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 65856 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 329(@200wpm)___ 263(@250wpm)___ 220(@300wpm)
“I’m glad.”
“But me spending more time in the kitchen is not what has been preying on your mind.”
Crap. He’d known this was coming.
“Xiang mentioned Huli struck some bargain with that other fox spirit. That he promised that woman your soul.”
Xiao Dan lowered his head until his chin nearly touched his chest. He kept his eyes locked on the bun in his hands. His only reply was a soft grunt.
“You don’t care, do you?”
“No. I’m worried about Huli’s safety. What kind of trouble could he be in that he would agree to such a bargain?”
“That fox is very good at finding trouble for you,” Ming Yu murmured.
“Is that any different from Xiang or Yichen? Or even Mei Lian? They all went through restless periods and caused mischief. Besides, my soul doesn’t belong to Huli. He can promise it to whomever he wants. It doesn’t mean they’re going to get it.”
“And that is the end of you helping.” Ming Yu reached over and pulled the squished remains of a bun from Xiao Dan’s clenched fingers. “You’d think Erik was helping me. Go wash your hands.”
“Sorry, Jiejie.” He crossed to the sink and washed the bits of pork, spices, and dough from his fingers. He hadn’t even noticed he’d squeezed the bun until she was taking it away from him.
“Your soul might not belong to the huli jing, but it’s quite obvious your heart does. Have you ever told him you love him?”
Xiao Dan turned off the water, but didn’t move to face her. “Huli knows that I’m fond of him.”
Ming Yu snorted. “That wasn’t what I asked you.”
His eyes drifted to the sink as his fingers clenched the edge tight enough to make the veins on the back of his hands stand out. “No,” he muttered. “I’ve never been brave enough. Huli jing are free, unencumbered creatures that pursue the things that make them happy. Which confuses me all the more, because I’ve never been able to understand why he’s stuck close to me for so many years. I’ve never been an adventurous, free-spirited person. Not even when I was young. And Huli is so much younger than me. I’d already been a vampire for a thousand years that night I found him. I had the responsibility of the clan on my shoulders. What…what could he ever see in someone like me?”
“I think he sees the same thing we all see. You are someone who is thoughtful, caring, compassionate, and warm. You have always been someone we could turn to after our adventures away from home and we wanted to return to a safe harbor. Huli adores you for exactly who you are. No, he loves you.”
“Does he? I’m not so sure he understands what that word means. He’s not like us. Huli was never human. I don’t even know if a fox spirit is capable of love.”
And yet, that hadn’t stopped him from falling hopelessly in love with Huli. Seeing the fox spirit every evening, listening to his stories, and being the center of his world had become an addiction Xiao Dan was sure he had no hope of breaking. Even during the times Huli was being his most ridiculous or giving a rare glimpse at some of his more vicious impulses, Xiao Dan was still head over heels. His heart skipped to see the flash of those orange tails. Or as Huli shifted and Xiao Dan looked down to find those enormous eyes watching him with a greedy smile spreading across his mouth.
If he’d had to describe Huli’s feelings toward him, he’d be more inclined to describe them as an obsession. Not love.
“I doubt love is the same for any of us. It doesn’t matter if you’re human, vampire, dragon, or huli jing. Do you think Kai’s concept of love is the same as yours? The dragon has lived countless lifetimes longer than all of us, but not one of us would question his devotion to Xiang.”
“That is true.” Xiao Dan turned around to lean on the sink, his arms crossed loosely on his stomach while he watched Ming Yu steadily work her way through the dough, filling the small circles and forming them into perfect balls with gathered pleats at the top. Even though he’d largely given up food along with the rest of his clan mates years ago, the enthusiasm of Moon, Rei, and the others had won him back. He couldn’t deny that the scent of Ming Yu’s cooking would drag him to the kitchen to salivate over rich spices, fluffy buns, and delicious meat.
“Xiao Dan, you’ve known him for centuries,” Ming Yu said, her voice filling with new urgency. “Why have you waited so long? What has kept you from finally claiming him as your mate and being happy?”
“Fear.” He hated to say it out loud, but there was no other way to describe it. “I was afraid that he couldn’t actually love me. I was afraid that what Chen and Xiang were saying all these years was right and that he was just using me. What if I told him…and he laughed, proving that I’m just a stupid fool?”