STELLA
Xavier brings me to the orangery where we had our first date – his favourite rose garden. It’s warmer inside, and the view of the night sky is amazing. I get down and look up. The fireworks are so beautiful, and there are so many of them.
I don’t notice how he shifts back to his human form, and only realise that he has done so when his strong hands wrap around me from my back. He is fully naked, and the only thing that separates his body from mine, is the very thin fabric of my dress and cape. His face is buried in my hair and he says nothing. But I can feel how fast his heart beats and how intermittent his breath is. He is scared. He is scared that I am about to reject him.
I slowly turn to face him, but he is hiding his gaze away from me. Such a huge and scary creature is afrai
