1
NIZUSS
“Your…your crown?”she stammered in confusion as I gazed up at her, taking in her beauty.
She looked like an avenging angel—fierce, deadly, and stunning. The backlight of the moon illuminated her dark wings, still splayed out behind her and draping onto the ground, contrasting the golden strands of her hair whipping in the wind.
I found it hard to focus on her question because none of that was important right now, especially if I didn’t make it out of this. My kin’s true secrets would be safe with me in death, so I didn’t need to subject Kieran to information that could be tortured out of her. And considering everything we’d managed to hide from the angels in Alfemir…The information would be enough to bring the Archangels to their knees in shock.
I grimaced from a mixture of the searing pain in my side and the thought of her being placed in jeopardy with that knowledge.No, I could never allow that to happen.
Her hazel eyes scanned my face, searching for answers. While I wanted her to know every facet of who I was—to open myself up to her completely—I couldn’t put that on her shoulders. Not after everything that was laid upon her with the reveal of her affinity.
The heat from Kieran’s chest radiated into my palm, grounding me in the moment with her, and my eyes fluttered shut briefly. She deserved every ounce of peace this cruel, bloody world had to offer, if it even existed. My life would only bring further chaos to hers.
She blew out a ragged breath as her body shook beneath my palm, furiously demanding, “You open your eyes right now, Niz!”
What a demanding little thing.
My chest shook with a quiet chuckle as I opened my eyes and swept my gaze over her.
If you would have told me two years ago that an angel—a fallen one at that—would be my complete undoing, I would have laughed at the delusion of the joke. There was so much history, and so many divides, between our people. Feeling a connection to Ronan was shocking enough, but to give up my life for someone who hadn’t even knownwhatI was—someone who would never be accepted by my people to be at my side—was beyond my comprehension. I was supposed to assume the crown and marry a wyvern female capable of taking on the mantle of responsibility with me. Yet here I was, willingly giving up my life for a cause that meant so much to this golden-haired fallen angel.
I couldn’t pinpoint the moment she’d coaxed my heart into the palm of her hand. Perhaps it was when I saw her failing throughout her affinity testing, yet maintaining the heart and bravery of an unyielding warrior. Or maybe it was when her eyes lit up the second they fell upon me. Whatever the case, I wouldn’t change a single moment that led us to this very one.
“Better?” I mused, wishing I could drag her down to me and kiss the scrunched skin between her eyebrows that accompanied her admonishments.
I loved seeing the fire within her. Though I didn’t know the depths of her life’s story, it was clear as day to me that someone—or multiple someones—had crushed her beneath their heel, forcing her into a mold she never actually fit. As the days passed here, I watched her begin to emerge, like a phoenix reborn.
So beautiful, brave, and beyond what any of us deserved.
She glared at me, and the crinkle at the edges of her eyes pulled a small smirk to my lips.
“How are you joking at a time like this?”
Her astonishment shouldn’t have been so adorable, but I was coming to realize that, to me, everything she did had an endearing quality wrapped within it.
It took every ounce of energy I had to lift my hand from her chest and up to her cheek. Leaning into it, Kieran cupped my hand against her skin, causing the softest smile to tug the corner of my lips up in response. I loved seeing the way she reacted to me, despite how confusing this likely was for her.
The seconds ticked by, and it felt as if the world around us fell away, leaving just us left in it. Leaving my family—my people—behind in Alfemir to follow Kieran here was a huge risk. As the crown prince, I had an obligation to my people, but the thought of her leaving without me wasn’t an option my heart could handle for even a moment.
What was a throne to sit upon if my heart remained empty?
I knew she was worth falling for.
I knew she wasmine.
Bliss.
That was the only word I could use to describe how it felt to have a moment of privacy between us. Yes, I knew I had a gaping wound running down the length of my body, and the warmth of my blood coating the entirety of my side didn’t bode well for the outcome of this for me, but still…I was able to touch her, skin-to-skin. Finally.
“Niz,” she breathed out, her eyes darting to my wound before her eyes filled with unshed tears. “I don’t know how to help you. I can’t carry you to the medical center myself, even with my increased strength from the runes Steele drew on my skin, and we’d have to cross the battlefield to get there. I…I…”
Running my thumb across her bottom lip, I cut her increasingly flustered words off, enraptured by how soft her skin was. They’d been pressed against my snout countless times, but through my scales, I hadn’t been able to fully appreciate them.
Taking a deep, staggering breath, I lifted my free hand from the ground, bringing it slowly to my nose and tapping it as I kept my gaze trained on her. “I think I deserve a snout kiss for protecting the fallen angels, don’t you?”
Surprised coated her features for a brief moment, and I was entranced by the way her mouth opened in a small gasp. If I were healed and she knew me better like this…What I wouldn’t give to plunge my finger into her mouth and feel the way she’d wrap those velvety lips around it. The way her tongue would…
