Yeah, I mean … it had to be that. Right? What else had changed in the last few days? My eyes locked on Xander and I felt that pull inside of me, urging me forward. There was a bond between us. It had been there from the start, only cementing when we had sex. I wondered if that was helping me stay grounded, the same way his scent did because it was like my ocean.
If that was the case, what would happen to me when we had to part ways? I couldn’t live without the water. I knew that without a doubt. But I was starting to fear I might not be able to live without Xander either.
19
The flight was fast. Still, by the time the captain announced that we were starting to descend and that they would be searching for a secure location to hide the aircraft, my butt was numb.
Jiggling on the spot, I bit my lip. Xander chuckled and my head shot up. “We’ll be on the ground in about two minutes,” he told me, his smile tearing at my insides. I managed to smile back, even though I was about as far from happy as it was possible to be.
Xander had barely taken his eyes off me the entire flight and I’d sucked up every moment of his attention, craving it, because he filled an empty part inside of me. I’d always thought it was because of my colder nature, being more fish-like. But I could see now it was a space in my soul for Xander.
A space he’d never get a chance to truly fill.
Before I could grow even more pathetic, we hit some turbulence and the entire plane shook and rattled. My insides squeezed together, like my stomach was going to burst out of my body, and I gripped my armrests tightly. I had to close my eyes. I felt the panic rising; this was no time to freak out. Why the hell did people fly when it was so damn dangerous? We were hurtling toward the ground at like forty billion miles an hour, and if for some reason the pilot didn’t land it properly, we were all going to die.
It was a huge risk, seriously!
Warm hands gripped my face, and my eyes flew open instantly. “Xander!” I gasped, instinctively reaching for his forearms so I could hold on to him. “Get back to your seat, this is way too dangerous.”
Xander looked relaxed, even though his eyes were blazing at me. “You underestimate me, Avalon. Nothing can take me down.”
I had to snort out some laughter, even though I was still terrified he was about to be torn in half by the force of us landing. “Your arrogance knows no bounds. How did you even fit your head inside the door to this plane?”
He winked at me. “Arrogance is a human trait. I’m confident.”
I hated to disagree with him; arrogance was definitely a trait Daelighters had in spades. Although, I supposed there was a fine line between arrogance and confidence.
“Hold on,” the pilot announced, before the speaker cut off.
I tightened my grip on Xander, and he pressed in closer to me, like he was shielding me with his own body. “If you get hurt trying to protect me, I am going to kill you,” I warned him, pulling him even closer to me.
He buried his face into my neck, and my head went light and fuzzy. “Thank you,” I heard him whisper. “Thank you for showing me that there is more to Royale than what we are told to be.”
Don’t cry.For fuck’s sake, this guy was destroying me. How could this feeling be so painful and yet also so addictive?
I’d never loved anyone before, I knew that for a fact. Attraction and love were not the same thing. Usually one night was enough to get the attraction part out of my system. But Xander … no time would be long enough. No amount of sex would be enough to lessen my want for him.
The plane’s rattling cut off then, and for a second I wondered if we had landed and I’d missed it in all my Xander musing. No … it still felt like we were descending.
“They descended fast, but they’ll land silently,” Lexen said, from the other side of Emma. “Because we’re now in stealth mode.”
It was all so black ops. For a moment I wondered how the hell this was my life.
Xander leaned back a little; his gaze turned toward the front of the aircraft. “We’re almost down,” he whispered.
I understood why he was whispering; the lights were dimming and there was an air of secrecy washing over the cabin. Laous had his eyes open, and he looked focused. The bitch at his side was whispering something, but he just stared forward, determination in his gaze. Rao’s head was down, and his eyes appeared to be closed. I wasn’t sure if he was sleeping, or if he was just trying to escape reality.
When I couldn’t bear to witness any more of his grief, I turned away, only to find Daniel wearing the same expression, his eyes locked on his brother. Callie was stroking his arm over and over in an attempt to keep him calm. I wondered if Daniel had been like that for the entire flight. I hadn’t noticed, but I’d dozed on and off for parts and missed a lot.
The lights flickered out completely then, and Xander quickly unbuckled the front clasp on my harness, pulling me to my feet. “Stay close,” he whispered.
I did as I was told because there were only a few little lights up high, visibility was almost zero, and I wasn’t keen on being stuck in a dark cabin with Laous. He was all mild and calm right now, but I’d heard the stories. That man was dead on the inside. He’d killed people. He’d kidnapped my friends. He wanted to steal a powerful stone that was keeping my world alive so he could use it for his own personal power and gain.
I fought against the urge to turn around and take my chances at getting in one good throat punch. Seriously. I’d feel so much better. Xander captured my hand before I could put that plan into action, drawing me closer as if he sensed my sudden violent intentions. When we reached the exit, the pilot slid the door open, his face appearing in the half light from the moonlit land outside. He held a finger to his lips, urging us to be quiet, before he leaned in close. “I’ve dropped you a few hundred yards from your coordinates. We have word that there are locals living close by, but if you stay under the radar, you should be fine.”
He stepped back and let us leave. I glanced to the sky quickly, wondering if the other aircraft was closing in on us. Knowing backup was on the way, even if we had to do this next bit on our own, did help stem some of the icy nerves in my gut.
Lexen and Emma were first down the stairs. Laous brought up the rear … well, Rao was the actual last, his head still lowered as he followed silently.
