Elyria suddenly sobs, gasping, pressing her hand against her heart. “Are you… smiling at me right now?”
He shrugs, slowly, deliberately. “I guess I am. Because I just realized something.”
“Wh-what’s that?”
“You wouldn’t be so upset if you didn’t love me back.”
She hiccups and cries at the same time. “I… what?”
That same slow, compelling smile rests on his lips. “Come here, baby.”
“Okay,” she whispers. She climbs the last step and sloshes to him, her wet feet slapping on the stone. She’s drenched, wingless, barefoot, and completely vulnerable as she turns her face up to his.
He gently brushes her hair back from her forehead, searching her eyes before he brushes soft kisses against her cheeks and finally kisses her lips. She melts into him, their bodies drawing closer to each other.
Baelen and I take glances at each other and quietly leave them alone, heading up the pathway and out into the open where the Phoenix patiently waits for us.
Baelen grins. “No nudging necessary.”
I lean into his side, urging his arm around me as I contemplate the setting sun. “It’s too late to head back to Rath land now. Let’s stay the night here at the Residence.”
“Good,” he growls, pulling me flush against him, dropping a lingering kiss on my lips. “They have bigger beds here.”
My heart flutters and my pulse speeds up. I blush as one of the gargoyles higher up on the cliff clears his throat—a gentle reminder that we’re not alone. Baelen doesn’t seem to care, kissing me again before we approach the Phoenix.
I ask it:Can you come back for Jasper and Elyria?And bring them to the Residence?
The firebird answers:With pleasure. Then it pauses before asking,Have they finally admitted what they feel?
They have.
The firebird chuckles.It’s about time.
* * *
Llion,Liliana, and Talia are waiting for us when we reach the Residence, along with the old Priestess. I embrace each of them and marvel at how the babies have started walking in the last month. Liliana is glowing and Llion seems happier than I’ve ever seen him. To my surprise, Talia hugs me the hardest. My skin tingles with the same strange sensation I always feel when she is close by—how her deep magic is like a force around me.
“Thank you,” she says. “For saving our lives on the cliff.”
I’m surprised when all of my gargoyle friends arrive over the course of the evening: Welsian, Arlo, Iago, Roar, and Gilda, even Rhain and Carmen. Then Indira and Erit fly in with a group of strong male gargoyles who carry Reisha, Jordan, and all of my Storm Command with them. All of my ladies are here.
They tell me that Sebastian and Eli have remained behind in Rath land to help my brother continue to protect it—and that Elise is still too weak to travel, but my ladies have seen the healers and are fully recovered. They look so much better than the day before: bright-eyed, determined, all of them smiling again. Several of them give me wide-eyed blushes as they talk about the males who flew them here. Each of my ladies gave up a normal life to join my Storm Command; most of them have never had boyfriends, let alone got up close and personal with a male like they would have when they were flown here. I try to hide my smile but don’t quite succeed, ending up laughing and joking with them.
Later, Senturi makes an appearance with little Adalie who runs to the babies to hold their hands as they totter around the room.
To their credit, none of my friends seems to care that Senturi and Adalie are Sighted, speaking with them openly and welcoming them to the dinner table.
When Elyria and Jasper arrive, the gargoyles and elves welcome them too, making room for them and filling their plates with food. Nobody asks about Elyria’s wings and my heart swells to realize that race and appearance no longer matter in my kingdom.
After dinner, we sit around the glowing fire in the meeting hall and my friends take turns giving me updates about our preparedness for battle. Only Iago has a different kind of news, proudly telling me that the new home for the orphans and priestesses is half complete already.
“At first I thought I should be on the battlefront,” he says. “But Baelen Rath helped me see that building a new home for the children is just as important as the fight ahead. We have to look to our future with hope, not fear. He gave me a team of builders—gargoyles he could have easily sent to the border instead. I never would have gotten so far without them.”
“I’m grateful for your work, Iago. I can’t wait to see your progress.”
As the firelight flickers and begins to die, Senturi approaches me, dropping to a knee, his wing spikes gleaming in the light the same way they did the first time I saw him. He is very solemn. “Supreme Incorruptible,” he asks in front of everyone. “May I have permission to speak with my grandson?”
I cast a quick glance at Jasper. He is sitting with Elyria snuggled close to his side, but Senturi’s question causes a hush that grabs his attention. He raises his head from the kiss he dropped on her forehead, peering intently at the older gargoyle.
