Chapter 13
Shawna
Isquint at the demon in front of me and I thump my arms and thighs to warm them as he drags the wooden sled I am seated on. Is it my imagination, or has the temperature plummeted since we were out here yesterday? Not that Jak seems to be affected by it. He hasn’t even shivered once the whole time we have been out here despite being shirtless. I’m beginning to think that he doesn’t even feel the cold. His wings flap so that he skims swiftly over the ground effortlessly, though every beat of his wings makes the bells on sash jingle merrily. In result, the atmosphere is light and playful as the sled practically flies with surprising speed, which lowers the temperature even more.
“Jak, it is freezing,” I complain with a laugh. “Where are you taking me?”
“You said you wished you could see something magical of this world,” he explains, his breathing painting the cold air in intricate patterns that never fail to impress me. It is even a tiny bit creepy to see the spirals curling out to form icy floral-like patterns in the air in front of his face, but I don’t think he even notices it. “Be patient a little longer, and you will see something that you will see nowhere outside the realm of the frost demons.”
I grin back at him gamely and pull the scarf over the tip of my nose to warm it. I did say that, but the comment had beenoffered offhand and innocently when Jak asked how I wished to spend Yule Eve over breakfast. In a sense, I did ask for this, so there is no use complaining now. I just hadn’t imagined at the time that I would be dragged through the blistering cold air that has settled now that the snow has lightened to something more picturesque.
The sled veers sharply between two trees as Jak angles his body, and I barely manage to muffle my scream as the sled zips narrowly between them. I don’t think my save was quite as good as I thought, however, because Jak glances back at me with a knowing grin before snapping his wings faster, accelerating until the sled barely skims the ice and snow. My heart pounds in a confusing play of fear and excitement, and we take another corner that leads into an open field of sparkling snow beneath the wintry sunlight where the sled increasingly begins to pick up speed.
I cling to the sides of the sled, soaking in the surrounding beauty as the metal runners repeatedly lift and touch down again on the snow. Overhead, the sky fades from brilliant blue to a deeper shade of something more akin to purple as orange and pink hues paint the western horizon. Darkness creeps into the sky, and with it the first stars begin to shimmer with a vividity that I have never seen before. I feel like I am flying among the stars themselves, skimming through starlight. It is not until the first streaks of vivid magenta and peridot green streak through the dark skies that I truly allow myself to become lost in the magic and wonder. With the dome of the heavens arching overhead above the endless expanse of ice and snow, I feel one with its incredible magic.
Tipping my head back to take it all in, I smile up at the dancing night sky. Logically, I know that I am the one moving as Jak pulls me across the landscape, but I feel as if I am drifting with him in the spinning dance of those heavenly bodies.
“Jak, this is incredible!” I shout around a burst of laughter.
He responds with carefree laughter of his own. I am so startled by its sound that my eyes drop from the elaborate patterns of the heavens as if pulled by an irresistible force to the demon endlessly charging forward with every powerful beat of his wings. My grin quickly dies, the magnificence of the heavens forgotten, as my attention narrows onto him entirely. My lips part with a breath of fascination, and a shiver rushes through me as the jingling bells brush over my sensitive nerves in a new way.
I have never heard him laugh that way before. It sounds so bright and happy and I can feel my own heart quicken in my chest in response. But it is not just that. Jak himself is a beauty of the winter night. His horns seem to catch the moonlight as if they were constructed from ice crystals, causing them to gleam and shimmer with the touch of light. He stretches his wings, catching the air with such power and enthusiasm. At this moment, he doesn’t seem like an ageless spirit. Rather, he possesses such life and vitality that it makes me want to join in wholeheartedly.
Caught in the moment, I raise my arms above my head as if to embrace the heavens so that I truly feel unbound and floating, as if I’m not a mere passenger but flying with him. Jak’s grin as he glances back at me is contagious. Our mingled laughter carries over the open expanse of ice and snow, and I don’t even realize that our path is rising by small increments until we have topped an icy cliff and Jak finally comes to a halt, his pale eyes dancing as they shimmer with reflected starlight, the aurora borealis crowning him in an aethereal glow.
He is beautiful.
I don’t know what he sees when he finally turns and holds his hand out to me. He hasn’t done more than glance back at me playfully throughout this ride, but now when he truly looks at me, his eyes widen and his smile fades to a look of wonder.I blush under his scrutiny, but I take his hand and allow him to help me up from the sled. Unfortunately, my exit is not as graceful as I would have liked because I immediately slip and fall forward only to be rescued from an icy reunion with the snow by Jak’s slender, powerful arms. I mumble my thanks and brush my hand across my hot cheeks in an attempt to cool them and hide my reaction, but I am failing miserably and his eyes soften with appreciation.
Jak’s gaze drifts over me—lovingly, one might say—but then he turns me until I am facing an open valley that we crossed, the snow shimmering with the light of the stars and moon beneath the dance of the heavens. And there, at the edge of the horizon, the full moon crests and rises, larger than I have ever seen in my life. It is almost cinematic in its size and clarity, but as it climbs, massive ice crystals rising from the side of the cliff begin to vibrate and hum with some kind of invisible influence exuded.
“The pearl of the night drifts through black seas and brings life to the realm of the frost demons,” Jak whispers, his breath erotically fanning my ear, warming me with a passion that has been lurking and waiting at the edge of my consciousness. He sighs softly, longingly. “I have seen this sight thousands upon thousands of times and never has it touched my heart as it does now in this moment. And yet,” he murmurs as he slowly turns me towards him and cups my icy cheeks between his shockingly warm hands, “it cannot compare to the beauty before me and the magic contained within every moment by your side.”
“Jak,” I whisper in response, but I don’t know what I should say. Romantic words were never my strength, and yet, Jak does not seem to notice my lame reply because he strokes my jaw and the sides of my cheeks with his long fingers as he stares at me longingly.
“The ice queen rises, but lo, she has not pierced my heart with the shard of ice by her magic but has melted it completely as I bask in the warmth of her unflagging beauty.”
Is that a line? Do demons have lines they try out on unsuspecting women? Do frost demons for all their solitary nature?
No, his eyes are bright and earnest, and my heart trembles with the rise of desire and warmth that flows through my chest.
“Such warmth,” he whispers. “Blessed solstice eve, my ice queen,” he rasps before his lips touch mine and steal all of my sanity.
There, beneath the moonlight and the great expanse of the night sky, I kiss my frost demon—my little spirit of winter. I kiss him and taste magic as our lips meet and tongues brush each other and entwine. I taste hope and dreams and a thousand Christmas mornings. A content and happy sigh leaves me as he growls and draws me closer, his tail winding around me, holding me securely to him as we become lost in the pure bliss of each other with every meeting of our lips and tongues.
He eventually reluctantly breaks away, but he wears adoration on his face and bright within his eyes as he draws back and slowly turns me in his arms. Frost demon or not, his body is very warm, and his arms and wings curl around me, surrounding me in that warmth, sheltering me from the icy air, and we watch the moon together as it sails into the painted, dancing heavens.
