EVANDER
My wings ache from twelve hours of flying. The two Firested won’t be around Raine, Cloud Rift, or our portal anytime soon. But that’s the thing. I couldn’t get them to talk. They wouldn’t reach out to me at all. Just a wild chase around to the coast. Until they turned south and didn’t follow me back.
I’m not old by any means, but younger me would have loved to give chase. Now? I just wanted to get back. To make sure that Roark had taken care of her. That Raine is safe. The damn Firested dragons were hard to chase off, and I’m tired.
They know something. I can feel it. Something is coming.
But I’m over it now. The last hundred miles, I’ve been pushing myself to fly faster. And I’m hallucinating now. Because it’s like I can smell her, chamomile on the wind. I coast up and down in mountain currents.
But then I see them: Roark and Raine standing on thesouthwest side of the castle. And I push even harder until I remember the fear on Raine’s face when Kieren came after her. I slow and stop a good distance away, shifting before I hit the ground. I take off running as my feet emerge, pushing through the soft grass.
Raine runs toward me. My marks are on fire. There is no way she’s not our mate. And I want to rush through the portal and grab Kieren, make him come home. We don’t need the extra portal’s power from the realm. She’ll have the lightning the second he touches her. Am I a little jealous that I didn’t wait? That I wasn’t the third? Roark was supposed to be. Now Kieren will have the pleasure. I’m jealous. Fuck it. Having her jump into my arms and squeeze me around my neck now is worth all the jealousy I’ll have of Kieren when he touches her and her lightning happens.
“You’re alive.”
“Of course I’m alive. I couldn’t be taken down by a Firested.” Inwardly I cringe when I say it. Because that’s exactly how all of Roark’s family died.
Raine presses her lips to my cheek, and I turn my lips to hers. Take in her scent. My dragon relaxes, knowing she’s alright.
“I’m so glad,” she says.
“I’m happy to oblige by continuing to live, Raine.”
“Oh...” She wiggles out of my arms. “You must be exhausted.” Her feet hit the ground. “Do you want something to eat?”
Fuck. “Yes, I do.” My tone has dropped.
“I mean food.” Raine points to the table by the Eisstocks court.
“Have you been playing?”
“Yes, I won the last game.”
“Against Roark? That’s impressive. I don’t think I’ve everwon against the big guy before.” I take her little hand in mine and walk across the yard to the table. Leopold holds out a summer robe, and I slip it on. “Thank you.”
From a tray, I grab a glass bottle of water and finish it. Roark hands me a second. I meant to take a quick dip in the lake before I came back, but I needed to see her more than I needed to cool down or rehydrate.
I sit on the metal chair, but she’s not close enough to me. I slide back and take her hand and pull her and her chair closer. I’d rather she sat on my lap. But I lift the cloche and eat the first of what I know will be a half-dozen sandwiches.
Roark’s waiting. They both are.
“The Firested were here for a reason,” I say. “I don’t think they knew about Raine beforehand. I could be wrong. But they kept trying to circle back. Honestly, I thought they might.”
“They’re gone? But the treaty is okay?”
I smirk. “If you’re asking if they’re alive, the answer is yes.”
“That’s good,” says Raine. “I mean, it’s good that no one got hurt. You’re not hurt, are you?”
“No, I’m not hurt.” Not really. I’ll have a few bruises later where Tweedledee and Tweedledum played smoosh-the-guy-in-the-middle, but nothing my dragon can’t heal in a matter of hours. “How was the rest of your visit with your sister?”
“Good. She’ll be glad to know you’re okay.”
I eat another five sandwiches.
“Are you going to sleep?” asks Roark. “I’m taking Raine to Tecorin.”
“Tecorin?” Raine asks, her forehead furrowed.
