Raoul pulled me under the awning of the nearest cottage, pressing me against the wall to shelter me from the worst of the deluge. He turned to me, his dark hair plastered to his head, rain dripping from his chin. His amber eyes glowed with so much pride and emotion it stole my breath.
“You did it,” he said.
My heart felt ready to burst. Looking at him, at his face lit up with joy for his people and the celebration going on around us, I felt a deeper connection than I ever had while working alone. It felt like I was finally finding my place in the world.
“Wedid it,” I said.
My strength was in theory, but his was in the steady beat of his wings, the unwavering trust in his eyes, and the raw power that had kept me safe. We were much stronger together.
Maybe this was what love felt like. Not the wild, unpredictable storms my magic conjured, but this deep certainty.
He brushed wet hair from my cheek. Raindrops clung to his dark eyelashes, and his gaze held mine. He didn’t kiss me, but the look he gave me was more potent than any kiss, a vow that echoed in the deepest parts of my soul. It said partner. It said equal. It said mine.
We stood under the eave for a long time, watching asthe rain softened from a downpour to a nourishing drizzle. The air smelled of wet earth and new beginnings.
Eventually, Piper and Sebastian found us, their faces streaked with rain. She pressed a heavy cloth bag into my hands filled with loaves of bread, links of smoked sausage, and hard-rind cheese.
“We know you need to leave. This is for your journey to Silvervale.” She pulled me into a fierce, rain-soaked hug. “You are always welcome here, Your Majesty. Always.”
The title didn’t feel fake anymore. It felt earned. It felt like family. I hugged her back, full of a sense of belonging I’d never known. I wasn’t just Adele, the weather witch. I was Adele of Emberforge, and this was my home, too.
After saying goodbye, Raoul and I gathered our few things inside the cottage. Before we left, I glanced back at the solitary bed and smiled.
He took my hand as we strode to the edge of the square and gestured east. “The sneezing babies won’t wait.”
At my nod, he shifted, his dragon form shaking drops of water from his glistening scales. He lowered his head, and I rested my forehead against his scales, right between his eyes. He rumbled, a sound of contentment that vibrated through me.
I climbed onto his back, settling into place, hooking our bags and the sack with food onto a spine spike.
Ready to go solve another crisis, Your Majesty?he asked.
A laugh bubbled up in my chest, and I leaned forward, across his neck. “More than ready.”
With a powerful beat of his wings, he launched us into the sky. We soared over the valley that would soon be a gorgeous shade of green.
I was flying toward another unknown, another problem to solve, but I’d do so with Raoul.
And that changed everything.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
RAOUL
The flight to Silvervale was long, and I enjoyed every moment of it, because Adele sat on my back, pointing out how amazing flight was.
“How much farther?” she called over the wind after I’d flown for some time.
Try speaking to me in my mind like I do with you,I said.
Hesitation rippled through her body. I felt her concentrating, and I pictured her brow furrowed in that way it did when she worked through a problem.
Like this?Her mental voice came through, tinged with wonder and delight.
My heart surged in my chest. She didn’t know what it meant that we could communicate this way. Didn’t understand that this kind of bond didn’t form between just anyone. It required something deeper, something that went beyond a political arrangement or even physical attraction.
I wouldn’t tell her why yet. Not when she still thought of us as a practical partnership that might be deviating into something special. It was all still too new.
Exactly like that.I kept my tone light.See? Much easier than shouting.
