“Just listen.”
She pursed her lips as her legs met the edge of the bed.
“You mean the world to me. My life, my soul, was missing you. I have you now and am not letting you go.”
Wedging his leg between hers, he closed the space between them, encouraging her onto her back.
“Rodric—”
He nipped at her lip in reprimand, cutting off her reply. “Can we agree that you will stop needlessly putting yourself in danger when there is a better, safer option? Healing or otherwise?”
Pinning her with his body and his gaze, he stared at the other half of his heart, and verbalized what he’d been coming to terms with since the first time he’d touched her, dancing under a magically lit sky. “I want everything with you, and that will only happen if you’re here for it.”
Focusing on his tie to Celina, he separated out a single emotion and sent it through the channel.
Tears welled in her beautiful sea-blue eyes. “I love you too, Rodric.”
Pressing his lips to hers, he poured all of his pent-up emotion into the kiss.
Gentle hands tunneled into his hair and stroked his neck. Soothing waves of love dancing through the bond to warm his soul and chase away the earlier fear.
Flickers of blue and gold twined together to light their connection, dancing along their bond in an endless loop. Hope enveloped his heart, filling him with a sense of rightness and belonging he never thought he’d have.
Chapter 20
Hannelore Mountain Range, Realm of Eldridge
Focusingherattentiononthe strand of Connor’s lifeforce, Celina tried to determine if it was stronger than it had been the last time she’d checked. They had decided to ride out a ways from the town, then pivot and ride in a circle throughout the day, covering a wide band of land. This was the third check she’d done since they’d started.
“I don’t think it's any stronger from this spot.” Celina sighed.
Cass chuckled as she stretched in her saddle. “You’re frustrated because we’re getting close. That’s the good kind of frustration. We’ll find him, Celina. It’s just a matter of time at this point.”
“I know you’re right, but how do you deal with this anxiousness? I’m jumping out of my skin.”
“Practice.”
Jed chortled from the traveling pouch Rodric had made for him, asking to be let down. Undoing the ties that secured its outer sides to the saddle, she let it fall open. Jed jumped out of the pouch and landed with clambering grace on the ground before scampering toward the nearest set of trees.
Unworried, she let him go, content in the routine he’d developed. He seemed extremely capable of finding them, no matter how far they traveled while he milled about in the woods. By morning, he always returned.
Rogue threw his head, restless energy pouring from him. “He’s just as frustrated as I am. Think we can run again for a bit?”
“We’ve got a ways before we hit the base of the mountain, so it’s probably a good time for it.”
Turning in her saddle, Cass whistled to get the boys’ attention and signaled that they were going to run again. Riding together a handful of strides away, Rodric and Sev acknowledged the plan with a wave.
They took off again, and Celina sat deep in the saddle and let Rogue set the pace. Weeks spent living out of saddle and watching Rodric and Zora had improved her horsemanship immensely, allowing her to open up his gait fully. He was incredibly powerful, just shy of galloping over the terrain. Green from the tree line beside them became a blur as they went. Over the next few hours, they ran and slowed in pattern until Rogue was much calmer and growing used to his new herd. After their fourth run, Celina halted Rogue, panting nearly as hard as he was. She patted his neck, murmuring to him as Cass pulled up next to her.
A predatory screech made her look up as a bird of prey circling overhead. She couldn’t tell what it was, other than large and fierce. It swooped and veered at a dizzying pace, making quick patterns in the sky.
Sev and Rodric studied the bird intently, exchanging quiet words and a very serious look as they approached.
“What’s wrong?” Cass asked.
“That bird isn’t behaving naturally. I don’t like it.” Rodric rode up very close to Celina before stopping. “Did you see how it made those sharp pivoting movements as it got close to you, then to us?”
Unease filled her, making Rogue shift in agitation beneath her. The movements had seemed odd to her, but she didn’t know much about birds.
