Zach shrugged. “They didn’t look too stressed, so I don’t think it’s apocalyptic or anything.”
Rolling his eyes, Drew said, “As long as the world isn’t ending, I guess we’re not supposed to be concerned.”
“There wasn’t a supercell full of harpies hovering over the island, and I haven’t seen any hobbits with an unhinged, anemic stalker trekking over to Mt Baker to destroy a ring, so I think it’s okay,” Zach assured him. “Besides, if the shit really hits the fan, they’ll call us in for backup.”
“I’m not complaining that they haven’t. I am totally on board with not having to be on call for end-of-times catastrophes. I’m very happy to leave that up to the experts at the Collective. One big disaster a year is enough for me, thank you very much.” And it was true. Drew may have discovered he’d inherited a strong magical ability, but no matter how much Kensington hinted that Drew was perfectly suited to join the Nightingale Collective, he wasn’t particularly interested.
Not yet at least.
Sure, in ten or twenty years he might consider it, but for now he wanted to keep his life as normal as possible. He’d finish his degree, find a job, and live life as an everyday Joe. Kind of. As much as one could when they were dating—and would hopefully be engaged to—an ex-angel, had magical lessons once a week, and knew about the existence of the paranormal.
Drew didn’t have heroic aspirations. He didn’t want to be the one who rode in at the last moment and saved the day. He just wanted a simple life. Drew knew that the cards he’d been dealt meant his life wouldn’t truly be simple, but he could mitigate the craziness to some degree, couldn’t he?
Fuck, he really hoped he could.
“Did you still want to go for a walk?” Zach asked.
“If you don’t mind.”
Zach smiled and bent down once again to give him a kiss. “Not at all. I just needed to know if I was changing into hiking clothes or pyjamas.”
Drew grinned. “Hiking clothes now, pyjamas later, and if you’re really good, nothing at all after that.”
Smirking, Zach crossed to the walk-in wardrobe, unbuttoning his shirt as he went. “I shall do my utter best to behave.”
Fight of the Feathers
There was nothing that Zachariel liked more than seeing Drew happy and content. The sunlight trickled down through the dense canopy of trees above them, making it seem like the freckles painted across his nose and cheeks were dancing. His pale blue eyes were almost dreamy beneath his mop of brown hair, and each time he looked over at Zach, he’d give him a sweet smile. He was absolutely stunning.
He was also absolutely clumsy. Tripping over a tree root that crossed the path, Drew tumbled to the ground, hitting it with a loud “oof.”
“Shit, are you okay?” Zach asked, hurrying over and pulling him to his feet.
“I think so,” Drew said.
Wanting to be sure, Zach began checking him over for injuries. He took Drew’s hands in his, checking his palms for scrapes and grazes before moving on. He winced as he saw the blood trickling down from the scratch on his knee and led Drew over to a tree stump so he could clean him up.
“Zach, I’m fine,” Drew assured him.
“You’re bleeding,” Zach argued, crouching down as he pulled a pack of wet wipes from his pocket along with a Band-Aid. He’d taken to carrying a few first-aid supplies whenever they went for a hike because it was inevitable that Drew would trip, stumble, or injure himself in some way each time.
“Not enough to require a transfusion,” he said, rolling his eyes. “It’s already stopped bleeding.”
“Just shush and let me fuss.” Zach gently cleaned the cut with a wipe and then blew on it to dry the skin. He looked up to see Drew looking at him with half fondness and half exasperation. “What?”
“Nothing. I just love you, is all.”
Zach’s heart thumped against his rib cage. After all he’d endured, he had never even dreamed he would one day be this happy. He felt his eyes crinkle as he smiled dopily up at him. “Love you too, sweetness.” He peeled the backing off the Band-Aid and covered the scratch with it, smoothing the edges to make sure it was sticking to the skin. Then he dropped a kiss to the top of it and stood up from his crouch. He held his hand out to Drew. “Shall we?”
Drew took his hand and allowed himself to be pulled to his feet, but before they could take a single step, there came the sound of furious flapping and then Drew was obscured by a wall of black feathers.
Zach’s own wings snapped out at the threat and he lunged forward to protect Drew, only to be forced back by a vicious assault from beak and feathers. What the hell was this creature? It appeared to be slightly bigger than a crow or raven, but that was all Zach could determine as he warded off a brutal beak and sharp claws.
“Zach!” Drew cried. “What the hell is happening?”
“I don’t know!” Zach bit out, hissing as he felt a claw rip the skin open on his forearm.
The bird flapped its wings once more, all of its ire seemingly directed towards Zach, and he caught sight of an eye blacker than the inside of the Devil’s ass. Then it was using its perch on Drew’s shoulder as a springboard and it launched itself at Zach, clawing and slashing. It was tiny but feral, and Zach was definitely losing this battle. The thing was too fast for him to catch, and all he could do was defend against the unprovoked attack.
