“Coming!”
I dart to catch up with him and spin around to take in the beauty of the castle (rib-cage-like flying buttresses, all that jazz) as Feylin leads me through another part, where we reach a set of doors that exit onto the back lawn.
Ryals is there with a fae who holds the falcon. He hands the bird off to the boy, who sends it up into the air. The falcon banks to one side and then returns to land on Ryals’s arm, taking the piece of meat he offers.
“That is so cool. Can you teach me?”
Surprise flashes in Feylin’s eyes. “You’d rather learn falconing than magic?”
“I’d rather have fun.”
He smirks. “I’ll show you.”
Ryals smiles widely when we approach. “Addie, did you see what he did?”
“I did. You’re so good at this, and look, I have something for you.”
“What is it?”
I hand him the book. “It’sTreasure Island.I picked it out just for you. It’s full of pirates and adventure.”
His gaze skims the cover before he grins up at me. “I can’t wait to read it.”
“You can start now,” Feylin tells him. “Addison wants to learn to falcon.”
“Don’t try to teach him not to eat mice,” Ryals warns as Feylin takes a huge leather glove from the fae in attendance.
“Eat mice?” I quirk a brow. “What’s that about?”
“Just something we’ve been working on.” Feylin hands me the glove, and I slip it on. It’s a lot heavier than it looks, and if I have to hold my arm up too long, I’ll be aching. “Now hold your arm like so.”
He demonstrates and I mimic the pose. Or at least I think so.
“Not like that. Like this.” And without warning he slides his hand down my arm and adjusts my stance. Then he presses his knee to the inside of my thigh and gently pushes my legs wider.
Well. I didn’t expect that to be the first time Feylin was between my legs.
Lust pools in my stomach; my mouth dries to a desert and my breath hitches.
“Sorry,” he murmurs in my ear as his fingers trail over my arm before taking up residence back at his side. His words might be an apology, but his eyes are dark with want.
He shakes his head and inhales sharply. “Now, this is what you do.”
He explains everything, standing beside me as the falcon’s placed on my arm. He watches me like a hawk, his gaze never leaving mine as he tells me when to lift the bird into the air.
The falcon’s heavy, and its eyes glitter like he’s searching for his next meal. Like any good predator would, I guess.
Feylin directs my attention back to him, and I listen intently to his instructions.
He’s a great teacher, nodding and encouraging me as the falcon takes flight, soaring high in the sky and banking before coming back around to land.
The king hands me a strip of meat, and I lift it, waving myarms like I’m an aircraft marshal. “Come on in! It’s safe to land!”
Ryals laughs and Feylin’s eyes glimmer with humor. “Usually we do things a bit more subtly.”
He slips the gauntlet from my hand and slides it on his just before the bird alights on his forearm. The falcon swallows the meat he offers in one bite, and then Feylin places the blinder on the bird’s head. He makes it all look so easy.
I cock my head. “Just had to show off, didn’t you?”
