Lyra’s magic continues to scream.
Mine splinter trying to contain them.
Cal pushes forward, heat surging.
Ahria’s frustration spikes to fury.
“ENOUGH.”
Her roar shakes through bone and scale, slamming through my chest as the world tilts violently.
For one impossible second, we’re weightless.
Lyra’s grip slips.
Then the sky flips?—
And the cold hits like a wall as the lake swallows us whole.
CHAPTER FOUR
LYRA’S POV
Warm summer night air hits as Talen hauls me from the lake, but it doesn’t help.
With my teeth chattering, my shoulders jerking in violent, uncontrollable waves, I try to drag in air that won’t go down.
So cold, I’m so fucking cold.
My skin feels like it’s being stabbed by a thousand needles, sharp and merciless yet numb all at the same time.
Clasping my hands to my lips, I try to stop the shaking. I just want to get warm and see Ezzy. I’m done with the surprises tonight.
Still, I can’t even move. A frantic rhythm pounds against my ribs, fast and uneven, and I think I’m about to faint—no, wait. Throw up.
Talen curses under his breath as he props me upright before I can fold in on myself, yanking the soaked leather jacket from my shoulders and throwing it to the ground.
But he doesn't stop there. His hands keep moving fast, hooking under my top next and dragging the wet fabric over my head, leaving me bare except for the wrap around my breasts.
“What… W–what are you doing?” I stutter, the words barely audible as I try to push him away, but another shudder rips through me and my strength gives out.
In front of me, Talen doesn’t answer. He strips off his own shirt in one fluid motion, steps in again, and wraps me close against his bare chest.
The heat hits instantly, stinging where it meets my near-frozen skin, so sharp it almost hurts. But beneath it, my lungs loosen. Relief floods in—sudden and addictive—and my body reacts before my pride can, pressing in closer.
“This is a glacial lake,” Talen says at last, voice steady despite the tremors still running through me. “Even in summer it barely gets above freezing. You weren’t under long—but it doesn’t take much.”
Pulling me closer, he mutters something over my shoulder to Ahria as she lands behind me with a heavy thud, though I barely register it. All I can focus on is Talen’s heat bleeding into me.
Minutes pass. Maybe more. Who the hell knows? And through all of it, he keeps me there, holding me until the shivering thins to faint tremors beneath my skin and feeling gradually returns to my fingers. My toes. Then finally, my jaw loosens enough to speak.
“How do you know how to swim…?” My question comes out quiet as a wave of warm blood spreads through me.
Talen wraps his arms tighter around me and drops his chin, resting it gently against my forehead. “I spent my summers on this lake. Not far from here.”
I manage to roll my eyes.Of course the Veirmonts have a lake house.
After a few more shaky inhales, my heart rate starts to settle, syncing with his. I’m still cold, the night breeze brushing over us, but no longer shaking with it.
