Page 119 of The Light Under the Shadow Wing
I hadn’t seen our fully finished lair until now, but we’ve already been living inside the new mountain for weeks. Sybil and Stuart moved in at the same time as we did, and I took any of the Bloodwold sorcerers who wanted to follow me, just like Bale did with his. Maia, Arran, and Danica will all live here with their birds, giving mine some of their brothers and sisters to hunt and play and argue with again. Wade is staying in Drayke with his phoenixes, but I’m sure he and Brian will visit often. I’ve already commissioned wood carvings to decorate the different levels of the mountain, ones filled with life and nature and beauty that will only add to the warmth here and not hide anyone.
“This almost feels unreal.” Bale lets his big shadow wings unfold and solidify, wrapping them around all of us at once. “Like a dream.”
Even this chilly cavern feels warm in the shelter of Bale’s arms and with my birds giving off a happy, heated glow under the leathery tent of Bale’s wings. “It’s real, and I’ll love you until more stars die and others are born. We don’t need magic or the Star of Ellonrift. We have each other, and we’ll forge whatever new paths we need to—together.”
“I love you.” He cradles my head in his hands, his fingers threading through my hair. “And if our family expands one day, I promise I’ll never leave anyone out of the rose garden.”
A sudden, unexpected sob hitches in my throat. It’s not grief. It’s trust. Love. Faith in Bale and our future. “I know you won’t.” But I’m grateful that he said it. I glance at the clear mountain water. “Should we give that a try?”
Looking eager, Bale pulls his wings back inside and tips his head toward the exit, inviting our birds to find somewhere else to be for a while. They fly out with backward glances that range from satisfied to cheeky to sparklingly gleeful, leaving us alone in the chamber. Bale shifts quickly, heats the water to near boiling with firebreath, then shifts back to skin.
“You could’ve lost the clothing,” I say archly.
He chuckles. “You know it doesn’t work like that.” He starts undressing. “Hop to it, or I’m tossing you in fully clothed,” he threatens with a red-hot gaze that sizzles over me.
Grinning, I lose my clothing and carefully tuck the gifted scale into a pocket for safekeeping.
Both of us naked except for my new ring, we slip into the hot pool together. Bale hooks an arm around my waist and pulls me against him. Anticipation coursing through me, I loop my arms around his neck and my legs around his waist and kiss him deeply. Our lips and tongues brush and meld. A needy ache builds in my core. I slide against him, and we savor each other as steam rises around us, slicking our skin and dampening our hair until Bale’s curls and mine glistens.
Water gently laps at the edges of the basin, and drips echo in the background, natural music to join our heated moans. I grip Bale tighter, rolling my hips. Our kisses turn hotter, our touches more urgent. Bale’s erection nudges my belly, and I desperately crave the exquisite pressure of him between my legs and the hot wash of his blood in my mouth. Not wanting to resist and knowing I don’t have to, I lower my head and sink my fangs into the curve of his neck, taking small, suckling sips that excite us both.
Bale tilts his head back with a deep groan, his fingers digging into my backside as he rocks me against him. His erection grows impossibly harder, and his breathing turns ragged and fast. Releasing the bite, I slowly lick a drop of blood from his skin with a hot swirl of my tongue, then lift my head, my eyes meeting his.
His voice a low rasp, he says, “Every single thing of beauty in this world pales in comparison to you.” He hitches me higher against him and slides a hand toward my core. His fingers glide between my folds, stroking and teasing and making sure I’m ready for him.
I quiver in pleasure, his touch my utter weakness. “I want you, Bale.” I can’t stand another second without him inside me. If he’s the lightning strike, then I’m the thunder. We need each other to be whole.
He kisses me like there’s no end to his hunger, and I kiss him back like there’s no end to my thirst. When we join, his thrusts filling me completely as our moans echo around the chamber, I know this is my new favorite place in my new favorite home and that I could live happily here until the end of my days.
And I will.
I have everything I want and need right here in Firebird Mountain.
