Page 32 of Heavensent & Hellbent

I finally took a step forward. Then another. And another, until I was only a foot away. I could reach my hand out and touch his wings if I wanted to, if he let me.

“Can I feel them?”

His jaw clenched as he nodded.

I reached across and tentatively raised a hand to his left wing. It was surprisingly solid, the feathers soft, though the tips sharp.

The feeling that I had been here before wouldn’t leave me. I had caressed his back, had felt him shudder beneath my touch, had been bundled in his arms and carried away. The wings didn’t scare me as much as the unshakable belief that we’d been close like this before.

“This feels familiar,” I whispered.

His Adam’s apple bobbed. “I know.”

Did he really?

He was so tall that I had to crane my neck up to see his face. The intensity of his gaze made me turn away. In fact, being this close to Zain suddenly felt like too much. Conflicting emotions hit me—of being both safe and afraid, calm and on edge. I took a step back to help regain what little sense I had left.

“Do you trust me?” he asked.

Without thinking, I nodded. “Yes.”

He put his hand in the space between us, and I put mine in his. In one swift move, he wrapped me up in his arms, one of his arms underneath my legs, the other around my back. My breathing hitched at being held this close to him.

My senses were in overdrive. From the scent of him. From being pressed up against his body. I was conscious of how hard his entire frame was. Whether that was from working out and being on the football team, or because he was an angel. Either way, I melted into him.

His lips were to my ear, and I had to force myself to hold it together enough not to shiver. “Do you want to go for a ride?”

I was ordinarily risk avoidant to a fault, but my danger receptors were relaxed in this moment.Because I was with Zain.Deep down, I knew I would be safe with him.

I glanced up, our faces inches apart. Heart beats mingled. I thought I saw his eyes stray down to my lips, and then back to my eyes. I gnawed at my bottom lip, thinking, before releasing it and exhaling.

“Yeah,” I said. “Let’s go.”

His wings moved silently as they lifted us into the air. At first, when I noticed we were off the ground, I couldn’t help but shut my eyes tight. Zain moved with grace, his body gliding through the air. With eyes closed, I could believe I was still on the ground, but when I peeked my eyes open, I saw all the red rocks below us. My breath caught.

“Remember to breathe,” he said. His gaze was ahead, focusing. Then our eyes met. I nodded, no words able to form. “Can you say something?”

“No,” I whispered.

I felt the rumbles of his laughter. I felt his heart rate pick up as I nestled closer into his chest.

“Look to the left,” Zain whispered into my ear.

I did—and saw the setting sun, the sky a mixture of lilac and deep purple, with lines of bright pink and small clouds of white. A noise of wonder sounded from my lips.

“Not long now,” Zain said. He angled his body slightly downward, and his wings fluttered us down, until we were at the peakof the Red Rocks mountain. We were off the trail hikers were allowed to climb, so it was only us here.

He continued to hold me, even though we were on the ground.

“Are you okay?” he asked. “You haven’t said much.”

This time, I couldn’t help my shiver. I cleared my throat and said “Yeah,” even though I definitely didn’t mean it.

He set me down gently, and I wobbled, placing my hands on his chest to steady myself.

“Is it your head?” he asked, worry etched onto his face now.

I shook said head. “No, I’m fine.”