“Be a lot faster to fly,” I say. “If we push hard, we could be there by dusk.” Giving Quinn’s fingers a reassuring squeeze, I pat my chest as we descend the stairs. “We can use the carrier. Strap you to me for the ride.”
“Won’t it be difficult for you to go that far with the extra weight, though?” She sounds worried for my well-being, and it’s cute.
“You’re not that heavy.”
“Still, I’m going to slow you down and you’ll be worn out by the time we get there.”
She’s right, but what other choice do we have?
We’re walking through the large kitchen when Damon says, “She can ride my pet griffin.”
Whipping toward him, I cock my head to the side. “You don’t have a griffin.”
“Yes, I do. Had him since he was a baby.”
A cook stirring a steaming pot of soup on the stove lifts her head long enough to back up his statement, while a baker kneading bread on the butcher block countertops nods.
“How did I not know this?” I ask, thinking of all the time I’ve spent here without a clue.
Damon shrugs. “You’ve never been to my stables. Listen, Talon’s totally safe. My parents used to ride him often, and he’s never dropped anyone.”
I steal a glance at Quinn’s comically wide eyes. “What do you say?”
Swallowing hard, she looks a little pale when she squeaks, “Sure. His name is Talon and he’s never dropped anyone. Sounds great.”
Noting the sarcasm, I smirk. “At any point, if you want to ride with me, just say so.”
“And if I fall?”
“I’ll catch you, love. Always.”
Quinn melts at my words, and the affection and trust shining from her eyes is something I’ll never tire of.
“All right.” Damon claps his hands once. “Let’s go. I’ve been looking for a reason to kick Gia’s ass ever since she chopped off my hair in my sleep.”
“That happened when you were seventeen.” I follow him out the rear entrance nearest to the stables. “You’re not over it yet?”
“You know how important my hair is to me.”
I roll my eyes at Quinn, and she cups her mouth, stifling a laugh.
“I heard that,” Damon mumbles, irritated.
The guy really is touchy about his hair.
When we get outside, the air is cool but there’s hardly any wind. It’ll be a nice night to fly.
As a kid, my wings were underdeveloped and I didn’t have the strength to go far. This’ll be the first time I’ve ever seen the entire Night Realm from above. The mountains, the villages, the sprite forests.
My body hums with excitement as we stop at the stone outbuilding. “Oh, Damon, by the way… it’s great to finally see you.”
“See me?” The color drains from his face when he catches my meaning. “I knew something was different about you! Why? How?”
“Quinn,” I explain, unable to keep the pride out of my voice. “She’s more than just the girl I fell in love with. She’s my fated mate.”
“A human?” Damon seems as baffled as we were when we found out.
“Mostly human,” Quinn informs him. “Turns out, one of my ancestors got it on with a fae dude.”
Blowing out a breath, Damon rubs his jaw. “And I thought my parents were so foolish.”
I turn to Quinn. “King Silas and Queen Tehya left for the human realm about six hundred years ago in search of Damon’s mate. They were sure they’d find her there and swore they wouldn’t return until they did.”
Her lips turn down as she looks at my cousin. “That must be really hard for you, Damon. Being all alone here.”
“It is,” he agrees, opening the wooden stable door. The smell of hay and animal feces assaults my nose, but it isn’t as strong as it normally would be without my sight. “My staff is great. They’ve been loyal, but it’s not the same as having family around. I worry about my parents every day. There was no talking them out of it, but maybe they were onto something.” He gives me a hearty slap on the shoulder. “Having this guy around has been nice, even if he was a broody asshole the whole time.”
We’re interrupted by a huff, some scraping sounds, and a screech.
Quinn jumps.
Damon smiles. “That would be Talon.”
Quinn
You’d think riding on a mystical creature would be really cool.
It’s not.
I’ve been holding in a scream for hours.
Talon came by his name honestly. Each of his claws are as long as one of my arms. His beak looks like it could snap me in half with one bite. Long white-feathered wings flap in time with the fae kings on either side of me.
Kirian shouts a question at me, but it’s hard to hear it above the wind rushing past my ears. I just give him a quick thumbs up before going back to holding on for dear life. The saddle is secured to Talon’s lion-like rear end, and the fluffy brown puff on the tip of his tail occasionally whips around and smacks me on the back.
A gust of wind hits us, and the ride gets rough for a few seconds.
After this is over, I think I’m going to take a break from riding anything requiring reins.
Shutting my eyes, I try to imagine I’m on a horse, but it’s not the same. I miss the bumpy carriage, because that’s nothing compared to the turbulence up here.
It doesn’t help that I’m sore from my time with Kirian. Not sore in the sense that I’m in pain. There’s a hollow ache deep inside. A craving. I can feel that he was inside me and now he’s not. Every time I shift, it causes a twinge of yearning between my legs. Like phantom pains, but in my vagina.
A wave of exhaustion hits me, and my eyes droop. I shake my head to keep myself alert.
Adrenaline combined with the
