2. Declan

Chapter two

Declan

I 'd made it only a few paces before turning to watch Ayden disappear into the woods.

My head swam as I replayed our words. I touched my lips and remembered Ayden's pressed against them. I could still taste the salty sweetness of his tongue, still feel the warmth of his embrace. My soul begged for me to shed my fears and chase him down, to wrap him in my arms and never let go.

We'd only been together for moments, apart for even less—and I already missed him.

What has this man done to me?

Ours had been such an unlikely journey.

Ayden, a noble and son of the most wealthy and powerful man in the country, outside the ruling council, with his fiery hair and confident swagger, was everything I despised in this world. I hated him the moment our eyes first met. I hated his cocky smirk and upturned chin. My teeth ground at how he stared down at my team, especially those who struggled to meet expectations, those who needed—and deserved—the most attention and help.

The world seemed to bend to his will, the rich boy from the fancy family with his private tutors and city mansion, his cadre of friends, and his doting mother and father. Without a day's hard work, Ayden Byrne had everything I'd ever wanted, everything I'd dreamed of since I could remember my dreams. He had it all, and he barely knew its worth.

Even his clothes formed themselves around his rounded shoulders and thick chest. Spirits, no one should look like that. It wasn't right.

I'd wanted to knock the smug look off his perfect, privileged face every time he walked into a room.

And yet, I was captivated by him, enthralled—some might say possessed.

I picked at the bark of a nearby tree, my hands and mind desperate for work, for a distraction, for anything but this turmoil welling within.

I'd never been with another man. I'd never even flirted with women. The idea of allowing another person into my life, to know me and grow close, scared me more than any danger I'd encountered in my time as a Ranger.

Two men wouldn't be outcasts. Melucia had never frowned on love. Yet, there were always those, especially in uniform, who scoffed at unions different from their own. Careers were fragile things, and one wrong word whispered in the ear of a powerful man could stall or still a future.

Aside from Keelan and Atikus, I'd never known love. The Mages had taken me in and were like family, but I didn't think that was the same as finding one person to whose heart my own would bow. I didn't even know my own heart; how was I supposed to learn and care for another's? Of course, I had read tales and heard stories, those of great loves won and lost by legends lost to time, but those were fantasies, dreams of writers or melodic tunes of bards.

No one loved that way.

No one's heart and hope were found in the gaze of another.

And even if it did exist, even if the Spirits made it possible, I didn't deserve the happiness it would bring. I didn't deserve its peace.

Until Ayden.

I tried to resist his gravity, to fight his pull. I didn't want to like him, to see him for more than his title or status. I couldn't stand that I might've made a snap judgment and cast a good man in my own bad light.

But there was no escaping the power of what I felt.

And now that everything had spilled out, that I admitted to him—and to myself—how strong my attraction was, longing replaced loathing .

I ran fingers through my unruly mop of blond, yanking in frustration as my mind warred with my heart.

The very thought of being with another man roiled my senses, turning my stomach into a simmering cauldron of angst and worry and . . . hope?

Hope felt almost as unfamiliar as desire.

This mission is too important to worry about some man , I chided myself, startled to have admitted my obsession again, if only in my thoughts.

I removed Atikus's map from the pocket inside my cloak, intent on moving forward and putting childish obsessions aside. The Mage had scrawled quickly, detailing the surrounding mountains with the skill and efficiency of a master artisan. Squinting in the dappled light of the sun through the forest canopy, I marveled at his perfect recall. Atikus had even included large boulders with unique shapes to use as landmarks, noting them in fine script on the edge of the page. My destination, a mystical gate that would supposedly transport me to the isle of Rea Utu, was drawn as a small archway with odd symbols crawling up and down each side.

I smiled, thinking of the old Mage, my adopted father. He said he hadn't visited the gate—or even the mountains—in over twenty years, yet he drew a better map than any I recalled seeing before. Its detail and accuracy likely rivaled those illustrated by the Rangers' own cartographers. I made a mental note to compare them when I returned to the headquarters, after this ridiculous mission.

"What am I supposed to do when I get there?" I muttered.

We had seen Kingdom scouts scouring the forests lining the border, possibly preparing for an assault by the armies camped beyond the mountains. Melucia's military was weak, offering little hope of defense against the might of the Kingdom's forces.

Atikus, injured from a fall in the woods, had practically begged me to take his place in seeking aid; but he'd given little guidance on how I was supposed to find the fabled Keeper and this magical Well. No one even knew if the Keeper could help. I doubted they even existed; but Atikus insisted we had to try, and I was the only person alive who could make the journey.

Me. Declan Rea. The useless, Mute Ranger.

I was the only hope for Melucia?

I was the only one who could retrieve the magic to save our people?

That was the strangest part, the part that made old resentments rise to the surface. I was the one magic had rejected, and Atikus was sure I was the only one who could run off to some mystical island, meet with a fairy-tale, holy magic person, and save the world using this secret Well?

The very thought made me laugh and shake my head .

I tossed the piece of bark I'd been tearing apart to the forest floor.

Ridiculous didn't begin to describe this mission.

If this mission had come from anyone other than Atikus, I would have sent for a doctor, sure the man who suggested it was addled.

And yet, here I was, reading the map that would lead me to the buried treasure. Somewhere, deep inside, a small boy cheered, thrilled to live out the wildest fantasy adventure of his adolescent dreams.

The man on a ridiculous mission standing in the forest holding a map squeezed his eyes shut and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Can't worry about any of that now."

I folded the map and stuffed it back into my cloak, then hefted my pack.

I'd just turned when a rustling behind spun me back around.

"Declan!" a voice hissed, somewhere between a whisper and a shout.

"Ayden?"

A heartbeat later, hair the color of a dying ember burned through the tree line. My heart leaped at the sight of Ayden—until my mind caught up, and I saw the wide-eyed, almost panicked look on his face. My whole spine tingled at that sight.

"What are you—? "

He pointed toward the direction I was about to head with the efficient urgency of a military man. "Go, now!"

We'd trained together long enough that I knew not to question that tone. I turned and raced into the foliage.

Ayden caught up to me a moment later, whispering through labored breaths, "I don't think they saw me, but there's a line moving this way, ten or more spread over a huge area."

I nodded, not slowing to look behind or respond.

We made it halfway down the mountain before slowing. Despite the chilly air, sweat soaked through the shirt glued to my back. The Academy kept us in shape, but we were both heaving by the time we halted and ducked behind a crop of boulders.

"They weren't moving fast," Ayden said. "We added a good distance between us."

"There's a cavern marked on Atikus's map. It sits about halfway to . . . to my first waypoint." I caught myself, almost mentioning the gate, the very existence of which I was sworn to take to my grave. I braced myself on the frigid stone. "I was planning to camp there tonight."

"Sounds as good as anywhere, so long as the entrance is obscured. We don't want to be trapped in a small space with Kingdom bows pointed our way."

"Let's go. We're too exposed out here." I looked back at broken branches and bent brush, an obvious trail for anyone to follow. "We should slow down, hide our tracks from here on out."

It took two eternal hours to make it to the cave. My legs throbbed from high stepping to avoid limbs or brush, aiming each step toward some rock or log or solid ground. Ayden had followed, dusting what trail we did leave with a leafy branch. He looked as worn out as I felt.

"Spirits, it gets dark in here fast," Ayden said as we stepped deeper into the cavern.

"Too bad you can't summon a fireball," I whispered, my taunt echoing off the rough stone.

"Bite me, Ranger Boy. You can't even fart magic."

"Hey! My farts are magic. Just wait. We'll be in this tiny cave and I'll light one up . . ."

That was the moment Ayden chose to light a torch I hadn't known was in his pack. The amused smirk on his lips made my heart skip a beat.

"Damn, you look good in torchlight," I said.

His face brightened.

"Can you lead us to wherever we're going so I can kiss you again?"

I blinked so rapidly I thought my eyeballs were trying to escape. No one had ever wanted to kiss me, at least, not that I'd been aware of—until our first kiss. And now this beautiful man sounded like he hadn't eaten in a week, and I was a plate of sizzling steak.

"You're cute when you blush. You know that, right? "

I turned away, scared the color burning my cheeks might set the cave on fire.

His soft chuckle filled the chamber.

We squeezed through a few tight passageways, turned right then left, then stepped another fifty yards or so before our tight confines opened into a large chamber, too large for one torch to illuminate.

"Whoa," Ayden said, his voice rising above a whisper for the first time since we'd fled the scouts. "This is either beautiful or creepy. I'm not sure which."

I ran a hand along a tooth-like structure poking down from the ceiling. Something deep within the stone glowed the color of a pale robin's egg at my touch. I scanned the area, finding hundreds more teeth-like stones dangling from above, each emitting the same hint of light.

"I vote beautiful," I said, failing to hide the wonder in my voice.

Ayden set his pack down and began walking to the far end of the cavern. Not thrilled at the prospect of being left in almost total darkness, I dropped my satchel and followed him.

"Look, a brook runs through here."

Entering the chamber from one side and spanning the full length of the far wall, clear water flowed. The scales of tiny silver fish twinkled in the torchlight.

"Doesn't look very deep, maybe knee high," Ayden remarked .

We walked the rest of the cavern's perimeter and, satisfied there were no slumbering bears or other dangers waiting to pounce, relaxed for the first time in hours. But there was one more matter to remedy.

"We should do something to disguise the entrance," Ayden said.

"Won't that make it more obvious? I mean, if we don't do a great job, it'll be like a sign swinging above an inn."

Ayden laughed. "Well, don't muck it up, then."

Now it was my turn to laugh. "Muck it up? Are you finally setting aside that snooty pedigree and adopting the common tongue?"

"I've got your common tongue."

His mouth smothered mine before I could move or think.

Suddenly, caves didn't matter. Enemy scouts were irrelevant. Even the world-saving, magical quest I was on faded into the recesses of my mind.

All I cared about were Ayden's lips.

He wedged the torch into a crack in the stone, then grabbed me with both hands and pulled me closer. My breath caught at his sudden passion.

"Ayden—"

"No talking. More kissing."

His hands dove into my hair, massaging my scalp, then pulling my head back. His lips left mine and fell to my neck, and I swear the tooth things flared brighter .

I let my hands drift to swim in his fiery hair. The world seemed to spin each time he kissed me, and I knew, for the first time in my life, what it meant to crave another person. I couldn't get enough of Ayden, couldn't feel his lips on my skin enough, couldn't press my body close enough.

There could never be enough.

"Mind if I help you out of that cloak?" Ayden asked when his mouth was somewhere near my collarbone.

"Whatever you want. I'm . . . good."

He grunted, and I was sure there was a laugh mixed with pleasure, but his fingers moved to the clasp of my cloak too quickly for me to ponder much.

A weight fell from my shoulders, then he began yanking my shirt from my trousers.

My chest throbbed as my heart swelled.

We're really doing this. Ayden's kissing me and—Spirits—taking off my clothes.

I could barely believe my own thoughts.

When his hands touched beneath my shirt that first time, something inside me trembled, like the earth murmuring before a quake. I could feel it rising, my desire, a hunger I'd never known existed, a need I'd never had to sate.

I could feel it.

It commanded me.

It consumed me .

I reached up and snapped the clasp of Ayden's cloak, sending it flying off somewhere in the darkness.

I needed to feel him, to touch his skin as he touched mine. I needed to be next to him in every way. Spirits, I needed Ayden.

My fingers fumbled, desperate for purchase, grasping his shirt and pulling it upward.

"Raise your arms," I ordered.

His fingers tensed against my sides, then he did as I asked.

A small gasp escaped his lips as his shirt flew free of his hair, hopefully landing somewhere near his cloak. I didn't care.

I stepped back.

He reached for me, but I pushed his hands away.

"Let me see you," I said, a pleading tone threading my voice.

For the first time since we'd met, a shyness entered his eyes. He fiddled with his hands as though unsure where they should go. I smiled, cupping his cheek.

"You are amazing," I breathed.

My eyes roamed his neck, across the apple that bobbed in his throat, which had been an annoyance before, a part of him that was too perfect, even for Ayden. In that moment, in that cave, it was the most beautiful thing in the world.

He shifted and reached for me again .

I grabbed his hands and pressed them to my lips.

His chest flexed with the motion, and I felt my leggings fill with excitement. The light dusting of copper hair curling around his nipples begged to be licked and chewed. His arms, though not bulky like some Rangers I knew, were corded and thick, yet lean.

"It's your turn," Ayden said, sounding tentative and unsure.

I smiled and yanked my shirt over my head, hurling it into the darkness, hoping it hadn't disturbed the fish.

"Sweet Irina," he whispered, reaching out and trailing his fingers across my chest. "How many times have I seen you shirtless? And yet, this feels like the first time I am truly seeing you."

"I know what you mean." I gave him a lopsided grin.

His hand reached up and cupped the back of my head, pulling me into him again. Our lips crashed together as our chests met for the first time. I wrapped my arms around him, squeezing him tight, willing our bodies to meld, wishing we could simply be one.

This man, this insufferable man . . .

Ayden ground his hips so the length of him brushed against me. I felt his yearning throbbing against me, pulsing with my own hunger and need.

With one hand holding my head, his other dropped to my trousers, and my whole body shivered. He gripped me through the cloth, slid his palm down and cupped .

I spasmed.

"Easy. I've got you," he whispered through kisses.

"Yeah, you do," I said.

His eyes widened, and the flames within them roared to life, an inferno of lust and desire.

He dropped to his knees so suddenly I barely had time to register his lips had left mine. The next thing I knew, my trousers were around my ankles and his tongue was teasing my shaft.

"Fuck, Ayden," echoed in the cave as his hand crawled up my abs toward my chest.

My own hands found his hair again right before he licked the tender rim of my head.

I gripped his hair like the reins of a horse.

He took my tip in his mouth, his tongue swirling and tasting.

"Oh, shit. Ayden, you need to stop or . . ."He took the length of me down his throat.

"Oh, Spirits, I don't think I can . . . shit . . . I've never . . . Ayden!"

My body jerked, and pleasure burst from me.

Ayden drank me in, bobbing his head, milking me through one wave after the next.