Chapter 9

CHAPTER9

Sera

The bare treesclawed at the fading December twilight as I hurried up the forlorn forest path, my boots echoing on frosty stones. The note from Rhys had been cryptic, requesting I meet him in the old cloister ruins nestled deep in these misty hills. His invitation set my nerves on edge even as it quickened my pulse. We had barely spoken since the ball announcement, both of us unsure about how to navigate the growing attraction simmering below the surface. Perhaps tonight would bring clarity.

At last, the crumbling structure emerged, a weathered sentinel against the night’s encroaching darkness. I slipped through the creaking oak door, my breath pluming in the chilled interior. Muffled flames flickered at the top of a narrow spiral staircase winding into shadows. Rhys was here, and he was waiting.

My hand trailed along the worn rail, each step ratcheting up the butterflies in my stomach. What would I find at the top? The warped wooden door groaned softly as I eased it open. Instant warmth spilled out to envelop me. I blinked, eyes adjusting to the firelit circular chamber within.

This was an old stone watchtower, the soaring ceiling lost to darkness overhead. Narrow windows gazed out over the slumbering forest, the icy stars above it mirrored brightly within. Heavy beams divided the space, adorned with iron lanterns that lent a cozy glow to the sparse furnishings. An old sofa, a table set with crystal and silver... this place held Rhys’ stamp all over it.

My gaze fell at last to the hearth, flames dancing merrily across weathered bricks. And there lounged Rhys himself, though not as I’d met him last time. Tonight he wore the form that had first saved me from the falling gargoyle so many nights ago.

I drank in the striking vision he presented, his chiseled features gilded by firelight. Dark curling horns swept back from his temples, the strong line of his jaw contrasting elegantly with the sensual fullness of his lips, now curled slightly in a smile meant only for me. Rhys was gorgeous in his human form, but as a gargoyle he was devastating—his raw physicality stealing the breath from my lungs.

“You came.” His voice was a satisfied rumble as he unfolded smoothly from the floor to cross the room in long, easy strides. My heart stuttered as he took both my hands in his formidable clawed ones.

His sole touch shot a thrill through my core and between my legs. “Of course,” I managed, my heart beating wildly in my chest. Clearing my throat, I gestured to the lavish dinner arranged on crystal and silver. “Quite the spread you’ve prepared.”

Sensing my unease, in a swirl of efficient motion, Rhys transferred our meal to the lush Aubusson rug by the fireplace, instantly creating a cozy picnic, sheltered from the cold seeping through ancient stones. Tension eased from my frame as we chatted and laughed through dinner, guards lowered in the firelit haven.

Afterward, pleasantly full, I sank onto the worn velvet sofa while Rhys retrieved a bottle of amber liquid. “Brandy, to ward off the chill?” He conjured a dancing flame in his palm with casual elegance, and I sighed, mesmerized by his mastery over the element. Rhys’ crooked grin told me my admiration pleased him.

Settling beside me, he shyly mentioned a new bard band he’d discovered. He drew out his phone and offered me an earbud so we could listen together. I scooted closer, all too aware of him as we shared the headphones. His earthy scent enveloped me, mixing dizzyingly with the wine and brandy. I fought the urge to run my fingers along his stony arm, battling my body’s traitorous instincts.

The haunting music washed over me, perfectly suiting this bewitching boy who so consumed my thoughts. I glanced up to find Rhys watching me intently, eyes burning with mirrored longing. He slowly lifted a hand to cup my cheek, talons whisper-soft against my skin. I shivered, lost in fathomless obsidian pools.

“You are so beautiful,” he rasped fervently.

My lips parted, breath coming faster. We hovered on the brink of something dangerous and irresistible.

“Everything I need is right here in your eyes,” he murmured, his smoldering gaze tracing my features as though committing them to memory.

His words wrapped around me like a warm caress, kindling an exhilarating fire in my core. I leaned into his touch, soaking in his warmth and silently inviting more.

“Rhys...” His name escaped me like a plea. “I can’t keep pretending there’s nothing between us.”

His heated gaze dropped to my mouth. “I too am done with pretenses,” he agreed, voice rough with barely leashed desire. His hand slid to my nape, and he began drawing me inexorably closer. My eyelids fluttered shut in anticipation.

As our lips finally met, the world around us melted away. It was just him and me, lost in each other’s embrace. Rhys’ kiss was gentle at first, a soft exploration that sent shivers down my spine. But soon his kiss became more urgent, his tongue sweeping into my mouth, teasing and tasting every inch.

His tail came up to curl possessively around my thigh, pressing me tighter to him. I moaned into his kiss, my hands finding their way to his hair, pulling him closer. Rhys’ elemental magic sparked to life, the flames behind us roaring higher as his passion grew. His hands roamed my body, pulling me tighter against him, until there was no space left between us.

His kiss left me dizzy and breathless. Rhys’ raw masculinity was overwhelming, and I surrendered completely to his ravishing attentions, body and soul. We tumbled together onto the couch in a blur of seeking hands and fevered caresses.

Rhys wrapped his arms and wings around me, cocooning us together, while his ridged tail stroked molten paths along my bare skin.

Abruptly, we broke apart, gasping for air. He pressed his forehead against mine, his breath hot against my skin. “I’ve wanted this for so long,” he murmured. I could feel his heart racing, matching my own.

“Oh, gods...” I whispered back, still lost in the haze of desire. “Me too.”

The fire cast Rhys’ sharp features in flickering shadow, amplifying the burning intensity of his eyes as they bore into mine. The tower room fell away, the world narrowing to just the two of us perched on the precipice of irrevocable change.

When he leaned closer, my lungs froze, afraid to shatter the moment. Then Rhys closed the last distance, and the touch of his mouth on mine was like striking a match. Fire consumed us both, racing through my veins to ignite every cell in my body. I came alive in his strong arms, returning the kiss with equal fervor.

The rest of the world ceased to exist. In this enchanted tower, nothing mattered but his tender lips claiming mine, his firm hands memorizing every curve and contour of my pliant body. I gave myself over fully to sensation and him.

Distantly, I marveled that anything could feel so fated and yet set the world spinning wildly off-kilter all at once. I carded my fingers through his ebony hair, traced the sharp angles of his cheekbones, learning him anew. A low rumble reverberated through his chest as he slid an arm around my waist, hauling me tighter against him. We clung together, lost in breathless discovery…

A sharp crack jerked us violently back to reality. Rhys’ head snapped up, body tensing to shield mine. Before I could react, leathery tendrils exploded from between the ancient floorboards, coiling around us with lightning speed. I cried out, struggling as they cinched tighter, thorns digging into my arms.

With a roar, Rhys ripped free of his binds and blasted our assailant with infernal flames. The thing recoiled—a nightmarish plant with lethal thorny vines and a will of its own.

“Snarevine!” Rhys warned me. A plant, rare and deadly, that bound its prey in a relentless, compressing hold. As we watched in horror, its singed tendrils withdrew, only to plunge into the tower floorboards again and begin sucking the aged wood back into itself like fuel.

The entire tower shuddered, timbers cracking as the ravenous creature fortified itself. Rhys tried incinerating it again, but only ignited debris as the thing retreated deeper into the framework. We had minutes at most before its integrity failed completely.

Grabbing my hand, Rhys pulled me towards the open window, unfurling his mighty wings. “Hold on!” he shouted over the chaos. I wrapped my arms around his neck and he leapt into the open air, powerful strokes carrying us up and away from the crumbling tower.

For a breath, it seemed we would escape the snarevine’s deadly grasp. Then leathery tendrils burst through the window frame, slashing towards us with uncanny speed. Rhys twisted in midair, shielding my body with his own as the barbed vines sought purchase. We plummeted, the extra weight plunging us downwards.

At the last second, Rhys wrenched us sideways, crashing through an ancient stained glass window into the open stairwell. We tumbled to the landing in a rain of shattered colored glass. The snarevine screeched in fury at our escape, trapped outside the tower walls.

Rhys hauled me to my feet, eyes blazing. “The stairs—RUN!” We flew down the steps two at a time, the quaking tower raining dust and stone. But the twisting vines were never far behind, smashing through walls in pursuit, their rage unnervingly personal.

We were forced to halt halfway down when a choked hallway blocked our escape route. Whirling, Rhys pushed me behind him and summoned a shield of blazing blue flame to hold back the oncoming tendrils. The first thorns ricocheted off the mystical barrier with screams and sparks.

“I’ll hold it off, you go!” Rhys shouted over the chaos. Around us, the tower shuddered violently, raining dust from the precarious ceiling. Escape was narrowing to a pinpoint—I had to act now or perish.

But I would not leave Rhys to this fate alone. Gripping his arm, I added my magic to his, weaving a hasty protection spell into the burning shield. His eyes widened in surprise, then shining gratitude. Side by side, we poured all our energy into bolstering our elemental shield as the snarevine thrashed against it.

With a bone-rattling jolt, the ruined floor beneath us collapsed, sending us plunging down in a cascade of rubble towards the unforgiving stone foundations. The impact drove the breath from my lungs, filling my vision with black spots.

As I clung to fading consciousness, the vines were breaking through at last, the shield extinguished. Its quickened thorny tendrils descended towards where I lay helpless in the wreckage. This was the end.

But with his last ounce of strength, Rhys flung himself over my broken body, wings spread to shield me from the killing blow as the tower ruins rained down around us. I screamed his name, voice raw and shattered. My world narrowed to the boy who’d sacrificed everything for the sake of my own undeserving life. Rhys’ name became a prayer, then a desperate sob.

Miraculously, as the last stones settled, weak sunlight pierced the swirling dust—the eastern wall had collapsed completely, leaving us exposed but alive. The snarevine thrashed wildly back from the dawning light now flooding its lair. With the grim rising sun came salvation.

Ignoring the screaming agony of my battered body, I crawled desperately to where Rhys lay unmoving beside me. His wings were crushed, his proud horns snapped halfway, but he was blessedly solid and real beneath my hands.

“Rhys! Rhys, please!” I wept, cradling his limp form. I pressed a fervent kiss to his slack mouth, pouring all my fear and despair into it, willing him to open his beautiful eyes again. “Please come back to me. Don’t leave before I can even tell you...” My chest hitched on a sob. Tell you that I love you.

“Please, Rhys!” Tears pooled in my eyes, as I blamed myself for being just a second-year student of sorcery. My basic knowledge of magic could never save him—I didn’t even know if I had it in me to complete such a daunting spell.

For an eternity, there was only silence. Then a shuddering inhale lifted his chest, the first sweet gasp of life. Relief crashed through me, leaving me dizzy. Rhys’ dark gaze slowly focused on mine again, wonder dawning on his ravaged face.

“My brave little one,” he rasped, wiping a smudge of dirt from my cheek with a trembling hand. “I thought I’d lost you.”

Joyful tears streamed down my face as I cradled him close, his solid presence again the only thing tethering me to sanity. “Never,” I swore fiercely. Through dire battles and collapsing towers, we would find our way back to one another’s arms. Of that, I had never been more certain.

The weakened snarevine hissed and snapped its frustration, unable to reach us in the protective sunlight. We had survived this brush with death, but grim work awaited driving out the lingering darkness.

“Gods, it hurts!” Wincing, Rhys shifted to brace me as we limped slowly into the shining dawn.

The light illuminated a path forward, winding but navigable. Hand in hand, breath mingling, we left the sorrows of the night behind and walked steadfastly onward into the day.