Page 45 of A Storm Rises

The walls he had lowered were slowly rebuilding. His face hardening. He stepped away. “I have said too much.”

She should’ve let him walk away. She should’ve never crossed that boundary to the point of no return. But she locked her hand inside his arm. “You make me forget who I am too.” Her words came out fast and unbridled. “And you do more to me than merely take my breath away.”

His eyes took on a smoldering look. Her body trembled in reply. He wrapped his arms around her waist and tugged her closer. “What do I do to you, princess?”

She could not describe in words the passion bubbling inside of her. She could not tell him the things she longed for him to do with and to her. No words could have expressed the way he moved her. She would show him. They might never have this moment again.

“You do this to me.” She took his hand and placed it on her cheek. She closed her eyes. Her hand guided his across her mouth and then down her neck. With quick, shallow breaths, her chest heaved as the fire for him burned so deep within her she thought it might consume her. With his hand hovering over her laces, she opened her eyes. “I am yours, Mateo.”

“Are you sure?” He searched her eyes with tenderness.

She pressed his hand against her thumping heart. “Yes, I am sure.”

His lips met hers, softly at first, then harder and filled with passion. And she wanted all of it—taste, scent, sight of the one who had worked his way into her heart. His hands explored her body, and hers did the same. They had been stripped to nothing but two simple souls brought together against all odds. Nothing else existed, not a hunt, or a dragon, or a prophecy…not even time.

On that boulder, with the sun basking down on them, the water birds trilling, and the waterfall splashing, she drowned herself completely in Mateo. And they shared it all.

Their passion-fueled day stretched into the night, a symphony of shared desires and whispered promises. And when they had no more to give, they drifted into a peaceful slumber beneath the stars. But as the first rays of dawn pierced the forest canopy, their harsh reality set in.

The hunt awaited them.

“I don’t want this to end,” Avalynn moaned into his neck.

“I don’t either,” he said, tracing her silky-smooth skin as she snuggled closer.

His fingertips moved from her neck, down her back, and up again in a circular pattern. Being with her was everything, but at the same time it was terrifying. She was a Stromm. A highborn. He was a lowborn from the Sublands. What would become of them after this? He had no idea. But he was sure of one thing. Nothing would ever be the same again, but they would always have the Green Falls.

They must re-enter the hunt. They would each capture a Shadowblood without being killed. There was also the dragon to worry about. Not to mention Avalynn’s villainous High King father. What would he or his witch do when they crossed that finish line together? His stomach twisted into knots. He had no way of knowing how any of it would unfold.

He stopped his tracing motion. Avalynn glanced up at him. “What is it?”

His hand caressed her jawline. So beautiful. So brave. So strong. He could do anything with her by his side. “We must finish this thing.”

She leaned in and kissed his lips. “Let’s do it.”

They dressed in a hurry, climbed down their boulder, and joined the Enbarr. Once again on the magical beast, they snuggled in for the journey back to the hunt. They raced with the wind, the fresh air enveloping them as they dashed toward the cave. Her arms were wrapped around his waist. The pair of them melded and rode the regal horse as one. Her touch had new meaning. They spoke no words. Everything had been said on that boulder.

Mateo’s memory turned to Rhyka in the carriage ride to Stromm Palace. She warned him that she had foreseen that he and the hunter from House Stromm would be linked in the hunt. She had threaded her fingers and folded them into a joined fist and spoke the prophetic words, “Two destinies tied, making one future.” Now he knew what she meant. Her premonition had come true. His future would always be tied to Avalynn Stromm. The Green Falls ensured that. Now all they needed to do was survive the hunt, and step over that finish line together.

In what seemed like no time, they arrived back at the cave. Stormshroud circled them, jumping and wagging her tail. Avalynn slipped off the horse, knelt, and rubbed Stormy behind the ears. The wolf replied with a thick lick across her face that nearly toppled her. “I missed you too, girl.”

Mateo crossed his arms. “What about me?” Stormshroud lifted herself up on her hind legs and placed her paws on his shoulders. “So, you do remember me.” All was not lost with his trusty wolf.

Leaving them, Avalynn approached the Enbarr. She rested her head against its front flank and stroked its gleaming white and silver mane. “Thank you for helping me.”

The majestic beast snorted and sauntered into the trees with a flick of its long tail.

Time to focus. Mateo turned his attention to the new mission. With the sun already dipping, the bright blue expanse morphed into muted purples. He did not mean to leave the Green Falls so late, and now they were running low on daylight. But there was still plenty of time to prepare if they hurried.

“We need weapons.” He spotted the makeshift spears they had whittled earlier. He kept one and gave Avalynn two.

She tightened her hands around the wood. “I have an idea.” Her gaze remained distant.

“What is it” Anything she offered would have been welcomed.

She circled the cave’s mouth. “Master Kragar prepared me for the prey beforehand, as you know.” She flashed him an apologetic look. “He showed me how the Shadowbloods disappear. I had never seen such a thing and wondered how such a creature could be hunted.” She stopped circling and faced him. “He claimed he had told me the answer already, but I never figured it out.”

“A clue…” Mateo raised his eyebrows. He nodded, and his voice grew louder. “The madman gave you a clue.”

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