Page 60 of The Shadow of Polaris

“But now, I know why you did it. I guess you’re not as terrible as I thought.” I cracked a smile, chuckling breathlessly at the man lying next to me.

“You don’t know what that means to me, Elpis.” His voice was low as he leaned into me.

I closed my eyes, enjoying the electricity jolting through me as he brushed my lips with his.

“We should probably go find that bird,” I said through shallow breaths. He combed his fingers through the loose strands of hair framing my jawline. The slight touch of his skin against mine ignited the blood racing through my veins.

“Fuck the bird,” he said, his voice ragged.

Wrapping his arms around me, we melted into each other. Trembling hands explored one another as he lifted me on to his hips. The growing ache I felt pressed against him consumed me entirely as I untied the strands of his tunic. I needed his skin against mine, his heat against mine. The scratch of callouses set fire to my flesh as he ran his hands down my thighs. I didn’t care that the night air exposed us. I was numb to the chilled breeze licking my goose-fleshed skin.

All I could taste, all I could smell, all I could feel was him. The familiar prick of rosemary and citrus consumed me as everything burned around us. I ripped the leather lacing off his trousers as he popped the buttons from my tunic. The world hummed with voltaic tremors.

“Do you feel it too?” he asked, sliding the coarse fabric over my shoulder blades. “The energy we create together?”

“Yes,” I whispered, my voice heavy in my throat.

“Gods, the way it feels…” he said, circling the peak of my breast with his thumb. My back arched at the coolness of his touch.

“It feels ancient. Nearly savage.”

His palm followed the line of my abdomen, leaving fragments of power in its path. My breath was uneven as the surrounding gravel bounced off the earth.

“It feels like fate.” His words brushed against my ear, raising the hairs on the nape of my neck.

His fingers found my center and the ache I felt intensified, like an avalanche rolling down its mountainside, gaining momentum until it became a destructive, unstoppable force.

Just on the precipice, he slid into me, sending shockwaves of joy through my body until my toes curled against the sole of my boot. Tingles scratched at my chest. Lost in the feel of him, I couldn’t hold them back. They pumped through my veins, extending to my fingertips with a fury of power.

When I threw my head back, crying out, they unleashed from me, sending a circle of green flames across the rocky mountainside. The mountain groaned beneath us as Aryx reached his edge and spiraled along with me. Panting, I opened my eyes. Tendrils of smoke floated to the sky, rising from the singed earth around us.

“Elpis…your eyes,” Aryx said, wiping the sweat from his brow.

“What?”

“They’re… they’re glowing.” Shades of amethyst reflected off his cheekbones, illuminating the sharp curve of his face.

I leapt to my feet, rubbing my eyes until the demon within me receded back into her cage.

“I’m sorry…” I said, pulling my tunic back over my head and buttoning my trousers.

“Hey,” he said, grabbing my wrist. “It’s okay. I’m not afraid of you.”

I pulled my arm away, backing away from him.

“Look around us. Look at the destruction I created. I could’ve hurt you.”

The black singe extended until it faded into the dark horizon. His throat bobbed as he took in our surroundings. Scorched, brittle shrubs rustled in the wind.

“Elpis, look at me.” He jumped to his feet, clenching my jaw in his hands. “You don’t scare me.”

“Well, I should,” I snapped, jerking away from his hold.

Before he could protest, a deep squawk echoed across the cliff side.

“The bird,” I cried, taking off toward the sound. Aryx shook his head and sprinted after me, barely keeping up with strained legs. We raced up the peak until the ground beneath us steepened into a smooth, jagged point. At the highest ledge, resting in a nest of dead twigs and grass, sat the falcon.

Chapter 32

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