Page 20 of Luca

His eyes snapped to mine, wide in mortification. “That was not what I meant, sweetheart. Only that I’ve been hankering to make this journey again since our last visit, as it fills me with a sense of peace. The more I distance myself from the palace, the easier I breathe, and these mountains, much like the Veil between our worlds, signify the final barrier I must cross before I can fully appreciate that feeling of freedom. That was all.”

I nodded in understanding. “Yeah, it’s like the last thing standing in your way, and being on that cusp gives you the high before either relief or disappointment. You’re almost there, but not quite, so it’s exciting but could all still be taken away.”

“Precisely.”

I slotted my hand into his, giving it a loving squeeze. “Then let’s not waste any more time.”

With a nod, Cair brought my fingers to his lips and brushed a kiss over the knuckles before letting go and stepping back. He flexed his shoulders and his wings erupted through the detachable panel in the back of his shirt, the wind they whipped up almost knocking me off my feet. The sun shone through each translucent web, casting rainbow shadows on the ground. They fluttered, and I swore I heard them tinkle like diamonds.

“May I fetch the swathing garment from your pack?”

I nodded, and he moved behind me, unclipping the buckle on my backpack before reaching in to grab what he needed. He closed it up before shifting in front of me again.

“Now, I would prefer to carry you with your face to my chest. It is more secure, especially with your pack, and it will be less taxing on your body.” Yeah, having to fight against the velocity to keep my head back didn’t sound too pleasant. Plus, my legs dangling for an hour would no doubt lead to major pins and needles—a sensation Icould notstand. “But if you’d rather have a full view of the landscape, we can find a comfortable way to turn you around.”

“Face to chest is fine,” I said. “That’s what we did last time, and I could still see enough. I trust you not to drop me, but being able to hug you makes me feel safer.”

He nodded. “Then prepare yourself, and we’ll get you strapped in.”

What he really meant was “pick your wedgie now because you won’t be able to at thirteen thousand feet,” but he was too posh to say it. It was an important preflight ritual:pull pants out of crack, make sure socks haven’t ridden down, tuck in loose fabric, and adjust pack straps until they no longer dig in. There was nothing worse than being fixed in one position when all you could focus on was your shirt slowly bunching up your back and starting to tickle. It made time go slower somehow. Or maybe that was just me.

With a “done” gesture, I straightened up. “Ready.”

Cair gave me an incredulous, slightly amused look. “Your laces are untied.”

“Oh.” I crouched down to take care of that before standing again. “Okay, ready.”

Cair smiled fondly and stepped forward, crouching to my height. “Arms around my neck, little one.” I obeyed and he lifted me in his arms, guiding my legs around his waist so my ankles crossed behind his back. He wrapped the sheet of cloth around my ass and backpack like a swaddle, around and around, before tying the ends at his back, under his wings. He patted me down, making sure I was fully covered. “Do you feel secure?”

I gave a little wriggle, content that I only budged a fraction. “Yeah. Snug as a bug.”

He made a pleased sound in his throat. “I would tell you to keep the squirming to a minimum, but that would be futile.”Rude. “You can move your arms if you wish, but I’d feel better if you kept them around my neck. I have you, and I won’t let go for an instant, so don’t be afraid.”

I craned my neck to kiss his chin. “I’m not afraid.”

He responded with a gentle brush of his fingers through my hair. “I’ll increase elevation at a steady pace to avoid overwhelming your senses. In case you don’t remember from last time, since you’re not fully Fae, you will feel some discomfort when we reach the crest, but it will be brief. Once we’re over I can bring us down much quicker.”

I recalled that feeling. The strain to catch a breath, the mild disorientation, the popping in my ears. It was unpleasant, but as he said, it would be gone as soon as we began the drop back to solid ground.

It was worth it for the thrill of being as high as the birds, and seeing the world from the best point of view.

“Okay,” I said. That seemed to be all he needed as he braced a hand at the back of my head, the other splayed over my back, before bending his knees. His wings beat against the wind, and between one blink and the next we were shooting into the air.

I screwed my eyes shut against the initial shock and the plunge in my stomach, keeping my face smooshed between my mate’s pecs until we evened out and began to soar. Cair let go of my head once we were a quarter of the way up, enveloping me in his arms as he seemed to drift too close to the mountain face, but I trusted his judgment. There was no reason for me to do otherwise—he would never dream of causing me harm, and he’d done this a million times before. All I had to do was relax in his embrace and watch the trees get smaller and smaller as we rose up and up.

The incline was steep, but we weren’t rushing it. It barely felt like we were moving at all, hovering just below the halfway mark. It was only the scenery that proved we were clearing any distance. Between each flap of Cair’s wings, I spotted a stream running down the cracks in the rocks. It was in my direct line of sight for all of ten seconds before I couldn’t even strain my neck to see it. There were rows of pines that I thought I’d imagined with how they flitted past in my peripheral vision, and the pathway snaking around the shallowest part of the mountain was merely a piece of string by the time I registered what it even was.

There wasn’t much else to see, not yet, not until we reached the other side, so I admired my mate instead. The sheer power in his frame, the concentration on his face, and the billow of his white hair against the backdrop of the cloudless sky. I was entranced by the pale, slightly blue tinge to his skin under the glow of the Otherworld’s sun. It almost looked iridescent, and paired with the stained-glass look of his wings, he was godlike.

I could feel his muscles bunch under my hands, feel each inhale and exhale as his lungs worked. He made it all look effortless, not even a hint of stress on his face or note of fatigue through our bond. It was unbelievably majestic, and I still couldn’t understand what I’d done in this life or the last to deserve the chance to witness it.

To belong to someone as divine as him.

Looking up, I saw we were just over halfway. We weren’t yet so high that my senses were starting to falter, but I definitely felt a stir. Cair was climbing steadily as he’d promised, zig-zagging to avoid all the protruding ledges. But my heart was already thudding at an elevated pace, and I was aware of every damp breath that left my lips. The wind was a soothing balm against my skin, which was suddenly overly hot and prickling with sweat. There was an incessant need in my arms and legs to stretch and then stiffen, an irritating clench in my belly that wouldn’t ease, and I couldn’t figure it out.

Until I did.

I was restless, but—delayed realization—it wasn’t from discomfort or fear. My dick was chubbing up, and it was almost comical how fast every part of my system homed in on that fact, my arousal suddenly impossible to ignore. I may have even gripped my mate’s shoulders a little too hard, nails biting through the fabric to try and divert my attention to anything other than the twinge in my balls.

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