Page 24 of Ghosted AF
I smiled as I passed him one of the cups. “It really wasn’t that bad.”
“Says the guy who tried to fight the air with a spatula and a frying pan.” Leaning back against the counter, he quirked an eyebrow at me as he sipped his coffee.
“In my defense, I thought it was a ghost.” Which didn’t exactly make it better.
He laughed, a deep rumbling sound that filled the small space. “So, when is your next day off?”
“Tuesday.” I joined him by the counter, leaning against his side. “Why do you ask?”
“There’s somewhere I want to take you,” he answered, mischief glinting in his amber eyes.
“Where?”
“It’s a surprise. Are you up for a little adventure?”
Before I’d met him, my life had been boring, routine, and nothing remotely exciting ever happened to me. Every day had been exactly the same, and I’d had no reason to look forward to…well, anything. Now, I couldn’t wait to see what the future held.
“With you?” I brought my cup to my lips, grinning against the rim. “Always.”
Epilogue
~ Caius ~
Four months later…
“Come on!” Rylee demanded, jogging across the lawn behind our house at the edge of the city.
A lot of things had changed since meeting my mate, and all of them for the better. For starters, I found myself laughing a lot more than I had before he’d come into my life. I had also learned to slow down and enjoy the small moments, like our weekly adventures.
Ever since the first time I had taken Rylee flying on his day off, he’d been hooked. At that time, I had only wanted to give him a moment of joy after such a stressful ordeal, but what had started as spontaneity had quickly evolved into routine.
It had taken little persuasion to convince him to move in with me, and once I had managed to get him out of his lease early, it had pretty much been a done deal. While I couldn’t imagine waking up without him, I had lived alone for a long time, and I’d worried it would take time to adjust to having someone in my space.
Rylee fit so perfectly, though, as if he had always been there. Even now, I still felt a rush of joy when I saw him curled up on the sofa or padding barefooted through the kitchen.
“Hurry up!” he called, his face alight with anticipation.
“Keep your pants on.” I pretended to grumble, just to hear him laugh. “I’m coming.”
“My pants are on. For now,” he shot back with a saucy wink.
As his certainty in our relationship had grown, so had his confidence. He still flustered easily, still blushed when I said something particularly salacious, but he always had a comeback.
Even if it took him a whole day to come up with it.
The breeze that brushed over my bare skin had turned cooler as we moved deeper into fall. As the days shortened, and the temperatures continued to drop, we’d soon have to pause our weekly flights until the spring.
Soon, but not tonight.
Striding toward my mate, I called on the innate magic that coursed through me, a deep shiver rippling across my skin as my body began to transform.
The shift started in my bones, my frame stretching and reshaping. My fingers curled, the nails hardening into long, curved talons. My hips tilted, my spine lengthened, and I arched my back as my shoulders broadened and my chest swelled.
Feathers erupted in a sleek crown from my scalp and raced down the back of my neck. My legs shortened, the muscles rippling beneath a new pelt of golden fur that blended seamlessly into the bronze and ivory feathers.
I dropped to all fours, powerful and sure, feeling the raw strength of a lion’s body paired with the fierce pride of an eagle’s mind. My wings unfurled behind me in a rush, the quills catching the last rays of daylight as the sun sank toward the horizon.
I prowled forward, the earth still warm beneath my paws, while an expanse of amber and rose beckoned overhead.
