Page 140 of Dreams and Dragon Wings
“Aurelia…” My finger gently hooks beneath her chin and presses upward, luring her eyes back to mine. “What is wrong?”
Those lips that I so long to kiss again tremble before a tumble of words suddenly spills forth. Breathless, my queen explains, “I know you said it used to be a desirable thing to take a Jewel for a wife because they might share their gift with their spouse andboth enjoy a longer life, but I no longer have any gift to give you. I already gave it to the Vale. I…”
She trails off, panic fluttering through her as I wield threads of Air to lift us from the warm embrace of the Living Waters and bear us toward the island at the very center—the island that houses my father’s crystallized form.
Old hurts stir within me the closer we draw to the small, sandy isle. Wounds that I fear will never fully heal, not even now that I know what I know:
That my father never blamed me for what happened.
That he loves me.
That he’s proud of me.
In my silence, Aurelia whispers across our bond, hoarse and afraid,“Bene?”
I tighten my hold on her as we skim across the surface of the Waters, drawing closer to the island with each passing moment. Through the link binding us together, I do my best to radiate nothing but love and adoration. How proud I am of her. How happy she makes me.
Aloud, I make a point to state, “I am not upset with you, darling, for giving your gift to the Vale and to your people. Nor am I about to tell you that I do not love you anymore.”
My face tilts toward hers, the tip of my nose nuzzling her own. “If anything,” I breathe against the warm curve of her mouth, “I love you even more now, seeing the courageous and selfless woman you have become. You are…”
My gaze dips back toward her lips as I recall the way it felt to kiss her for the very first time back in the tower, with death threatening just beyond the warmth of our embrace. “… so very,veryprecious to me.”
Na’theryaknows my desire before I can even act on it.
Just as I know hers.
We are one mind as my mouth crushes to hers. As her fingers tangle in my hair. As my arms tighten around her waist.
“Mine.”That word rumbles from my soul to hers.“My queen. My wife. My Aurelia.”
At last, she is mine.
And I am hers.
“You are the only gift I need,na’velar. I love you for you and for no other reason. I need nothing from you other than yourself. And I intend to remind you of these facts every day for the rest of our lives. I will kiss away every doubt you may have. I will show you again and again how much I love you until there can be no question.”
Panting, Aurelia breaks her lips from mine, and I lean forward, resting my brow against hers just as we descend toward the island and our bare toes sink into the warm sand.
Almost shyly, she peeks up at me, her confusion palpable. “Then… what are we doing?” She flicks a curious glance at my father’s crystallized form that now looms over us. “Why did you bring me here?”
A chuckle rumbles deep in my chest. Finally, I release my hold on her waist simply so that I can claim her hand instead—her left hand. “I just wanted you on solid ground, mydrakira, not worrying about the fact that you cannot swim, while I explain to you howyou, Aurelia Weaver val’Anasi…”
I bend over her hand and press a kiss against her third finger, using the motion to distract her from my Earth weave. It seems to work, given her gasp of wonder when I lift my head to reveal the diamond ring now glittering there, flashes of rainbow fire sparking in its many facets.
“… just saved the world.”
Epilogue
Aurelia
My heart threatens to flutter straight from my chest as music finally trills to life beyond the safety of the sitting room we are using for my bridal suite.
I stare at my reflection in the mirror, despairing over the fact that I currently burn like the evening star, making it impossible to see the extraordinary gown I wear.
And after my fathers both worked so hard on it, too.
Calm. I must be calm,I remind myself.
