Page 36 of To Ashes and Dust
He pressed a kiss to my shoulder, heated, panted breaths escaping his lungs as he spoke. “Shower?”
“That sounds amazing.” I pushed myself up off him, reaching my feet to the floor, but the world spun, my stomach flipping, and Damien caught me before I fell. I grabbed onto him, my knees shaking under me, saliva flooding my mouth. Adrenaline pumped through my system, and a cold sweat broke out across my brow as I fought the urge to vomit.
“You ok?”
I swallowed. “No, I think I’m going to throw up.”
He laughed lowly. “Yeah, that happens when you drink more than you should.”
I huffed. “Yeah? Good to kn—” My hand clamped over my mouth, my body dry heaving, and he rushed me to the bathroom before I fell over the toilet and threw everything up.
“Here, let me help you.” He pulled my hair from my face as my stomach rolled, and a heave coiled my gut as I threw up again.
“No, please,” I groaned. I couldn’t believe this was happening, that he was seeing me like this. “I’ll be fine.”
A chuckle slipped from his throat, but he remained. “It’s ok,mea luna. It happens. I’m surprised you lasted this long, honestly. The shower should help.”
He held my hair away from my face, his presence calming, and I stifled the embarrassment. No slimy feeling of his shame slid over my skin, though, only the warmth of adoration, and he didn’t seem to care how much of a mess I was. He’d done this before when I’d entered Cole’s mind and puked my guts up afterwards. Warmth blossomed in my chest at the thought of it, strange as it was.
Relief washed over me when the heaves subsided.
He turned the faucet on, filled a glass with water, and kneeled beside me. “Here.”
I took it and rinsed the foul taste from my mouth. “Thank you.”
“You get it all out?”
I hesitated, then nodded. “I think so.”
Before I could stand, he scooped his arms under me, lifted me up, and carried me into the shower. I sighed as hot water rolled over my skin. My head rested against his chest, and I relaxed to the lulling sound of his heart beating in my ear.
I smiled. “How did I get so lucky?”
“Lucky?” he asked, brows raised.
“To find you.”
He didn’t say anything at first, just lowered us until he sat in the tub, cradling me against him. The water rained down over us as he held me in silence for a moment. I lifted my gaze to him, and the look in his eyes touched something deep in my soul.
“If only I could find the words to express that it’s me who’s the lucky one—to have finally found you again.”
An ache tore into my chest.
“I’d started to accept I might never see you again, sank to whatever means I could find to numb myself just to get through each day and night—drinking when I wasn’t hunting, smoking until I couldn’t feel my face,anythingto try to silence the hollow ache in my chest.” He pulled my head against him, holding me. “But I found you again, and being able to hold you in my arms again... I wouldn’t trade it for anything in any realm.”
I smiled, feeling my body relax against him, my eyes fluttering. I didn’t know what time it was, but exhaustion was creeping into me.
“I love you,mea sol, and to be at your side means more to me than you will ever know,” I said, softly, as my eyes slid shut.
14
CASSIE
The trees stretched toward the sky around me. Fresh snow covered the forest floor, and I couldn’t see the city for the countless trees that spanned the thousands of acres surrounding The Outpost.
A large raven landed on a nearby boulder, and his head swiveled in my direction. He stretched out his wings and shook. The iridescent black feathers swayed with each twist of his frame, crumbling into black dust around him as Zephyr shifted back to his normal form.
He crossed his strong, tan arms. “All right, Cas, it’s your turn. Take it slow this time. Keep your tail level. Don’t worry about banking; just focus on gliding down the slope.”
