Page 60 of Of Storm and Emerald
When the lake came into view, they dismounted and let the horses roam free so that they could nibble on the spring grass that grew along the shore.
Stopping where the grass merged with the golden sand that surrounded the lake, the women sat down and let the tall grass tickle their arms in the breeze. They sat in contented silence, both basking the sun's rays and soaking in the melodic sounds of the woods around them.
Birds sang from the branches in the trees.
Frogs croaked on rocks nearby.
Water as it trickled over rocks and flowed into the lake from a stream.
It was perfection.
After a while, Auraelia removed her boots, and buried her toes in the warm sand. She was leaning back on her hands, her face tilted to the sun letting its rays warm her skin, when Piper unceremoniously tossed her blouse onto her face.
Auraelia scoffed and yanked the cloth from her face. “Bitch!”
Piper laughed and jogged the short distance from where they had perched on the beach, diving head-first into the crystal blue water.
Auraelia tossed the shirt to the side before standing and stripping out of her own clothing, and dove into the lake after Piper.
Fully submerged in the water, she let the coolness wash over her and seep into her aching muscles. Between physical training, hervigorousactivities with Daemon over the last few days, and learning to use and control her magic, her muscles were knotted and sore.
Breaking the surface of the water, Auraelia pushed her hair out of her face.
“This is purebliss,” Piper whispered from where she floated on her back an arm’s length away.
Auraelia leaned back, found her center, and floated along beside her, humming in response. As they floated there in silence, a sense of calm washed over her and she let her mind wander to thoughts of Daemon and the letter that she had sent him.
And smiled.
Chapter Nineteen
Daemon
Daemonstoodonthebow of his ship, the Nevermore, when he felt the telltale signs of his magic coiling around his arm before funneling into the pocket on his vest and dissipating. His heart stopped for a fraction of a second.
Hello, my star.
He chuckled to himself, then took a deep breath and inhaled the warm salty air of the sea. Reaching into his pocket, he palmed the small piece of parchment that was nestled in the satin lining. Despite the fact that he was anxious to read what she’d written, he opted to wait until he was in the privacy of his cabin before opening the letter. There was too much to do before they arrived in Kalmeera, and life on the sea could go from calm to potentially disastrous in mere seconds. Thankfully, the trip home was only a day’s journey on the Nevermore, and it seemed like the Goddess Narissa was with them. The seas were calm, and the wind was in their favor, filling the sails as she coasted across the Cerulean Sea.
The Nevermore was a beautiful vessel, the fastest in the royal fleet, and she was Daemon’s baby.
His father, King Evander, was going to gift him one of the royal vessels when he came of age, as was tradition within the royal family of the Sapphire Isles, but he’d opted for commissioning his own.
He’d overseen everything.
From the initial design and the sourcing of the lumber to her actual construction and maiden voyage. She was small and sleek in comparison to the rest of the royal fleet, with a black stain covering the entirety of the ship and charcoal sails that blended into a stormy sky. Her hull was crafted and carved into the Goddess Narissa’s creature of the deep, its tentacles twining as they stretched down the length of the vessel.
She was night incarnate.
A raven sailing on the sea.
And a physical representation of his shadows.
Daemon looked up to where the sails billowed in the wind, their darkness a steep contrast against the bright blue sky above, and smiled. It reminded him of how Auraelia’s eyes would shift from a slate gray to one tinged with blue. She was beautiful, but it was when she used her magic that she really took his breath away.
He loved seeing the color of her irises shift to a beautiful shade of green ringed in dark teal, while streaks of peridot shot across like lightning.
When she was completely one with herself and her magic.
