Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 120029 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 600(@200wpm)___ 480(@250wpm)___ 400(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 120029 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 600(@200wpm)___ 480(@250wpm)___ 400(@300wpm)
My knees feel so weak when he spins me gently, the eerie glow transforming the color of his hair, and as the long locks float around his face, they’re reminiscent of seaweed dancing in clear water.
I’m breathless, because with everyone assuming I’m to be his Dark Companion, able to lend him my shadow when he needs it, I find myself wishing for that too, despite not truly understanding what it means.
“Were they lovers?” I rasp as two women twirl next to us, their lips locked in a kiss that makes me long for more touch, more closeness with the man in my arms.
He guides me around the dancefloor so effortlessly, swaying us from side to side as if we’re one ship on a stormy ocean. “Oh yes. With a love story so tumultuous and tender they inspired several books, and poems, and songs. Maybe tonight, I’ll just let myself believe that could be us,” he whispers, and I gasp for air. My chest is pressed against his. His thigh aligns with mine, and I slide my hands to his shoulders, locking them on his nape.
This can’t be real.
Guys don’t talk like that.
Nobody has ever danced with me like this.
I’m so breathless.
“Why just believe it?” I rasp, getting to my toes to make sure only he can hear me. “You can have it.” I just don’t know how.
His hand tightens on my waist as he inhales deeply. His nose nudges my cheek as he turns his head. “Careful, Nate. You don’t know what kind of beast you’re coaxing out.”
But I still want to. His scent makes me long for his body on top of mine again. I slide my finger over the top of his wing, right off the shoulder, and it shivers under my touch.
This world might be everything I dreamed of, but I don’t want a man who had to be forced into accepting me as his. I want… this.
The front door swings open so fast it hits the wall as someone bursts in. My head turns in that direction automatically, and Tristan pulls me close so abruptly he lifts me off the floor. His embrace feels like the warmest, softest of armors, and as his wings envelop us too, I allow myself to set my cheek on his broad chest.
“A falling star!” The elf yells at the top of his lungs. “And it’s a big one!”
Guests rise to their feet, leaving their food and the dancefloor, to rush for the door. Even the musician puts away her instrument, and the beautiful melody that set mine and Tristan’s bodies in motion cuts off suddenly, leaving me adrift.
Chapter 11
Nate
Tristan’s hand is big, and warm, and when he pulls on mine, my feet move without any prompting. The elves shout and call for their friends, some even break into song just as he leads the way onto the open porch in front of the tavern. The vivacious melody soon has several people rocking their bodies to its tune, but as I step out of the dusky interior bathed in the glow of the green fire, the brightness of the moon has me shielding my eyes.
I look to a point Tristan indicates, but with so many people crowding around me and pointing at the sky, I only see flashes of a silver sparkler progressing through the dark blue canopy above.
I get to my toes with a frown. “I can’t see. Is it there?”
“I’ve got an idea,” Tristan says, and turns me to face him. His arms slide around my waist, and the massive wings appear out of nowhere, already unfolded halfway.
One of the patrons hisses, rubbing his cheekbone where Tristan accidentally flicked him, but then my feet lift off the ground, and we’re casting a shadow on the excited congregation of elves. With the void under me, I wrap my arms around his neck. His grip tightens, so steady and secure, and I’m instantly taken back to the moment of sheer relief and terror when he plucked me from the cold waves.
I was dying, and he caught me.
Saved me.
And now, he won’t let me fall.
He’s already fought for me twice, and maybe it’s crazy, but I trust him.
We might have left the tavern to see a falling star, but it can’t possibly rival the beauty of Tristan’s golden eyes, so why would I look away?
Lightning bugs dance in my stomach as he carries me ever higher, arms locked around me so firmly there’s no room for fear. I’ve never been held this way. We’re now high in the air, and I could let go with full certainty that he’d sooner die than drop me.
Could this night get more magical? I’ve stepped into a fantastical world inhabited by unicorns, elves, and a giant moon that bathes us in warm light. And now I’m flying on the wings of the elven prince of my dreams.