“I should probably be creeped out that you snuck into my house and stole the ribbons,” I say, “but it’s so beautiful that I’ll forgive you for your sneaking.”
“So you like it?”
I look up at Ryn and see an unfamiliar expression: uncertainty. I smile to reassure him. “I love it.” The answering smile that spreads across his face does the same thing to my stomach that his smoldering eyes did just now.
He looks like he’s about to say something, but then he reaches abruptly for his pocket. He pulls his amber out and reads a message. As he puts the amber away, he says, “If you don’t mind, I’d like to take you somewhere else now.”
“Um, okay. But this better not be a ploy to get me to go on a date with you.”
“Not at all,” he says, and my stomach unknots itself. He leans closer to my ear and whispers, “It’s so much bigger than that.”
What?
He walks past me, and I turn around to see him greeting an olive-skinned, green-haired faerie—is he a faerie?—who wasn’t here a moment ago. Tucked beneath his arm is a large cylindrical shape that looks like it could be a rolled-up carpet. He hands it over to Ryn, they exchange a few quiet words, and the man slips away between the branches.
“Here we go,” Ryn says. He sets the rolled-up shape down, grabs one end, flicks it open—and it floats into the air.
“What—what is that?”
“Exactly what it looks like: a magic carpet.”
No. Freaking. Way. “But . . . magic carpets don’t exist.”
“And yet,” Ryn says, “there’s one floating right here in front of you. Weird, isn’t it?” He steps onto it and holds his hand out to me.
“I . . . don’t know if I trust that thing.”
“It’s perfectly safe. I’ve done some reading on the subject. Turns out there have been some major advances in carpet flying magic in the past few years. They no longer throw people off.”
My eyes widen. Is that supposed to make me feel better?
“And guess what?” Ryn continues. “You’re a faerie, which means if this carpet does decide to throw you off, you can easily slow your fall with magic.”
“I . . .” He has a point. “Okay.” I take hold of his outstretched hand, and he pulls me up. I crouch down, spreading my arms wide to balance myself.
Ryn sits, crosses his legs, and reaches back for the two corners of the carpet behind him. The carpet rises higher, and Ryn steers us between the branches. Higher, higher. And then, with a burst of speed that causes me to fall onto my butt, we shoot out above the highest branches of the forest. Below us, the thousands of trees that make up Creepy Hollow extend in every direction.
All I can do is stare in wonder.
“Kind of amazing, isn’t it?” Ryn says. The carpet slows, and he gets carefully to his feet. “You should stand up. It’s more exciting.” He holds his hand out to me once again. “I know how you like a thrill.”
I do, but all the thrills I’m used to come from fighting dangerous creatures and performing difficult stunts like back flipping multiple times and landing on a narrow beam. This is an entirely different kind of thrill. I place my hand in his and let him pull me up. The carpet ripples slowly beneath my feet, which is a little scary, but I’m a guardian; I have good balance.
I turn away from Ryn and look out at the amazingness that is my home. The sun has dipped below the horizon, leaving splashes of pink, purple and hazy blue across the sky. The first few stars are peeping out. We watch in silence as the carpet continues its slow journey through the air. A gentle breeze moves my hair. The sky grows darker. More stars begin twinkling.
“I have one more surprise for you,” Ryn says softly. When his hands move across my face to cover my eyes, I flinch slightly, but I don’t pull away. He begins chanting words to a spell I don’t recognize. It’s some kind of call, almost like a song. It goes on for several minutes, and I find myself lulled into a place of peace and calm. Before I know it, my back is resting against his chest. I feel him tilt his head closer to my ear. “You said there was nothing I could say or do to convince you that my feelings for you are real and long-lasting,” he whispers. “Well, clearly I took that as a challenge, and since it’ll apparently take the shining butts of a gazillion glow-bugs to prove myself to you, here they are.”
The warmth of his hands disappears from my eyes. I open them, and—
Wow.
Thousands upon thousands of glow-bugs are floating in the air, as if every galaxy in creation has been called here to shine down on us. It’s . . . I don’t think words even exist to describe the beauty of this moment or the sense of awe it stirs in me.
But there are strings attached to this moment. I know what Ryn is trying to tell me. I know what he wants from me. And even though this is more amazing than anything anyone has ever done for me, my stubborn heart still doesn’t want to step out from its safe place. I would rather take this moment and capture it inside a glass ball to keep it whole and perfect forever than taint it with the complications a relationship would bring.
“This is incredible, Ryn. It is. But—”
“No.” He turns me around. “No buts. You think I’m going to hurt you? You think I’m going to get bored and run off with some Undergrounder the first chance I get? You obviously have no idea how amazing you are. You, Violet Fairdale, are incredible, and I want you. Every part of you. I want your stubbornness and your sarcasm and your competitive spirit. I want you challenging me and fighting beside me. I want to hold you and kiss you and so much more because there’s no one else in the world who knows me like you do. You have always been the one for me, even when we couldn’t stand each other. You’re beautiful and hot and sexy all at once, and you’re more intelligent than any girl I’ve met. I love the fact that I’ve known you all my life. It just feels right when you’re beside me. It feels like I’ve been lost in the desert for years, and . . . I’ve finally come home.”
I’ve finally come home. I know what that feels like. In fact, I know what everything he said feels like. I’ve just always been way too terrified to put it into words.
“Stop being so scared, V!” Ryn grabs my shoulders and shakes them. “You’re one of the bravest people I know. Why can’t you let go of this fear?”
I’ve finally come home. Why would I want to send him back to the desert? I’d be protecting myself, but hurting him. Why didn’t that occur to me before? I thought I was the only one who could get hurt here, but I never realized that his home is the same as my home, and sending him away from it is only hurting him.
“Please say something, V.”
Home. I want to be there, with him. Neither of us hurting anymore.
“Violet, please. Say something! I swear, you’re going to break my heart if you don’t—”
I kiss him. I press myself against him like I never want to be parted from him. My arms entwine around his neck. We lose our balance and fall onto the lazily rippling carpet. I push him down and straddle his waist. I lean over him. I kiss his neck before tracing the outline of his lips with my tongue. He groans and pulls me closer. His hands find their way up my back and into my hair. He pulls my face down to meet his kiss. Sparks dance on my tongue and everywhere else his skin touches mine, which doesn’t feel like nearly enough places. The whole forest could go up in flames right now, and I wouldn’t notice.
This is all I want. Him. All of him.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Ryn rolls me onto my side so that he’s lying next to me. “Okay.” He kisses my chin. “You don’t need to say anything.” Another kiss on my neck. “I think I got your answer loud and clear.”
I trace my fingers from his brow down to his chin. “If this is coming home,” I say in a breathless whisper, “please let’s never leave.”
“I don’t plan to.” He catches my fingers and kisses them. “Sit up,” he whispers, then moves behind me and pulls me against his chest. His legs hem me in on either side. He brushes my hair aside and kisses me beh
ind my ear before wrapping his arms around me and resting his chin on my shoulder.
I can’t believe how happy I am right now. It seems stupid that I pushed these feelings away for so long when they have the ability to bring so much joy.
“It was the tiny glowing butts that changed your mind, wasn’t it?” Ryn says. I can hear the amusement in his voice.
“It was everything. The bracelet, the magic carpet, the glow-bugs, finding my mother’s tokehari. I’ve known for a while how I feel about you, but I didn’t believe until tonight that you felt the same way.”
“And yet I knew about my feelings a while before you knew about yours.”
“Really?”
“Yes. That weird moment we had in the bathroom at the Harts’ house was the moment I knew I didn’t think of you as a friend anymore. I’ve wanted more from you ever since then.”
“But you didn’t say anything.”
“Of course not. You didn’t feel the same way, so what would have been the point? Every now and then I’d get a hint of something more from you, but it was always so fleeting that I assumed I’d imagined it. It was only while dancing at the grad ball that you must have let your guard down, and I finally knew how you felt about me. I’m pretty sure it was you who set that ice tree on fire, by the way. The one Councilor Starkweather was talking about.”
“Yeah, I think it may have been.” Thank goodness no one else realized the real reason for that little explosion. “Wait a sec,” I say, remembering something. “When we were writing up our assignment reports in the gargan tree, and that branch caught on fire. Was that me too? Because I thought I was doing a pretty good job of suppressing my feelings back then.”
“Uh, that one may have been me.”
“Aha, so I’m not the only one who loses control.” I twist my head to the side as I try to look at him.
He pulls back from me slightly and flashes his mischievous grin. “V, did you see the damage in Princess Olivia’s sitting room? I think it’s pretty clear we both lose control in certain situations.”
He tightens his arms around me as I rest against him once more. “So, um, this ability of yours” I say. “You feel everything from everyone who’s around you?”
“Yes.”
“Wow. That must get a little overwhelming.”
“Very. It’s the reason I spend so much time alone and in the human realm.”
“You can’t feel human emotions?”
“No, only the emotions of those with magic.” He covers my clasped hands with one of his and rubs his thumb back and forth over my skin. “It’s so loud being somewhere like the Guild. I mean, I’ve learned to filter it to a certain extent, but sometimes it still becomes too much, and I want everyone to just . . . leave. That’s why I act like a jerk occasionally. It’s the quickest way to get rid of people.”
“Occasionally?”
“Okay, perhaps that was a bit of an understatement.”
“Have you tried being nice to people instead of being a jerk? Then it wouldn’t matter that you’re feeling their emotions because they would be positive emotions instead of this-guy-is-a-jerk-I-want-to-hit-him emotions.”
“Positive emotions can be overwhelming too, if there are enough of them. And can you imagine what it would be like if I was nice to everyone?” He lowers his voice and puts his lips next to my ear. “All the girls would be after me then. It would be a complete mess.”
I laugh. “Right. Of course that’s what would happen.”
Ryn hugs me tighter. “I told you I love your sarcasm, Sexy Pixie.”
“As much as I love that name.” As he laughs, I realize something else. “This is why Reed’s death hit you harder than anyone else, right? Because you had to feel everyone else’s pain as well as your own?”
Ryn’s hair brushes mine as he nods. “And it’s why I couldn’t just ‘move on’ like you did. Because I still feel my mother’s pain every day. But, like I told you before, I’m trying.” He kisses my cheek. “Oh, and that ‘weird habit’ you noticed? Pressing my hand to my chest?”
“Yeah?”
“When people feel emotion that’s strong and sudden and unexpected, it kind of gives me this momentary ache. I guess I developed that habit without realizing it. It surprised me that you noticed.”
“Well, don’t worry, I’m sure no one else did.” I tilt my head back and look up at the sky. Some of the glow-bugs have disappeared, but there are still enough above us to make it look like the reflection of an ocean filled with phosphorescent creatures. I don’t want to leave here, but I know the night will have to end. I’ll have to return home and do non-thrilling things like decide what course my life is going to take now.
Ryn, who, of course, can sense the subtle change in my mood, asks, “What do you think about the Guild’s job offer?”
“How did you know they offered me a job?”
“They offered me a job, so obviously they offered you one too. What are you thinking? I assume you have to tell them by tomorrow, like I do.”
“Yes.” I pull one of my hands out from beneath his and twist a piece of hair around my finger. “It makes sense to take it, I suppose. My life’s purpose is to protect people, and I can do that best through the Guild.”
“But?”
I smile at the fact that he knows there’s a ‘but.’ “Well, it’s kind of a predictable path, isn’t it? We’d be put in teams and spend a year doing different kinds of assignments. After that, we’d decide which department we want to go into, get put in new teams, and spend the next few decades working the same kind of assignments with the same people.”
“Yeah. Unless the Guild is attacked, all guardians are defeated, and life is never the same again.”
“Well, it would certainly be a lot more exciting if the Guild were attacked.” I drop my hand and sigh. “It’s just that I’ve always dreamed about graduating and working for the Guild, but now that I’m here, I wonder if there isn’t a better option.”
“Like offering your private services to wealthy fae in need of personal protection? Because somehow I think you’d pick a dangerous assignment over being a bodyguard any day.”
“Definitely.”
“And if you were at the Guild, you’d have me.” He slips the edge of my jacket off my shoulder, and his lips brush a burning trail along my bare skin. “We could kick dangerous-fae butt together instead of you being out there on your own.” He pulls away, leaving my shoulder cold. “But don’t let me influence your decision in any way. It’s up to you, of course.”
“Oh, right, whatever.” I laugh. “If that wasn’t you trying to influence me, then I don’t know what is.”
“You don’t? Would you like me to show you?” In less than a second, he’s jumped up, spun me onto my feet, and caught me in his arms. “If I were really trying to influence you, it might go something like this.” He lifts my left arm and touches his lips to the inside of my wrist, right where my guardian markings are. His kiss sends a shiver along my arm and up my neck. When his kisses reach the crook of my elbow, he reaches up and cups my face with his hands. He brings his lips close to mine, but instead of kissing me, he holds his head just close enough for me to feel his heat but not his touch. He whispers, “How much would you miss this if you were far away from me all the time?”
Instead of answering, I close the gap between us and press my lips hard against his. Now that I’ve taken the leap and decided to trust that he wants this as much as I do, I can’t seem to get enough of him. And the way he holds me close and molds his body to mine tells me he feels the same way. When my head is spinning so much the glow-bugs seem to be dancing in zigzaggy lines around us, I pull away from him. “I’d hate to ruin this moment by falling off the carpet,” I say, my words more than a little breathless, “so perhaps we should head back?”
He leans his forehead against mine. “Have I told you that I hate it when you’re right?”
“Many times.”
The magic carpet carries us back to th
e hollow at the top of the gargan tree. I could easily hop off by myself, but Ryn clearly wants to help me down, and since I love the feel of his hands around my waist, I don’t argue.
He rolls up the carpet and tucks it beneath his arm. He opens his mouth to say something, but a soft smile spreads across his features, and he leans forward to kiss me instead. Moments later, his lips leave mine with a sigh. “I need to return the carpet,” he says. “I’ll only be a few minutes.” He heads off along one of the branches, leaving me with a ridiculously huge smile on my face. I press my hands against my chest, feeling like I need to hold my elation in so it doesn’t explode out of me.
“Vi?”
All feeling in my chest drops down to my toes and vanishes, leaving my body cold. That voice. I know it.
“Vi, is that you?”
I turn slowly. In a doorway outlined against the gargan’s widest branch, stands the last person I want to see.
Nate.
*
If someone walked up and punched me in the stomach, I’d be less shocked than I am right now.
What. The. Freak?
With a whoosh and a spray of sparks, my bow and arrow are blazing in my outstretched arms. “How did you find me?” I demand.
“Luck, I guess.” He steps out of the faerie paths, and the doorway seals up behind him. “It’s the only place I know how to get to. I know how to get to the entrance of the Guild, but they’d have no reason to let me in. And I know how to get to the inside of your home, but I don’t have permission to enter it. I don’t know what the outside looks like, so I couldn’t just knock on your door. That only left this place.” He watches me carefully. He doesn’t raise his hands, though; he obviously doesn’t believe I’d shoot him.
“How dare you come looking for me after what you did?”
“Vi, please, I can explain.”
“I don’t want your explanations, Nate. I want you to leave before I accidentally let go of this arrow.”
“Please, Vi! You don’t know what I’ve been through.”