Page 58

RONNIE
Iwake slowly, surrounded by unfamiliar warmth. The weight of an arm curves over my waist, solid and secure. A large wing drapes across my body like a silk blanket, the silvery-blue feathers catching the morning light filtering through the curtains.
For a heartbeat, panic rises—I never allow this. Never let anyone stay. Never let myself be held like something precious.
But this isn't just anyone. It's Araton.
His chest rises and falls against my back, each breath stirring my hair. The skin-to-skin contact sends pleasant shivers across my body as memories of the night before flood back—not just the physical union, but the words we finally spoke aloud. The walls I've spent years fortifying, crumbled by three simple words from his lips.
I should feel exposed. Vulnerable. Terrified.
Instead, I feel... safe.
I shift slightly, and his arm tightens around me. Not restraining, but reassuring—like he's afraid I might vanish if he loosens his hold. The thought brings an unexpected ache to my chest.
"You're awake," he murmurs, his voice rough with sleep. His lips brush the nape of my neck, sending a cascade of goosebumps down my spine. "But you haven't bolted yet. I'm impressed."
I roll over to face him, our noses almost touching. This close, I can see flecks of darker gold around his pupils, like sunlight through honey. I've never allowed myself to look this closely before.
"Maybe I'm tired of running," I whisper, surprising myself with the honesty.
His face softens, that dimple appearing in his right cheek—the genuine smile, not the calculated one he uses to charm. I reach up to touch it, marveling that I'm allowed this intimacy now.
"I've been a fool, haven't I?" The admission scrapes my throat raw, but he deserves to hear it.
"We both have." His hand slides up my bare back, tracing the ridge of my spine with a gentleness that makes my heart stutter. "But you've had good reason to be cautious."
His eyes darken briefly, and I know he's remembering what I told him about my parents a few weeks ago, about the fear that's driven so many of my choices. His wing adjusts to cocoon us more completely, as if he could shield me from the past with mere feathers.
Morning light dances across his bronze skin, highlighting the contours of his shoulders, the lean strength of his arms. I've always appreciated his physical beauty, but now I find myself wondering how I never recognized the deeper beauty—the heart he keeps hidden beneath wit and charm, the loyalty he offers without condition.
The question rises to my lips before I can think better of it. "Why don't Millie's parents live together?"
His chest rumbles with a low chuckle, vibrating against my palms where they rest against him. "Because they're both too stubborn to admit when they've fallen in love."
The words hang between us, fragile and perfect. I swallow hard, forcing myself past decades of self-protection. "And now that they have?"
His eyes lock with mine, all traces of teasing gone. Something fierce and tender blazes in their golden depths as his hand comes up to cup my cheek.
"Now," he says, his thumb tracing the curve of my bottom lip, "I'll gladly live with the girls I love most."
My throat tightens, the emotion too big to contain. For so long, I've handled everything alone—set up my shop, raised Millie, built walls around my heart. The prospect of sharing that burden, of trusting someone else with the most vulnerable parts of me, should be terrifying.
Instead, as I look into Araton's eyes, I feel like I've finally found my way home after years of wandering lost.
"I'd like that," I whisper against his palm. "For Millie to have both her parents under one roof."
"Just for Millie?" His eyebrow arches, that familiar teasing glint returning.
I pinch his side, delighting in his startled laugh. "You know it's not just for her."
He rolls suddenly, pinning me beneath him, his wings spreading wide above us like a canopy. The weight of him is comforting rather than confining, and I wind my arms around his neck, pulling him closer.
"Say it again," he demands softly, his forehead resting against mine. "I need to hear it in the daylight, to know it wasn't just words spoken in the dark."
A lifetime of guardedness makes my tongue hesitate, but the love shining in his eyes gives me courage. "I love you, Araton. Gods help me, I tried not to, but I do."
His smile could outshine the sun.