Page 10

The Summer Solstice, to be exact. The married couple had hosted a small weekend get-together at their new home. It had been a housewarming of sorts, a small party with them, River, Nikhail, Ryker’s other best friend, Atlas, and another couple from the Choosing, Hallie and Therian Firebreath.

Ryker and Brynleigh’s new property was on the edge of Golden City. It boasted a hundred-year-old farmhouse on several treed acres so Marlowe, their dog, could run freely. The home was close enough to the base that Ryker had an easy commute, but it wasn’t in the thick of the city.

They’d eaten dinner, watched several sports games, and enjoyed brunch when they woke late the next morning.

Nikhail raked a hand through his black hair, shifting in his seat. “It’s not a big deal.”

It didn’t feel that way to River. She couldn’t remember the last time someone had paid enough attention to her to notice what she was eating; let alone the precise way she took her coffee.

“Thank you, Nik,” she said softly .

The handsome air fae lifted his mug, covering the smile dancing on his lips. “It was my pleasure.”

And gods, he sounded as if he meant it. As if learning what she took in her coffee and remembering it for months was something he enjoyed doing.

They’d been engaging in this dance for years, flirting while staying away from each other, but keeping her distance from Nikhail had never been more difficult than it was in that moment.

River’s cheeks burned from his attention, and she returned her energy to the hot beverage in her hand. She really did need the caffeine, after all. Last night had been one of the most draining ones she’d ever experienced.

The coffee was delicious, and it warmed her from the inside out. They drank in silence, but it wasn’t awkward. If anything, there was a comfortableness about being around Nikhail that grew the more they were together.

After several minutes had passed, Nikhail pulled out two black coasters from a drawer in the nightstand. River glimpsed inside, not at all surprised to see that it was as meticulously organized as the rest of the room. A box of tissues, two pens, and a notepad were lined up next to each other.

There weren’t any feminine touches in the room, and that knowledge brought River far more relief than it should have.

Nikhail placed one coaster near her, and he put his empty cup on the other. Folding his hands in his lap, he put his other foot on the ground. He held her gaze, leaned forward, and rested his elbows on his knees.

“So…” he said, raising his brows.

One word was all it took for the air to shift. Nikhail’s face rearranged itself into a serious expression that River had often seen on her brother. The air fae was in military mode, and he wanted answers.

A knot formed in River’s stomach, and the coffee suddenly seemed less appealing. She probably should’ve spent more time thinking about how to explain her loss of control earlier, instead of studying Nikhail’s bedroom.

It was too late for that now, though.

Shifting on the bed, she echoed, “So.”

Amber eyes drilled into hers. Seeking answers. Searching.

The urge to squirm beneath his gaze was strong, but she fought against it. This wasn’t some random military officer. This was Nikhail . She knew him. She trusted him. No matter what she told him, he wouldn’t hurt her. He just wanted answers.

“Do you want to tell me what happened last night, or should I start guessing?” he asked.

It was only fair that he wanted to know what happened, since he’d helped her bring her storm back under control. She knew that, but that knowledge didn’t stop her from wishing she were anywhere else.

Placing her coffee mug on the coaster, River twisted her hands together and chewed on her bottom lip. “Would you believe me if I told you I just slipped up?”

Nikhail canted his head, smirking. “Would you believe me if I told you I was secretly a dragon shifter?”

An unladylike snort that would have landed River in heaps of trouble when she was a young girl escaped her.

“Not for a single moment,” she said.

River only knew one dragon shifter. Therian Firebreath had participated in the Choosing with Ryker a couple of years ago. Everything about the man, from his sheer size to the flames that occasionally swam through his eyes, screamed that a beast lived beneath his skin.

No, Nikhail Galebringer was many things, but a dragon shifter wasn’t one of them.

“Exactly.” Holding her gaze, Nikhail leaned forward and parted his lips. How could he be so stern-looking and so gods-damned handsome at the same time? “I know something happened last night, River.”

Gods above, her name had no right sounding so good in his mouth. He didn’t spit it at her like Tertia or say it with care like Ryker.

No, he had his own unique way of saying her name. His tongue seemed to glide over the two syllables, as if they were a rare treat, and he was savoring the taste.

It was then, as she gazed into the depths of Nikhail’s eyes, that River realized he wouldn’t let her leave without knowing the whole story.

Resigned to reliving last night, she traced the swaying trees embroidered on the edge of the comforter.

She studied the green threads as though they were the most interesting things she’d ever seen in her life as she shared yesterday’s events with Nikhail.

Being barely on time for work, her boss’s awful reaction, and the way the night culminated in two terrible deaths.

By the time she finished recounting her tale, River had drawn her knees up to her chest. She hugged them, resting her chin in the gap between them, and stared at the blanket. The color green had never been so interesting.

“They both died, and it was my fault,” she whispered, her voice cracking on the last word. The ache in her heart was back, and she’d had to keep taking breaks to reinforce the walls of her dam. “I had one job: keep them alive. And I didn’t do that. I failed them. ”

She’d reached that heart-stopping conclusion yesterday when she declared Mrs. Valois’s time of death. It had been the last straw, the final attack that destroyed her defenses.

For years, River had been afraid of failing. She’d worked so hard at school to be the best, learned every surgical technique, and studied every book she could get her hands on to avoid being a failure.

And now, two people were dead because of her.

A sharp inhale of breath came from beside her, but she didn’t look up. She couldn’t. It was cowardly, but she wasn’t ready to see the disappointment she was certain was reflected in Nikhail’s eyes.

River wasn’t sure how much time had passed before a large hand cupped her knee. He was so much bigger than her that it was practically impossible to ignore him. He squeezed her kneecap, and even with the blanket between them, the heat radiating off him warmed her.

“Look at me, princess.” The command was soft but firm.

Even though every part of her yearned to obey his order, she studied the embroidery with even more intensity. Were the trees swaying in the wind? How apropos.

Thinking about the embroidery was better than paying attention to the name Nikhail called her. Princess . He had said it last night, too, but she’d been so lost in the dark call of her curse that she thought it had been a dream.

Well, that was no longer the case. She’d heard him loud and clear.

River wasn’t sure what to make of the nickname—she certainly wasn’t a princess, at least not in the traditional sense of the word—but she couldn’t muster up the energy to ask him about it.

The fingers squeezed her knee.

“River,” he repeated, his voice firm and commanding and making her feel things that she had no business feeling. “Eyes on me.”

This time, she had no choice but to obey. The same part of her that strained for Nikhail had her lifting her head and dragging her gaze over to his. She couldn’t ignore him any more than she could ignore her magic.

His lips twitched as if he was pleased with her, and he rubbed the corner of his mouth with his thumb. River was filled with the insane urge to replace his thumb with hers, but since that would cross a plethora of boundaries, she clenched her fists instead.

He continued, “Listen to me carefully, okay?”

She was listening, but the problem was, no amount of words could fix this. There was no easy solution for dealing with the power running through her veins, short of wearing prohiberis manacles for the rest of her life.

The magic-blocking substance was mined in the Northern Region of the Republic and worked on every magic wielder, including fae. The problem was, wearing prohiberis long-term had dangerous side effects.

Back in the time of the Four Kingdoms, the High Lady of Death had been famously locked away and forced to wear prohiberis manacles for over two centuries. By all accounts, her mind had never truly recovered, even after the cuffs were removed.

The hand gripping her knee tightened. Nikhail was so much bigger than her, his fingers spread from the middle of her thigh down past her kneecap.

“Death is a part of life, River. One cannot exist without the other.” His thumb swept up and down, the slow, steady movement mesmerizing. “We can try to outrun it, try to outpace it, but even long-lived beings like fae cannot escape death. Gods, even vampires are subject to its cold embrace.”

His words rang with truth, but they didn’t wipe away her pain. She was fairly certain nothing would do that.

“Lila was thirteen, Nik.” Her bottom lip quivered, and tears welled in her eyes as she drew in a shaky breath. “A child in every sense of the word.”

“I know, and it’s horrible that she died. Sometimes, death has a way of claiming the most innocent of us all. The youngest. The ones most deserving of long lives are often the first to leave.”

“Why?” she breathed.

That was the question of the hour. The day. The one that had been haunting her since she learned of Lila’s death.