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CHAPTER EIGHTY-SEVEN

Ellery

Ryker’s warm body enveloped mine as we lay entangled at the river’s edge. His fingers intertwined with mine, and my back fit perfectly against his chest.

I lifted my hand to examine the beautiful ring once more. The sun glinted off the stone as I twisted it back and forth. “It fits perfectly.”

“I measured your finger while you were sleeping.”

That small, beautiful revelation awed me as I twisted to look up at him. “You did?”

He grinned while stroking his thumb down my cheek. Love and joy filled his eyes; there was a time when I’d never thought of seeing him so open, vulnerable, and full of happiness, but it radiated from him.

Even when we were first together, before he learned the truth about me being the Hooded Robber and he was starting to open up to me, it was never like this. No walls, secrets, or bitterness existed between us anymore.

We were a team working together, two halves of a whole that hadn’t known we were apart until we came together. And now, we’d be joined for eternity, and everyone in Tempest would know it.

“And I worked on forging it in my spare time,” he said.

My eyes widened at this revelation. “ You made this?”

“I did.”

“It’s beautiful.”

“It’s not much.”

“It’s everything .”

“The stone is a rock I found, chiseled down, and polished.”

I stroked the smooth, sparkling stone as I pondered the love and care he’d taken to create this for me. “It’s perfect.” And then I thought of something else. “What spare time?”

He smiled as his eyes sparkled with amusement. “You’re a very heavy sleeper.”

My brow furrowed at this revelation. “And apparently, you’re very sneaky when you should be sleeping.”

“Who could sleep through your snoring?”

I scowled at him. “I don’t snore.”

“It’s cute.”

When I gave him a doubtful look, he laughed as he lifted my hand to examine the ring. “When this is over and we reclaim our land, I’ll make sure you have a better one. The biggest and most beautiful ring in the realm.”

“No, you won’t.” I closed my hand as I cradled the ring protectively; no one would take it from me, not even him. “I don’t want a different ring. I only want this one.”

“You could have a diamond, ruby, or?—”

“No. Just this one.”

He studied me before bending to kiss me again. “Then you shall have it. I want to get married soon. We’ve waited long enough, and Tucker can perform the ceremony; if that’s okay with you?”

“That sounds perfect.”

Twisting closer to him, I closed my eyes as I relished the safety of his arms and the rhythmic flow of the river spilling over rocks and trickling through the forest. There was a chance someone could come across us, or a hungry animal could hunt us down, but I didn’t care about any of that while nestled securely against his chest.

The Revenant Woods wasn’t where we were supposed to reside. This was a place for ghosts and monsters who slaughtered; it wasn’t a place for the living, but I yearned to stay hidden in this forest, where no one could bother us.

When the gargoyles flashed through my mind, I suppressed the guilt that followed. I’d been doing better about not thinking of them. With so much else to do, I’d been too busy for them to intrude on my days, but it felt wrong to be this happy while they remained trapped.

“What is it?” Ryker asked.

I didn’t try to pretend something wasn’t bothering me; he knew me too well for that. “The gargoyles.”

His arms tightened around me. “It’s best for everyone if we leave them there.”

I kept trying to convince myself of this and understood the logic behind the decision, but I still wept for those creatures. They’d had their heart stolen from them; I could empathize with them as I gazed at Ryker.

“I understand why we left them there, but it’s still hard,” I told him.

“I know.”

Determined not to let my guilt and sadness ruin this moment, I focused on happier thoughts instead. “Should we get married next week?”

He grinned as he kissed the tip of my nose. “That sounds like a plan.”