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Rowen and I would never be able to make up for the agonizing months, days, and seconds of being apart, but we certainly tried. We couldn’t keep our hands off each other as we journeyed back to the village.

Rowen scooped me up in his arms and spun me around until we were dizzy with laughter. We walked a bit more before he hitched me up his body by the backs of my thighs and held me against him. I wrapped my legs around his narrow waist and languidly claimed his mouth.

Our kisses ranged from sweet and tender to fervent and passionate. But no matter the kiss, my heart raced each time his lips moved against mine, and I would lose all sense of time.

We weren’t even halfway home before he pressed me up against a tree and ripped off my clothes with an urgency that stole the breath from my lungs.

“Spirits, you feel so good and tight,” Rowen moaned into my neck as he took me hard and fast against the trunk.

“I’ll never get enough of you, Copeland. Never.”

The bark bit into my back as our shared release echoed throughout the forest .

With all the distractions, our journey back home took longer than anticipated. We were intoxicated by the thrill of each other’s touch.

It was near sunset when we reached the village, and our haven unfolded in the golden-hour light.

The forest bungalows stood gracefully amongst the trees, connected by intricate walkways and bridges that seemed to float above the ground.

Wooden carvings and natural grass sculptures seamlessly blended into the village, combining art with the everyday lives of the elven community.

The enchanting village was a sight for sore eyes, and while I felt a wave of familiarity and comfort, a profound realization washed over me.

I wasn’t coming home; I was already walking beside it.

My sense of belonging was no longer tied to a place but a person—my person. As long as I was with Rowen, anywhere and everywhere could feel like home.

The thought made me smile, but my grin quickly faded as I saw Maddock and Sabra waiting just outside the village. They spotted us immediately and sprinted towards us.

“Where’s Ven?” I asked, my heart lurching with dread. I would never forgive myself if anything happened to him while I was away. “Are you okay?”

“Don’t worry, everyone is fine,” Maddock assured me, though it looked like he was running on fumes. Rowen was my home, but Maddock held a piece of that sanctuary, and I couldn’t help but feel relieved we were back in his presence.

“Thank the Spirits,” I said as relief flooded through me. I relaxed into Rowen and landed a palm on his chest. “Why is Sabra with you?”

Maddock’s onyx-black hair was wild, tousled from repeatedly running his hands through it, a clear indication he’d gotten no rest at all. “Ven knows I get . . . lonely and sends Sabra to keep me company.”

“That kid is too sweet for his own good,” I said, dropping to the ground and offering my hand to the majestic white wolf. Her tail went wild as she closed the distance between us and licked my hand.

Tears welled in my eyes as I threw my arms around her thick mane and buried my nose in her fur. Not being able to touch people for so long had been isolating, but I hadn’t realized just how deeply it affected me until I embraced Sabra.

Rowen joined me on the ground, and together, we lavished Sabra with love and attention. Her mouth curved into a panting smile, and her paw batted at us for more.

Eventually, we stood, and I wiped a tear from my eye. Rowen stepped closer, wrapping his arm around my shoulders as he kissed my temple.

Maddock had been eerily quiet as his sharp eyes traced over our flushed skin, disheveled hair, and unkempt clothes.

“You can touch her now,” he said to Rowen, and a part of me wished we’d tidied up a bit better.

Our all-nighter was plain as day, and I felt a flash of regret for taunting it so obviously in Madds’ face.

“What happened? The bond has been going haywire.”

“I can touch my soul flame. Is that so shocking?” Rowen asked.

“I—No. It’s just . . .” his eyes darted all over my body. “Did you have to be so rough with her?” he asked, his brows furrowing. “Her mouth is swollen, and her arms and chest are covered in marks. And that’s just what I can see.”

My jaw dropped as I struggled to keep my composure. “Don’t presume to think that I didn’t want or ask for it.”

“He’s a big man. And who knows what you’re asking him to do?”

“That is none of your business,” I seethed, stepping up to his chest.

Maddock matched my affront, his eyes burning. “It is my business,” he shot back, but Rowen quickly put a halting hand on his chest.

“Watch it, Madds,” Rowen warned in a low growl.

Maddock eyed us both, his chest heaving.

“I can feel everything between you two,” he continued.

“Why do you think I’m still here? Because I want to be?

No. It’s because I have to be. It’s agonizing, the bond keeping me trapped.

I’ve tried to leave, but I can’t. If I go too far, it starts to feel like I’m in the crevice again.

Anguish and loneliness swallowing me up.

If I knew how to give you back your Light and bond, I would. ”

“That would be nice,” I said, my voice laced with bitterness, and I realized Rowen was acting as a barrier between us. “But this is all your fault, you know. We didn’t ask for this.”

Maddock’s face twisted in pain. “And you think I did? You think I wanted to be an intruder to your bond? To feel the strength of your love and emotions and know that it’s not meant for me?”

“Enough. You two,” Rowen said calmly. Too calmly. “Madds, just give us an update on the village.”

“There was a violent earthquake,” he replied, his eyes bruised from lack of sleep. “It took everything in me not to find you two, but I gave my word that I wouldn’t interrupt. Even though no one was sure what happened or if Erovos escaped.”

The high I’d been riding came crashing down.

It had been nice to forget, to be pleasured beyond the point of comprehension.

Rowen had taken my mind and body to a place where I’d been able to forget.

But now, reality slammed back into me like a battering ram.

Erovos and his army of astral demons were growing, and it wouldn’t be long until they escaped .

“He is still trapped,” I said, my tongue drying in my mouth. “But we need to gather the Summit first thing in the morning.”

“I’ll leave you to it, then,” Maddock said, his tone cold and detached, his eyes sorrowful as he retreated from us. “You know where to find me.”

Before I could stop him, the air rippled with a gentle pulse. Then, piece by piece and layer by layer, Madds started to fade. It was as if he broke himself down into fragments of light, his body becoming translucent until he vanished altogether.

For a moment, the world felt emptier, less complete, but I knew he was reforming in his jail cell, building himself back up until he was whole again.

Watching him astral travel was incredible. Even though I had the same ability, experiencing it and witnessing it were two entirely different things.

As I watched Madds disappear, a pit formed in my stomach. For the first time, the thought of him willingly returning to his cell bothered me.

I shot a glance at Rowen, and he sighed. “You used to do that to me all the time. Not fun, is it?”

“I thought you said I vanished in an instant?”

“Sometimes you would, but other times you would slowly fade away, depending on how much of yourself you brought to me. Why do you think that is?”

Suddenly, another piece of my strange ability fell into place.

“Growing up, and when I first began appearing to you, I had no control over how much I traveled,” I said, my voice filling with confidence as I finally had the words to articulate my experiences.

“Some nights, layers of my being were on Luneth while my physical body remained on Earth. I would sleepwalk and sleep-run, my body moving through the night as my mind wandered into a different realm. I’d been breaking myself down into layers of light to walk between worlds.

It’s no wonder why I was always so disoriented. ”

“I remember you telling me you thought you were going mad. You were convinced I wasn’t real,” Rowen said, his eyebrow cocking up mischievously.

My eyes danced across the strong planes of his face, lingering on the hollow contours at his temples and cheeks and the enticing curve of his lower lip.

It was no wonder I believed I had conjured this man.

He was perfect for me in every way, as if I’d crafted him myself.

Reflexively, I lifted my hand to his face and ran my fingernails through the rough texture of his scruff.

“Are these the famous beard scratchies?” he hummed, deep and low.

“They are,” I replied with a wry grin. “It’s also a test to make sure you’re still real.”

He smiled as he placed his palm over my hand, still tracing the sharp angles of his jaw. “If me pleasuring you all night can’t convince you I’m real, then nothing can.”

I chuckled. “Hmm. You might have to show me again.”

“Again? My greedy, little flame,” he purred with a delicious smile that met his eyes. “When we are no longer out in the open for anyone to see just how well you take me, your wish shall be my command.”

A flush raised to my cheeks, but curiosity got the better of me. “Did you ever doubt if I was real?”

“You were the realest thing I’d ever felt, but for a moment, I started to believe you.

I hadn’t felt real in so long that I started to question my own existence.

Had I really died the day Fou plunged her dagger into my heart?

Was I a lost and wandering phantom? Or were you a sylph?

A being of light and air and nothing more?

But the more you appeared to me, the more my body and soul came back to life. ”