Page 68 of Galen

The rasp in his voice so close to my ear, the warmth of his body as he pressed against me, and the words he spoke—all I could think about was dragging him to my room and fucking him senseless.

“I’m sorry,” I managed to say.

He surprised me by laughing. “Youshouldbe sorry. For close to a thousand years, I’ve kept the promise I made to myself, never getting close to anyone. Then you come along with your nerdy wardrobe, quirky personality, and hazel eyes I get lost in, and all reason goes out the window.”

“My clothes aren’t nerdy. They’re—”

Galen tipped my chin up and kissed me. It only lasted a moment, but it was enough to make me weak in the knees.

“So what does this mean?” I asked, searching his face for answers.

“I’m not sure. I still don’t think it’s a good idea for us to be together. But I’m tired of seeing that sad look on your face, Simon. I’m tired of lying to myself.”

It wasn’t the answer I’d hoped for, but it was the only one he could give at the moment. Emotions hardly ever made sense. They were complicated. Sometimes messy.

“Come on.” He linked our fingers and led me away from the water’s edge. “I want to show you something.”

“It better be somewhere I haven’t seen yet,” I mumbled. “If it’s your bed, I’m going to throttle you. And then fuck you. But throttle you first.”

When he laughed again, it sounded so… carefree. Light. The heaviness in the air leftover from his story drifted away. Galen turned to face me, a smile hitching up one side of his mouth.

And then he spread his wings.

I stumbled from the shock of it, and his arms were around me in seconds, keeping me from falling.

“Easy, little human,” he said, still with that smile. “Your life span is already depressingly short. Don’t make it shorter by tripping over your own two feet.”

I couldn’t even bitch at him for the jab at my lack of gracefulness. I was too stunned.

“Your wings…” They appeared to be the biggest of all the brothers. The black feathers reminded me of midnight, and when he fanned them out wider, I saw shimmers of deep red. “You’re beautiful, Galen.”

If I wasn’t mistaken, he seemed to blush at that. He held out a hand. “Do you trust me?”

“What is this,Aladdin?” But I placed my hand in his anyway.

“Well, I don’t have a magic carpet.” He pulled me flush against his chest. “But if you rub my magic lamp, white stuff comes out.”

I swatted at his shoulder, and he laughed.

“Turn around,” he said, nuzzling my cheek.

Confused, I turned my back to him and stared at the sea in front of me. His arms wrapped around my waist from behind. Understanding slammed into me.

“Galen. No.” I tried to flee.

“Hold still.” He brought me back to him.

“Promise you won’t drop me?”

Another chuckle rumbled in his chest. “I swear it.”

His arms came around me again, and I gripped them. Perhaps too tightly, but whatever. His wings flapped once, then a second time, before we started to lift from the ground. As my feet hovered over the sand with nothing but air beneath them, it felt like my stomach dropped out of me.

“I guess this is a bad time to tell you I’m afraid of heights.”

“I won’t let any harm come to you.” Galen rested his chin on the top of my shoulder. “Now look ahead. Don’t close your eyes.”

“What about puking? Because I might.”