Page 10 of Ghosted AF (At First #4)

~ Caius ~

Four months later…

“Come on!” Rylee demanded, jogging across the lawn behind our house at the edge of the city.

A lot of things had changed since meeting my mate, and all of them for the better. For starters, I found myself laughing a lot more than I had before he’d come into my life. I had also learned to slow down and enjoy the small moments, like our weekly adventures.

Ever since the first time I had taken Rylee flying on his day off, he’d been hooked. At that time, I had only wanted to give him a moment of joy after such a stressful ordeal, but what had started as spontaneity had quickly evolved into routine.

It had taken little persuasion to convince him to move in with me, and once I had managed to get him out of his lease early, it had pretty much been a done deal.

While I couldn’t imagine waking up without him, I had lived alone for a long time, and I’d worried it would take time to adjust to having someone in my space.

Rylee fit so perfectly, though, as if he had always been there. Even now, I still felt a rush of joy when I saw him curled up on the sofa or padding barefooted through the kitchen.

“Hurry up!” he called, his face alight with anticipation.

“Keep your pants on.” I pretended to grumble, just to hear him laugh. “I’m coming.”

“My pants are on. For now,” he shot back with a saucy wink.

As his certainty in our relationship had grown, so had his confidence. He still flustered easily, still blushed when I said something particularly salacious, but he always had a comeback.

Even if it took him a whole day to come up with it.

The breeze that brushed over my bare skin had turned cooler as we moved deeper into fall. As the days shortened, and the temperatures continued to drop, we’d soon have to pause our weekly flights until the spring.

Soon, but not tonight.

Striding toward my mate, I called on the innate magic that coursed through me, a deep shiver rippling across my skin as my body began to transform.

The shift started in my bones, my frame stretching and reshaping. My fingers curled, the nails hardening into long, curved talons. My hips tilted, my spine lengthened, and I arched my back as my shoulders broadened and my chest swelled.

Feathers erupted in a sleek crown from my scalp and raced down the back of my neck. My legs shortened, the muscles rippling beneath a new pelt of golden fur that blended seamlessly into the bronze and ivory feathers.

I dropped to all fours, powerful and sure, feeling the raw strength of a lion’s body paired with the fierce pride of an eagle’s mind. My wings unfurled behind me in a rush, the quills catching the last rays of daylight as the sun sank toward the horizon.

I prowled forward, the earth still warm beneath my paws, while an expanse of amber and rose beckoned overhead.

Rylee’s laughter drifted to me on the wind, and a thrill—old and new, human and beast—sang through me at the sound of it.

“Are you ready?” I teased through our mental bond, already knowing the answer.

“I’ve been ready,” Rylee countered, his voice still tinged with laughter.

I dropped my head and lowered the front half of my body to the grass in a deep bow. “Up you go.”

He hoisted himself onto my back in a practiced move and settled in securely between the wing joints. I waited, letting him get comfortable, then pushed upright as I turned toward the west.

With a single powerful leap, I launched us into the air, my wings snapping wide, catching the wind with a thunderous beat that sent us upward. Rylee tightened his grip, his laughter bright and sparkling behind me as we gained altitude.

The world stretched out below, alive with people going about their nightly routines, but here, there were no responsibilities. No regrets. No doubts or concerns.

Just the two of us, the sky, and the promise of endless possibilities.