Page 10

Farron

“ I knew it!” Dayton cries. Sand sticks to his skin, still wet with ocean water, and moonlight paints him in shimmering strokes. He’s positioned in the center of Captain Katharine’s Isle, right in the middle of a square formed by four palm trees. “I told you it’d be here.”

“You told me,” I murmur. I’m lying against one of the trees, still marveling at the turn of events.

The gentle roar of the waves is the only sound that accompanies us, a soothing rhythm that mirrors the steady beat of my heart.

This has to be the strangest—and most wonderful—night of my life.

Never did I think I’d end up off the coast of Hadria on a supposedly cursed isle with the Prince of Summer.

And that he’d be looking at me with those turquoise eyes so filled with joy, especially after I almost got him killed.

I still don’t know what came over me. Walking to the coastline. Staring into the abyss, drawn to the dark depths. Feeling like if I was losing Dayton, I could at least feel a sense of him within the sea.

But he’d followed me. Followed me all the way off the edge.

These waters, supposedly cursed by Captain Katharine, were none other than the territory of a kelpie.

They’re common inhabitants in the lochs and rivers of Autumn; this one must have lost its way in the waterways between our two realms. No wonder it was so scared and angry.

I’d been able to calm the beast and let it take in my scent.

Hopefully that will be enough for it to find the path back to Autumn.

Dayton looks handsome beyond comprehension.

His long hair is slightly wavy with dried saltwater, his skin caked in sand.

Most beautiful of all is that delighted smile on his face.

He should be furious at me for jumping in.

For risking my life and his. But when we reached the shore, the only thing he wanted to do was start looking for the treasure.

Now, he reaches down into the hole he’s dug, tugging out a wooden chest.

I walk over and crouch beside him. “Captain Katharine’s treasure,” I breathe. “It’s real.”

“Of course, it’s real! You need to have more faith,” Dayton says, a victorious grin on his face.

I keep my eyes on him, instead of the treasure. “Maybe I do.”

With an easy yank, Dayton breaks the rusty lock. “Ready?”

“Ready.”

Our fingers brush as we both grasp the lid. It creaks in protest, revealing…

“Sand,” Dayton whispers. “Captain Katharine’s treasure is sand ?”

Inside, there’s a mound of red dust. I reach within, sifting the grains through my fingers. They’re fine and velvety. Perhaps once, they were something more, the ashes of a forgotten world. But now, they’re nothing but dirt in a rotting box.

Disappointment is clear in Dayton’s expression. “All these years, I pictured what it could be. Jewels and gems, mythical weapons, or maps to hidden cities. I guess none of the stories were real. It’s just sand.”

“Maybe not,” I say. “Let me try something.”

I pick up a large handful, holding it tight between my palms. Warmth radiates from my chest down into my fingertips. I prefer written spells to help channel my magic, but burning…burning I know how to do.

Especially around Dayton.

The red sand begins to coalesce, grains fusing together with the heat.

“Quickly,” I whisper. “We need to cool it.”

Dayton raises a brow, then covers my hands with his.

A stream of cold water pours from his palms. Steam rises from our clasped grip, a symphony of fire and water.

Our power seems to meet where our skin touches.

I think of the legends in Autumn, of magic weaving together.

It feels like that now, our individual powers braiding into something more.

The steam ebbs out, and Dayton pulls away from me. I open my palms, revealing a piece of red sea glass, smooth and luminous.

A smile tugs at the edge of Dayton’s lip as he takes the sea glass and holds it up to the moonlight. “We made this together,” he whispers.

“Something to remember me by, when I go back to Autumn.”

Dayton clasps the sea glass tight in his palm, then tucks it into a fold of the purple wrap around his waist. “I’ll never be able to forget you, Fare. Trust me.”

My throat tightens. I don’t want to become a memory to Dayton.

To be nothing but fading conversations, a face once clear that becomes foggy over time.

Doesn’t he understand this is so much more than political alliance or family scheming?

Whatever this is between us is so real, I feel like I could touch it. I need to touch it.

I trail a hand across Dayton’s sandy cheek before clasping his neck. “I barely remember who I was when I first came here. You’ve changed me, Day. I can’t go back to who I was before you.”

“Fare—”

I can’t let him speak. Because he’ll tell me to stop being ridiculous. That I’ve fallen too hard, too fast for him. Instead, I pull his lips to mine. So what if this is what Summer’s made me? Ridiculous. Down in the muck of this thing…whatever it is. Need. Obsession.

Love.

Dayton kisses me back. Hard. His hands wrap around my body, fingers so rough, I imagine bruises forming on my skin.

His handprints, marring me. I wish they were brands, claiming me as his forever.

Our kiss grows more frantic, my fingers gripping his hair.

It feels like we’re fighting with our lips, a battle we’re both too afraid to wage with words.

“Fuck, Farron,” Dayton growls against my mouth.

He grabs my ass and thrusts his pelvis against me.

His iron-stiff arousal sends my pulse skittering.

I can’t stop moving; I have to keep kissing him, have to keep roaming my hands across his skin.

If any of this stops, he might suggest going back to the keep.

The keep with all those judging eyes that force us apart. Then, tomorrow, I’ll be gone.

A fading memory.

I push firmly on Dayton’s chest, guiding him down to the sand.

He tugs me with him, and I land on top of his solid body, never tearing my mouth from his lips.

His cock feels hard as steel, pressing against my abdomen.

My own presses painfully against my breeches.

Shifting positions, I jut forward so he can feel my arousal against his.

He pulls away from my kiss to groan, the sound part curse, part my name, and part unintelligible blather.

Pride swells in my chest. He isn’t so infallible after all.

I go to capture Dayton’s mouth again, but he grabs the side of my head and holds me at a distance. His gaze is so intense.

“Farron,” he says lowly, “I want to do right by you. You know that, don’t you?”

“Of course,” I say. He doesn’t know that he could ask me to crawl behind him and I would consider it a privilege.

Dayton pushes the hair back from my eyes. “I will never ask you to do anything you’re uncomfortable with.”

“I want this,” I breathe.

“But you’ve never… I’m not exactly the kind of person I’d choose for my first time.”

Turning my face to kiss his hand, I murmur, “Well, I guess I’m smarter than you.”

Dayton barks a laugh before his gaze softens. “You sure about this, Little Leaf?”

“I’ve never been sure about anything in my life. But I’m sure about this. About you.”

“Here?”

“Here,” I breathe. “Anywhere. Any time. Any weather. Any season. As long as you’re you.”

Dayton brushes tears from my cheeks that I hadn’t realized were falling. “A deal. I promise to always be me. And you’ve got to promise me you’ll always be you, okay?”

“It’s a promise,” I whisper.

The smile that crosses Dayton’s face is so beautiful, I swear it could rival the sun. He pulls me flat to his chest, caging me in with his arms, and simply holds me. I close my eyes, feeling the strong beat of his heart.

After a moment, I look up at him. His gaze has shifted from its softness. There’s a hunger there that makes my stomach flip.

Dayton pushes me to the sand, so I land on my back. Then he clambers over me, running his rough and calloused fingers along my chest. With my body pinned by his muscular legs, I’m completely at his mercy.

He’s going to touch me. He’ll reach down and grab my cock. I can picture it now, his huge hands wrapped around my length, handling me with aggressive strokes.

But he doesn’t. Minute after minute passes with him only rubbing my chest. He flicks a tongue over his lips, and I notice his gaze has shifted again, his moods as changeable as the wind.

Is he…nervous? Nervous to touch me?

Perhaps he thinks I’m fragile, an Autumn leaf easily crumbled. I’ll show him how much I’ve changed since that first night.

I reach underneath the folds of his purple wrap and grasp the base of his cock.

Dayton arches his back and pushes into my grip.

I tug on the knot tying the wrap together and pull the cloth free, tossing it to the ground.

Dayton springs loose in all his glory, his lower abdomen rippling with muscle, a line of blond hair trailing from his belly button.

The sides of his ass are carved like marble.

And his cock .

Freed from the fabric, it erupts forth, thick and hard.

It curves upward, the tip glistening in the moonlight.

Blood rushes in my ears, and I have to remind myself to breathe.

A million ideas burst inside my head, all the desire I’ve fought down these last few weeks.

But he’s right in front of me, his cock as beautiful as he is.

It’s as if freeing Dayton of his clothes has reawakened him.

He grabs my hand and directs it to the base of his cock, then covers my fingers with his.

Together, we move over his length, stroking up and down.

I feel myself panting, heart near breaking through my ribs.

I want to know what Dayton’s expression is, but I can’t tear my gaze away from the titanic erection in front of me.

“Fuck,” Dayton growls, increasing our speed. “I love the feel of your hand, Fare.”