Page 18

The next day, I was woken up by the sound of a text message. I expected it to be Finn, with a follow-up on the Liam situation, but with some slight shock, I discovered it was from Sariel.

It didn’t have any words, just a drawing in his favorite manga style, depicting the elven prince, aka me, and him. Normally, it wouldn’t have been anything new.

Except this time, the characters were… making love.

Both naked, with shameless detail, and to his credit, I was on top, and he was bottoming. His stiff manhood also drawn, and it was quite… sizable. Yep.

My cheeks flushed hot as I stared at the details, for far longer than I probably should have, my own hand wandering toward my crotch, grasping my length.

Fuck. Should I? Probably not.

Or maybe?

The drawing was so… well done, so vivid—our faces deep in pleasure, our bodies melded in wild, intimate entanglement, that I just let it happen.

Embarrassed, I kept going, my eyes locked on the picture, my hand speeding up the movements…

It didn’t take long. Not at all.

After the sweet wave pierced my loins, bliss spread throughout my body, I lay there for a while, not even bothering to clean up, just basking in the heavy relaxation and… the delicious taste of something forbidden.

And then, just as I started to drift, my screen pulsed again with one more message.

"You jerked off, didn’t you?"

Fuck! I couldn’t stop myself from chuckling. So very… Sariel!

And then I sent back, "Yes."

A grinning emoji soon popped up on my screen.

***

Before the holidays ended and two days before my flight to Japan, I packed up to return to my apartment.

As I was saying goodbye to my dad and father on the porch, something rare happened; Snow unexpectedly approached me.

"You're flying to Japan in two days?"

I nodded. I talked to Snow only on sporadic occasions, so his sudden question caught me off guard. But hey, my unique brother wanted to say goodbye, so why not have a quick chat?

"Yeah, we're leaving in two days. The company is covering the flight."

"Don't go."

I froze.

"And why not?"

For a moment, something strange flickered across his face, like his awareness had briefly shut off. His pale violet eyes became even more vacant, like a mannequin's.

"Don't go," he repeated.

I huffed in irritation. What kind of mind game was this?

"You've got to be kidding me. Everything's already set. This is a company trip—"

He turned around and walked away.

What the fuck?

My dad watched me and Snow for a moment, looking just as bewildered as I was.

"Winter," he whispered, "you know Snow has good instincts."

A weird sense of unease began to stir in me. "He didn’t say anything specific. I can’t back out now. Jacob would be pissed."

I saw the worry lingering on my dad’s face.

"Maybe you could call in sick?"

"Dad, it's not that simple!" I hissed. "We've been negotiating with them for months! We have a presentation ready, and I can't just cancel it like that."

Frustration flared up inside me. Not wanting to prolong the conversation or let doubt creep into my own head, I grabbed my suitcase and started walking away.

Dad hurried after me.

"Winter, Snow really has incredible intuition. I think you should cancel this flight. Please, son!" His turquoise eyes looked at me, pleading.

After loading my suitcase into the trunk, I walked around the car.

"Dad, I'm the lead on this project. We can't reschedule. The Japanese side set this date, and it's in our contract. I can’t make decisions based on someone's gut feeling."

I looked into my dad’s bright eyes one last time. Even though he was in his sixties, the magic of True Mates had kept him looking young—he didn’t appear a day over thirty-five. But now his face appeared almost gray, tense, and scared.

He reached out and grabbed my hand.

"Be careful, and remember—I love you, Winter. Always remember this!"

"Please, Dad. Don’t worry, everything will be fine."

As I pulled out onto the road, Dad stood in the driveway, watching my car disappear. His hand was pressed to his chest like his heart ached.

Despite my confident reassurances, an uneasy feeling gnawed at me the whole way back. I knew Snow wouldn’t have said something like that, unless he truly, deeply felt it in his intuition.

That’s why, when I got a call from Jacob that evening, I almost told him we should delay the trip by a day or two. But before I could, Jacob said something unexpected.

"Blue Lowen was supposed to fly with you, but… he changed his plans. He pushed his flight back by two days and decided to take his own jet."

A wave of surprise swept through me. And suddenly, two puzzle pieces clicked into place.

Blue’s life was constantly targeted by assassination attempts. But now, he wouldn’t be on the plane. If someone had planned something, maybe they’d back out? Maybe it wouldn’t happen at all?

Relief flooded through me.

"Do you know why he canceled?"

"Apparently, his new bodyguard insisted on it."

"Did they have any intel suggesting another assassination attempt?"

Jacob sighed. "It's a weird situation. Blue didn’t give me details, but his bodyguard got a text from someone in his family, someone supposedly reliable in these matters. They pushed hard for him to change his plans."

"Someone from the FBI?"

"No idea. But maybe it’s for the best that Blue isn’t flying with you. If someone had something planned, they’ve got two days to call it off, if anything was plotted at all."

"Phew. Yeah, that’s a relief. My brother, who has pretty sharp intuition, also told me I should cancel my flight."

Jacob let out a muffled chuckle. "I think it's definitely safer with Blue out of the equation. My brother is a magnet for disaster. His new bodyguard has already saved him a couple of times from minor attacks."

"Seriously? He finally found someone he can trust? I thought he had trouble with that."

"Seems like it. But he won’t tell me any details, no matter how much I ask. Apparently, the guy is really young but has some serious combat training. Blue also mentioned he has some kind of supernatural abilities."

"Oh? That’s new. What kind of abilities?"

"Something about reflexes, his reaction time is almost… prophetic. He seems to see things happening two seconds before they actually do. At least, that’s how Blue described it," Jacob said, sounding slightly amused.

I swallowed hard as my throat suddenly went dry. Because… I knew someone with that exact ability. In my own family.

"Do you know the bodyguard’s name?"

"No. Blue said he tested him, and the results were convincing. It’s definitely a useful skill for a bodyguard, don’t you think?"

"For sure." I forced myself to shake off my shock.

"Well, at least he’s not flying with you anymore—so that’s good. Hopefully, everything goes smoothly."

"I hope so too."

"Good luck in Japan. Call me when you land."

"Will do. Thanks, Jacob."

After hanging up, I sat there, frozen.

When I finally snapped out of it, the first thing I did was call my dad.

"Dad, can you tell me what happened to cousin Gabriel after his legal troubles? Last I heard, he got into the Second Chance Program…"

Dad sighed and said, "Unfortunately, that's where my knowledge ends too. It's a government program, and I don't think they share much information with the families. Uncle Van only told me that Gabriel got accepted into the program, but what happened after that… we have no idea."

That would have to be enough for now.

My suspicion, that Blue’s mysterious bodyguard could be Gabriel Nolan, my own cousin, remained unconfirmed.

But how the hell would he have ended up with Blue? That would be ironic, especially knowing what got him into trouble with the law in the first place: being part of a group of eco-activists attacking… Malden Pharmaceuticals.

That’s why he ended up in the Second Chance Program, focused on reforming young criminals. It was a funny idea, a so-called eco-terrorist being forced to be a bodyguard for… the company he swore to destroy? I chuckled at the thought.

Oh well, since it didn’t directly concern me, I brushed it off and focused on getting ready for the trip.

***

A day and a half later, early in the morning, I was at the airport parking lot.

Our flight was scheduled for 6:00 am CST, and we were set to arrive in Tokyo at 10:00 am local time, thirteen hours later. Since we’d be crossing time zones, it would feel like we were landing ‘ahead’ by several hours.

As soon as I stepped out onto the parking platform, my phone buzzed with a text from Sariel, making my pulse spike.

"I’m a few cars behind you."

I turned around just in time to see Sariel stepping out of his car, pulling a rolling suitcase behind him, with a small personal carry-on slung over his shoulder.

And I simply basked in the view!

His hair was ruffled by the wind.

My heart immediately picked up speed as he started walking toward me.

I caught myself staring for a few seconds at his lean frame. God, he was so well proportioned, like a tennis player. So nicely toned. I vividly remembered the way he danced, his movements flowing effortlessly. Maybe that passion of his had shaped his natural grace, almost feline in quality.

His teal bangs fell over one eyebrow, and his vibrant eyes locked onto me.

He looked like he had stepped straight out of one of his manga drawings. His soft, naturally pink lips, so expressive—drew my attention more than I wanted to admit.

Why the hell was I noticing all these little details?

Then, as he stopped right in front of me, those delicate lips curved into a wide smile, revealing perfect, white teeth.

"Hey, Winter. I missed you."

And without waiting for a response, he leaned in slightly, his warm lips grazing my cheekbone in the lightest, quickest kiss.

Wow.

The feeling was… nice. Too nice. Something I could have melted into. But I forced myself to remain composed, acting like it was the most natural thing in the world, as if this was just how we greeted each other on a daily basis.

My heart was pounding, and I knew—I knew!—he could hear it. No point in denying I was reacting to him. My supposed indifference was nothing but a flimsy mask.

Damn those alpha senses.

There was something undeniably strange about the silent understanding forming between us. Neither of us had said a word about it, yet we were acting like… like we were already something.

Sariel broke the moment, his voice smooth as he asked, "Did you hear my uncle isn’t coming with us?"

Grateful for the neutral topic, I exhaled.

"Yeah. Probably for the best. Less chance of the plane exploding," I muttered, grimacing slightly.

"Exactly what I was thinking. My uncle is a walking trouble."

"I heard his new bodyguard has already saved his life a couple of times."

"Yeah. When we get back from Japan, I’m supposed to spend a few days with Blue. I’ll finally get to meet this mysterious bodyguard of his."

I had the sudden urge to tell him my theory, that I suspected the guy might be my cousin Gabriel. But I didn’t.

What if I was wrong? I didn’t feel like making a fool of myself over a gut feeling.

We made our way into the terminal, there wasn’t much time left before our flight, and we’d both arrived right on the edge of being late. We joined the line for check-in.

Standing there, I could feel him.

Not in the normal way.

Not like I was just aware of his presence; I felt him physically, his energy, his warmth, as if his body were somehow an extension of my own.

My heart was still racing, and I had no idea why.

Worse, I was fighting completely irrational impulses. Like the sudden, sharp desire to run my hand along his forearm. Or to press a kiss to the side of his neck.

I had to get a grip.

Then I noticed him watching me. His eyes were locked onto my face with unsettling intensity. His mouth parted slightly, and then he bit down on his lower lip, hesitating, like he was gathering the courage to say something.

I wished, for the first time ever, that I could hear an alpha’s heartbeat. Because I was certain his had just sped up too.

"Can I ask you something?" he said at last.

I nodded slowly.

"Who was that guy you met after the lecture? That… Finn?"

Bam.

Well. There it was. I could have brushed it off. I could have told him it was none of his business. But let’s be honest—it was his business.

And I knew exactly why he was asking. If he was interested in me, of course he’d want clarity on that situation.

"When I was in college, we dated for a while," I admitted. "But after we graduated, we broke up. We haven’t been together since then. Then, about three years ago, we ran into each other at a lecture. He works as a college professor."

I hesitated. Why the hell was I telling him all these details so easily?

"I started seeing him again after that," I continued, "but not as boyfriends. Just… as fuckbuddies."

Saying that out loud felt weird. I swallowed hard.

"But for a long time now, that whole thing hasn’t made sense to me anymore."

Sariel’s expression didn’t change much, but his voice was careful, slightly tense, as he asked,

"Have you seen him recently?"

I had every opportunity to shut this down. But once again, my mouth betrayed me.

"The last time I met up with him was before you and I first met at the company."

"So you haven’t fucked him since I started working there?"

My lips pressed together tightly.

Seriously! Why was I answering at all?

"No."

"Why?"

His such a close presence was making it impossible to think straight.

We were standing only a few inches apart. I was too warm. My breathing was too shallow.

Then he asked, his voice low, "You just… didn’t feel like having sex?"

I closed my eyes. I just kept letting myself feel him, his energy, basking in it, like in a warm wave.

"I did. More than once."

"Then why not?"

I felt his fingers brush against my elbow. His breath ghosted over me, carrying a faint scent of mint.

He ran his fingers gently up and down my arm, in a motion that was both soothing and undeniably sensual.

"I didn’t want to… with him," I choked out. "I haven’t felt anything for Finn in a long time. I don’t want him."

"Did you… tell him that?"

I sighed and finally opened my eyes. "On Friday, right before the holidays, I met with him one last time. Just to tell him, it was over. To make it clear where we stood."

Sariel’s eyes locked onto mine. We were standing in line, so close now that his face was barely half a foot from mine.

"So, that means you’re mine now," he said in a low voice.

A strange rush of excitement went through me at those words, reaching my dick. But, of course, my beta nature couldn’t just let that slide.

"Such an alpha thing to say," I replied, unable to stop myself from lacing it with a hint of cynicism.

Something flickered across Sariel’s face.

"That might be true. But I’m not an alpha."

I stared at him for a moment. Was he joking?

"I’m pretty sure you are. I have eyes."

The corner of his mouth lifted slightly.

"Eyes can be deceiving. Genes, however, can’t."

I studied him carefully.

"You were honest with me, Winter, so I owe you the same. If anything is going to happen between us, I should tell you."

I remained silent, waiting for him to continue.

He sighed and glanced past the crowd, as if looking for something far away.

"You know that Jacob is my sire, right?"

"Yeah, but most people believe someone else was your father, that Jacob just adopted you."

"They do. But the truth is, I’m Jacob’s biological son. And my dad’s." A flicker of bitterness crossed his face. "A lot of people assume my dad just… fooled around with someone and that Jacob accepted the child. Or that they adopted me and Vren. But I’m their child. A DNA test confirmed it. My Fa is a rare type of omega. There’s even a scientific term for it: gamma. He can both conceive and impregnate others. Gammas always present as omegas."

I blinked. "But… you look like an alpha."

"In scientific literature, a theoretical case like mine is referred to as a sigma. But since no one like me has ever been documented in any… respectable published studies, it’s not a widely known term. I can impregnate others, but I can also conceive."

I stared at him, suddenly seeing him as even more unique, almost magical. And… my complete opposite!

"Wow. I’m kind of jealous. I… can’t do either."

"Jealous?" His expression darkened with something close to pain, catching me off guard. "You don’t get it? That’s why I… never—" He trailed off.

I blinked, then instinctively placed my hand on his shoulder.

"But why? That’s… incredible. You should be happy about it. There are people who would love to have kids but never will—" The words slipped out before I could stop them.

He turned his gaze to the side and took a deep breath. "That’s… not the issue. It’s not about fertility. The thing is, I’ve always been afraid that if I told anyone, they’d see me as a freak. An alpha with a slick. An alpha with heats… A mutant."

A sad grimace twisted his lips, as he looked at my searchingly. Then suddenly, he let out a strained, almost pained sigh and whispered, "I’d rather be honest from the start and tell you the truth about me. Because maybe you’ll think I’m a freak too, and you’d be right. I wouldn’t even blame you…"

I swallowed hard.

"Sariel, do you realize that out of all the things that could be an issue between us, this is the absolute least important? If it’s even an issue at all, rather than a plus?" I hesitated. "I don’t want to make you feel like I’m dismissing something that’s obviously important to you. But to me, this would never be a reason to walk away from someone. Never."

Sariel stared at me, as if surprised by how easily I’d accepted his secret. But the truth was, I felt nothing but intrigue, if anything, he seemed even more extraordinary to me now.

So I just had to add, "The real problem is something else entirely. You and I… we have way bigger obstacles. Multiple obstacles. I really don't want to list them again."

"You know just as well as I do that none of those things have to be a problem. The only thing that matters is whether you want to be with me or not."

The line moved forward, and the suitcases rolled ahead. Our turn at the flight check-in counter was getting closer.

I glanced in that direction, then back at Sariel. He was still watching me with intense focus, waiting for my answer.

Something tightened in my throat—a wave of nerves, my heart racing like crazy. Was this the moment?

The moment I made my declaration?

"I promise we’ll come back to this conversation, Sariel. But… I’m asking you to put it on hold until we get back from the delegation. The next few days will be tough, we’ll need to stay focused, and I want us to concentrate on the professional side of things."

"But we’ll come back to it?"

"Yes, we definitely will." And I sent him a small, almost shy smile.

Sariel’s face lit up as if a million suns had just exploded beneath his skin. His perfectly even, white teeth flashed in a smile.

"You have no idea how happy I am to hear that. I was afraid you’d shut this down forever."

I straightened slightly, feeling an odd sense of awkwardness. Had I just given him real hope? It looked like it. And it was kind of exciting.

"It’s our turn," I muttered, and we stepped forward to meet the airport staff.

Not long after boarding, we found ourselves on the plane. Most of the seats in economy class were already filled, but ours were in business class.

Each row had only three seats, separated by a small table that doubled as storage for personal items.

The seats had a designated space for laptops, and in front of us were built-in screens for watching movies.

There was also a very comfortable self-service snack bar. Inside the compartment were cans of peanuts, the typical airplane pretzels, a few energy bars, mini fruit bars, and some Cheez-It crackers. Bottled mineral water was also provided.

As we settled into our seats, I could tell Sariel was tempted to keep talking, maybe to continue the discussion about our relationship. But it seemed like he was making an effort to respect my request to maintain professionalism during this trip.

For a while, we talked about the project and the technical details of our presentation. I also gave him some insight into the person handling the negotiations on their side, warning him to be cautious when speaking with the guy. He had a habit of prying for details we didn’t necessarily want to disclose.

Sariel grumbled that he had to take strong suppressants for the flight, something the Japanese side had insisted on, and that they sometimes made him slightly dizzy.

I won’t lie, takeoff always made me a little uneasy. There’s a reason people say most accidents happen during takeoff and landing. But… nothing happened.

Business class wasn’t fully occupied, though in our row, just to Sariel’s right, an older, well-dressed omega sat, looking like a wealthy businessman. Meanwhile, the economy section was getting pretty loud.

Also, I made a conscious decision not to dwell on anything unpleasant for the duration of the flight. Being in a confined space like this was making me feel a little claustrophobic.

Eventually, I decided to take a nap, and Sariel seemed to make the same choice. He kept complaining about the side effects of the suppressants, saying they were making him sleepy.

No blockers in my system, but I fell asleep equally quickly, and I must have slept for quite a while. I hadn’t gotten much rest the night before, so my body was demanding it.

When I woke up, the sky outside the airplane window was gray, which confused me at first. We’d taken off at 6 am, so in theory, we should have been flying through daylight. But then I remembered. We were landing in Tokyo at 10 am, which meant that sooner or later, we had to cross into the nighttime zone. The plane was moving faster than the Earth's rotation, essentially ‘catching up’ with time.

I wasn’t sure if Sariel had fallen asleep before or after I did, but at that moment, he was still in a deep slumber. So, I grabbed a quick bite and then pulled up our presentation on my tablet, memorizing key points I needed to emphasize first. That occupied me for the next two hours.

Finally, after about two and a half hours, when the world outside was completely dark, Sariel slowly opened his eyes.

Our gazes met.

He gave me a soft, sweet smile.

I could see the hesitation in his expression, the way he was struggling with the urge to say something despite the ‘ban’ I had placed on the topic. He bit his lip slightly, and then his eyes flickered down, to my lips.

Was he imagining our first kiss?

A thrill ran through me, something almost adolescent in its excitement.

We had all of it ahead of us: the first kiss, the first time, the entire journey of our relationship unfolding. That rush of anticipation, the electrifying experience of something new. And in our case… it was bound to come with a lot of emotions.

Not all of them pleasant. Maybe ‘excitement’ wasn’t the right word? Perhaps it was more like… a kind of nervous tension.

How should I act? How far could I allow myself to go… and how much could I allow him to?

Sariel’s gaze never left my face. And then—

It happened.

The whole plane shook as a deafening boom echoed around us.

A terrifying explosion—

Somewhere in the back of the plane.

And in that very instant, the thought hit me like a flash of lightning: this had to be a bomb.

I just knew.

With a strange, sharpened focus, I realized that Blue not being on board could mean that whoever planted the bomb hadn’t had the chance to remove it. If it had been placed far in advance, it was likely beyond retrieval.

It was almost eerie how all of these thoughts raced through my mind in the split second before the entire plane jolted violently, and a rush of freezing air slammed into us.

It was almost… a form of escape.

Escape from the fact that I knew, without a doubt, that we were all about to die.

No one had ever survived a plane crash at cruising altitude. Not over the North Pacific, in January.

Regret hit me like a tidal wave.

Regret for everything I hadn’t done in my life.

Regret that I had never loved anyone outside of my family.

I saw my dad’s face in my mind. His love, his warmth. His words of goodbye.

"I love you, Winter. Always remember that!"

And I did. I remembered how, as a child, he would hold me on his lap, rock me in his arms, and sing me lullabies. His voice had been beautiful, a clear tenor.

The memories of his love surrounded me like a pink, sweet silk, and I was so grateful for the gift of his unconditional love.

The only regret I had was that I would never feel his love again, and… never be able to give mine to anyone.

I turned to Sariel.

Our life was about to end, in the most horrifying way.

The lights in the cabin were flickering wildly. His face had gone completely pale, his eyes wide. His hair whipped in all directions, caught in the monstrous wind howling through the ruptured cabin.

Strangely, he wasn’t screaming.

Maybe he understood, just as I did, that there was no point.

We were doomed.

Then, suddenly, he reached out and grabbed my hand in a quick, desperate motion.

And I was relieved because I didn’t want to die without feeling the closeness of another human being.

Because even if our relationship had no chance of becoming anything more, at least I wouldn’t die alone. And neither would he.

Through the chaos, we held each other’s gaze.

Then—

Another deafening crack.

The unmistakable sound of the fuselage breaking apart.

Or at least, that was my completely unqualified assessment of what was happening.

Fuck, I really should have listened to Snow…

Our entire row of seats snapped free, hurtling downward—

And the two of us, still strapped in, plunged into the pitch-black void.

The last thing I saw was a golden light, soft as a pillow, surrounding me.

And then—

Nothing.