Chapter 9 #3
He wrinkled his nose. “And then you’d pluck out your eyeballs.
Nevermind. Would it bother you if I were physically affectionate?
For example, you just shivered for the fifth time, and my automatic response would be to wrap my wing around you and tug you closer to my body heat, but if it inflamed you uncomfortably to be so close to me, I won’t.
Also if you just don’t like touching me.
That’s more likely. Vampires don’t seem to like touching very much.
Angels are very physical, but not in a romantic way.
There’s a lot of bro hugs, for instance. ”
I beamed at him. He really was SunRae, thinking all these different things in all these different ways, but always full of exclamations.
So adorable! Not that his voice hit those high points, but if you translated his words to text, there would be exclamations all over the place.
“I’m half human, but no, vampires don’t hug a lot, which means I’m sort of…
” I hesitated then continued, feeling like I was stepping off the edge of a cliff. “Starved for physical contact.”
His feathery wing came around me, pulling me close to his warmth, and then his arm was there, wrapping around my waist, before he turned his head and kissed my hair. His voice was low and velvet. “Perfect. Then I can relax and just take care of you without worrying that I’m freaking you out.”
I gurgled a laugh while my heart beat faster and I held very still, trying not to freak out.
But he was SunRae. Wasn’t it normal for him to want to take care of me?
I wanted to take care of him and make sure he was optimal amounts of happy.
Why shouldn’t he feel the same way? I hesitated and then put my head on his shoulder. “I’m freaking out, but quietly.”
“Look, the first star,” he said, pointing up at the edge of the sky while Venus made her entrance.
The sky was fading, the color gone even from the edges. I felt so nice snuggled up to the angel, but when I inhaled, his blood smelled so delicious, my mouth watered. I needed to get home and drink a blood bag. I nudged his warm body with my elbow. “You should take me home now.”
“Why? More stars will come out in a second and those are even prettier than sunsets. Some might even fall. A falling star is even prettier than a falling angel.” He winked at me like there couldn’t be anything prettier than him.
I giggled. “You’re very confident. Lucky you have wings so you won’t fall.” I tugged on his feathers and his arm tightened around me deliciously.
He raised a brow. “Angels with wings are in the most danger of falling since they’re so high up. Being with you is like that. So high and heavenly. I’m glad we’re friends.” His eyes crinkled in the sweetest smile.
Friends. Right. I gazed up at the sky instead of at him. “Me too. Now be quiet so I’m not distracted while watching for falling stars and angels.”
“Do I distract you a lot?”
“Of course. You’re so gorgeous. And you have a horse.” I snickered. “You’re terrible.”
“I know. Terribly gorgeous.” He cocked his head just so, and I knew that Vesper learned his dramatic posing from him.
I burst into laughter, and he joined me, voice rich and delicious as his blood while I stayed safely snuggled against him while a sea of stars came to life above.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve really seen the stars,” I murmured.
“Same. I’m usually too busy to soak in the beauty. You’re very beautiful, particularly your laugh.”
I raised my head to give him a look. “Wow. Coming from the gorgeous angel with a horse, that’s really something. Particularly my laugh? Wow.”
He rolled his eyes. “I’m trying not to freak you out. Manners are a thing.”
“I thought I asked for brutal honesty.”
He sighed heavily. “Honestly? The stars are nothing compared to you. You smell like peaches and purity while kindness shines from your eyes. Your eyes glow brighter than Vesper or the moon. And your outfits are the cutest things ever. You’re the walking embodiment of adorableness.”
I giggled. “Wow. You’re right. Now I’m completely freaked out. I smell like peaches and purity? I do love peaches. This is so much fun. You really are SunRae.”
“And you are my Pastel Princess. So, which of the contestants do you like best? Will you stop trying to vote me off now that you know we’re best friends forever?”
I elbowed him. “I can’t talk to you about contestants. It’s in the fine print. You’ll just have to see how I vote.”
He grinned at me. “That’s a subtle hint that I’ll be here to see who you vote off. It’s a pity you don’t have more options. Only five possibilities to marry? You should have millions of options and choose the best of them.”
“I don’t think a million men want to marry me.”
He scoffed. “Any man would be a complete fool not to love you.”
I grinned at him. “But I need to find a fool. Only fools fall in love.”
“I thought it was only fools rush in where angels fear to tread.”
“I have evidence that angels fear very little.”
“And they tread all over everything.” He grinned at me and then rolled off the rock, landing lightly and holding out a hand to me. “Fair princess, would you do me the honor of allowing me to escort you home?”
I wrapped my arms around myself when the cold breeze hit me. “How could I resist such manners? You’re using them like you know what they are.”
“Of course I know what they are. I’m not a barbarian.
Sadly. I’ve had good manners drilled into me from conception.
Before conception, most likely. Can I take you home?
It is getting late, and I’ve got to retrieve a pan, and you’ve mentioned needing to get back to drink blood, which is ridiculous because I have perfectly good poisonous blood that you can drink right here. ”
I stepped away from him and towards Vesper. I stroked his soft nose while he lipped my fingers. “You’d better keep your blood for emergencies.”
He stepped behind me close enough I could feel his heat, but he didn’t actually touch me. My heart beat faster as he murmured, “I don’t like you having emergencies. No, I really, really hated you being shot in the heart, however much I liked you drinking my blood.”
He sounded almost passionate. I shivered and turned to look up at him. “Yes. Take me home.”
He ran his strong hands over my arms, eyes still dark with anger at the thought of me being shot. “You have all these goosebumps. Flying will be too cold for you. That means we’ll ride Vesper so I can wrap you in my feathers. If you promise not to drop anyone,” he said to his pegasus, voice stern.
Vesper snorted and then lowered a wing, like he was absolutely respectable and not guilty of dropping anyone ever.
Richard snorted and then picked me up and leapt on, spreading his wings until we were astride, and I was sitting across his legs. Then he wrapped his fluffy, soft, golden wings around me and snuggled me deep in his feathers.
I laughed and then Vesper launched off the hill, dipping terrifyingly low before he pulled up and angled around.
He wasn’t as fast, and he flew here and there, not in a straight line, like he was enjoying the flight.
My face was cold, but the wind didn’t rush like before, and with Richard and his feathers, I enjoyed every second of the magical flight through clouds.
Then the moon came out and it was truly glorious.
Vesper played games with the night shadows while I drowned in Richard’s feathers, loving the smell of wild wind mixed with Richard’s sweet, heavenly blood. We flew for ages, but finally, Vesper landed in the clearing I’d napped in, trotted a few steps and then shook his head, whinnying.
“Yes, yes, you finally made it,” Richard said, sounding slightly irritable. “Thank you for not dumping anyone even though you took five times as long as necessary.”
I leaned over Vesper’s neck and hugged him as tight as I could without channeling any vampire.
“Thank you for the most beautiful, magical, wonderful ride I’ve ever imagined.
You are pure delight. Don’t let Richard tell you differently.
You can fly me around all night if you’d like.
But you should get back to your barn and rest.”
I slipped off Richard’s lap and landed, smiling up at him. “Thank you for saving me. Again. And thank you for keeping me warm.”
He didn’t follow me down, just stayed there looking like a perfect prince of the night. “You’re much more affectionate with my horse than with me. You sound like we’re at a formal event and you’re about to curtsy.”
I dropped the deepest curtsy I’d ever given in all of my life and then raised only my head, gazing up at him through my lashes. “My thanks, kind sir. And give my regards to your mother.”
He leaned down over me, almost looking like he was going to topple off. “And you can do that while keeping your spine perfectly straight. You really are a princess.” He shifted back, more settled on his steed. “Good night, Pastel Princess. Sweet dreams.”
With that, he and Vesper swept up into the sky, arcing above me like a reverse shooting star, glowing until they vanished entirely from sight.
I stood where I was for a long time, staring up, searching for falling stars and my angel.