33. Seraphina
33
SERAPHINA
“FLYING LESSONS”
I wake the following morning with my eyes swollen shut and my throat aching from the amount of crying I did yesterday. I truly can’t remember the last time I broke down like that—if ever—and I’m a little worried about how comfortable I was letting Orion take care of me in that state.
Especially since he won’t take this fucking shock collar off.
I reach up to my neck, scrunching my nose at the feel of the thick leather strap cutting into my skin. I gaze to my right, noting Orion’s closed eyes and the soft snores pouring from his lips. If I’m going to do this, I have to do it now.
Reaching behind my neck, I find the clasp and work quickly to unlock the contraption. A soft pop sounds, and the collar falls from my neck. Breathing a sigh of relief, I reach up and massage the two red marks left on my skin from the metal prongs, a frown creasing my brow. What a dickhole.
As I glare at Orion’s sleeping face, a plan forms in the depths of my mind. With a smirk tugging at my lips, I pick up the collar and inch it toward his neck, biting my lip to stop the devious chuckle that wants to spring free.
Sliding one strap through the space between his neck and the mattress, I pull the other side over the top and force the clasp together, having to use far more force than I thought due to the thickness of his neck.
Orion’s eyes spring open at the sensation, but it’s too late. Snapping up the remote from his bedside table, I skitter backward off the mattress before he realizes what’s happened. My ass hits the floor with a bang, but there’s so much adrenaline coursing through me that I barely feel it.
Orion reaches up to the collar, a frown carving a path down his face as he watches me retreat to the other side of the room. He reaches to the back of his neck to undo the clasp, and I press the little red button, causing him to jump.
“Fuck!” He jerks his eyes to me, and I can’t help but shudder at the raw malice brimming there. “What the fuck are you doing, Seraphina?”
The way he says my name sends a shudder down my spine—but it’s not a good feeling. Steeling my shoulders, I wave the remote in the air, forcing a haughty expression onto my face.
“It seems I’m in control now.”
Instead of the anger I expect, Orion tips his head as a teasing smirk replaces his frown. “Are you? And what would you have me do?”
My pulse pounds in my ears as I take in the challenge in his eyes. Fuck… I didn’t actually think I would get this far.
Swallowing hard, I point a finger at the floor. “Crawl to me.”
A devious smirk tips my lips as I raise the remote above my head, getting high off the murderous sheen in Orion’s gaze. Without a word of dissent, Orion pushes off the bed, his chest heaving as he crouches down to all fours. And slowly—oh, so slowly—he does as I request. His forearms strain as he moves toward me, eyes dark and unblinking and causing my thighs to clench. The leather strap around his neck strains with each beat of his pulse, and I know if I look between his legs, I’ll find his cock hard and ready. The sight of Orion crawling to me shouldn’t be as hot as it is—yet it has me melting into a puddle on the floor.
When he reaches me, he rises to his knees, slowly sliding his palms from my ankles to my hips and resting there. He looks up at me through impossibly long lashes, a sharp canine bared as he bites the corner of his lip.
“You have me now, Seraphina. What are you going to do with me?”
“I… I don’t…” My brain is mush as I stare down at him, numb to everything but the warmth spreading from my inner thighs. Fuck me, is what I want to say—the only two words I would be able to form—but there’s no way I’m going to say it. Not when I’m finally in control.
Orion chuckles, the sound dark and sinful as it rolls off his lips. “What is it, dove? Someone lose their nerve?”
He snaps a hand up to his neck, ripping the collar off in one swift movement. I barely have time to blink before he’s standing, pulling me from the floor and tossing me to the mattress. His thighs hit the top of the bed, and that same dark look from earlier returns to his eyes as he crawls toward me.
He climbs on top, his tattooed forearms straining on either side of my head, that dark smirk still pulling at his sinful mouth. He leans low, his breaths coasting over my neck and causing my skin to prickle, desperate for his touch. His kiss.
“Orion,” I moan, closing my eyes tight as a shudder runs through my body. “Orion, I need to come.”
“I know.” He takes a deep breath of me and takes my skin between his teeth. I let out a pained hiss, but pleasure blooms all the same. He sucks and kisses the spot, reaching a hand down and cupping the chastity belt covering my clit. His fingertips work under the edge, an appreciative hum rumbling from his chest at the slick arousal he finds.
“Too bad you haven’t learned how to be good.”
A choked sound falls from my lips as Orion pulls away, a devious smile curving his mouth. “Are you serious?”
“Deadly.” He stands from the bed, sparing me one last appreciative glance before moving to the dresser and finding me a fresh pair of clothes. “Put these on. I want to show you something.”
I shove the clothes on and follow Orion into the living room, finding him with a smile and a pair of hiking boots in his hands.
I raise a brow. “What are those for?”
“Just put them on.” He tosses them along with a pair of socks to the floor at my feet. “Then meet me outside.”
The tang of cypress sap assaults me as soon as I step into the small clearing, squinting my eyes against the sun that breaks through the sparse canopy. As soon as he sees me, Orion takes off, disappearing into the brush, and I have no choice but to follow him. We walk for a good half an hour before we reach the end of the forest. I step past the tree line, surprised to find Orion standing at the edge of a cliff, his arms spread wide and his head tilted back as the violent breeze whips through his hair.
“Come on!” he calls, ushering me closer. “It’s beautiful over here!”
Stomach twisting, I do as he says. I stop a few feet from the edge, leaning forward so I can see past the edge, and my heart drops when I realize how high up we are. Waves crash against the pointed rocks below, violent and white-capped and waiting to claim the life of whoever falls to its depths.
Shuddering, I try to take a step backward, only for Orion to grip my wrist and haul me to the edge. My mouth opens in a wordless scream as he positions me in front of him, my toes hanging from the ledge. I lean as far back against him as I can, the warmth of his chest seeping into me, easing some of my anxiety.
Wrapping an arm around my waist, he grips my chin with the other, forcing my eyes to the skyline. “I got you, little dove,” he whispers. “Just look.”
I blink out at the open blue, the beauty of the sight taking me hostage and filling me with awe. It really is beautiful up here—so quiet, so peaceful—like we’re standing at the edge of the world.
“Wow…” My mouth falls slightly as my gaze catches on a couple of gulls gliding along the breeze, their white-tipped wings gleaming in the morning sun. “I had no idea… I didn’t think there was a place like this in Moriton.”
“Wait until I show you the waterfall.” Orion presses his lips to the thrumming vein on my neck. “You might like that even more.”
I turn to face him, leaning my upper half backward over the edge and letting him hold me. For some reason—one I’m not going to try to understand—I feel like I trust this man. At least here, at this moment, I know he would never let me fall.
“Thank you for showing this to me,” I whisper. “I needed something like this after yesterday…”
He frowns, wiping his thumb over my cheek where a stray tear has fallen. “I wish I could take your pain from you, little dove. If I could wish for one thing in this life, it would be that.”
“Really? You wouldn’t wish for me to be in love with you?” I slam my mouth closed as soon as the question falls from my lips. Where the fuck did that come from?
Thankfully, Orion seems not to have heard me. Instead of answering, he pulls me tighter against him, his eyes burning as he whispers, “Do you trust me, Seraphina?”
I blink up at him, unsure of how to answer the question. His hands—his soul is stained with murder. He’s done terrible things to me and to others—and he seems to show no remorse about it. But something in me screams—demands for me to realize the truth. That for all his faults, all his fucked-up-ness, Orion will protect me with his last breath.
And in the moment, I decide that I do. I trust him implicitly.
I nod, my eyes wide as I allow him this brief glance of my fragility. “I shouldn’t… I really fucking shouldn’t, Orion. But I do…”
He smiles, and it’s one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen. It’s free of arrogance, of all the malice I’m accustomed to. Right now, he just looks… happy.
“I’m so happy to hear that.” He leans in, pressing a kiss to my forehead.
And then he shoves me off the cliff.
“What the fuck!”
The air whips around me as I fall through the air, each millisecond taking me closer to the jagged rocks below. I should be more concerned about my brain smashing onto them, yet as my imminent demise nears, I’m overcome by a disturbing thought.
Are those my last words?
I raise my fist to the sky, my face a twisted mess of rage as I scream, “Fuck you, dirty onion! Fuck you, your penis, and everything you stand for!”
There. Much better.
I close my eyes, awaiting the sweet release of death. But then a pair of strong arms wraps around my middle, and then I’m soaring, flying higher and higher into the skies.
Wait… that’s not possible.
I look over my shoulder, not believing my eyes even as the hang glider contraption strapped to Orion’s back takes us higher and higher into the air. Two great metal wings spread out from his shoulders, held tightly to his back by thick leather straps that wrap around his chest and abdomen, leaving his arms free.
I’ve seen the contraption only once before—as a child when we visited the Sanctum headquarters. The memory is foggy, but I still remember the sight of that Mask standing on top of the building, at the strange metal wings strapped to his back. When he jumped, I was sure I would see a man lose his life—only to watch him sail back into the sky a moment later as his glider caught the breeze.
I have no earthly idea how Orion came into possession of this equipment, but I’m also not going to question it when it’s the only thing keeping me from certain death. Instead, I wrap my hands around Orion’s forearm, my fingers digging into his skin as we sail higher into the sky.
He looks down at me, giving me his million-dollar smile as he tugs me closer to his chest. “I told you I got you, little dove. You want to take back that last statement?”
The urge to smack him upside his head takes over me, but the fear of death still lingers, so I keep my hands to myself. Orion dips the nose toward the water, and we start a free-fall, the salty sea breeze smacking me across the face the closer we get to the water.
Just before we crash into the wave, Orion jerks upward, and the glider stabilizes, allowing us to sail across the surface of the water like I had seen those gulls do earlier.
My mouth falls in wonder as I reach a hand down, allowing my fingertips to break the surface. A trail streams out behind us as the cool water laps at my hand, and I lower the other, marveling at the gentle tug of the water against my skin.
“Look to your right!” Orion jerks his head to where a school of dolphins is breaking the surface, dozens of slate gray fins popping up only to disappear a moment later as they dive below the waves. A squeal falls from my lips as I watch them sail through the water, wishing more than anything I could reach out and touch one.
Seeming to read my mind, Orion takes a hard right, flying us closer to the school. When we’re right on top of them, Orion grabs my hand, pushing it beneath the waves. My fingertips brush something smooth and weirdly slick, and I nearly yank my hand away. But Orion holds me there, shifting my hand so it passes over the gentle curve of the dolphin's dorsal fin.
Sensing my touch, the dolphin swivels, turning itself belly up as its tail fin works overtime to keep it moving. My eyes widen in shock as Orion lets out a full-bellied laugh, and he doesn’t need to guide me this time. Placing my palm flat on its belly, I give it a couple of scritches like I would the tigers, and the dolphin lets out an elated cackle.
Flapping its pectoral fins, it disappears into the depths of the water, leaving me to wonder if that interaction really just happened. Orion lets out a whooping noise, tilting the nose of the glider up and taking us back into the air.
We soar through the open air, a cool breeze whipping through my hair, sticking it to my face. But I’m so overjoyed, I can’t seem to feel it. The only two things I know for sure are the man steady at my back and the tattooed arm holding me, keeping me in the clouds.
When Orion begins the descent, it seems far too soon. He crests downward at an angle, expertly steering us through a massive cavern in the cliffside I hadn’t noticed when we were standing at the top. In fact, the only way you would be able to see the cavern is if you were flying like we are—even from a boat, you wouldn’t be able to get close enough to the rocks to see the small opening.
Orion twists the glider at an angle, the wingspan just wide enough to fit between the rocky cliffs on either side. I squeal when the right wing scrapes the side, but Orion just laughs, tipping the front downward as we make our descent. As far as I can tell, there’s nothing but a thick swath of canopy beneath us, and I have no earthly idea how we’re going to make this landing unscathed.
To my surprise, instead of taking us to the ground, Orion steers the glider to a small outcropping jutting from the side of the cliff. He lands on the flat rock, holding me impossibly tight as he steadies his stance, fighting against the wind trying to take us back into the air.
With a grunt, he manages to collapse the wings, shoving the contraption deep into the slot of his backpack before throwing it back over his shoulders. He takes my hand with a grin, leading me toward the edge of the outcropping.
I shake my head, digging in my heels as he drags me over. “Nuh-uh. I am not being thrown from a cliff twice in one day.”
Orion laughs, pulling me in front of him and wrapping his arms firmly around my stomach. His breath tickles the shell of my ear as he speaks, stoking the anxiety flaring beneath my skin. “How about we jump together?”
“I don’t think that’s such a good idea eithe?—-”
The rest of the word is lost to my scream as Orion launches us from the ledge, and we plummet to the canopy below. I close my eyes, bracing for impact as we swoop past the thick layer of foliage, free-falling to certain death.
Instead of the hard earth, we crash into a deep body of water hidden beneath the treetops. The chill lake steals my breath as I plummet beneath the surface, kicking and clawing wildly even as my body is dragged down, down, down.
Black spots line my vision as I kick into the dark nothingness, panic squeezing the air from me and dispersing it in an explosion of bubbles. Just when I think I’m a goner, Orion’s calloused hand grips my arm, tugging me easily to the surface. When my head breaks the surface, I draw in a heaving gulp of air, my eyes like daggers as I take in Orion’s nonchalant expression.
“You… could have… killed me… you… fucking… moldy onion…”
Orion just laughs, shaking his head like the thought is ridiculous. “If you think that, then you clearly don’t realize how much I care for you.”
My eyes widen as I take in the raw emotion brimming in his eyes. I try to speak, find my words locked in my throat, and swallow them down. Orion tugs me closer, wrapping my legs around his waist as his hand slides up to cup the back of my neck. His gaze is smoldering, and lights a fire beneath my skin, warming me despite the chill of the lake.
“Do you trust me, Seraphina?” He applies pressure to my neck. “Even now? After everything I’ve done to you, despite all the things I will? Will you give that to me, sweet dove? Or will you keep your heart locked in that pretty gilded cage?”
Just like I did on the cliff, I try to remember all the reasons I shouldn’t. All the things that should make me run from this man, screaming. Only, when I go to list them, I can’t find a single one. And maybe it’s delusional, or crazy, or both, but right now, I need some of that in my life. I’ve been needing it for a while.
“I trusted you then, and I trust you now.” I press my forehead against his, allowing my eyes to close. “I don’t know why I feel this way, but I can’t stop it. Believe me, I’ve tried. I’ve tried so hard .” At this, I look at him, finding his sky-blue eyes fixed on my face as if he’s committing every feature to memory.
“I’ve been waiting for you to break for me, Seraphina.” His gaze heats, and the pressure on my neck increases tenfold. “But right here, right now, I don’t think I can wait any longer.”
His eyes meet mine, and the emotion there scares me. Terrifies and ignites me. Without waiting for his permission, I press on my toes.
And I kiss him.