Chapter 61
Maeve
WE’VE BEEN FLYING FOR SOME time when Raelan tips his wings, angling them so we start to make a slow descent toward the ground. Behind me, Severin goes rigid, his arm squeezing tight around my waist.
But I just smile.
I understand now why Alina loves to go on those secret flights with Raelan, why they escape into the sky every chance they get. This feels like the ultimate freedom.
Cold winter air rushes past me, stinging my cheeks, my hair whipping around us as Raelan descends further, banking low, almost close enough to the tops of the trees that I could reach out and touch the highest pine needles. Up ahead is a break in the trees, a small clearing.
And standing in that clearing is a quaint little cottage.
Snow blankets the roof, and the stone chimney bears stains of past fires, though no smoke puffs from it now. The windows appear dark, and the whole place feels like it’s asleep, resting and waiting for someone to open the door and fill it with life and warmth.
Raelan circles the clearing a few times, dropping lower with each pass.
My bond with Severin pulls tight, his fear singing through it, and I squeeze his hand with mine as Raelan makes a final descent.
His wings come up high, slowing his speed, and then he lands with a spray of frost and snow, his claws biting into the frozen earth with a heavy jolt.
But as the spray of snow settles around us, the world suddenly feels quiet again.
Raelan turns his head, looking back at us with one gigantic gold-flecked eye.
“We’re here,” I tell Severin. He’s still got my waist in a death grip, and I slowly unwind his arms from around me.
He remains frozen, rooted to Raelan’s back, as I slip my leg over Raelan’s neck, grab the bags from where I had them tucked in front of me, and ease myself down onto Raelan’s wing.
He lowers it to the ground, and I step into the snow carefully, my muscles still trembling from the adrenaline of flight.
Then I turn to look up at Severin.
And I laugh.
He’s completely windblown, his dark hair mussed and tangled, his cloak rumpled, looking more rugged and askew than I’ve ever seen him.
“Come on,” I say.
He slowly turns to look at me, appearing as stiff as a gargoyle. Finally, he extracts himself from Raelan and slides down, joining me where I’m standing in the snow. His dark eyes are wide, his pale cheeks tinged red from the nip of cold air.
“First time on a dragon?” I ask.
“Yes.” He adjusts his cloak with a sharp tug. “And hopefully the last.” His gaze flicks to Raelan, then back to me. “I think I’d have preferred to walk.”
I rise up onto my toes and press a kiss to his cold mouth, seeming to startle him, as he freezes the moment my lips touch his. “You did great,” I whisper as I pull away. “And it’s good to try new things. Especially as you get older.” I arch a playful brow at him, and he frowns.
“Are you calling me old?”
Without answering, I turn to face Raelan. His wings are still extended, ready to take flight once more, and plumes of steam cloud around his nostrils with every exhale.
“Thank you,” I say to him. “I promise we won’t burn the place down.”
He lets out a low rumble, and his gaze shifts to Severin. It feels a bit wary and unsure. Raelan has become a sort of protector for all four of us girls over the years, and I know he doesn’t trust Severin yet. But eventually, he will.
“Tell Alina hello for me.” I step up to Raelan and place a hand on one of his glossy black scales. He meets my gaze and nods slowly, then turns his eyes to the sky.
It looks like he wants to fly. He probably always wants to fly.
“See you in a few days,” I tell Raelan.
Then I back away, and I lift a hand to shield my eyes from the flying snow as Raelan begins to beat his massive wings. Severin draws a breath as Raelan launches once more into the sky, his black body a slash of ink against the bright winter blue.
We stand there in the cold, watching him become smaller and smaller, until he’s swallowed up by the clouds.
And we’re alone.
Finally.
The world goes very, very quiet.
Snow drifts from the pine trees in slow glittering showers, and for the first time in forever, Severin and I are free. There’s no one else around—no eyes, no whispers, no rules or expectations. No single locked door to keep the world away. It’s just the two of us.
I turn to him, and his gaze is on me.
“How long has he known?” he asks.
“About us?”
Severin nods.
I shrug. “I don’t know. Most of the semester, I guess. My friends know too.”
For a moment, he says nothing, but I feel his surprise through the bond. Then there’s a recalibration, like he’s trying to determine how to move forward from here.
“I know we have to be careful so long as I’m still your student,” I say, reaching out to take his cold hand in mine, “but I don’t want to hide you.”
The sharpness in his gaze softens, and the furrow in his brow smooths out. “You trust them?”
I run my thumb over his knuckles. “I do. I’d never have told them if I didn’t.”
He seems to turn this information over in his mind, then nods once. “Then I’ll trust them too.”
“Thank you.” I lift his hand and kiss his palm, and the bond between us immediately flares with heat. It makes me smile, and I stoop to pick up our bags. “Now come on. Let’s get a fire going. I’m freezing.”
I head toward the cottage, the calf-deep snow crunching under my boots as I walk. Severin falls into step behind me, and when we make it to the door, he reaches around me to open it.
Cold air slips out, along with the lingering scent of woodsmoke, probably from the last time Raelan and Alina were here.
We knock the snow from our boots and step inside. Severin closes the door behind us with a soft click. As we both look around, taking it in, he asks, “What is this place?”
I set the bags down and pull off my boots, leaving them on a mat next to the door.
Now in thick socks, I take a few steps into the cottage and peek through a doorway into the sitting room.
“Raelan and Alina found this place a few years ago. It was abandoned, and they’ve been fixing it up ever since.
It’s their little getaway.” I glance back at Severin, admiring the cut of his jaw and his windswept dark hair.
“And it’s ours for the next three days.”
His eyes flick to mine, and a muscle flutters in his jaw.
Three days, completely alone.
“I’ll start a fire,” I say. “Will you put the bags upstairs?”
Severin still remains in the foyer, looking unsure of what to do with himself, but I make myself at home right away, moving into the sitting room and grabbing a few logs from the holder beside the fireplace.
I stack them in the hearth, add a bit of kindling, and then call a flame to my palm and blow on it, sending it dancing over the dry wood.
After a few flickers, it catches, and I hold both hands up to the warmth.
After the fire’s lit, I move through the cottage, exploring the small rooms and lighting candles as I go. I find the kitchen stocked with food and a couple bottles of wine and immediately know it’s Alina’s doing. I’ll have to give her an extra big hug for this the next time I see her.
Once I’m finished on the ground floor, I head up the creaking stairs to the second floor. And I find Severin standing in the bedroom, his gaze moving slowly over the space, taking it in one measured inch at a time.
He looks larger here, somehow. The cottage is small, cozy, and Severin looks at odds with it, like a lion pretending to be a house cat.
“You’re tense,” I say, crossing my arms as I lean against the doorframe.
His gaze slides to me, and his fingers curl at his sides.
“What’s wrong?” I ask. “Do you not like the surprise?”
Immediately, he says, “It’s not that. I . . .” He swallows, his throat bobbing. Once again, his gaze brushes the room, and when it lands on the bed, he goes very still. Without looking at me, he says, “The surprise is wonderful. But I’m . . .”
I’ve never known Severin to struggle with his words, and seeing him like this makes me warm inside. I cross the room to him, my socks whispering across the creaky wooden floor.
“What are you afraid of?” I ask, easing up beside him and taking his cold hands in mine. “You can tell me. Is this too much?”
He meets my eyes and gives a small shake of his head. “It’s perfect. That’s what I’m afraid of.” Slowly, he lifts one hand and uses it to tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. “I feel like you’re showing me a fantasy world, Maeve. And I fear I’m never going to want to leave it.”
I turn my face into his palm, my eyelids fluttering closed as he cups my cheek.
“We have this place all to ourselves for the next few days. Let’s enjoy the fantasy for a while, then talk about what comes after.” I open my eyes and look up into his dark gaze. “Can we do that?”
He strokes my cheek with his thumb, the caress making me melt further into his touch. Then he gives me a small nod. “I can do that.”
I smile. “Good.” Turning my face, I kiss his palm, then pull away. “Are you hungry?” His eyes widen, just slightly, and I laugh at the implication. “I mean for food.”
He shifts, as if trying to roll the tension from his shoulders, then nods once. “I could eat.”
“I’ll make us something. Alina stocked the place for us.
” I move away from Severin, back toward the door.
But halfway through the doorway, I glance back at him and say, “We can talk about your other hunger later.” Then I smile and head down the stairs, delighting in the trembling pulse that goes through our bond.