Chapter Fourteen #2
The shrubbery—which was even taller than Byn himself—wrapped around the small area in a square with no natural openings to walk through. It was completely closed off to outsiders—private. But that wasn’t what had stolen the breath from my lungs.
In the center of the small space stood a gazebo. Its pale wood contrasted the dark roof and black stone base, and countless vines of moon lilies surrounded it.
They draped down from the roof, climbed the pillars holding the structure up, and wrapped around the sides. It provided additional privacy, hanging down even over the entrance, but it was also the first time I was seeing moon lilies in Cairnyl and on a vine.
Additionally, the flowers were scattered throughout the rest of the small clearing, like the stars scattered the night sky.
I gasped at the sight of them and their silvery and white petals with a soft purple center.
Mother’s favorite.
And mine.
“How did you…” I trailed off, unable to complete my question.
“I might have studied them a tad back at Echen Bay. I could tell how much they meant to you there, and I wanted to know how to grow them so you could have them here, too,” Byn said softly.
It spoke to his control over his zirilium—to have only had a short period of time to study a specific plant and recreate it from nothing more than the earth below.
I blinked back the tears threatening from behind my eyes at the sight of them.
“Come on,” he said, linking our arms again and leading me to the gazebo.
He parted the moon lily vines for me to duck through, and I paused in my tracks once I stepped inside.
It was the most perfect picnic I had ever seen.
There were multiple small dishes of Northern food—along with a few of my favorite Southern ones—spread out on a dark purple blanket.
Multiple sizes of white plush cushions covered the space.
There were jugs of water and wine already near the food, and the way the setting sun peeked through the vines made it look as though I’d stepped through the pages of a fairytale.
Without looking away from the astounding set up, I grabbed his hand and squeezed.
“Let’s eat,” he suggested, his voice quiet. He led us into the middle of the setup, atop the plush cushions, before lowering to the ground and gently pulling me down with him.
The next moments were full of food, laughter, wine, and quiet chatter. Here, we weren’t the King and Queen of the South. We were just Robyn and Aviva—two fae who were madly, sickeningly in love with one another.
Once Byn had fed me the last of the strawberries—so slowly it was antagonizing, to my dismay—I picked up a napkin to wipe my mouth with, but he beat me to it. He gently cupped the side of my face, using his thumb to wipe away the tiny droplet of juice that had rested near my lip.
But he didn’t stop there.
“You know,” he said as he slowly ran his thumb against my bottom lip, “I believe… I’m still hungry.”
My eyes flicked up to meet his, and the desire in his gaze made my core run hot. I could tell he wasn’t hungry for more food.
And if he was hungry, I was ravenous.
Picking up on the desirous shift in my emotions—emotions that matched his own—his grip on my jaw tightened as he tugged me closer to him and brought our lips a breath from each other’s.
My breathing hitched at the nearness, but our lips failed to meet.
I cracked my eyes open, meeting his hungry gaze as he murmured, “I plan on worshipping you tonight.”
My core tightened at just the thought of such a thing.
Then his lips were everywhere but on my own.
He left a trail of kisses down the column of my throat, which I gladly exposed to him.
When he made it to my shoulder, he looked at me for confirmation—of which I happily granted—before tugging my shirt off, undoing the buttons on the back for my wings as he went.
Then, without my shirt, he gently laid me on my back while being mindful of my injured wing. He carried on his trail of kisses, stopping every few to leave small purple marks. When he reached my waist, he paused to look up at me.
“May I?” he asked.
“Please,” I responded, breathless.
I couldn’t ignore the smirk that made his dimple pop as he looped his fingers into my waistband and tugged.
He tossed them away mindlessly before beginning another trail, this time on the opposite side of my body as before, of kisses and marks. He moved excruciatingly slowly, taking his time to taste me on his lips.
By the time he reached my shoulder again, I groaned impatiently.
“You’re such a tease,” I said, my heart racing at the close contact—yet not close enough.
He chuckled, but made no effort to quicken his pace. I lifted a hand and fisted it in his hair, my patience wearing thin as I tugged him up and crashed my lips into his.
It was as though we were trying to devour each other through a single kiss. It was all lips, teeth, and tongues as we explored territory we both knew by heart at that point.
I pulled back moments later, panting, as I lifted his shirt off over his head, exposing his toned and golden torso.
“I want all of you, Byn.” I ran my hands over his soft skin as I peered up at him.
“Your desires are mine, Avi—I want all of you, too.” He tucked a stray lock of hair behind my pointed ear. “Your mind, your emotions, your body, your soul—all of it. You’re mine.”
I leaned into his touch as I agreed, “Yours.”
With that to set the tone, the rest of the evening was, indeed, full of worshipping. Not the Stars, as some had the custom, but each other.
That might not have been our first time, but it was one of the most meaningful. As our bodies melded into one form, that bond tying our souls together became one, too. His feelings were mine, and mine his, and we didn’t need words to know exactly what the other needed.
We moved together in perfect harmony, our essence like that of an eclipse.
Skin met skin.
Emotion met emotion.
Soul met soul.