ClosertoFire (17 page)
Authors: Alexis Reed
Chloe’s eyes narrowed. “So would I.”
Anthony drew her under his arm. The two men at the door
joined them and they escorted Kai and Savara out of the room.
Darek sighed, visibly relieved. “You realize what this
means,” he said.
“We’re safe?” Lily guessed.
“Well, yes. But it also means Bane and I will be marked
too.” She frowned, not sure what he meant.
“Females—women—manifest the wyrmate’s mark as soon as the
relationship is consummated,” Bane explained. “A male must wait until the
relationship has been sanctioned by his
sovrán
.”
“Well, that’s not fair,” Lily said indignantly.
Bane grinned unapologetically. “Nope. It’s not,” he said.
“But it is adaptive. The mark keeps other males away.”
She raised an eyebrow. “And what about getting my mark on
you? Shouldn’t I get to lay claim too?”
“Better late than never?” Darek offered.
“Which reminds me.” Lily stood on tiptoe and toyed with
Darek’s hair. “You haven’t taken me flying yet.”
“Very well then,” he murmured, kissing her. He gestured
grandly toward the glass door.
“After you.”
* * * * *
Bane sat behind her, his body keeping her warm as Darek
carried them over the expansive fjord beside the aerie. They had been asked not
to go far, as Anthony still had many questions, but the view beyond the tips of
Darek’s membranous scarlet wings was stunning. She’d never seen water so
blue—the same fathomless color as Bane’s eyes.
On impulse, she shouted over the wind, “Can we live here?”
She sensed rather than saw Bane’s surprise. Beneath them,
the dark-red dragon chuffed, a sound almost like laughter.
“I’d ask you if you mean it but I know you do,” Bane said
close to her ear. He paused as if considering her request. “It’s quite
isolated, Lily. Are you sure?”
It wasn’t the picturesque countryside that drew her, though that
was certainly appealing. She wanted to be here, in their homeland, where she
could have some influence over the course of this war that she’d learned so
much about…and that weighed so heavily on the hearts of the men she’d grown to
love. Though she knew Bane could hear her thoughts, she spoke the words aloud.
“It seems like the key to winning this war could be getting
the idani on your side,” she said. “I’d like to play a role in that. Like an
ambassador.”
“It would be dangerous. I don’t know that we’d be willing to
risk harm coming to you,” Bane said, his tone reserved. Her heart fell. “But I
think you could be right,” he finished. Lily felt a twinkle of hope. She wanted
to make a difference. When he spoke again, she heard the smile in his words.
“In which case,” he said gently, “I suppose we should take
this opportunity to scout out the perfect spot to make our home.”
The wind bore away Lily’s shout of joy.
Alexis Reed has been writing since she was ten years old.
Her first book was written on a 26-pound “compact” computer with a 5-inch
screen and reached 52 pages, single-spaced. Many years later, she read her
first romance novel and was instantly in love. In 2006, she started working on
her first novel.
Alexis graduated from the Pennsylvania State University with
a Master’s degree in English in 2000. Besides her fiction work, she spent six
years as a professional editor and grant writer.
She lives with her husband, Rob and their two young sons.
Their home is full of love and laughter—and a lot of mischief. Fortunately,
they have two cats and a 12-pound schnoodle named Goliath to run the place.
Alexis welcomes comments from readers. You can find her
website and email addresses on her
author
bio page
at
www.ellorascave.com
.
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Alexis
Reed
Ellora’s Cave Publishing
Closer to Fire
ISBN 9781419942037
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Closer to Fire Copyright © 2013 Alexis Reed
Edited by Jillian Bell
Cover design by Fiona Jayde
Cover photography by hotdamnstock.com, ron/daz3d, Susan
McKivergan, Antje Darline and Bex Boardman Boardman/renderosity.com
Electronic book publication September 2013
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