Summer of Frost (16 page)

The tension visibly regressed from Alston’s
shoulders when he lowered his head, but it looked forced. “I’m
sorry,” he sighed. “It’s been a long couple of days.”

“What happened to you?” Sorcha asked. “Why
didn’t you make your way back?”

“When I got hurt and went down, no one saw
me, and when I woke up everyone was gone. With no food or water, I
drifted into a haze and wandered around until I ended up here. I
wanted to wait until I was perfectly healed before I made my way
back. If anyone attacked, I wouldn’t have had the strength to
fight.”

Sorcha nodded in understanding. “Well, I’m
glad we found you. Sarette’s going to be so happy when you make it
home.”

Alston furrowed his brows and looked around
the forest. “What are you two doing out here by the way?” he
asked.

“It’s a long story,” Sorcha said, glancing
at me then back to him. “We need to rest anyway. I know you have to
be starving.” She turned on her heels and headed back to the horses
while Alston fell into step beside her, a little too close.

After we ate our food, Sorcha explained to
Alston what all had happened and where we were going. She even told
him about us and the changes that were getting ready to happen when
we form our own Summer Court. He became visibly angry and stalked
off from us. I was glad he didn’t pick a fight because I probably
would’ve killed him, and I was glad Sorcha didn’t want to follow
him because I wasn’t going to let her.

“He’s pretty volatile,” I noticed.

Sorcha sighed. “Yes, he is.”

Anger flowed through me as I imagined him
taking his anger out on her. What did he do when she broke it off
with him? My hands started shaking, and I knew my eyes had changed.
Clearly they had because Sorcha looked at me warily. “He didn’t
hurt you when you two were together, did he? Because if he did, I’m
going to kill him now. No one would ever know.”

“Drake!” she shrieked. “No, he never hurt
me. He got really possessive at times, but he learned quickly he
couldn’t control me. A few punches and black eyes did the
trick.”

I laughed, imagining her kicking his ass.
“Good,” I stated wholeheartedly. “He deserves a good ass kicking
now.”

“That may be so, but what are we going to do
about him? Are we taking him back or is he coming with us?”

I groaned. “As much as I want him to go
home, we just don’t have the time for it. If the dark sorcerer
comes back and knows what we’re up to, he’ll be on our trail or
he’ll get to the scroll first and put it somewhere else. So,
unfortunately, he stays with us.”

As if my words called him forth, Alston came
through the shadows of the forest and sat down by the fire. “It’s
getting late. We probably should get some sleep and continue on in
the morning,” I insisted.

Sorcha stretched out her glorious body, and
cuddled up next to me not even acknowledging Alston’s presence.
Alston scowled as she kissed me on the lips and fell asleep
instantly in my arms. Once she was completely out, I turned my
attention to Alston and stared daggers at him. “I’d appreciate it
if you kept your hands to yourself from now on,” I warned him.

Alston’s eyes grew smug. “What’s wrong?
Jealous?”

“Hardly,” I stormed back. “She’s with me
now, and a future queen of the Summer Court. You may still love
her, or want her, but it’s over. Show some respect and back the
fuck off.”

“See … that’s the thing,” Alston sneered. “I
have no respect.”

With that, he turned his back to me and lay
down on the ground, clearly saying the conversation was over. It
was far from over, and I was going to make sure he fully understood
that.

When I fell asleep, Sorcha was waiting for
me.

“
What took you so long?” she asked
curiously.

“
Oh, you know …” I began sarcastically.
“Just warning Alston to keep his distance, but of course, he
challenged me.”

Sorcha shook her head. “I told you, he’s
possessive. He said he was going to work on it, but obviously, I
guess he’s not getting the picture.”

“
He’s not welcome in our court, Sorcha,”
I added forcefully. “Sarette is your friend, and if she decides to
follow you that’s great, but she has to know he can’t
come.”

Sorcha nodded in agreement. “I understand,
and I agree with you. Maybe he’ll come to his senses when I’m gone
for good, when our bond is complete.”

“
He has no choice but to let you go,
beautiful. If he causes a problem I’m going to have to deal with it
my way. He’s not going to disrespect me or you by acting this
way.”

Sorcha smiled and placed her finger to my
lips. “Please tell me we aren’t going to talk about Alston this
whole time. Our dreams are about me and you. What adventures are we
going to go on tonight?”

“
We could visit your home in the Winter
Court,” I suggested. “I know you miss it.”

She shrugged and said thoughtfully, “I will
miss it, and once we get back I’ll have to face my parents. They’re
going to be so angry with me when they find out what I’m
doing.”

Taking her in my arms, I held her tight.
“You’ll be safe with me. I’ll make sure you get back all in one
piece.”

Running her hands along my back, she
whispered against my chest, “I know, Drake, but tonight I want to
feel safe in
our
court. Let’s picture it together and go
there. I want to feel like I’m at home.”

“
Home,” I repeated, smiling.

Closing our eyes, we both envisioned our
court the way we wanted it to be: white, sandy beaches, clear blue
water, palm trees, salty sea air, and us right in the middle of it.
Even in the dream I felt at home, truly and utterly at home.

The next morning came quickly, and once the
sun was up we packed our supplies and began our journey. Since we
only had two horses, Alston rode Sorcha’s horse while she and I
rode on mine. The ride was quiet until Alston opened his smart ass
mouth.

“I don’t see why you don’t just fly while
Sorcha and I ride the horses. You’re weighing yours down with both
your weights. I’m starting to feel sorry for it.”

Growling, I turned to face him with my
lethal gaze. “My horse will be perfectly fine, and besides, I’m not
stupid enough to leave her alone with you.”

“She’s been alone with me many times and
I’ve never heard her complain,” he taunted suggestively.

Sorcha tensed in front of me, and glared at
Alston, fuming. “Enough!” she yelled. “What the hell is the matter
with you? I thought you said you were going to change. What
happened to that?”

“I’m trying,” he yelled back. “It’s hard to
see you two all over each other when I’m still in love with you.
I’m sorry if you don’t understand that.”

Sorcha paused and stared at him for a tense
moment. She released a shaky breath and continued, “I know you
still love me, but the snide remarks need to stop. If you have a
problem with me and Drake being together you’re going to have to
get over it. No one is making you stay with us. I’m sure you can
find the way back to the Winter Court.”

“I’m not leaving you,” he answered firmly.
“I don’t think I can.”

My anger grew with every word he said, and
no matter what Sorcha believed, Alston was definitely going to be a
problem. Sorcha tilted her head back to me and said, “Pull the
reins. We need to stop.” I did as she said and we came to a
halt.

When Alston’s horse stopped, she glared at
him and began, “Alston, I
will
be leaving soon. I’m not
going back to the Winter Court. It’s not my home anymore.”

“Well, then I’ll follow you to Summer,” he
promised.

When I opened my mouth to protest, Sorcha
jabbed me in the leg and whispered, “Let me handle this.” Biting my
tongue, I kept my mouth shut even though I was shaking
furiously.

“You can’t follow me, Alston. You don’t
belong in Summer.”

“What about Sarette?” he asked. “She won’t
leave the Winter Court without me.”

Sorcha shrugged her shoulders regretfully.
“Then I guess she’ll have to stay in Winter.”

Alston fumed, his eyes going wide in
disbelief. “Are you serious? You would actually refuse your best
friend because of me?”

Her reply was soft and tinged with regret.
“I’m sorry, Alston, but I have no other choice.
You’ve
given
me no other choice.”

His mouth flew open and he sat there frozen
atop the horse. When he made no attempt to move, I spurred our
horse on to continue the way. We weren’t far from Endelyn because I
could see the mountains looming ahead. The tallest peak soared high
into the sky above, hidden by the gray clouds. Sorcha shivered as
her gaze shot up the expanse of the mountain.

“Wow,” she breathed in awe. “I’m so glad we
don’t have to climb that.”

“Me too.” I laughed. “Are you ready to go up
there?”

“As I’ll ever be.”

“Okay, first thing I need to do is get out
of my clothes and transform. I’ll stay in dragon form while we’re
up there so as soon as you get the box open and grab the scroll we
can fly down. After that, I’ll change back and we can make our way
home.”

Sorcha nodded. “All right, let’s get this
done.”

She bounced on her feet like she’d always do
before we trained in our dreams. I’d come to realize that was her
way to get the adrenaline going. I also thought it might be her
trying to hide her nervousness, which she surely hated admitting
to.

“Hey,” I murmured softly, taking her face in
my hands. “You’re not alone. I’m going to be there with you, just
as a dragon.”

Releasing a shaky breath, she sighed. “I
know. I think I’m just a bit nervous, and you know how I hate to
admit that.”

Looking her in the eyes, I kissed her lips
long and hard until she relaxed against me. “I love you, Sorcha.
You’re going to do fine up there.”

She smiled and brought her lips to mine
again. “Thank you, and I love you, too,” she whispered across my
lips.

Releasing her from my grasp, I began to
strip out of my clothes and initiate the change. “When you’re ready
and secure, just call out to me and we’ll fly.”

“I will.”

Once the transformation was complete, Sorcha
climbed up on my back and settled into position. Her legs were
clenched tight, holding her in place, while her hands wrapped
firmly into my hair. She felt so light, almost breakable and
fragile against my muscular dragon frame, but she was mine to
protect, and I would do so with my life.

“I’m ready, Drake!” she called out.

As soon as I heard those words I was off
into the sky. My wings flapped hard, lifting us off the ground and
smoothly into the air. The wind grew colder and the air grew
thinner the further up we went, and it wasn’t long before we
reached the top, concealed by the clouds. We made it to the top,
now it was time for the search.