Summer of Frost (25 page)

“Are you sure this will work?” Oren
asked.

“I’m not sure, but it’s worth a try. Send
word to all the courts about what happened. I’ll bring Sorcha back
soon.” Oren bowed his head and said his good-bye to Sorcha. I began
taking off my clothes and tossing them to the ground once Oren and
Sarette were out of sight. I was going to fly Sorcha to the place
we needed to go, to the place I could feel calling to us once we
stepped back into the Land of the Fae.

“Do you need me to hold your clothes?”
Sorcha asked. Her tone was humor-filled while her eyes were alight
with fire. Even though she didn’t remember our time together, I
could still feel a want inside of her. It was a good sign.

“Yes, please. Unless you want me to walk
around naked when we get to where I’m taking you.”

She shook her head and chuckled, gathering
my clothes. “Do whatever you want. I’m not complaining.”

After she had my clothes piled in her arms,
I started the transformation. She stood in awe as my dragon side
appeared before her. “Wow,” she breathed once it was all over.

I lowered my body to the ground so she could
climb up. When I felt her settled and holding on tight, I lifted
off into the sky. I could see for miles and miles away when I was
in the air. The Summer Court was green and lush with life as we
flew across the expanse of it. The place I was taking her was so
close I could feel the pull tugging on my insides and guiding my
wings there. When our destination appeared, I landed smoothly on
the ground and waited for Sorcha to slide off my back before I
transformed into my body.

She handed me my clothes and walked away
from me as if she were in a daze. “I can sense it calling to me,”
she whispered, hooking a glance over her shoulder at me.

“So can I.”

She glided slowly across the ground, but
then stopped and knelt down, placing her hands on the dry earth
below her. The land vibrated with energy, and immediately burst
forth with new life the moment her hands made contact. It was
surreal how it all happened so suddenly. The sea we had dreamed of
now filled up the horizon as far as we could see, and below our
feet was the soft, white sand. Sorcha giggled as the water flowed
over her hands and legs, soaking her with its warm embrace. When
she turned around, tears flooded her eyes … happy tears, and she
was beaming.

“I remember,” she murmured softly. “I
remember everything.”

The look of relief on Drake’s face was
heartwarming. I knew he was worried about it not working by
bringing me to our land, but it did. He scooped me into his arms
and kissed me with more passion than I ever thought imaginable. His
tongue devoured mine with such intensity that I could feel the
longing come off of him in waves.

Not wanting to separate from his kisses,
reluctantly I did. “I’m so sorry, Drake. I never imagined I’d ever
lose my memories of you. I don’t know what I would’ve done if I
spent the rest of my life not remembering what we had.”

Drake shook his head and placed both his
hands on my face. “You would’ve remembered in time. You found me in
your dreams even though you lost your memories. That right there
says that no matter what happens to us we will always remember each
other … one way or another.”

“How did you find me?” I asked curiously. “I
never heard you or Oren say.”

“Sarette was the one who found you. She
overheard Alston saying something about a house he had in the
mortal realm. She followed him and saw for herself. Oren and I
searched all the places you and Alston used to frequent together,
but of course, they were all the wrong ones.”

I knew Drake wanted to ask me something, but
was a little hesitant to ask. His jaw muscle clenched over and
over, and I’d recognized that from before as being a nervous tick
he got. The infamous dragon had a nervous streak that only I had
ever seen.

Rubbing his jaw with my hand, I gazed into
his smoky gray eyes and asked, “What’s wrong, Drake? Just ask me
what you have on your mind. I know something’s troubling you.”

Not taking his eyes off mine, he finally
revealed his distress. “I kept telling myself it wouldn’t matter,
and it doesn’t now that Alston’s dead, but did he take advantage of
you when you were with him? Did you two sleep together?”

“No!” I shrieked loudly. “We slept in the
same bed one night, but never did anything more than that. Even
though I didn’t remember you, I still didn’t want him like that. My
heart was claimed before he took my memories.”

It never occurred to me that those thoughts
would be eating away at his mind. I would’ve been livid if he was
alone with a past lover with no recollection of who I was. Drake
smiled wryly. “I thought you said you never wanted to be claimed.
Does this mean you’re mine?”

“Yes, you knew that already.”

“Always?”

“Yes.”

“How can I get you to prove it?” he asked
smoothly.

Lifting my hands, I ran them through his
silky red strands. His gray eyes were filled with humor, waiting on
a snarky comeback from me. For the first time, he wasn’t going to
get one. I kissed him gently on the lips and took in a deep,
calming breath of his Summer scent.

“I love you, Drake. I spent my whole life
living in my mother’s shadow until you came along. You brought me a
love so scorching yet tender that I was bound to be melted by it. I
give you my heart freely. Take it, claim it, and hold it as your
own. I will always and forever be yours, my love.
Amin mela lle
ilyamemie ar’ ten’ oio.
”

After saying the words in the Old Fae
language, I felt a sense of peace flow through my veins. I could
feel my inner frost slowly melting inch by inch. Drake was
speechless, frozen in place and stunned into silence. I knew he
wasn’t expecting me to make the eternal bond at that moment, and it
felt good catching him off guard.

“All of this time,” he began, “I’ve never
heard you say anything like that, but I’m glad you did.”

I grinned. “I know, and I’ve regretted not
saying anything like that before. I may not express my feelings a
whole lot in words, but I do love you. I would just rather show you
with actions instead of words.”

“I understand,” he whispered against my
lips. “I may not be a man that can share my feelings too well with
words either, but I will spend the rest of my life trying. I love
you, Sorcha. You broke my hard exterior, opening my eyes and my
heart. As I’ve claimed your heart and soul, you’ve claimed mine. I
promise to keep yours safe for the rest of our lives, always and
forever.
Amin mela lle ilyamemie ar’ ten’ oio.
Our bond is
now sealed.”

He kissed me gently to seal the bond of our
words, but we still needed to do one more thing to completely
fulfill the marriage bond and complete our land. Drake broke away
from the kiss, both of us breathless. “Damn, I want make love to
you so bad, and not just in our dreams. I want to feel the real you
beneath me.”

I licked my eager lips. “Then take me.”

His hungered words had me panting with need.
I’d felt his lips on my body plenty of times in my dreams, but I
knew it would be better once it was real. “Are you sure it’s not
too soon. You’ve been through so much the past couple of days. I
don’t want to rush you.”

Exasperated, I shook my head. “You’re not
rushing me. If anything, I’m rushing you. We need this, I need
this. Besides, we’ve already made love in our dreams. I know what
I’m getting into.”

Drake smirked, and held me tighter against
him while grazing his lips along my neck. “That was nothing
compared to what it’ll be like now. I need you too much to go
slow.”

I smiled. “I think you read my mind, but
where?”

Drake’s grin was intoxicating. He nodded his
head in the direction of the water and said, “I think right there
in the water. Take a look.”

When I turned my head and saw what he was
looking at, I gasped in wonder. “What did you do?”

Drake came up beside me and shrugged. “Well,
I was thinking about how I could just take you out here in the
open, not caring who came by or who saw us. However, I didn’t think
that would work with you, so I asked the land to help.”

“And what exactly did you ask it?”

“I was thinking in my head how I wanted
everything to be special, and how we needed a hidden place that was
comfortable yet romantic. I guess the water is doing our bidding
like it did in our dreams.”

My mind was in awe at the sight before me.
The water had pulled back, making a path down the center. It led
down into an opening, but I couldn’t see the bottom. I had no clue
what awaited us in the watery depths. “This is strange,” I thought
out loud.

Drake grabbed my hand and pulled me to the
water. “Yes, it is, but at least we get to experience it together.
It’s but one of our many adventures. Now we can do it for real
instead of in our dreams.”

“Are you implying that you want to forego
our dream realm adventures?” I asked.

He laughed. “Definitely not. I just don’t
want anyone else in your dreams other than me.”

We walked down the path while walls of water
closed in beside us. I grazed my hand across the surface and felt
the energy soaking into my skin. We kept going further, deeper and
deeper, and when I looked back, the water was closing off the path
behind us. It was exciting yet terrifying to know we were
surrounded by water that could close in on us at any moment, but I
knew that it wouldn’t happen. It was our sea, our court … mine and
Drake’s.

The end of the path opened up, and Drake and
I both froze at the sight before us. The water had enclosed all
around us, giving us the privacy from the outside world. Letting go
of Drake’s hand, I walked around the underwater room. “This is
amazing,” I breathed.

The bed frame was made of white corral and
pearls. The blankets on top shimmered with the reflection of the
sun through the watery ceiling. I touched the top of the bed and my
hand almost sank into its softness. The smells were so exotic and
fresh that I couldn’t stop breathing it and soaking it into my
skin. It was incredible, and so full of life.

Drake came up behind me and wrapped his arms
around my waist. “Will this do?” he asked huskily. He pressed his
body firmly against my back and began kissing along my neck. It
sent chills through my body and I shivered. “Don’t worry,
beautiful. I’ll keep you warm.”

Releasing a shaky breath, I sighed. “I
already am.”

I wasn’t exactly dressed for seduction, but
it didn’t seem to bother Drake as he removed the bits and pieces of
my warrior gear off my body, throwing it all to the floor. I
climbed backwards onto the bed while he prowled over the top of me,
spearing me with his heated gaze. Slowly, he lifted my shirt,
leaving wet kisses up my stomach and over my breasts before he
slipped it over my head. I groaned as he bit my nipple playfully
before moving down to take off my pants.

Drake watched me like a ravenous animal. His
heat-filled gaze never left mine the whole time he slid the pants
down my legs. Propping myself on my elbows, I bit my lip and
watched in fascination as he slowly removed his clothes, teasing
me. The bulge in his pants was straining to be let out, and for the
life of me I couldn’t tear my gaze away.

When Drake finally lowered his pants, I
groaned. I was wet and ready for the taking. He kissed his way up
my leg, starting with my ankle, up to my knees, and along my inner
thighs where he nipped my tender spots. Once he reached my stomach,
he trailed his tongue all the way up until he reached my breasts
while testing my readiness with his fingers. He groaned once he
realized how wet I was for him. Licking and sucking on my sensitive
nipple, he thrust his fingers inside me while rubbing my swollen
nub with the pad of his thumb. The sensation of both had me
immediately coming and shouting out my release.