Summoned and Bound (Summoned Series Romances Book 3) (11 page)

“I did, with your help. I think I understand it now, though. Thanks to you.” She laughed as he twirled her around the room. “You know, if you ever tire of being a commander, I think you’d make a fine dressmaker, you described this gown to me so prettily.”

“Free less than a day and already, you’re sassing me. Hells, what have I gotten myself into?”

“We’ll have to find out together,” she declared as he finally set her back on her feet again. Before she could get her bearings, his mouth was on hers, cutting off anything else she might have said as he kissed her with-soul searing need. She fisted her hands into his shirt, partially to bring him closer, and partially to help hold her up as the world spun and dipped around her. He was her rock, the one thing she could cling to in this strange new place.

He splayed one large hand across her backside, pushing her up against the hard ridge of his cock as his tongue swept into her mouth. She rubbed herself against him, and he groaned in response, a low, rumbling sound like a slow moving rockslide. The kiss went on until both of them were panting, their skin flushed and the air between them nearly shimmering with the heat of their mutual need. He nibbled on her swollen lips before lifting his head, and she stood on tiptoes to claim a final, tender kiss from him before snuggling deeper into his arms and resting her cheek on his chest.

“I love you.” He uttered the words so softly that she nearly missed them.

Gwyn let go of his shirt and wrapped her arms around his waist as she tipped her face to beam up at him. “I know. We’re connected, remember?”

He smiled back, but she could sense an intensity to him she didn’t quite understand. “We are, but I needed to say it. I needed you to hear it. The connection between us will always be there, but that doesn’t mean I ever want to take it for granted that you know how I feel. Until I found you, I thought I was supposed to go through life alone. I never dreamed you existed, and now here you are. My beautiful, impossible, soulbound. I will lay down my life to protect yours, and nothing in the planes is going to keep me from your side.”

“My life is only just starting, Vamir. I’m not going anywhere. Not without you.” She hugged him hard. “I want to see your other form. Show me who you are, all of you.”

For a moment, his lips quirked up into a sexy as sin grin. “You’ve already seen all of me.”

“That’s not what I meant, and you know it!” she retorted.

He released her reluctantly. “If you truly want to see the other me, then you’re going to need to step back a few feet.”

“It doesn’t matter what form you take. You’re still going to be my soulbound.” She hugged him one last time before letting go. She took a few steps, and when he waved her back again, took another two. “How much bigger are you in this other form?”

“Some. Though it’s not my size that’s the problem, it’s my wingspan.”

“Wingspan?” she sputtered, the only word she managed to speak before she was no longer speaking to Vamir, but to a massive creature made of living stone. Only his face stayed the same, and there was amusement mixed with concern in the familiar glowing teal depths of his eyes.

“Yes, wingspan.” Vamir’s voice was a gravelly baritone that boomed from deep in his chest as he stretched out two massive wings that looked a bit like those of a bat.

“You’re huge,” she stammered, still staring at the beast her lover had become.

He was so tall she had to tip her head back to see all of him and his already large body seemed to have nearly doubled in size. His clothes were gone, replaced by a simple loincloth that appeared as if carved from the same stone as his body. His feet had transformed into lethal-looking talons, and his fingers ended in claws as long and sharp as daggers. A pair of horns now adorned his brow. They started below his hairline and rose a few inches before tapering off to a sharp point.

“It’s still me, little one.” He lifted a clawed hand in her direction then stilled as if he didn’t want to spook her.

“I know. There’s just a lot more of you than there was a few seconds ago,” she commented and walked up to him, placing her hand in his. His skin was hard as the granite it resembled, but it was warm to the touch, not cold as she’d expected. “What does it feel like?”

He smiled, revealing a wicked set of fangs. “Like being encased in the best armor ever crafted.”

She continued exploring him with her free hand, touching him everywhere. He curled one wing forward and she stroked it, amazed by the way he felt and moved despite being stone. “Why do you have wings, though? You’re far too heavy to be able to actually fly.”

He cocked an eyebrow at her, and she swore his eyes gleamed a little brighter. “A child of magic such as yourself should know better than that, little one. I certainly can fly. Would you like to see for yourself?”

“Yes!” she bounced on her toes and nodded happily. “Yes, yes, yes.”

Vamir was so pleased with her easy acceptance of his dual nature that he would have flown to the heavens to fetch a star for her if she’d asked him to. Even knowing she had spent her life around fae and shifter species, he’d worried that the change would be too much for her. She’d already been through so much in a very short time, but somehow she continued to amaze him with her strength and resilience. He lifted her into his arms, grinning with pleasure as she threw her arms around his neck without reservation.

“Hang on tight.”

He made sure she was snug and secure in his embrace before folding his wings against his back and leaving the bedroom. He carried her down the hall and out onto the terrace, pausing for a moment so that she could get her first look at her new home.

“This is impossible. Where are we?” she asked, her voice hushed with awe as she took in the sights.

The outpost was built into the side of a mountain, every terrace and building carved out of the rock. His quarters were near the top of the outpost, giving him a commanding view of both the outpost and river that curved around the base of the mountain before vanishing from sight. Beyond the river was a shimmering wall that started at ground level and arched upward to form a dome overhead.

“We’re not actually
anywhere
. Before they sealed the plane, your people created this place as a way to hide the last gateway.” He pointed to the peak of the mountain above them. “It’s up there, under constant guard.”

“What do you mean, we’re not anywhere? This place exists, so we have to be somewhere. And now that I’m not in danger of reporting this to the master, what exactly do you mean when you say there’s a gateway back to our plane?”

He shrugged. “I’m a warrior, not a spell-weaver, but from what I understand, the wall that surrounds us is like a bubble, one that’s invisible to those outside it. It’s nestled against a world that has no idea we’re here, or that we even exist. Their plane has almost no
essence
flowing through it, making it a perfect hiding place. They have no people gifted enough to sense our presence, and few magic using species ever visit planes like this.”

“And the gateway?” she prompted.

“That’s what we call it. Think of it more like a crack in the walls that protects our plane from invaders. It keeps us tethered to our home, and when the day comes that the walls are no longer needed, it’s how we’ll be able to let our people know it’s safe.”

“I’m not sure I totally understand, but I think I get the gist. If the Magi ever found this place…”

“They’d tear open the crack to get to the richest source of the
essence
in all the worlds, and destroy everything and everyone we love in the process.”

“And that’s why you’ve all stayed here, alone.”

“For as long as it takes.” He said before stretching out his wings and taking flight. “But I’m not alone anymore. I have you.”

***

Chapter Nine

Gwyn scrunched her eyes shut and clung to Vamir as he carried her aloft. “A little warning next time, please,” she muttered, pressing her face into the curve of his shoulder.

“Sorry. I’m used to flying solo. Never had a passenger before.”

“If you’ve never carried anyone before, how did you know you could fly with both of us? What if I’d been too heavy and we’d fallen?”

He laughed, a booming rumble that rolled right through her. “In this form, I weigh hundreds of pounds, I somehow doubt the magic that allows me to fly would be affected by your insignificant weight. Besides, I’m fairly certain that my sword weighs more than you do.”

Irritation flared, and she slapped his chest before remembering that he was currently impervious to such a minor show of force. All she got for her trouble was a stinging palm. “I’m getting very tired of people saying I’m too skinny.”

“I don’t think you’re too skinny, little one. I think you’re perfect. Though, I’m not sure why you wanted to fly with me if you’re not even going to open your eyes.”

She swallowed once to settle her stomach and then peeked over his shoulder at the vista laid out below. “Your home is beautiful.”

“Our home, Gwyneth. Until we can return to Essa, this is
our
home.”

Gwyn stared down at the gleaming marble and granite buildings carved out of the mountainside. Then she let her gaze follow the silver path of the river that wound its way through the lush green valley that ended at the base of the wall protecting the area. “Our home,” she murmured as contentment filled her.

The bubble was larger than she’d imagined, and from their current height, she could see that the valley and the river continued for several miles, with the mountain sitting in the center of it all. It was a self-contained world and a lovely one. She glanced up at the shimmering shield overhead, then at the land below.

“Where does the sunlight come from? Is it ever night here?”

“The shield allows the sunlight to pass through from the outside, moonlight, too, though it took a while to get used to not seeing the sun or moon, only the light they cast.”

“A sky with no moon or stars? That will be strange. The temperature doesn’t change much, either. It’s as warm up here as it was in your room.”

“It changes a bit, but not much. And while we don’t have stars, the glow of the shield makes for a rather nice light display. You’ll see it tonight. And when you want to see stars again, we’ll travel to another world to look at theirs.”

“Do you do that often? Go to other worlds?” she asked.

“I rarely leave the outpost, but my men go out often for supplies, for a change of scenery, and of course, to look for the Magi.”

He dipped a wingtip so that they were flying back toward the outpost again, and Gwyn saw several other winged figures flying up to meet them.

“Hells, they’re never going to leave me alone, now,” Vamir grumbled as he spotted the others.

“Who isn’t leaving you alone? And why are they supposed to?”

She tried not to laugh as Vamir’s stony face twisted into a pained expression, and he nodded at their fast approaching company. “The two in front would be Tyrion and Tanor Lamir. They appointed themselves my personal honor guard a great many years ago. I finally had them trained to give me a little space, and then your master summoned me. Now, they’re back to shadowing my every move.”

“Can you blame them? Their friend and leader vanished one day, and there was nothing they could do. If I were them, I’d feel the same way.”

“I’m glad you think so, because the two Garda who just took wing and are on their way up here are your new shadows, Aztar, and Akhal. They haven’t left my door since I sent word I’d found you and brought you home. Congratulations, you have your very own honor guard.”

“I…what?” she spluttered, suddenly nervous. Flying through the air was not exactly how she’d envisioned meeting her old protectors.

“They look irritated…” he mused as they came closer. “Maybe I shouldn’t have ditched them by going out the balcony.”

She giggled, the sound so unfamiliar she hardly recognized her own voice, but it did distract her from her nervousness. “You’re terrible.”

“I’m their damned commander, not some snot-nosed recruit. I do
not
need a pair of fucking nursemaids.”

The first two Garda flew into earshot, both of them grinning. “I told you he’d be bitching about us following them,” one said to the other, his voice nearly as deep and booming as Vamir’s. They were so similar to each other that Gwyn couldn’t tell them apart, especially not when they both appeared to be carved out of solid stone.

“Is there some reason you’re up here? Do you really think I’m going to be attacked in the middle of our own outpost?” Vamir drawled, impatience dripping from every syllable.

“I don’t know, Vam. You managed to get abducted right out of your clothes in the middle of a market. With you, anything seems to be possible.” The twin on the left commented before they both somehow managed to come to a halt in midair to hover a few feet in front of them.

“Yeah, and who had to pick up your shit? We did. Weapons, clothes…even your boots. My friend, I have to tell you, it’s time to buy new footwear. Those things went out of style millennia ago.”

“The day I start taking fashion advice from you, Tanor, is the day I’ll resign as commander and hand it over to you and your lunatic brother. If you’re done chattering like a pair of magpies, I’d like to introduce you to Gwyneth. Little one, this is Tanor and Tyrion Lamir. They’re a source of never ending headaches for me, and two of my greatest friends. Tanor and Tyrion, I would like to introduce you to Gwyneth Annaren, my soulbound.”

Two sets of wings did a double sweep and two pairs of glowing eyes widened. “You’re what, now?” Tyrion finally spoke.

“She’s mine, now and forever more.”

Gwyn turned her head to frown at Vamir. “Didn’t you tell them about us?”

Vamir saw the hurt and doubt in his beloved’s eyes and quickly realized his mistake.

“I’ve barely left your side since we got here. I wasn’t going to announce our bonding until you were standing with me. I wanted everyone to see what a beautiful woman the fates had gifted me.”