Page 23 of The Last Aether

A laugh bubbled out of me, and some of the tension I’d been carrying around eased at the typical boy-crazy focus of my roommate. “Atlas, Kai, and Phoenix, yes. Riven? I think he’d rather drop-kick me to another realm.”

“Three already?” she squeaked.

“It was kind of happening before all the aether stuff.”

She hopped up and down. “You are the luckiest girl ever.”

“Yeah, being shot at is a real walk in the park.”

Her green eyes sparkled. “It would be worth it for four royals.”

“Not Riven,” I reminded her.

“He’ll come around, Aura. He won’t be able to help it.”

That didn’t sit right with me. I didn’t want to force Riven into something that he clearly didn’t want.

“I didn’t mean it like that,” Kerry hurried to say. “Just that you guys are meant for each other. That kind of connection is a miracle. He’ll want it once he wraps his head around it.”

“Maybe…”

She grinned. “He will. And when that impressive control snaps, I bet it’s fireworks.”

I choked on a sip of soda. “Kerry!”

“What? It’s true.”

The front door slammed, making me jump. I rushed towards the entryway at the sound of shouting and stopped dead.

Phoenix stood in the middle of the oriental carpet, eyes spitting fire. And he was covered in blood.

13

My entire body trembled as I took Phoenix in. Blood. So much of it. My eyes searched for his injury. “Where are you hurt?”

“He’s not,” Riven said, his voice tight.

Flames licked around Phoenix, circling his arms and torso. I started forward, but Riven stepped into my path. “Don’t. He’s not stable right now. I tried to get him to wait. To calm down before coming back, but I think he needed to make sure you were okay.”

Phoenix let out a growl and charged Riven. The move was so fast, Riven didn’t have a prayer of defending himself. One second, he was standing, and the next, Phoenix had hurtled him into a wall.

Kerry shrieked, scuttling back into the kitchen as Phoenix prowled towards me. Kai and Atlas were moving then, trying to get to me before Phoenix did. But they weren’t quick enough.

Phoenix yanked me hard against him, wrapping himself around me. The fire was everywhere. Completely engulfing us.

Panic flashed fierce and fast. Memories battered at the walls of my mind as the guys shouted for Phoenix to let me go. But then I felt it.

Phoenix was trembling. His entire body shook. He was terrified. For me.

Slowly, the tension in my muscles eased. My arms came around Phoenix, my hand trailing up and down his spine in soothing strokes.

I let the fire burn around us. And instead of letting it scare me, I felt its protective warmth. Because it was Phoenix.

“I’m okay.”

I said the words for Phoenix and for the rest of the guys.

“We’re safe,” I whispered. “You made us that way.”