Luc didn’t think Lilly was fickle. Det’s story was the exception to the rule, but with the same sad result. More often, the fey mates of a human were left behind to mourn the loss of their lover for centuries. Luc had often wondered if the fleeting moments of love were worth a lifetime of pain. He thought he might just know the answer now, holding Lilly in his arms.
But they weren’t even to have her short lifetime to enjoy each other. No, Lilly was being the more cautious of the two of them. She’d already withdrawn after the greatest loving Luc had ever experienced. She sensed how powerful and dangerous such loving between them could be. It was addictive. Even now, Luc hungered for more of her luscious body, more of her compelling mind and all of her love, but he had to be strong. If she could deny the pull that had led to this moment, so could he. In the long run, it would be better for both of them.
He would never call what happened a mistake, though. On that point, he would disagree to his dying breath. Luc released her and rose to a sitting position.
“I will never regret our time together, Lilly, but I do see your wisdom.” He waited while she gathered the sheet around herself and rose to sit beside him. “I already feel…something…for you. I will not deny that. But my brother’s experiences should have taught me to be more cautious. My only excuse is that you are a lovely, desirable woman, Lilly.” He trailed his fingers through her hair and realized it might be for the last time. Welling emotion spurred him to bend down and kiss her lips. Just once. Though, he wanted so much more. “Tomorrow, we will begin the journey back to your King, and I suspect, have very little time alone. Tonight is all we have, and I am grateful for it. Though I could wish for more, I know it would be difficult, at best.”
Lilly appeared to swallow hard around the emotion he could read in her eyes. Her genuine regret touched him deeply. He knew then, that avoiding hurting her more than he already had was more important than his own feelings.
They’d come together once…and it was glorious. But repeating the experience would only make it harder to part on the morrow. Better to end this now, before they bonded any closer than they already had.
Luc knew he’d carry a small piece of Lilly in his heart forever, regardless. He only hoped she would feel as fondly toward him when all this was said and done.
“Let’s get some sleep. When the new day dawns, we begin our journey.”
She looked at him for long moments before sinking back down and arranging herself under the sheet on the bed. Luc kept the cloth between them, but he tucked her into his arms to enjoy their last few moments of closeness before the morrow and all their responsibilities caught up with them once more.
Lilly’s heart fractured a little as Luc pulled her back against him. His arms felt so right. Too bad their coming together was so wrong. She savored the feeling, holding tight to the tears that wanted to fall. This was the last time she would feel his arms around her. They’d made love, but it would never happen again.
It was impossible. Human and fey didn’t mix, with good reason.
It was a long, long time before Lilly finally relinquished her worries and fell asleep.
CHAPTER TEN
Things were a bit awkward between Lilly and Luc the next morning until they got to the ledge they would launch from to begin their journey. Shilayla had been gone from her sand wallow when they awoke, and Luc had spoken to her silently to learn she was making friends among the other dragons and being kitted out with fresh supplies for the rest of their trip. The Lair dragons had shown her the special harnesses they wore, which weren’t all that dissimilar to the ones made by Veil artisans. However, they had a special harness with carrybags meant for longer journeys, which they gave to Shilayla.
Veil dragons didn’t often travel far outside the Veil and seldom needed to provision their partners for days or weeks at a time. The Veil gear was much more limited and wouldn’t serve as well for this kind of adventure. Shilayla had consulted with the Lair dragons and their knights for resupply. Luc was proud of the way she had taken on the task all by herself. Shi was young, but she was learning responsibility, just as he was. By the time they got back to their homeland, he thought they would likely be moved up to the next level.
When Luc and Lilly arrived on the ledge, Shilayla was already there, surrounded by many colorful dragons. She had that new harness on, and the carrybags were stuffed full, from what he could see. Luc went over to her.
“How heavy is all that?” Luc asked her, concerned.
“It’s not bad,” Shilayla replied, moving around to show him the other side of the harness. “I made a gift of my old gear to Rena. She will soon be big enough to wear it with the buckles fastened at the lowest notch, and it is lighter and prettier than the dark leathers the humans favor.”
“That was kind of you. The little dragoness will treasure it, I’m sure.”
“The knights moved all of your gear into the new harness. See?”
Luc walked closer to inspect the new holsters for his sword, bow, and other accoutrements. The workmanship was very fine, though quite different from the way the artisans at home would have made it.
“I hope this arrangement will suit you,” Sir Jures said from over Luc’s shoulder. He had approached through the circle of dragons who were still surrounding Shilayla. “This is the normal rig for dragon knights, though some of us like to customize things based on our preferences.”
“It is very good, indeed, Sir Jures,” Luc said, turning to offer the knight his thanks. “We don’t often travel such long distances from the Veil, and I’ve never even seen gear designed for such adventures. I do appreciate your thoughtfulness and the gift of this harness. I fear our journey would be much more difficult without it.”
“Consider it a gift to new friends. I believe my King will want to send an emissary to your land if and when time and circumstances allow. We have been gathering allies against the forces that seek to breach the Citadel for a while now. It sounds like you are fighting the same battle, but on your own front. If we can help in any way, I know my liege is set on preventing any tampering with the Seal of the Citadel, no matter the source of the threat.”
“I will pass on your words to our elders,” Luc promised.
Sir Hal joined them, a sack in his hand, which he offered to Luc. “This contains foodstuffs that should be eaten first, so Lady Candice informs me. She said to pack it in easy reach.”
Luc peeked inside the bag, breathing deep of the aroma of freshly baked muffins. There were fruits in there, as well, and other handy items that could be easily eaten while flying.
“Please thank your ladywife for me,” Luc told the man. “This all is very much appreciated. The hospitality of your Lair is something I will never forget or fail to report back to the elders. Though we have not ventured far from our lands in recent years, there are tales of our people doing so during the last great conflict. None of us wish for conflict, but if war comes, it is good to have alliances in place. I have great hope that our peoples can discuss such things further.”
“It is time we were leaving,” said a female voice from behind them. The dragons had opened up to admit Zallra, clad in black leather, as seemed to be her usual. Lilly stood beside her. “Are you ready?”