Loved by Light (Wings, Wands and Soul Bonds Book 4)

by Terry Bolryder

  I put my hand over Ian’s, entwining our fingers and letting out a sigh as we reach the peak of the crest.

  The ride moves smoothly, and even though I’m usually somewhat afraid of heights, I feel only calm as we go over the crest together.

  I look over to meet his soft gray eyes, about to kiss him, feeling the tension between us, when the ride suddenly judders to a halt.

  The lights that line the cars go off, and our car swings lightly, jarred by the loss of momentum.

  My whole body freezes as I try not to look at the ground below.

  Dying on a roller coaster is definitely my worst nightmare. A Ferris wheel isn’t a roller coaster, but right now, it’s worse since we’re swinging so high above the ground on something that’s clearly broken.

  I feel Ian’s big arm come around me, pulling me in tight as if he can sense that I need comfort.

  “It’s all right,” he says. “I’m sure they’ll get it moving soon.” He grins. “If not, I’ll just fly you out of here with my wings, odd news stories be damned.”

  I laugh, then look up at him gratefully. “I’m just glad I’m here with you. I always feel safe with you.”

  He smiles deeply, deeper than I’ve ever seen, and then closes his lips over mine softly.

  He pulls back. “You’ll always be safe with me.”

  Promise me forever, my heart demands.

  But the rest of me knows better. I’m just lucky to have whatever I can.

  “The power’s out!” the attendant says on a speaker below. “We appreciate your patience as we try to figure out what’s going on. It’s only this ride, so not a park-wide problem. I’m sure it will resolve soon.”

  Ian cocks an eyebrow. “Is that normal for rides? To break down like this?”

  I shake my head. “I have no idea. The only other time I’ve gone to an amusement park was my senior year of high school when a friend was nice enough to pay so I could go with my senior class.”

  His eyes go warm. “I’m glad others were kind to you along the way.”

  I nod. “There are good people everywhere, even amidst dark moments.”

  He pushes my hair back. “I wish you had never had dark moments.”

  “You have to,” I say softly. “Otherwise, you can’t appreciate the light.”

  He leans in to kiss me again, and I kiss him back eagerly. He moves forward, coming over me, and the car swings dangerously, making my heart jolt in fear.

  I pull back, looking up at him. “Man, I really hope they get it running soon.”

  “They need power, huh?” He frowns for a moment. “Let me think. Perhaps I can sense the short.” He closes his eyes and then smiles. “Found it.”

  With a lurch, the car moves forward and the lights come on, and I hear cheers of relief from the passengers in the other cars, plus shouts between the workers that everything is fine.

  I glance up at him gratefully. “Thank you.”

  “Light fae,” he says. “I can sense a lack of energy. Provide it where needed.”

  I cup his face and press my lips to his, opening my lips so he can slide in his tongue this time.

  We kiss all the way to the end of the ride, teasing and playing and bonding. And I can barely keep my legs straight when we get out.

  He puts an arm around my waist, holding me steady, and looks down at me with amusement. The tease.

  “So where to now, princess?”

  I stare up at him. “Princess?”

  “Did I not tell you? That’s what you would be in the fae world.”

  I just put my arm around his waist, smiling. “I’d rather be a regular human on a date with you.”

  He blinks, then laughs, and I grab his hand to pull him forward.

  “Now come on. I’m going to win you that donut.”

  “Sounds good,” he says, letting me pull him along.

  16

  Ian

  By the time we exit the park, it’s dark outside, and many of the rides have stopped running as the last few handfuls of guests make their way out to their cars to head home.

  In one hand, I’m holding a giant stuffed donut that Liz insisted on getting for me before we left. In my other, I’m pulling Liz close to me as she leans against my chest while we walk.

  I couldn’t have possibly imagined a more perfect day.

  “So are you going to name the donut?” Liz asks me, grinning as she looks up at me. Her dark-brown eyes, so deep in the scattered lights of the parking lot, sparkle as if they’re full of stars.

  “I think Don works,” I reply, unable to keep from smiling a bit. It’s so ridiculous, and it’s nice to be ridiculous for once.

  “Don the Donut. Makes sense,” she says with a thoughtful nod.

  This is undoubtedly the best I’ve felt in a long time. I’m not worrying about my problems, about Ultraviolet, about the fae world or all the injustices I can’t fix. It’s just me and the only person that seems to be able to make me happy in spite of myself.

  All because of Liz.

  I find myself taking slower steps as we approach Mr. Rollie, wanting to keep Liz next to me for as long as possible. And even though the day was exhausting, with crowds and walking and waiting in lines, I can’t ignore the burning sensation in my heart that ignites every time I’m close to her.

  And by the way her free hand is running up and down my side and the way she gets the warmth in her eyes whenever I look at her, I know I’m not the only one.

  Thankfully, the car is parked at the far corner of the lot where Liz insisted we go to avoid careless people parking too close and dinging the car (though, I personally wouldn’t have cared either way), and as we reach the passenger side, I turn Liz to face me, her back to the door.

  The smile on her face is simply everything.

  I lean down, cupping her cheek with one hand, and kiss her with my whole soul.

  At first, it’s slow, a gentle press of my lips to hers. Even the lightest sensation sears me though, and I claim her mouth more deeply as she lets out a muffled moan against my lips.

  And as she parts her lips, I thrust my tongue in to meet hers, entwining and licking and devouring her with everything I have.

  I set Don on the roof of the car because suddenly, one hand isn’t enough. With my now-free hand, I cup the back of her neck, teasing the nape with my fingertips, and she sighs from the stimulation as she presses her body against me.

  I’m already so hard my jeans don’t fit right, and Liz’s hands are on my back, pushing herself into me as I push myself into her as if we could somehow meld into one person. It only turns me on more.

  There’s only one thing that would make this day more perfect.

  Even though I know I don’t deserve her.

  When I pull away for a second, giving Liz a moment to breathe, she licks her slightly swollen lips, gaze full of want that I feel with every beat of my heart.

  “What’s this, a thank-you?” she asks, voice husky.

  “And maybe something more,” I reply. Around us, the residual smells of funnel cake and hot dogs waft from the park. Lights are starting to go off, and the whole place is getting quieter, lending an eerie, pervasive silence to the air around us.

  “Well, I’ve been dying to see what the back seats feel like if you want to join me.” Liz slides to the side, tugging on my shirt as she does, and pulls the back door open. “It’s a little risky, but hey, that makes it fun.”

  A small thrill goes up my back as I realize some of these cars look like they’ve been parked here for days and no one ticketed them.

  We won’t be caught…

  And when she leans back onto the leather seat, pulling me with the barest effort, I come with her, pulling the door behind me and hitting the lock button as I do.

  Leaving just the two of us alone.

  “Just as comfy as I imagined,” she says, gaze not breaking from mine for a second as I come over her.

  Thankfully, the back is perhaps even plusher than the front, with fu
lly adjustable everything and enough space for the two of us.

  I bump my head on the roof as I come close to Liz, desperate to feel her warmth on my hands, my body.

  Maybe just barely enough.

  But Liz puts her hands on my back, pulling me toward her, legs wrapped around me as I come down to kiss her again.

  There might be more room back at my apartment. But when I think of going home, thoughts of the future and the past collide in my mind. Worries over how this is all going to end.

  Instead, I just focus on the moment here with the only woman I’ve ever loved.

  And I will always love her.

  That much will never change.

  I lean down to kiss along Liz’s neck, the proximity making me even hungrier for her pleasure. And when I nibble on her ear, she moans for me, the sound of her arousal making me so turned on all I can focus on is wanting to make her come.

  My hands are on her hips now, coming beneath her shirt and squeezing her breasts over her bra. But even as she tries to squirm, there’s little space to move with me over her, and I pull down the soft fabric, letting her nipples free so I can tease them with my thumbs.

  She gasps, eyes closing as she turns her head to the side. I love the view of her profile, her softly rounded nose and full lips. The way every expression shows true on her face.

  I love everything about her.

  I continue to press my fingers against the little peaks of her nipples, tweaking them gently with just enough force to make her hips buck against mine. Then I lean down, kissing the side of her face as I reach one hand between us, undoing the button on her jeans and sliding the zipper down before gliding my hand over her slit, covering her sex and stroking against her clit.

  So wet.

  So mine.

  “When I imagined making out in the back of your car, I can’t say I didn’t hope for more than just kissing.” She turns to face me as she speaks, voice hitching as I rub over her clit over and over, needing to make her scream my name again like she did the other night.

  “How does it compare to what you imagined?” I ask, the sound of my voice foreign, my focus so wholly on her every move, her every expression.

  “Just perfect.”

  I press my finger a little harder, and Liz gasps in pleasure and I can feel she’s close. But I draw out the tension inside her as long as possible, using little circles to tease her when she’s close, then swift strokes of my middle finger up her soaked sex.

  And when she’s so close to the edge she’s quivering, begging for release with wide eyes and parted lips, I crash my mouth over hers, delving in with my tongue in the same moment my finger delivers the last stroke she needs to go over the edge.

  She screams against my mouth as her body comes apart in my arms, and I hold her close, giving her no escape except to dive straight into her pleasure and nowhere else. Liz’s legs pull me tight against her, her entire body shuddering as my tongue continues to run along her most sensitive spots, drawing everything I can out of the release.

  Her orgasm is so beautiful.

  By the time she’s relaxed, I pull my mouth away from her, watching the expression on her face relax into satisfaction.

  “I guess this car is good for more than just getting from one place to another,” Liz exclaims.

  “I’ll say.” I can’t help but take in the sight of her, eyes glossy, shirt askew, pants undone and pulled halfway down her ass. Everything I could possibly want and more.

  My soul bond.

  The thought—the realization—clearer than noonday sun or perfect glass, shakes me inside.

  I think I’ve known for a while. I know I felt it from the first time I saw her. But I don’t know what to do about it.

  Everything has been different since that day. And I no longer want to do things the way I was taught to do them from the day I was born a fae prince of light.

  Maybe just loving her with everything I have for the time I have with her will have to be enough.

  “You okay in there?” Liz asks, her hand on my cheek snapping me to reality, though I know I’ve only been pondering for a couple seconds, tops.

  She’s so perceptive like that.

  It’s one of many things I like about her.

  “Just wondering how I could possibly be so lucky as to have found you.”

  She grins, though I can tell she knows there’s more on my mind than that. “I’m the lucky one here. But there’s something else you’re not saying.”

  “I don’t know if we can be together, Liz. I don’t know… so many things.”

  She pauses, and I can see want and determination and love in the way she’s watching me right now.

  “Why can’t we be together, Ian? I know you have things to do, commitments you’ve made. But I can also tell you want this, that you’re happiest when we’re together.” Her fingers are caressing up my spine, her touch soothing the storm in my heart whenever I fear the future.

  And she’s right. The only true happiness I think I’ve known in this world has been my time with her. Every second.

  She continues. “So instead of fighting it, just bond with me. At least help me find my powers. Stay with me long enough to know you’re choosing what you actually want, not what someone else wants from you.”

  I think for a second, knowing that the Ian I was before I met Liz is at odds with the Ian who actually enjoys life right now. Who enjoys watching Love Villa with her and taking walks and doing fun things and actually experiencing the goodness in the universe instead of focusing on the evils I can’t control.

  The Ian I am now, here with Liz, can’t say no.

  The other one will have to learn to be happy, I suppose.

  “I promise to try,” I reply softly.

  And at that, Liz beams up at me, pulling me toward her as we snuggle against each other, warming each other in our embrace.

  “I just want you to be happy too, Ian,” she says against my neck, her breath ticklish there.

  “You are my happiness.” And so much more.

  It’s only mere seconds before the gentle satisfaction between us ignites into much more, and my hunger for Liz is higher than ever before.

  I reach over to the console in the front seat and press a button, and privacy blinds cover the side and back windows (which were already darkly tinted in the first place, nearly impossible to see through). By then, though, Liz is already pulling my shirt over my head, then undoing my jeans as we fumble with undressing in the back seat.

  I bump a few things, but it’s nothing compared to seeing Liz naked, beautiful and glowing and desperate for me, as I am for her.

  My kisses are as fervent as they are ravenous, claiming every inch of her skin. Her forearms up to her shoulders. From the base of her neck down to the sides of her hips. Her soft thighs and her adorable squirming toes.

  Even with the air-conditioning on, the heat between us can’t be quelled. And when my finger finds her clit again, I’m stroking and teasing and building her to another climax as fast as we both can stand.

  When I explore her wet sheath with my fingers, hooking inside along the extra sensitive area and rubbing it gently, Liz brings a hand up to her mouth and bites on it, holding back the sensations I know are driving her wild.

  But I don’t let up, resting my weight back on my legs so I can use two hands on her at one time, squeezing and massaging her breast even as my fingers continue to soak in her arousal.

  And just as she’s about to lose it, I pull my fingers away and, using the slickness covering them, stimulate her clit so she comes again.

  So unbelievably hot.

  “Ian… Ian… Ian,” she says again and again as she comes for me. And I’m grateful for the slightly cramped space because all I can feel, hear, see, or experience is Liz. All I want is Liz.

  The convulsions in her ebb, and she slumps against the plush leather for a moment, catching her breath one more time as I pull a condom out from my jeans on the floor. But by the time I ha
ve it fully on, Liz’s hands are on my cock, stroking down it and making it twitch.

  I’m so aroused I don’t even know how long I could last inside her.

  I suppose if she wanted it, as long as needed.

  We don’t exchange words, just furtive glances, and I can feel myself blush as she looks up and down me. Looks at me like a person, a person she wants in every way, not just a tool. Or an icon. Or a prince.

  Just Ian.

  She’s sprawled on the seat beneath me, hands pulling me by my shaft until I’m positioned between her legs. Before I even move, she pulls me forward with her legs wrapped around my back, and I meet her, thrusting into her tight wetness.

  It’s as though every nerve in my body does backflips, the sensation of us coming together so erotic, so fulfilling. But I don’t waste time, withdrawing and pushing in again, making Liz moan so loudly it echoes in the cabin of the car.

  We’re skin to skin, my chest to hers, skin sticky as my pecs rub across her bared breasts. It only makes her body clench harder around me, which in turn only makes my skin feel more like fire as I focus on her pleasure and getting just the right angle inside her.

  “Faster, faster,” she pleads as I transition from a steady, rhythmic movement to a more hurried pace.

  I can tell we’re both wound so tight it would be agony to draw this out.

  The feeling of Liz’s hands on my back, tightening like a bowstring as only the sounds of our harried breaths and slick thrusting can be heard. And I can’t help holding her closer, burying my mouth at her neck as the curls of her hair tickle my cheek, kissing her and licking her ear as the world seems to stop around us for a moment.

  “I’m—” But Liz’s second word is cut off by clenched teeth as she comes, wrapping herself around me tightly as I feel drawn deeper into her than ever before.

  I come with her immediately, the clenching of her sex only further pushing me into tumbling ecstasy as my entire body goes rigid with impending release.

  “Liz. God, Liz,” I mutter, my voice ragged as all my senses try to focus on the sensation of my soul bond coming with me. But it’s difficult to do when you can’t feel your own hands or feet because you’re coming so hard.