Honey Wine

by Brieanna Robertson

  Gabriel frowned. “Quite a bit, actually. My presence caused chaos in the human realm. We almost were eaten by an abominable snowman—"

  She shook her head. “No, I mean did anything happen between you and her? Anything strange?"

  His thoughts immediately returned to the bizarre event outside of Falconroye's lair. “Yes,” he answered. “I...” He swallowed hard as the pain threatened to consume him as he recalled Autumn's soft lips beneath his, her slender body in his arms.

  "Did you fall in love with her?” the woman persisted gently.

  He nodded. “And my elements ... they went out of control."

  The woman drew in a sharp breath. “Did your earth element bind the two of you in a very literal way? Did you feel like you were claiming her as yours?"

  He looked up at her and gave a slow nod.

  The woman looked distressed. “Gabriel, what you did is something only the ancient Elementals were able to do. Which makes sense considering you are one of the ancients. It is how our people used to choose mates. Over the centuries, we have lost that ability, but it was very binding, very final. You chose her as yours, your heart chose her heart, and she obviously chose you in return. Everything within you, every element you hold control over, claimed her. You are tied together now, unable to be apart for any considerable length of time.

  "You see, when an Elemental is alone, isolated, he turns to stone. You know this. It is tenfold when you have chosen a mate. One bound partner cannot exist without the other."

  His eyes widened and his heart started to hammer. “Does that mean Autumn is suffering like this also? Autumn will ... turn to stone?"

  The woman gave him a concerned expression. “Unless you are able to be with her, yes. And..."

  "What?” he prodded. “And what?"

  The woman drew in a deep breath. “She is human. Her makeup is not like ours. We are equipped to hibernate as statues indefinitely. She is not. If she turns to stone, she will—"

  "Die?” Blind, all-consuming panic filled Gabriel. This was his fault! What had he done to his beautiful Autumn? He had killed her with his ignorance!

  He swung his legs over the side of the bed he was lying on and jumped up. “I have to get to the human realm,” he cried to Falconroye. “You have to take me back!"

  "I don't take orders from you,” he muttered. “You were not the one to beat me."

  A terrible, otherworldly growl ripped from Gabriel's throat, and he approached Falconroye boldly. “I will fight you here and now if I have to, you miserable creature. I have to get to her. She's going to die!” Fire exploded across his body, leaping in out-of-control flames that he was powerless to stop. It was enough to drive most of the other Elementals back, even though they were immune to the fire.

  Falconroye rolled his eyes. “Such drama. No need for the theatrics. I have no wish to see the woman die any more than you do. It would be a shame to waste all that bravery. I'll make an exception to my rule ... once.” He eased himself up so he was standing. “But you had better find some poor beggar for me to eat when we return. Otherwise, I might change my mind and devour you after all. I get unreasonable and cranky when I don't eat."

  "I'll find you a nice, fat abominable snowman,” Gabriel grumbled. “Just shut up and take me to her."

  "Gabriel, wait,” the woman Elemental said. She placed her hand on his arm. “I wish greatly that you will return to us. You have much to learn, and we, as well, have much to learn from you. Our race has adapted in many ways since we were forced to leave Algoria. We could be very beneficial to one another."

  He smiled softly but shook his head. “I'm sorry, but she cannot travel here, and my place is with her. You are my people, but she is my family. She is my everything."

  The woman's smile was genuine and warm. “Perhaps I can make an exception to my station's rule, as well."

  He frowned.

  "To only travel to Algoria once every hundred years. I might decide to make a special trip to visit a very old friend."

  For a brief moment, the icy dread in his heart was chased away by a fleeting surge of warmth. “You are the Elemental chieftain?"

  She nodded. “My name is Liara."

  "I was led to believe you were a man."

  She grinned and let out a soft, musical laugh. “And apparently your human woman bested the king of the dragons in battle when you could not."

  He chuckled. “Point taken, Liara."

  "My predecessor was male. Perhaps whoever told you about me had met him at some point."

  He nodded. “Perhaps. Thank you. I hope I will see you again soon."

  She dipped her head in a regal nod. “I do, as well, noble ancient. Now, fly to your mate while you still can."

  Without hesitation, Gabriel climbed up onto Falconroye. The cold gripped at him as soon as they were away from the Elementals’ comforting heat, but he steeled himself against it. He had to make it to Autumn. He would not stop, rest, or even close his eyes until she was safe and in his arms.

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  Chapter Eleven

  Gabriel was so close to collapse by the time they reached the human realm that Falconroye landed right outside the castle. He didn't bother with discretion, and Gabriel was thankful. Underneath all the dragon's prickles, Gabriel had an inkling that he might actually care about the situation. Or perhaps he really was starving and just wanted to hurry up and get to his abominable snowman. Either way, Gabriel was grateful for not having to cover any ground to get to the castle. He wasn't sure if he could have anyway. His body was barely cooperating, and it was pure strength of will that he was still coherent and conscious. The cold exhaustion was almost unbearable. All he wanted to do was close his eyes so he no longer had to feel the awful, icy pain.

  He somehow managed to climb off Falconroye's back and stumble his way up to the door of the castle, where he pounded on it three times. Each raise of his arm felt like he was lifting a thousand pounds. Within seconds, a torrential storm had formed. Lightning split the sky, and ferocious wind whipped at Gabriel's hair, wings, and clothing as he leaned against the door frame.

  The door opened in only a few minutes and Curtis stared at him in shock. “Gabriel,” he murmured. His eyes traveled over him and concern came to life in his eyes. “What are you doing here?"

  "Autumn,” Gabriel croaked.

  The concern in Curtis's eyes morphed into all-out fear. “She's really sick, Gabriel. I don't know what's wrong with her. She won't wake up. I was about two seconds away from taking her to the hospital."

  Gabriel shook his head and pushed his way, rather feebly, into the room. “Take me to her."

  "What's going on?” Curtis asked frantically. “What are you doing back here?” He glanced back outside as he started to close the door and his eyes bulged as his mouth fell open. “Oh dear lord,” he breathed. “There's a fricking dragon in the front yard."

  Falconroye rolled his yellow eyes. “Perceptive friends you have."

  Curtis gasped. “He can talk?"

  Falconroye fixed Curtis with a critical look. “Is that my dinner?"

  Gabriel shook his head and slammed the door. “Curtis,” he snapped. “Please! I need you to take me Autumn! Now!"

  "What happened?” he persisted.

  Gabriel ignored his questions and staggered toward the staircase, each step harder than the last. He gripped the banister and stared up at the fifteen or so stairs he had to conquer in order to get to Autumn. They seemed a billion times more daunting than fighting Falconroye had been.

  "Gabriel!” Curtis grabbed onto his arm. “Tell me what's going on!"

  "She's dying, Curtis,” he exclaimed, hoping the man would understand the urgency of the situation. “I'll be happy to explain everything to you later, but I need to get to her right now."

  Curtis paled and, without further argument, looped his arm around Gabriel's shoulders and lugged him up the stairs. “At first, I thought she was just tired,” he said. “Exhausted from the
journey, but the longer it goes the worse she gets. Her skin is gray, and she's so cold. I started a fire and have about a hundred blankets on her bed, but it doesn't seem to be helping any."

  Gabriel thought about how the Elementals had used their fire to keep him from turning to stone. He shook his head. “No, you did the right thing, Curtis,” he said as they reached her room. “You probably saved her life.” He let go of the other man and pulled himself together enough to stand without assistance. He stepped into Autumn's room, which was fairly glowing orange with the blaze of the fire in the hearth. His heart stopped when his gaze fell on her. She did, indeed, look gray, and she was so still it frightened him.

  He approached the bed carefully, tentatively, fearful of finding out he was too late. He drew in a shaky breath and reached out for her tiny hand. “Autumn,” he whispered, sinking to sit beside her. Her skin was cold. Her lips were tinged with blue. Tears gathered in his eyes with the knowledge that he had caused this. He had done this to her without even realizing what was happening.

  He reached out to brush back a strand of her hair, then trailed his fingers tentatively down her cheek. A tiny bit of the ice retreated from his heart. “Autumn, can you hear me?” She didn't so much as twitch, and he closed his eyes, leaning down to rest his head against her chest. Her breathing was shallow and faint, but her chest still rose and fell.

  "I'm so sorry. I didn't know. Please, tell me I'm not too late.” He took her hand and pressed soft kisses along the back of it. “Tell me you're still in there.” The tears spilled down over his cheeks, but slowly, he felt some of his strength returning. His heart, which had felt desolate, began to beat with more power.

  He took the hand he held and placed it over his heart. “Please, lovely one, listen to me. Hear my voice. Come back to me. I promise I'll never leave you again.” He closed his eyes and concentrated all his might on making his fragile heartbeat grow stronger. He pressed her palm flatter against his chest. “Do you feel that, beloved? It beats for you. Only you.” He kept his mind focused, trained on the sound of his heartbeat. He refused to let negative thoughts in and concentrated only on his love for her. It washed over him like the waves of the ocean, ripping away the cold and bathing him in a warm, tender glow.

  He didn't know how long he sat there, but finally, he felt her slender fingers curl into the fabric on his shirt. “Gabriel?"

  She sounded tiny, far away, but he heard it and felt it throughout his body. He expelled a breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding, and his eyes popped open. She was still pale, but no longer ashen, and her lips were more white than blue.

  She looked at him in confusion. “Wh-What happened? What are you doing here?"

  He gathered her in his arms as his tears flowed freely. He pressed kisses to the top of her head, rocking her as relief chased away the black fear. “I thought I'd lost you,” he said. “I thought I'd killed you."

  "Killed? What?” She pushed slightly at his shoulders until he moved back. She looked up at him with a frown. “I don't understand."

  "That thing that happened right before I fought the dragon, it was an ancient binding ceremony. I chose you as my mate, Autumn."

  She blinked rapidly as obvious bewilderment crossed her features. “Your mate?"

  He nodded. “I didn't know what I was doing. It was instinctual. But I bound us together. We can't be without one another now."

  "Is that why ... why I felt so terrible? I was so cold.” Understanding flashed in her eyes and she grasped onto his forearms. “Gabriel, is that how you felt right before you turned to stone?"

  "It was similar, but this was so much worse."

  "So, you mean ... I was turning into a statue? Because you weren't with me?"

  He nodded. “Only it would have killed you if I hadn't gotten here in time. Your body is not built to handle something like that."

  Terror flashed through her eyes and she pressed closer to him.

  He held her tight and closed his eyes, relishing the feel of her against him. “I'm so sorry. I didn't know. Please believe me."

  "Of course I do.” She wrapped her arms around him and held on. “How did you get back here so fast?” she murmured after a long moment of silence.

  "Falconroye. He brought me."

  "He did?” She sounded completely surprised.

  Gabriel smiled. “He did. And I met the Elemental chieftain. I'm pretty sure she saved my life. Seems like women keep saving my skin in this era.” His words drew a giggle from Autumn, which warmed his heart. “She agreed to come to Algoria and teach me about my people, even though she is not supposed to for another fifty years."

  Autumn pulled back to look up at him with a curious frown. “She's coming to Algoria? You mean you're not going back to your people?"

  He sighed softly and took her face in his hands. “I don't think you understand the situation. I can't return there. You cannot breathe in that realm, and I cannot exist in your realm. Neither one of us will survive if we are apart. We have to live in Algoria. It is our only choice.” She stared at him for a long moment while she digested the information. Self-loathing slithered through Gabriel, and he looked away. “I'm so sorry to rob your choice from you. I never would have done so knowingly. I understand if you hate me, but I have to take you back with me. I would rather have you hate me than have you die."

  "So, let me get this straight,” she said slowly. “In order to stay alive I have to return to Algoria, and live there for the rest of my life as your mate. In other words, your wife."

  He gave a dismal nod. “Please forgive me, Autumn. I wish your uncle had never brought me into your life."

  She snorted. “Oh gimme a break, Gabriel."

  He blinked and looked at her in surprise.

  She rolled her eyes. “Yes, I had so much to look forward to before you. A woman with no family and a dull life running a bed-and-breakfast all by herself, talking to statues and art because she was lonely. Don't be stupid.” She ran her palms up his chest to his shoulders, then gazed intently into his eyes. Her color had almost returned to normal. “If whatever you did made it so that I am forced to live by your side forever, in a fantastic new world that my dear uncle would have loved to explore, then I think I should be thanking you."

  His heart skipped a beat. “Do you mean that? You want to live in Algoria with me?"

  She smiled. “I want you, Gabriel. I don't care where we live. All that matters is that you are with me."

  His lips descended to hers with more force than he had intended, and white-hot, fiery passion shot through him and smoldered between them. All traces of the ice-cold pain and emptiness vanished, leaving only aching lust in its wake.

  "Whew! Okay! That was intense."

  Gabriel pulled away and remembered that Curtis had been standing in the doorway the entire time.

  Autumn peered over Gabriel's shoulder and grinned. “Curtis! I'm so sorry. I must have scared you to death."

  He rolled his eyes. “That's the understatement of the year. Look, I don't mean to be a party-pooper and break up the happy couple's make-out fest, but there's a bloody dragon outside the fricking castle, and I really want to know what just happened! So, I need a drink. I'm going to go get me one, and when I come back, you two better explain what all of that was."

  Gabriel and Autumn both laughed. Gabriel nodded. “We will, Curtis. I swear."

  Autumn giggled again. “Whatever it is you find to drink, just bring the whole bottle."

  As Curtis disappeared back out the door, Gabriel returned his attention to Autumn. He smiled softly and cupped her cheek in his palm, feathering his thumb back and forth across her skin. “You know we can't leave him here by himself,” he said. “It would be wrong, and he would be so lonely."

  She smiled. “You want to bring Curtis to Algoria? Well, that would make his day."

  He grinned. “Unless you want him to stay here to keep your uncle's house for you."

  She sighed and shook her head. “This house is not
hing but a bunch of stone without my uncle in it. It's much more fitting that we all end up in the world he wanted so desperately to see.” She snuggled back into Gabriel's arms. “Thank you for coming back for me."

  He closed his eyes and stroked his hands down her back. “I think I've always needed you to exist, Autumn,” he said. “Even before I unknowingly bound us. I was a statue for so long, for centuries. I did not come back to life until you found me."

  "You want to know something?” she said quietly. “I may not have been a statue, but I was stone in so many other ways, Gabriel. I was an emotional void. Something was always missing. You brought me to life too. I love you."

  He tightened his arms around her, letting the potency of her words sink in and take root in his heart.

  "All right, someone made off with all the whiskey,” Curtis said as he returned to the room. “Oh, right, that was me after I got locked out of the portal.” He heaved a sigh that made Gabriel and Autumn laugh again. “Anyway, all I could find was this weird bottle of mead that your uncle had locked away."

  "Mead?” Autumn squeaked.

  Curtis looked up at her and frowned. “Yeah. You know, honey wine? I hope that's all right with you guys."

  Autumn looked up at Gabriel with so many hidden messages in her brown eyes that his blood lit on fire. He knew his grin was one step away from being absolutely demonic. “That's fine,” he said, his voice resembling a gravelly purr.

  Autumn nodded, fisting his shirt in her hands and tugging playfully. “Honey wine is our favorite."

  The End

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  About the Author

  Brieanna has been telling stories since she was old enough to formulate coherent thoughts. She was the only first grader who, while all of the other kids were playing tag at recess, would stand in the corner of the soccer field and pretend it was a portal to some far-off, mystical land. As one can imagine, she was labeled eccentric from a very early age.

  Her love of writing has only grown stronger with time, and she now subjects her family and friends to the insanity.