by Jaye McKenna
When Cam’s shoulders finally loosened and the tension flaring through him eased, Draven wrapped his arms around him and pulled him down onto the bed. His teeth scraped the back of Cam’s neck, and his hands roamed over that lean body. He slid his hand across Cam’s flat, taut belly and slowly worked it down the front of his jeans, driven on by the tiny whimpers of pleasure that escaped Cam’s throat.
The jeans were in his way, so Draven rolled Cam onto his back and stripped him bare, then spent a few moments appreciating the shape of the man spread out before him. Cam’s dark eyes met his as Draven straddled his hips.
“I missed you,” Cam murmured, finally relaxing enough to truly see him. “After they arrested me… all I could think of at first was that I’d never see you again.” He lifted a hand and pressed it gently to Draven’s cheek, thumb stroking his lower lip. “Or… or that if I did, I wouldn’t know you. I couldn’t see any way it wouldn’t end with me being mind-wiped. The thought of it scared the shit out of me. Not knowing you or Eleni or Miko… not enough of me left to even understand what I’d lost.”
“I’m sorry.” An image of those dark eyes staring through him without recognition swam in Draven’s mind. He knew what that looked like; it was the way Sylvester had looked at him when he’d finished walling off the man’s memories. “It was my fault they came after you in the first place. I didn’t know about Sylvester’s implant. Been out of the loop for too long.”
Cam shook his head. “It wasn’t your fault.”
“It was, but it’s done. We’re safe now.” Draven captured Cam’s mouth in a kiss that started out soft and gentle, but quickly became rough and needy.
Cam pulled Draven down against him. “Make love to me,” he whispered.
“Yes…” He wasn’t afraid of those words now that he understood that they had nothing to do with the mechanical acts he’d performed with strangers for over half his life. Making love was different. It was about telling Cam without words all the things that stirred within him whenever Cam looked at him like that. It was about continuing the conversation they’d started back at the cabin.
Or maybe it had started before then; maybe that first tentative exchange had been back on Alpha, the night he’d incurred DeMira’s wrath by letting Cam and Miko slip through the security net. The same night Cam had offered Draven his protection.
It had taken a long time for Draven to ask for the help Cam had offered, but he’d be forever grateful that he had. He closed his eyes briefly and offered up silent thanks to Miko’s Dragon Mother. Then, with slow, deliberate movements, Draven stroked Cam’s body to a blazing high.
“Please…” Cam whispered, spreading his legs and dropping his defenses, inviting Draven into his body and his mind.
Draven accepted the invitation. Merging with Cam’s mind as he pressed slowly into his body was like coming home. Cam urged him deeper on so many levels, until Draven could no longer tell where he ended and Cam began.
The dance started slowly, gently, picking up speed as the flames flickered hotter and brighter. Desire flared, sweet and wild, driving them higher still.
When the double climax tore through them, the resonating sensations and emotions left them both shattered and breathless. Draven collapsed on top of Cam, exhausted, and a languid peace settled over them.
As they drifted in a quiet haze of contentment, Draven rested his head on Cam’s chest, and Cam’s fingers stroked his hair.
“Life’s funny,” Cam murmured.
“How so?”
“Seven years ago, if someone had told me I’d be lying in bed with Draven, the Sapphire Guild’s executioner, in my arms, I’d have laughed my ass off.”
Draven tilted his head so he could meet Cam’s eyes. “Diri,” he whispered. “The people I care about call me Diri.”
Cam smiled. “Diri.” He pressed a kiss to Draven’s forehead, and Draven laid his head back down on Cam’s chest and listened to the steady beat of his heart.
This was what he’d been craving for most of his life: a place where he truly belonged, and someone who knew his name and gave a damn what happened to him. Cam was right; seven years ago, he’d never have believed he’d ever find anything like that, let alone find it with Cameron Asada.
Life was funny, indeed. But he wouldn’t have it any other way.
Epilogue
Draven stood on the edge of the crowd, back against the wall, taking small sips from a cup of home brew. The celebration had been going strong for a couple of hours now, and showed no sign of breaking up. In the early hours of the morning, the first baby had been born on Hope, providing the hard-working colonists with the perfect excuse for a party.
On the stage at the far end of the community center’s main hall, Angus, Marek, and Trevor McKinnon were providing dance music on the fiddles they’d brought with them from Aurora. Up near the stage, Cam and Eleni were dancing, and they looked amazing together.
Much as he enjoyed watching Cam move, all those closely packed bodies made the space much too warm, and the energy of the crowd was making Draven twitchy. He slipped outside to be alone for a few moments. Summer was drawing to a close, and the chill of autumn crept into the air as the sun slid down toward the mountain peaks.
Outside, at the center of the town square, a few people gathered around a bonfire, laughing and drinking as they took a break from the dancing.
Draven hung back at the edge of the light, drawing in a deep, satisfying breath of the clean mountain air. He’d never done so much hard, physical labor before. Since they’d made landfall, he’d learned how to dig foundations, lay bricks, and frame buildings. The constant activity had packed plenty of hard, lean muscle onto his frame, and he felt better than he’d ever felt in his life.
The town was slowly taking shape. Soon, the first harvest would be in, and preparations for the long winter ahead were well underway. Draven had spent the last few of his days off joining the hunting parties that went out every day to bring in meat to be smoked or frozen.
His gaze was drawn, as it often was, to the breathtaking view of the mountains looming over the town. In the purple twilight, the coruscating sheets of rippling orange and gold light hanging over the snow-covered peaks made it look as if the sky were on fire. Miko said it was due to the high concentration of mythe-energy, which made sense, given the vast deposits of shaalinite they’d found in the mountains. The stuff was everywhere, sparkling veins of crystal in all the colors of the rainbow threading through every exposed rock surface.
Draven never tired of looking up at those mountains. Evenings often found him sitting next to Cam on the hill above the town, staring up at the sky and enjoying the show.
“Here you are,” Cam said from behind him. “I wondered where you’d snuck off to.” Cam’s hand found its way into his back pocket, and Draven snaked an arm around him, pulling him close.
“Just needed to get out of the crowd,” Draven said. “Too much noise and energy for me.”
Cam plucked the cup from his hand and took a drink.
“Careful, that’s—”
“Holy hell.” Cam grimaced, but took another cautious sip. “Is this Rhys’s new brew? This stuff could strip paint.”
“Or fuel the shuttle.”
“Oh, good idea.” Cam laughed. “I’ll tell him you said that.”
Draven grinned. “You and Eleni looked good in there.”
“Why, thank you.” Eleni came to stand on his other side and gave him a bright smile. “You’ll have to learn to dance, Draven. The way you move, you’d be a joy to watch.”
“I don’t know about that,” he said doubtfully.
“Plenty of time to practice over the winter,” Cam said.
“You think?” Draven frowned. “I figure we’ll be working ourselves ragged just to keep everyone fed.”
“It won’t be that bad,” Cam said. “The council just completed our first inventory. There are plenty of supplies up on the Wanderlust, and more livestock in cold-sleep that we can brin
g down, now that we’ve got shelter for them. We’ll make it through the winter, no problem. And this spring, as soon as the fields are planted, we can build some houses, start moving people out of the dorms.”
“And start making more babies, too,” Eleni said. “Have you two thought about starting a family?”
Draven nearly choked on his drink.
“What?” she said, turning innocent eyes on him. “Now that we’ve got food and shelter squared away, this is something we need to think about. I’ll be bringing it up at the next town meeting. We have a limited gene pool here, and if we expect to survive past the first few generations, we need to preserve as much genetic diversity as possible. That means the traditional family structures everyone’s used to aren’t going to work here. We need to make as many different pairings as possible.”
“That’s not going to be so easy,” Cam said slowly. “Not with a population of psions.”
“That’s why I want to bring it up soon,” Eleni said. “Give people a chance to think about it, figure out how we’re going to make it work.”
“Eleni!” a man’s voice called from the direction of the community center, and Draven turned to see Trevor approaching. “I’ve been looking for you, lass. You promised me a dance.”
“I promised you a lot more than a dance, Mr. McKinnon,” Eleni said, eyes twinkling. “But you were so busy making music, I had to settle for dancing with my brother.”
“Oh, the horror,” Trevor said, winking at Cam. “Dad’s gone off to fetch his guitar, and they’re trying to convince Luka to sing. They don’t necessarily need me to keep the music going.” He held out a hand to Eleni. “Shall we, my lady?”
Eleni smiled and dropped a small curtsy before taking his hand. As the two of them walked off, Trevor put his arm around Eleni, drawing her close. She snuggled against him, tucking herself neatly under his shoulder, and Cam watched them go with a soft smile on his face.
As soon as they were out of earshot, Draven said faintly, “Family? She wants us to start a family?”
“She’s right. We do need to think about it if we expect to be around for another generation.” Cam took another sip from the cup and gave Draven a wry grin. “Though I have to admit, I’m simultaneously appalled and intrigued when I try to imagine what a child of yours would be like.”
Draven elbowed him sharply. “Your mother’s already told me plenty of horror stories about you, Asada. Sounds like you were quite a handful, yourself.”
“Mother McKinnon hardly paints a fair picture.” Cam gave him a wounded look. “She only had me under her roof for two years.”
“And to hear her tell it, two years was all you needed to turn every hair on her head grey.”
“She says the same thing about Alek,” Cam protested. “And Trevor. And—”
Draven smirked. “Your sister’s been filling me in on all the details you neglected to mention.”
“This is so unfair,” Cam complained. “There’s nobody here to give me the dirt on you.”
“You’ve been in my mind, Asada. Right down to the heart of me. You’ve already got it all. The bad, the worst, and everything in between.”
Cam’s expression softened, and his lips curved in a smile. “And the good,” he murmured. “Far more good than I ever suspected.” His hand moved from Draven’s pocket to slide up under his shirt. A shiver of heat rippled through Draven’s body as Cam rubbed his back. “Have I mentioned lately how much I love this new look of yours?”
“What, sweaty, unshaven, and in desperate need of a haircut?”
“No haircut.” Cam’s tone was firm, and sent more shivers through Draven. His hand went to the back of Draven’s neck. He pulled loose the elastic holding his ponytail, then buried his fingers in Draven’s hair, pulling it forward so it framed his face. “You have to admit, it’s a far cry from the tailored suits and expensive cologne you wore when I first met you. Looks damn good on you.”
Before Draven could think of a suitable response, he heard the sound of a flyer approaching from the north.
Cam turned to watch, frowning. “Who was out?”
“Nick took Tarrin and Vaya out to have a closer look at the mountain range to the north,” Draven said. “Miko and Rafe went with them. They’ve been gone since yesterday morning. I guess you were too busy with the inventory to notice.”
“I guess,” Cam said. “Shall we go meet them? I’d like to hear what they found.”
The sheer amount of work required to oversee the establishment of the colony had kept Cam so busy, he had little time to worry, but Draven knew he still brooded about the possible implications of their presence here.
As they approached the sparsely-lit landing field, Tarrin, Vaya, and Nick came forward, Miko and Rafe trailing behind, deep in some silent conversation only they could hear.
Tarrin caught sight of Cam, gave him a grim smile, and shook his head. “The mountain range could be the Iceshards. It’s in the right place, and it’s certainly extensive enough, but there’s no sign of the Vashi Wastes. It’s all forestland. We found no trace of ruins or artifacts or human-made disturbances in the mythe. I was hoping we’d find something, but… we’re either so far in the past we pre-date humanity, or so far in the future that they’re gone. I’m… not sure which possibility scares me more, but it looks like I’ll have to resign myself to never knowing.”
“I wonder if we might be better off not knowing,” Cam said soberly. “It’s something I’ve been thinking about a lot since we got here. If I knew for certain… I think I would start questioning every decision I make. I think Rhys and Anja have the right idea. We call it Hope, and we do the best we can with what we’ve got.”
Draven smiled to himself, relieved that Cam had finally made peace with the idea that they may well have come full circle. “That’s all anybody can do,” he said, tightening his arm around Cam. “Give it your best shot, and you can sleep at night knowing you did all you could. And knowing you, you’ll make a damn fine job of it.”
Cam rested his head on Draven’s shoulder. “With you at my side, I will.”
~ The End ~
Author’s Note
Thank you for taking this journey with me!
Closing the Circle is the final volume in the Guardians of the Pattern series, but the story will continue at some point in the not-too-distant future. I’d like to visit that colony on Hope and see how the psion colonists manage during those early years. They might be free of the Federation, but their new home harbors many secrets, and I foresee numerous challenges coming their way. Like Cam, I’m simultaneously appalled and intrigued when I try to imagine what a child of Draven’s might be like. I’m also curious to see what a semi-domesticated Draven might be like, so rest assured — there will be more. These guys aren’t done with me yet!
Also by Jaye McKenna
Guardians of the Leythe Novels
Human Frailties, Human Strengths
Human Choices
Wytch Kings
Book 1: Burn the Sky
Book 2: Blackfrost
Book 3: Shadowspire
Book 4: Dragonwatch
Coming Fall, 2017
Middle Kingdoms
Leythe Blade
Guardians of the Pattern
Prequel: Facing the Mirror
Book 1: Psi Hunter
Book 2: Gremlin’s Last Run
Book 3: Ghost in the Mythe
Book 4: Wildfire Psi
Book 5: Eye of the Storm
Book 6: Closing the Circle
Full list available at
www.jayemckenna.com
Coming Soon
Dragonwatch
Wytch Kings, Book 4
The balance of power in Skanda is about to shift…
Tristin of Ysdrach would rather hide in his dragon form than live with a Wytch power that forces him to experience the fear and violence of the past. Struggling to come to terms with a future he never thought he’d have, Tristin fights the urge to surren
der to the beast within.
Prince Mikhyal of Rhiva is not qualified to be his father’s heir, but secret knowledge possessed by Rhiva’s allies may change that. On his journey to a negotiation that could shift the balance of power in Skanda, Mikhyal and his father, Wytch King Drannik, are attacked, and Mikhyal is left fighting for his life and his sanity.
During his recovery, Mikhyal meets the shy but intriguing Tristin, a man who has lost years of his life to the Wytch Council’s machinations. The two men barely have a chance to acknowledge the spark of attraction between them before another attempt is made on the Wytch King’s life.
Can Tristin and Mikhyal get to the bottom of the plot? Or will the fledgling Northern Alliance fall apart before it has a chance to free the kingdoms of the north from the Wytch Council’s ever-tightening grip?
Acknowledgments
Huge thanks go to my amazing beta team: Lia, Tully, Kate, Ari, and my favorite minion, Michael (See? Your Evil Overlord does appreciate you!). An extra shout-out and big hugs to Lia for many emails and discussions about Cam and Draven; to Tully (Draven’s biggest fan) for doing an “alpha” read, which necessitated wading through my hot-off-the-keyboard ramblings, and for helping me get Rafe just right; and to both Kate and Tully for reading this monster more than once, and giving me insightful comments and encouragement every time.
Thanks also go to Chinchbug, my favorite cover artist, for making all my boys look great!
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