The Reclamation (Shadowed Wings Book 3)

by Ivy Asher

  “I have no idea what porn is, but if you can’t follow the clues that are laid out, you really only have yourself to blame,” he teases back.

  I go to splash him again, but he grabs my hand. I try it with my other hand, but he grabs that too. I get my legs involved, but he moves behind me so if I want to get him, I have to get myself. I huff in outrage, and Ryn cracks up from behind me, thinking he’s safe.

  Think again, buddy.

  I call on my wings and start splashing him with those. This isn’t my first splash battle, and I take no mercy. Ryn does this man-squeal that almost weakens my attack because I’m laughing so hard, but I persevere. He releases my hands and tries to retreat, but he slips instead and goes down like a fucking mountain.

  Oh shit.

  Hurriedly, I jump out of the tub to check on him, but I hit the same slippery patch that he just did, and instead of making sure that he’s okay, my feet go right out from under me, and I land hard on top of him. Ryn grunts, and I yelp, and then we both moan in pain when his hip bone tries to break my ass.

  We both roll around for a second in pain, and then I start cracking up. “I can fight gryphons with practically my bare hands, but a bath and an asshole mate are what’s going to do me in?” I observe, completely lost to the slaphappy attack.

  There’s been so much shit going on, so much never-ending bad news and attacks and doom. I suppose I was bound to break at some point, I observe as I grab my side and the stitch that’s developing as I howl with laughter. Knowing me, I’ll probably have a good cathartic cry after this, or maybe just more manic giggles, until I process all the shit that’s happened.

  Ryn sits up with me in his lap, and his own chuckles spill out of his mouth. He shakes his head at my mental state and brushes back the strands of wet hair that are plastered to my face. He cups my cheeks, his eyes and lips dancing with mirth, and that’s when it happens: he looks at me like Moro looks at Tysa.

  The adoration and love suddenly pouring out of his eyes completely shocks me, and it takes me back to nights at Tysa’s house in the Eyrie and how her mate looked at her like she hung the fucking moon, and all the stars, and stitched the fabric of the sky itself by hand. I remember watching them and thinking to myself that I would never settle for anything less than the way Moro looks at Tysa. And now here it is, only it’s Ryn that I’m staring at, and he has those eyes for me.

  I lean in and claim his lips, needing to taste the look on his face, to catalogue it with my tongue and every other sense I possess. I cup his cheeks. Run my fingers through his hair. I want to feel every part of him all at once, but I don’t have enough hands. So I press in against him, pulling at his shirt until it’s gone and I can feel his warm skin against mine.

  His hands splay across my back, pressing me in even closer as he drinks me down like I’m the elixir that gives him life. The feeling is heady and overwhelming, but I’m not afraid to look it in the eye, to call it mine, to refuse to ever let it go.

  We consume each other unhurriedly. We take our time trading passion and promises and desire back and forth with our mouths and hands and bodies. I’ve never experienced anything like it. The deep-seated need and the easy reverent exploration of each other’s bodies. The ache for one another is so staggering I can’t decide if I want slow devastating kisses all over my body for hours or him buried deep inside of me right now, lighting my body up with each thrust until we combust.

  And the best part is, Ryn is mine, and I’m his, so I never have to truly choose just one or the other. I’m going to have a lifetime of learning his body and loving him hard and fast, or savoring the sweet slow consumption of each other. That thought settles in my soul, and something I haven’t felt for a long time takes root.

  I stare at the steady thrum of happiness in my chest for a moment, and a smile breaks across my face until Ryn is tasting my rapture and I’m untying his pants. He starts to push them down his thighs, but I’m suddenly impatient. I stroke him once as I line him up with me, and then I waste no time filling myself with his thick hard length.

  I throw my head back and moan at the feel of him, and Ryn’s passionate kisses trail down my neck and land on my breast. I pump my hips up and down his length as his hot mouth sucks on my nipples, and his hands knead my breasts and cup my throat, like he also wants to touch everything all at the same time.

  As I roll my hips and ride him, our lips catch one another’s here and there, and then flit away to release moans and explore each other’s necks and shoulders and chests. I can’t get enough of him, his kisses and his hands on my body, his cock between my thighs.

  “Mine,” I whisper against his ear before I nip on his lobe and suck at the spot on his neck just below his ear.

  My pussy clenches around him like she’s staking her own claim, and he growls low and possessively and grabs my ass as he grinds up into me. He reaches down and circles my clit with his thumb, and seconds later an orgasm strikes through me. He kisses me soundly as I grind against him and ride out my release. And then he carefully spins me on his cock so that he’s still deep inside of me, but my back is to his chest instead.

  He leans me back, sucking on my neck and squeezing and pinching my nipples until he has me exactly where he wants me, at the perfect angle to take over and thrust up into me hard and fast.

  My moans turn into gasps and then quickly morph into cries as Ryn sets himself firmly in the driver’s seat and drives his cock so deep and so fast inside of me that I’m all at once overloaded with sensations and also never want him to stop. He fucks me right into another massive orgasm as he holds onto my hips and shows me who the fuck I belong to.

  He nips at my neck and drops one of his hands back down to my clit, playing with me until I’m a mewling, writhing mess of a mate, only capable of screaming yes and right there, as he owns me body and soul.

  I feel his muscles tense a second before he groans my name and bites down on my shoulder as he pumps his release into me. I’m still riding the tail end of another orgasm, and I’m half delirious as he relaxes beneath me, his hands now slowly and sensually caressing my body. We just lie like that for a while, not saying a word, but letting our hands stroke and caress and communicate everything our mouths aren’t. I’m suddenly with Pigeon on the whole napping thing. I feel tired as fuck, and I wish there was a big ass bed in here instead of an inadequate looking cot.

  I want a cuddle party with the guys. I want to reconnect and figure out what the next move is, between orgasms and lots of sleep.

  I release a deep breath, sit up and push up off of Ryn. He slips out of me, and I turn to help him get to his feet. He kisses me slowly, and then we both clean up. We’re practically dead on our feet by the time we’re done, so we both zombie-walk over to the cot and then get our spoon on. Ryn’s out before you can say forking is better, and his deep breaths on my nape soothe and relax me in ways I never knew they could.

  I close my eyes and just float in the feel of his arms caging me in while his body curls protectively around me. I can’t help but think about our first encounters in the Eyrie, the cleansing and air tackles, the training and evasiveness. I would have never guessed that I would be where I am right now and certainly not feeling the way that I do. But it’s more than I ever hoped for, and I can’t wait to see how we all grow together.

  24

  My stomach growls so hard I can hear it over Ryn’s soft snores. I look down, almost offended by the rude demand it just gave, but more gurgles fill the quiet tent, and I accept that I need to eat. I give up on trying to fall asleep in Ryn’s arms even though I feel beat. Maybe it will be easier to pass out on a full stomach.

  I crawl out from under Ryn’s hold and pull the blanket up around him, kissing him on the head before getting dressed in the shirt and pants sitting in a pile next to the cot. I sneak out of the tent in search of sustenance.

  “Why hello there, Bond Breaker,” Cree says from the side of the doorway. I grab my chest and turn to her, surprised to see her.
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br />   “You scared me,” I admit on a chuckle, and she laughs too.

  “No reason to be afraid, it’s just me. Your mates wanted someone to keep an eye for you, and I volunteered,” she explains.

  “Well, that was nice of you. I’m just looking for food. Can you point me in the right direction?” I ask.

  “I’d be happy to take you. Should we wait for the Altern?” Cree asks, gesturing back toward the tent.

  “No, I’ll bring him back something. Please tell me there’s more than grot fruit,” I beg as we start walking.

  Cree chuckles. “Not a grot fruit lover, I see.”

  “If I never see those evil berries again, it will be too soon, I don’t care how good a source of nutrition and vitamins they are.”

  Cree leads me away from the tent, toward the surrounding tree line, and I realize where we are. I registered the reddish-purple dirt before, but not what it meant. “Are we in the Amaranthine Mountains?” I ask, just to be sure.

  “We are. It seems Lazza was camped out between the two tallest peaks. We set up the medical tents here, and then food is that way.” She points off in the distance. “And they started setting up some residential tents over there,” she says, pointing in the opposite direction.

  “Are they planning on staying out here?” I ask as we weave our way through the trees in the direction of the food area she just pointed out.

  “The other Ouphe-mixed gryphons and I will stay here until it can be agreed upon where a new stronghold will be, that is if both sides can learn to accept us,” she tells me, a hint of hesitancy in her tone.

  “What do you mean?”

  “We were exiled from both sides, which is how we ended up settling near the Ouphe camp. Two unwanted races guarding each other’s flanks, it made sense at the time, but now we’ll see where our kind fits. We didn’t want the Vow, but we were too Ouphe gifted to find a place with the Hidden. Our gifts and how we look is a threat to both sides as well as a reminder of what we’ve been through.”

  I nod, understanding what she’s saying, and she continues.

  “The white hair and purple eyes are a trait that only Ouphe-Gryphon mixes get. Not all who look like us have abilities, but most do, and because of that, we don’t fit in either world. We’re not Ouphe enough for them or Gryphon enough for the other side.”

  “But now we get to build a new way of life and doing things; I’m sure your people will find a place,” I reassure her, but I can see in the way she studies me for a beat that she doesn’t quite believe it.

  “What about you, Bond Breaker, where will your place be in this new world?” she asks, and I sense a hint of something in her tone that I can’t quite place. Resignation maybe, stoicism?

  I take a deep breath and let it out. I haven’t thought much about the what now or tried to picture it. I figured it will take time to sort through the aftermath of everything, to figure out how to move forward as a people and exactly what that entails. I pretty much assumed I’d be along for the ride, supporting Treno and Zeph in any way I can as they try to bring two warring sides back together.

  “I’m not sure exactly. I’ll be with my mates, I know that much. I used to be a mechanic in my old world, so maybe I’ll figure out a way to put those skills to good use, you know, keep busy as we all figure things out.”

  Cree nods in thought, reaching up to pull a leaf down from a low hanging branch. She threads it between her fingers absently.

  “Are you at all worried about your safety?” she asks evenly, and I’m surprised by the question.

  “Do I need to be?” I ask, suddenly giving Cree the side-eye.

  She smiles and holds her hands up. “I’m no threat to you, but you are the last Bond Wielder in this land; you have to have thought about how that will make people feel.”

  I push a branch out of my way as we traverse through a thicker tree-filled part of the forest.

  Damn, how far away is the food?

  My stomach growls, the impatient sound punctuating my thoughts. Cree chuckles.

  “It’s not too much further. We probably should have flown, but I didn’t know if you’d be up to it, and I like to walk,” she explains.

  I think back to what she asked and her comment about me being the last person to possess Bond magic. I suspect that isn’t exactly the case, but that anyone with any kind of Bond magic is really good at hiding it. Saner comes to mind. She marked my neck with a supposed dead rune, and I didn’t give much thought to it at the time, but Lazza used that rune to pull me to him, and I’d bet my left boob that she was packing more Bond magic heat than she’d ever want people to know. I wonder for a moment about how many Bond users are in hiding.

  “Word that you were the one to finally break the Vow will spread, and there will be Gryphons who are grateful, but there will also be Gryphons who see you for what you are,” Cree goes on, and her words call to an uneasiness in me.

  “For what I am?” I question.

  “Again, please know that I am not worried other than for you, but I think it wise to understand that the Gryphon people may not tolerate your presence. Those of us who know you will understand that you would never use your abilities against us. But there will be others who won’t care about that. All they’ll see is someone who could use their abilities against them, if they wanted to,” she explains.

  I trace the silhouettes of the tree trunks for a moment as I think through what she’s saying. She’s not wrong. I do need to think about this and the fact that I’m not going to be everyone’s favorite gryphon. Then again, who is? I want to be smart about my presence during this sensitive transition, and the guys and I need to talk about the best ways we can do that.

  “I worry about the same thing for my people,” Cree hurries to elaborate, probably picking up on my discomfort. “Will there ever be trust? Will the threads that unite us as Gryphons always be fragile? We’re not to blame for our heritage or the Ouphe blood running through our veins, and yet I cannot blame the Gryphons for seeing a threat in me because of it either. It’s a difficult path to walk, not unlike this one,” she jokes as we navigate around a cluster of boulders.

  Something about them looks familiar, which is a weird thing to think about a grouping of rocks. I stare at them for a beat longer, wondering where the déjà vu feeling is coming from, but when no answers appear, I let it go and focus on Cree’s points.

  “Honestly, I don’t have the answers. I hope that with time, we can all find a way to work together, and that includes the Ouphe who are in hiding, but it won’t be easy, and it won’t be immediate,” I confess. “I can only do what I can to make people feel safe and secure, and the rest we’ll just have to deal with if or when it happens.”

  I spot a clearing through the trees about ten feet in front of us, and my stomach tucks a napkin into its shirt, ready to go to town. Thoughts of duda fruit and the yummy rolls from the Eyrie fill my mind, and my mouth starts to water in anticipation.

  A buzzing sensation starts up on my skin, and I chuckle at how freakin’ excited my body is to eat.

  Cree stops just before the edge of the trees and turns to me.

  “I would like to thank you, Bond Breaker, for what you’ve done for our people. We’ve been waiting for a long time for this day, and because of you and your sacrifices, a new dawn is upon us,” Cree tells me as she presses her palm over her heart. Her face is split into a radiant smile, but her eyes say something else entirely.

  My brow furrows as I try to pinpoint what has Cree so sad. Before I can say anything or respond in any way, she starts to move again, and we finally make our way out into the clearing, and I freeze in my tracks.

  The clearing has tall unkempt grass spread across it, and in the middle is a familiar abandoned small stone cabin. It looks exactly like the clearing I was supposed to spread my gran’s ashes in. The one that had the invisible gate that brought me here. I’m so stunned by the sudden presence of this place that it takes me a moment to figure out how the hell we stumbled u
pon it.

  I turn to Cree, completely shocked, and realize she’s talking. I blink the stupefaction I’m experiencing away, and her words start to resonate.

  “You’ve done a great thing for us, and in return, I find myself obligated to do the same for you, Falon.”

  Her words only add to the complete confusion I’m feeling right now. Why are we here, and what does it have to do with anything she’s saying?

  “This won’t be easy, and you may not ever understand why, but know that I’m saving your life and the lives of your mates too. You’ll have to learn to let them go, because once you’re through, I’m going to use my gift, and this gate will never open for you again.”

  “Cree, what are you—”

  But I don’t get to finish that question, because out of nowhere she pushes me.

  I don’t have time to react or to try and figure out what the hell she’s talking about. I’m just flying forward toward the middle of the clearing, a shouted objection barely leaving my lips, and then the next thing I know, a crack of power slams into me. Heat and hurt shove all thoughts of anything else away, and I go flying back from the pulse of energy that just exploded all around and through me. I’m thrown against something hard, and I lose time for a moment as my body falls to the frozen ground in a battered heap.

  I groan as pain bounces around my body and try to lift my head from the snow-covered ground.

  Snow?

  I start to shiver like the word itself reminded my body of how it’s supposed to react to the cold. I push up and notice I’m in the same clearing, but it’s covered in a white blanket of fresh powder. My thoughts feel foggy, like I can’t make sense of why there’s suddenly snow here.

  “Cree?” I call out, confused. “What the fuck was that?” I ask as I push to my feet slowly.

  Ow.

  I rub the back of my neck and turn to look for the bitch leader of the Ouphe-mixed gryphons, but instead of finding Cree, I spot part of my motorcycle half hidden in a pile of snow and still parked in the same place I left it.