Gypsy Moon (All The Pretty Monsters #4)(53)

Vance clears his throat, looking away as he nods.

“Of course.” One more throat clearing, and he parrots those words again. “Of course.”

“Well,” Arion says as he stands. “There are two ways we can ascend.”

Someone has changed my clothes, likely because mine were burned away from my body. It’s a bad day when you can’t remember the details of a plane crash because you were too distracted by the back-to-back strikes of lightning.

Doesn’t matter.

Right now, nothing else matters. Everything else gets a big freaking pin pushed into it.

I pull on the red coat that managed to escape the crash in pristine condition. Arion arches an eyebrow as if to say he’s finally won this battle, as he finishes helping me into it.

“What are the two ways we can do this?” I ask, looking away from his weirdly playful eyes.

“Really fast, so that it’s over as soon as possible,” Arion says from behind me.

I can hear his grin growing.

“I’m not sure you want to set the precedent as that being a bragging right,” Damien tells him dryly, giving him a pointed look.

I turn to see Arion still grinning at me.

“Aye, she knows I’ll take my time with her when she finally gives in. The double entendre won’t hold, mate,” Arion answers dismissively.

“The two ways?” I cut in, interrupting their shared tangent. “So far I’ve only heard one option, and I’m not sure what it means.”

“The other way is rather slow; however, you’ll have a long time to think about how high up you’re being carried, because the only way to the castle is to go straight up,” Arion carries on, pressing closer to my back.

He moves abruptly and walks out the door, letting more of the cold slither in.

“It sounds like a blizzard out there,” I say as my teeth chatter a little, despite the new, very nice and warm coat.

“Damn thing came out of nowhere,” Damien states conversationally, as he opens the door for me, smiling tightly.

I hesitate, and then grimace. “This blizzard is my fault, isn’t it? It’s probably because of the super charge from the lightning. Sorry.”

He cups my chin, brushing his thumb over my bottom lip. “After just witnessing that helpless torment, I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t apologize for inconsequential details, sweet gypsy. Apologize for not warning me how truly severe that is.”

I blink a few times. “Aside from the plane crash, that one really wasn’t all that bad.”

Emit makes another strange sound before stalking out, as Arion rakes a hand through his hair on his way back in.

Vance mutters a curse before also storming out.

“Why do I feel like everyone is mad at me? What’d I do?” I ask as Damien starts out as well, a series of peculiar sounds slipping through his tight lips.

“Apparently the voltage made me stupid, because I’m not even getting the gist of this tantrum,” I call from behind them, walking out quickly…and then I stumble to an abrupt halt, as my jaw flops open.

The massive mountainside in front of me has me gawking up at a painful angle, but I still can’t see the top, because there’s an ominous ring of fog obstructing the impossibly high view.

“You couldn’t have just gotten me up there while I was unconscious?” I ask incredulously.

“We weren’t planning on including you on this adventure, remember?” Arion points out.

“So you’re plotting at the bottom of the mountain because…?” I let the question trail off and literally tap my foot.

“The cabin was closer,” Damien says like it makes all the sense in the world.

I open and close my mouth a few times, unsure how to even counter that statement.

“I want it over as quickly as possible,” I decide before walking toward a grinning vampire.

His arms open like he expects me to run into them, and Damien snorts.

“Again, not bragging rights, mate,” Damien retorts.

“You beautiful fucking girl,” Arion murmurs against my ear just as I get my arms around his neck, “climb me.”

Rolling my eyes, I pull myself up, and his hands immediately go to my ass the second my legs are around his waist.

“A kiss for the ferry charge,” Arion says as he teases my cheek with the brush of his lips.

“For fuck’s sake, Arion. Don’t make the girl so—”

Emit’s words cut off when I quickly kiss Arion, pressing my lips to his. It catches him so off guard that he doesn’t have time to react, and I’m able to keep the kiss chaste.

“Not everything has to be an argument. Can we go now?” I ask, staring Arion in his dark eyes, as a slow grin curves his lips.

“Impatient, aren’t you?” Before I can formulate an equally smartass remark, he whispers, “Brace yourself, love.”

It’s all the warning I get before gravity is stolen from me. My arms and legs tighten around him, and the feeling of weightlessness settles, as gravity slams back into place.

I don’t even know when my eyes sealed like air-tight locks, but I crack one open when everything remains still. Arion’s hand is still firmly clutching my ass, and his other is in my hair, as he starts kissing up the side of my neck.