A Fall of Secrets (A Shade of Vampire #15)(10)

People stayed on long after Kiev and Mona took their leave. They continued to dance and mingle even as sunset arrived beyond the island’s boundary. Although my hands were aching, I didn’t want to take more than a few minutes’ pause. I was enjoying playing with Caleb too much. I hadn’t played with him since I’d been trapped on his island as a prisoner.

I noticed Caleb looking at me a lot throughout the wedding. I wasn’t sure why he was staring at me. As we both took our third break, allowing Landis and Ashley to take a turn, I walked with Caleb toward the dance floor.

“You’ve been staring at me a lot today,” I said, raising a brow.

Caleb smiled. “Then you must have been staring at me to notice.”

I chuckled. “I guess so.” I did find myself looking at him a lot. Partly because I still couldn’t believe he was here with us on this island. It felt like a dream.

“You look stunning, Rose,” he whispered into my ear as he led me to dance. “And I still can’t quite believe you’re mine.”

I know the feeling.

As I draped my arms over his shoulders, his hands wrapped around my waist and he lifted me up suddenly so that my face was level with his, my feet hovering above the ground. He kissed my cheek and rested his chin on my shoulder, still holding me in the air. I giggled as my legs swayed.

Erik and Abby danced a few feet away. The way Erik was holding Abby close to him, and the way she nestled her head against his shoulder… I was surprised by how intimate they looked. I hadn’t even known they were friends until recently. The attraction was unmistakable as they looked into each other’s eyes.

When Abby caught my eye, I looked away again. Not wanting to make her feel uncomfortable, I turned my attention back to Caleb.

“How did you learn to play music?” I asked.

“Mostly, I just taught myself.”

“Seriously?”

“I’m not sure why you’re surprised. I’ve had a lot of downtime over the years.”

“Did you ever go to school when you were younger?”

“Yes. The local town school, until the age of about thirteen. Then I joined my father’s ship business as an apprentice architect and engineer… His dream had always been for me to take over running the family business.”

He placed my feet back on the ground. I slipped my hand in his. Rather than returning to the piano again to relieve Ashley and Landis, I let Caleb lead me away from the dance floor, away from the lights and noise. We walked in silence and stopped again once we were far away enough for me to barely hear the music. I knelt down on the sand, pulling Caleb down with me. We lay on our backs, gazing up at the dark sky.

After a pause, I turned my head toward Caleb. “Does this island feel any more like home to you now than when you first arrived?”

To my delight, he nodded. “It does… After the battle we just fought side by side, it would be hard not to feel camaraderie for the people of this island.”

I reached out and brushed my fingers against his cheek before leaning forward to kiss his lips.

“You are part of this island,” I said. “Part of this family. This place wouldn’t feel complete without you now.”

I held his hand and rested it over my navel before looking back up at the sky. I let out a sigh. I couldn’t deny that this wedding had made me imagine what it would be like to one day wed Caleb. I could almost imagine him standing there at the head of the aisle, watching me as I walked toward him, my arm looped through my father’s. It made me shiver.

I was about to lean forward and kiss him again when a wave of shouts broke through our peace. We sat up and looked back toward the crowd. The music had stopped, as had the dancing. Everyone was looking out toward the sea. I followed their gaze and gasped as I finally saw what they saw.

A horde of one hundred dragons, racing toward us in the distance. Although I knew they came in peace now, the sight of them still sent chills down my spine.

The dragons and their prince had returned.

Just in time to crash the party.

Chapter 8: Rose

The dragons were headed straight for the Port. Caleb and I lost no time in jumping to our feet and rushing towards the jetty to greet them. Others were less enthusiastic. They remained where they were on the beach, watching as the dragons drew closer and closer. My parents broke free from the crowd to join us.

The four of us stood at the edge of the jetty. My mother’s grip tightened around my father’s forearm. The dragons had crossed the boundary now—I could only assume that Mona had cast a spell upon Jeriad and his companions before they left, allowing them free entrance—and they were so close that I could begin to make out their features. I spotted the silver-orange scales of Jeriad, and the grey-blue body of Ridan. I also spotted several others who had accompanied them during the first visit. But right in the center of the crowd was a dragon larger than any I had seen before. He had piercing amber eyes, and his shimmering scales were pitch black laced with gold. I had thought that Jeriad was intimidating, but this magnificent creature made him pale in comparison. There was no doubt in my mind that this was the prince.

The horde soared over our heads and began to touch down in the clearing behind the port. Their landing was so deft and skillful, the ground barely shook. A strong wind built up around the area as their massive wings beat all around us.

The clearing was in no way large enough to hold all of the dragons, so as their feet hit the ground, they changed into their humanoid forms, making space for the others to land. Caleb, my parents and I walked slowly toward the clearing, and waited at the border until each of them had transformed. My eyes roamed the crowd of virile men in search of the prince. It didn’t take me long to find him.