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I moved on, shoving my hands deep into my pockets against the biting chill. Dwelling on Drazhan would only give him more power over me. This year would be a fresh start, I resolved fiercely. The past could not cage me unless I let it.
Too soon, Blackthorn’s soaring spires emerged from the darkness. I slowed my steps, delaying the inevitable return to that den of deception and heartbreak.
I crossed the empty courtyard and lingered beneath its stone arches, running my hands over their weathered surface, when abruptly, a loud crack split the silence. I froze, dread pooling in my stomach—this was no ordinary sound, but the groan of strained, protesting stone. Nervously, I scanned the shrouded battlements looming overhead. And then my gaze shot skywards. Too late, I spotted the massive stone gargoyle, fangs bared and wings spread wide, as it plunged towards me.
My jaw slackened in sheer shock. I managed a single whimper before a powerful force slammed into me, knocking me clear of the statue’s crushing impact. My savior’s arms encircled me with iron strength, sweeping me off the ground and carrying me to safety in a blur of motion.
We soared high into the night sky until my back slammed against the parapet’s wall, forcing the breath from my lungs. Caged between the cold stone and the hard muscles of my savior’s chest, we hovered in the icy air for a suspended moment.
I struggled to regain my breath, clinging tightly to the stranger’s muscular frame. My scattered wits were too slow to make sense of what had just happened.
In this nearness, his raw physicality overwhelmed me—the corded strength coiled in his arms, his towering height, the way the moonlight kissed the hard planes of his taut body.
Our gazes locked, and a spark of lightning arced between us. I stared at my rescuer mutely, stunned not just by the near miss with the plummeting statue, but also by the overpowering proximity of this imposing figure who held me trapped against the wall. His slate-dark eyes peered intensely into mine, gleaming with banked fire that sent unfamiliar tremors through me.
Granite wings spread wide behind him, firm legs anchoring me to the castle’s stones… In undiluted awe, I took in his sculpted chest, the chiseled veins etched on his strong arms. My gaze angled upwards and met his glistening locks of pitch-black hair tousled in the wind and coiling around the curled horns that adorned his head. A ridged, powerful tail snaked around his leg, the spaded tip resting lightly on my hip in an intimate caress that made me shiver.
The chill night air carried his earthy scent—smoke and pine needles mingling with the warm spice of his skin. I breathed it in, blood rushing in my veins. One clawed hand still grasped my waist possessively from when he’d swept me out of harm’s way.
My heart raced as I processed this exhilarating closeness with such an otherworldly creature.
We stood on the knife’s edge of possibility, tension drawing us closer like magnets. His eyes smoldered, two dark flames threatening to immolate us both... I had never felt so alive as in this dangerous moment.
Some powerful force bound us, an attraction too primal to deny. Without thinking, my fingertips traced over the chiseled muscle of his arm, fascinated by the contrast of soft skin and hard stone. His minty breath brushed my neck and stirred my hair as his face inched closer, sending delicious shivers down my spine.
Consequences faded until there was only him and I hovering together in the silver moonlight. I tilted my face up, helpless against the raw need coursing between us. He felt it too. I could read that primal need emanating from him with each panting breath. Another second, and we would both be lost...
Gently, he set me down, my heart hammering against the chest of my rescuer. And as my feet grazed the wall walk’s ground, slowly, almost reluctantly, those sheltering arms withdrew, and I found myself gazing up into the face of a gargoyle—a real one.
Shock rooted me in place as I took in the sight of my savior fully for the first time. I had heard tales of the mythical stone guardians said to lurk on these ancient grounds, but never dreamed I would behold one in the flesh.
With my back still pressed against the stone wall, I released a stuttered breath. The statuesque creature stood motionless before me, his powerful wings now shielding me from any harm.
Something about his handsome visage gave me pause. Leaning closer, I peered into his eyes. They were not blank and lifeless like those of the other gargoyles but glittered with intensity, even in the darkness.
This was no mere statue. I should have been afraid, and yet, seeing the shadow of his handsome human face captured in the stone features, all I felt was an unexpected thrill.
In the depths of those living maroon eyes, I glimpsed such profound loneliness it made my heart ache. On instinct, I reached out, gently laying a hand along his cold cheek.
The gargoyle’s eyes slipped closed, and he leaned into my touch ever so slightly. In that moment, the rest of the world fell away. There was only him and me beneath the stars, two lost souls finding a moment’s solace in one another. I couldn’t help feeling this was just the beginning for us, the first step on an unknown but meaningful path.
Without a word, he turned away, drifting into the shadows with preternatural speed, leaving me shaken in body and spirit. But one truth remained—he’d saved my life. I owed him a debt I could never hope to repay.
“Thank you!” I blurted like a fool. My breath hitched at the end of the sentence, and I winced, immediately regretting each word.
The stunning gargoyle halted. It was clear that he’d heard me, but for some reason, he chose not to respond. Instead, he simply stared back, his eyes reflecting the moonlight, creating an almost ethereal glow.
Embarrassment flooded me. What was I thinking, addressing a mythical creature as though we were familiar? He had likely already forgotten the insignificant mortal he’d saved on a whim. I was only making myself more of a fool.
Face burning, I turned quickly towards the tower stairwell. But some recklessness made me pause and toss the words over my shoulder, “I don’t know your name…” I’d already made a fool of myself. What more did I have to lose? “I’d like to know who saved me.” I bit my lower lip, watching him in wordless expectation.
Again, silence. The enigmatic figure continued to hold my stare, his gaze steady yet gentle. His quiet determination only heightened my fascination. I longed to know more about this mysterious creature who’d stepped out of the shadows to rescue me.
The silence stretched between us, thick and heavy like a shroud. The gargoyle may have been reserved, even aloof, but something about him tugged at my heartstrings, urging me to understand the soul hidden behind his brooding eyes.
Just as I resigned myself to the fact that he would not speak, a single word fell softly into the night air.
“Rhys,” he said simply. He nodded curtly, his expression unreadable. But there was something in his eyes—an intensity that sent warmth spreading through my veins—that betrayed his stoic demeanor.
