“For?”
“For throwing yourself into harm’s way when that roof collapsed. For protecting me…” She cleared her throat. “No one has ever done that for me before.”
He was quiet for a moment, watching her closely. With a nod, he said softly, “I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”
He turned on his heel, clenching his fists as he left before he did something reckless. Like press her down beneath him on the table and kiss her until she was breathless.
22
Ava gripped Bella’s reins as she rode beside Casimir, Jorrar and Quinn leading their party. The animal companions weaved in and out of the forest as they closed in on the astral kingdom’s entrance—less than an hour away.
As they left the boundaries of Igneothenia and approached Caelestia’s territory, the terrain had drastically changed. The rocky onyx ground gave way to lush greenery—so dense it was as if they had entered an entirely different world. But it wasn’t the green of Monterre she was used to with the tall oak trees and towering mountains. The flora here was even more magical.
They rode along a small path winding through the forest, filled with trees nothing like Ava could have imagined in her wildest dreams. White bark mottled with flecks of silver glimmered in the sun. Golden leaves the size of her palm boasting metallic veins shone brightly whenever the light hit them.
And everythingsparkled.
Even the birds, with their long tails ending in copper hues, twinkled as they flew by, singing enchanting, lilting melodies. Brilliant metallic pink flowers speckled the grass, swaying inthe breeze. A tawny rabbit munched on a nearby shrub, startling several purple dragonflies from their resting place.
“This is amazing,” Ava whispered, taking it all in.
“Just as beautiful as I remember,” Jorrar murmured.
Casimir and Quinn nodded their agreement as they kept on.
“The whole kingdom is in the clouds, right?” Ava asked.
“Yes,” said Jorrar. “On floating islands.”
“How do we get up there?”
“You’ll see.”
Casimir was tense beside her, though obviously trying to hide it. “How are you feeling about seeing your father and brother?”
“It’s what has to be done,” he said, keeping his tone even.
“That’s not what I asked.”
“I’m not excited about it. But you being with me will make it much more tolerable.”
“We’ll make it through this,” she said, trying to convince herself as well.
Persuading Orion to aid them was going to be much more difficult than Ava was prepared for, and she had to take the lead. The astral king would never listen to anything Casimir had to say.
“We’re here,” Quinn said, pulling Ava from her thoughts.
The forest opened up and a round structure sat before them. Pillars carved from bright white stone shone with a heavenly glow, encircling a large platform. A dozen guards surrounded the monolith, dressed in golden armor glinting in the sun.
One of them approached. “State your names and your business.”
Ava pulled forward on her horse, assuming her role. “Ava Everwood, Princess of Monterre. Accompanied by our Chief Royal Advisor Jorrar Farrow, General Casimir Undergrove, andCaptain Quinn Ashbluff. We sent word to His Majesty ahead of time. He’s expecting us.”
“Very good,” the guard said. “Follow me. Your animals may come along.”
We get to come?Luna asked, excitement in her voice.
“Yes.Thorne insisted in his letter.”
