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“I’ll keep you warm.” I shoved off my pants and left them where they dropped, turning my back on him to wade in, hissing as the icy water running down from the mountains hit my skin.
“Your reaction does not give me faith,” Vin said from directly behind me.
“Do you want to lay on the raft and watch the stars?” I asked, reaching behind me for his hand.
He grumbled but took my hand. I took a deep breath and ran into the water. We both let out unflattering noises before getting to the raft, hauling ourselves out after only a few moments in the water. We collapsed into a pile, wrapped in one another, soaking wet and shivering.
“Give me all your fucking heat.”
“Something I never thought I’d hear a bloodsucker say.” I kissed his damp shoulder.
He returned the gesture, nipping at my shoulder. “Have you ever forced one into a freezing cold river?”
“Not that I recall.”
“What a sterile answer.” He pulled back, but I tightened my grip.
“Where are you trying to go?”
He laughed. “Lie back. I want you on top of me.”
“I’d think you were being romantic, but I know the truth behind it.”
“To steal your body heat in a more efficient way.” He spread out on his back.
I lay half over him, resting my chin on his chest so I could look at him. “You should be able to see the northern lights, but I guess you’ve seen them from Europe, so it’s probably better there.”
“Not since I was a child.” He stroked his fingers over my back lazily.
“Do you miss it?” I asked, since we’d never really talked about his childhood. There was so much we hadn’t shared with each other while trying to deny our fate, and now we had so little time.
“The little things. The civilization here is in its infancy. They are so much more crass. They lack refinement. But the land here is beautiful. Not that it isn’t there, but there is something special about vast wilderness and mountain ranges in North America. I’ve learned to think of it as home.” He slipped his fingers into my hair.
“You can’t judge a place on the people who took over. Just because they don’t do things the way Europeans do doesn’t mean they lack refinement. You lack appreciation for native culture, and an ignorance of how to bond with the land isn’t less refined. We respect different things. This land has never served kings and finery. The people didn’t care about power or wealth, they cared about harmony.”
“I guess I’ve never looked at it outside of the leash of the culture I was raised in.” He nodded slowly. “I will have to learn.”
“Does that mean you never expect to go back?”
“As vampires’ reigns are long-lived, yes, I expect the status quo to stay the same. They don’t want my kind there.” He tugged lightly at the long strands of my hair. “A shooting star.”
“What did you wish for?” I asked.
“More days like this.” He rolled, forcing us both to our sides, tangling our limbs while his lips found mine.
I gave over to his kiss and his body.
When the chill set in, we silently swam back and dressed unceremoniously. Something between us had shifted. Another link locked into place.
“Why are you so sure you’ll die?” Vin had never questioned my insistence, and I’d stopped expecting it.He asked what anyone would:“How do you know it’s you? It could be about anyone.”
“It has too many details of my life no one else would know. I was the one who freed us from human harm and restored our power and bond with the land. I don’t believe in coincidences.”
“Neither do I, but there usually is a simpler explanation.”
“She had the gift of foresight.” I didn’t want to fight about it. He didn’t have to believe it, but I would face my future with open arms. I didn’t believe in running from the bad.
“I’m not saying she was wrong, but maybe it’s about an descendent of yours two hundred years in the future. We can’t know what she saw or even if she interpreted it right.”
