Once more, I slept incredibly well in Heron’s arms. I lost track of time, his embrace keeping me warm, and his breath further heating me up as it spread over the back of my neck.

My dreams were all connected to him—vivid and filled with color, as if we’d somehow met, deep in our subconscious, to continue what we’d started back in the real world. My own moans of dreamy pleasure woke me up, and I held my breath for a few seconds, wondering if he’d heard me. I listened to the heavy silence around us. We were still submerged in the darkness of our hole in the ground.

The furs beneath us were soft, and had done an excellent job of keeping the cold at bay—though I had Heron to thank, too, for refusing to leave my side. His arms were still tightly wrapped around my waist, his frame spooning mine, and his face was buried in my hair.

I could’ve stayed there forever. For a brief moment in time, all my worries and fears had evaporated, and all I could focus on was the sound of his heartbeat. It was soft and steady, as he was still dreaming. I wondered if I’d left him alone in there, looking for me.

No matter what lay ahead, Heron and I were certainly no longer the same. The version of us that had first landed on Neraka was gone, swiftly replaced by a pair still trying to figure each other out. After our first kiss, however, the dynamic between us was undeniable. After everything he’d said to me, and after what I’d first said to him, there was simply no point in hiding anything anymore. I’d fallen for Heron Dorchadas—deep enough for me to choke up at the thought of losing him in any way.

It scared the hell out of me, but, at the same time, it filled me with unexpected energy and courage, the latter to do things I’d never done before. Frankly, I was used to asking all the questions and keeping most of myself neatly wrapped beneath snappy comebacks and dry jokes. Yet, with Heron, I had this uncontrollable urge to reveal myself to him—my dreams, my thoughts, and, most importantly, my feelings toward him.

He stirred, then exhaled slowly. His heartbeat picked up the pace a little. He was waking up and readjusting to our new reality. His natural scent filled my lungs, and I couldn’t help but smile as I recognized the strong, masculine hints of musk and ocean breeze. Heron was naturally a pleasure to be around for someone like me—and that was before he stood in defiance of all the odds, and before he opened his mouth to make me laugh.

“Avril.”

His voice was low and raspy, gently pouring into my ear. I could get used to this, for sure.

“Yes?” I replied softly.

With one, sudden move, he rolled me around so I could face him, and I found myself locked under the hypnotic intensity of his jade eyes—his gaze clouded, prompting my heart to perform a very athletic series of backflips in my chest.

“I dreamed about you,” he whispered.

“Was I chasing you down a sketchy corridor with a bloody axe?” I giggled, eager to see him smile.

The hint of one flickered across his face. “No, you were doing… other things. Less murderous things.”

“Care to elaborate?”

“I can show you.” He smirked, then pulled me closer, nearly crushing me against his chest.

He kissed me deeply, and with the hunger of a lover long lost who’d only now just found me again. The longing filled me to the brim, and I relaxed in his embrace. The taste of him was exquisite, better than blood and infinitely better than the morning coffee I used to look forward to, during my human days.

I rested my palms on his chest, relishing the feel of his toned muscles against my fingertips, even through the layer of his leather suit. Heron paused, then pulled his head back for a moment—enough to look me in the eyes.

“You are downright addictive, you thorny vampire,” he murmured, the corner of his mouth twitching. His eyes glimmered with raw desire.

“And you’re an excellent kisser, you loudmouthed Mara,” I shot back with a giggle.

He chuckled softly, then descended once more upon me, capturing my mouth. He gently bit my lower lip, and my breath hitched in response. To my surprise, he then brought his wrist up and sank his fangs into the tender inner part, drawing a few drops of blood. Pyrope. He raised his wrist over my mouth, his gaze so intense that I felt close to catching fire. I parted my lips and welcomed the taste of his blood on the tip of my tongue. He watched me quietly as I slowly closed my eyes, my senses overwhelmed by him.

“I’ll never get tired of this vision of you,” Heron whispered in my ear, then nibbled at the lobe. His lips then trailed warm kisses down the side of my neck, before his sharp fangs grazed the skin, and he suckled gently. He tasted my blood and grunted, shifting his weight on top of me.

“Heron…” I breathed, my back arching as he continued kissing my neck. The sound of a zipper coming down made me smile. Heron peeled the leather back and gently kissed the meeting point of my collarbones, his simmering breath spreading softly over my chest.

His hand slipped down to my hip as he lifted his head and claimed my mouth in another kiss. I didn’t want this to end. If anything, with how quickly this fire was spreading through me, it felt as though we were just getting started and reality was still very far away.

“So, in my dream, we were like this,” he said, then rolled us over until I was straddling him.

“You know, you look devastatingly handsome down there,” I replied, basking in his undivided attention as he lay on his back, looking up at me with a boyish grin.

“I’m certainly enjoying my view from down here,” he said, then used his index finger to trail a lazy line up my partially bare torso, the leather still covering my upper chest.

He then caught my hands and pulled me back down, wrapping his arms around me and pressing me against his chest. He dropped kisses all over my face, and I felt soft and mellow, cherished and worshipped in his hold.

Despite the whirlwind of passion that was brewing between us, Heron found the strength to stop himself from taking our relationship to another, much more intense stage. Part of me wanted to pout because I wanted every atom of him to bond with mine. But, deep down, I knew he’d made the right choice.

It didn’t stop that long sigh from rolling out of my chest, though, as he smothered me with fluttering kisses. “Avril, as much as I would love to simply peel you out of that suit and turn my every dream about you into reality, I have every intention of doing this the old-fashioned way,” he said, his voice low, making me purr softly in his arms.

“Every inch of me is screaming no,” I whispered in his ear, “but you’re right. This isn’t the time or the place.”

I lifted my head so I could look him in the eyes. His lips were as tender and reddish as mine felt. We didn’t do half measures when it came to kissing, so I could only imagine what everything else felt like with Heron. He tucked a lock of hair behind my ear and gently cupped my cheek.

“I’ve never been in a serious bond before,” he said. “I only have tales from books and some half-assed advice from my equally dysfunctional brother.” I couldn’t help but chuckle. “But I would like to court you, with the entire ritual. Dates, dinner, long walks on the beach. And a thousand Pyropes, if that’s what it takes to make you understand how important you’ve become to me.”

I didn’t know when or how he’d managed to burrow into my heart and settle there with such determination, but I was finding myself even more enamored with Heron. Just lying there, in his arms, listening to him telling me about his plans for proper dates with me—it was enough to flip a switch inside me. He could do whatever he wanted at this point. I was already his. Body and soul.

“Boy, you sure know how to woo a girl.” I smiled, then dropped a single, loving kiss at the corner of his mouth.

“You’re different from everyone I’ve ever met, Avril. I’m serious. I can’t treat you like my other… lady friends, as you so elegantly described them. You’re… you. And, once we get out of here, I would like to formally ask you out, so we can get to know each other better, in every possible way. We can try the sandy shores, north of White City, or I could come to The Shade. Whatever you want, I’ll do it.”

I loved the sound of that. The idea of us. Of him in my life. Yes. And then reality reared its ugly head, reminding me of our somewhat precarious circumstances. I kissed him again, then sat up and gently pulled the zipper back up on his combat suit, while he slowly did the same to mine. “I look forward to everything you’ve just described, and more,” I said. “But, I have to admit, I’m a little worried that we might not get out of this place. It’s a possibility, and, although I know it’s a small possibility, it’s there nonetheless. And I’d hate to—”

He didn’t let me finish. He sat up and kissed me, tightening his arms around my waist—his breath ragged and downright volcanic. “Yes,” he smiled, “it’s a possibility. I know. I’ve thought about it, too. But we will fight this, Avril, and we’ll do our best to get out. I’ll be with you every step of the way. In many ways, you make me stronger, and I’ll burn this whole place down if that’s what it takes for us to gain our freedom and be together, undisturbed. However, should we fail… should we find ourselves stuck here on Neraka, somehow…”

He paused for a moment so he could trail his fingers down my cheek and simply contemplate every inch of my flushed face. His gaze then found mine again, and the determination gleaming in his jade eyes filled me with newfound energy. “Should that come to pass, Avril, this hole in the ground is definitely not where I intend to make love to you for the first time.”

Oh, wow.

I didn’t see that coming. And I had no idea what to say. What the hell can I say, other than “Take me, I’m yours!”, anyway? I mean, if this doesn’t score him the title of “soulmate”, nothing will.

A sigh left my chest. A breath I’d been holding in for a while, judging by how it felt as I let it out. I put my arms around him, pulled him close enough for our hearts to echo against one another, and kissed him, ever so softly. I put every single thought I had into it—my lips tender against his, saying things I couldn’t even formulate into words anymore.

With cheeks burning and hearts fluttering, we stayed like that for a while, simply kissing and getting used to one another, while the morning slowly settled outside. “What can I say, Dorchadas? I look forward to a candlelight dinner with you.” I chuckled between kisses on both his cheeks, making him smile in that rare and dazzling way of his. “Just make sure you don’t make it excruciatingly long, with five different types of blood and whatever. I doubt I’ll have that much patience left in me by then.”

“Well, I was thinking just the main course, and Pyrope with you for dessert,” he replied, unable to take his eyes off me.

Someone please throw me a rope, or something. Or don’t. I’m falling too deep and too fast to catch it, anyway.

It took us some time to find the strength to stand apart for long enough to gear up and go outside. To face the world that awaited, with its unforgiving wilderness, its bloodthirsty fiends, and its soul-eating overlords. We were strong, though. And we stood tall and proud, with the fresh memory of our sizzling morning, when we’d promised each other that, no matter what came next, we would face it together.

As the Adlets came out of their sleeping spots to greet us, along with the rest of our team, I knew for a fact that, yes—whatever happened next, Heron and I were going to make it, one way or another. We’d only just found each other, after all. We had plenty of dates to go on, and not a single daemon or Exiled Mara would ruin that for us.

“Well, someone had a good night’s sleep.” Scarlett’s insinuating tone and brazen grin were the cold shower I’d desperately needed, though. She made me groan, then laugh, as she quickly figured out that Heron and I were certainly at a different stage in our relationship.

“Oh, it’s going to be a long freaking ride into the northern mountains,” I scoffed, rolling my eyes, then leaned into Heron’s side, as if to further cement our new status. He didn’t seem to mind it one bit. On the contrary, he beamed with adorable pride.

“I don’t know, Avril.” Heron smirked, measuring Patrik and Scarlett from head to toe. “I think we’ve got a classic case of pot meets kettle here, because I’m more than happy to sing about the Druid and the vampire sitting in a tree, all the way to the Dhaxanians.”

And that unraveled me completely. I doubled over with laughter. Scarlett was flushed and Patrik was the color of a ruby, and so were Heron and I, in the end. Four creatures who’d never thought they’d find love in a world like Neraka, and yet here we were.