Burning Stone (7 page)

“I told you. Just a little lightheaded.”

“Share my bed so that I can keep an eye on you.”

The challenge hung in the air between them.

“I beg your pardon?”

“Come with me and sleep in my room, next to me, so that I can set my mind at ease and get my own rest. I promise not to molest you in your sleep. It is not our way.”

He knew that she slept naked, and she knew that he knew. She opened her mouth to decline and she heard. “Fine. I am tired now. Let’s go.”

Her heart had spoken out of her lips. Her body was exhausted and she was vulnerable. Having someone to watch her back and protect her while she rested was intensely important. It was not something she had ever had before.

They went to his quarters, and he folded back the sheets on the side of his bed that she was being offered. He left the room, and she smiled at the privacy that he offered. She removed her boots, unlaced her top and shimmied out of her briefs. When they were all folded and set aside, she scooted into the bed and covered herself.

The moment she was tucked in, he returned and his bodysuit came off him with flexing of his wings and shoulders, along with a releasing of the closure that held fabric between his wings.

He settled in next to her, on top of the covers and rested on his side. To her surprise, he reached out and pulled her against him, the sheet between their bodies.

She inhaled and exhaled slowly, taking in the scent of his skin at close range. She smiled when the rise and fall of his chest showed that he was doing the same.

She felt his breathing and it lulled her, much as the monastic chanting had, sweeping her into sleep.

He sang in her mind and she did not dream.

Her next day of walking included a second chorus of monks as she carefully melted and pulled up the stone into the raised path she had begun the day before. Each step was carefully considered as she crafted the path that completed the journey.

During her lunch, she sat and sighed. “Now for the tricky bits. The false paths.”

Bohr smiled. “You seem to have a good grasp of what is needed in this situation. You have risen to all challenges and we have many more to embark upon.”

She looked at him shyly. “We are still going on them all?”

“Yes, and more as your skills gain you greater renown. I have my home, you will come to it one day, and if you deem it suitable, we will officially become mates at that time.”

“What are we now?”

“Partners.” He smiled. “In the tradition of the Citadel and Sector Guard, we are partners. I take you to where you can do the most good.”

She smiled and finished her meal. “Or whoever calls out for my peculiar talent.”

“That also. I do not tire of watching you at work.”

“Because your people are made for patience.”

He winked. “And that.”

She laughed and got to her feet. “Back to the dance. This is where it gets tricky.”

The rest of the day was lost in a blur as she pulled the false paths up and connected them to the swirling arcs of the existing labyrinth.

When the sun tinted purple and caressed her skin, she stopped and left the pattern. She stepped into Bohr’s arms and silently asked him to take her home.

The next morning, she woke plastered to him, and out of curiosity, she pressed a kiss to his shoulder and tasted his skin. There was a zing of energy that accompanied her tiny touch.

His voice rumbled above her head. “Hungry, are we?”

She blushed and ducked her head. “Just wondered something and now I know.”

He chuckled and gave her a quick hug. “My body is yours to do with what you will. You are its only purpose.”

She sighed. “I am unsure how to progress.”

“Do what feels natural or normal to you at any given time. Well, not to ruin this little moment, but you have work to do.”

She sighed, and the moment he released her, she rolled out and got to her feet, grabbing her clothing, heading for the lav and a quick solar shower.

When she emerged, he handed her her robes and winked at her. “Your turn to make breakfast.”

Smiling, she headed to the galley and got breakfast ready. By the time he had finished getting ready for the day, his food was waiting and she was into her own meal.

“So, I should finish the pathway by midday. It won’t take too long. I can see the pattern when I close my eyes.”

He inclined his head and kept eating.

She smiled and finished her meal, taking her tray away and then returning to finish her tea.

“So, I am guessing that you have the next assignment lined up?”

“I do, and when this trip to Ciina is complete, I will share that information.” He quirked his lips as he sipped his tea.

“Why not now?”

“A man needs his secrets. I will tell you that Ciina has tentatively asked for you to return to create another, larger pathway. They have gotten their first contract done and out of the way now, so they will have to wait.”

She chuckled and got to her feet. “Well, if you are done with your meal, we can get going, or do you need to wait an hour after eating before flying?”

He made a face at her mockery and got to his feet. “Do you need to wait an hour after you wake before you get sarcastic?”

She grinned. “No, sarcasm gets up with me in the morning, right next to the irritability that seems to jump on your head.”

He sighed and scooped her up in his arms, opening the door while holding her easily with one hand under her thighs.

He left the shuttle, locked it behind them and flew upward to the pathway on the mountain.

Her work of the morning saw the pathway completed, and she smiled as the monks stepped up to admire the work. The head sister at the abbey came forward and bowed low.

“Thank you for your work, Master Elemental Leyhara. In the future, when your schedule allows, we would be glad for you to come to the eastern continent to build a larger structure there.”

“It was a work of enjoyment, Sister. I would be glad to return one day to expound upon the designs of the monks.”

The sister smiled. “Then, they shall work on the designs, and when we see what the supplicants think of this path, we will be in touch once again.”

Bohr came up behind Leyhara, and he said, “I do not mean to rush the elemental, but she is needed elsewhere.”

The sister smiled. “Of course. Please. Be welcome if you are ever in the vicinity of our world again. You will have food and shelter here.”

Leyhara nodded. “Thank you.”

She stifled a yawn and turned to Bohr. He lifted her in his arms, and they returned to the shuttle. She settled on her chair in the command deck and watched as they lifted off another world to seek out yet another world, another duty.

She yawned. “Where to now?”

“You are going to bed. I will tell you when you wake. It is the design of a waterfall in a noble’s palace.”

“I don’t know anything about waterfalls.”

“You have three days to learn. Go. I will set us on the right course.”

She got up, kissed him on the cheek and headed for his quarters. He would take her where she needed to be.

Finally stepping into the home that Bohrvin had crafted for her had taken six months of flying from world to world. He had only had to transform into his dragon form four times in all that time. Each time, someone had decided that keeping Leyhara for themselves was financially sound. They were proven wrong when her partner and mate had destroyed their homes to pluck her out.

Her job had settled into certain lines after a time. Landscape specialist was not something she had aspired to, but it was what she had become.

Her mate was standing next to her, nervous, as this last hurdle to their union was right in front of them.

“Well?”

She smiled. “I am looking.”

They walked through the rooms, the study, the wide workshop and research area with the fully stocked library. Her smile fought her impish urge to keep a straight face.

When they arrived in the master bedroom, the light and curved stone spread above them.

She paused and put a thinking expression on her face. He was practically dancing with uncertainty.

Leyhara looked up into Bohrvin’s eyes and smiled. “I like your house.”

He slumped in relief and reached out to touch her belly. “We cut it sort of fine.”

With her pregnancy in its fourth month, they had indeed cut it a little short. She should not have been able to have his child before they officially mated, but it seemed that the words could not hold back biology. No Resicoran had ever mated with a Drai before, so there were scientists around the galaxy that had signed up for copies of the medical scans when the baby arrived.

Personally, Leyhara was eager to work on her own home, her own world and make it her own. She had already done that with Bohrvin, and she was looking forward to making what he had planned for her, into patterns of her own design.

* * * *

Twenty years later, Leyrin looked around and sighed. “Dad, what did you do to Mom?”

He shrugged. “My dearest daughter. What makes you think I did anything?”

“She is carving curse words in the mountain again, and if she is referring to your genitals, you should be worried.” Leyrin flexed her wings. “Should I go and talk to her?”

“No. I started whatever this was and I will finish it.”

Leyrin smiled as he pressed a kiss to her forehead and flew off, wisely transforming into his dragon shape on the way. It was easier to pick up an elemental with a body that couldn’t burn.

Leyrin worked with teasing the shoots of the trees into elaborate knots that still allowed them to grow freely. She hadn’t inherited her mother’s gift for stone, but she had gotten her fascination with patterns.

Her brothers had managed to simply develop as ancient Drai with an affinity for stone. They were all learning about politics and etiquette on Iskan.

Leyrin was waiting for her next assignment and what her time on a new world would bring. Each time she went out, she learned something and that something was usually about the pilot that she had been assigned.

Rocar was the chosen name of the eldest offspring of the Avatar of Gant and an ancient Avatar of a dead star. She learned more about him every time he came by and swept her away to another world, but she wasn’t sure how her father would deal with her growing affection.

Rocar seemed to return her interest. A few inquiries to Halwis-Iskan had let her know that he had filed to be her pilot whenever she needed one. Knowing that made her a little more secure that she had his affection, but she had no idea how her father would take it.

Drai mated later in life. They had long lifespans and were in no hurry, but in Leyrin’s life, she only knew one thing, she wanted a love like her parents had. It weathered everything.

* * * *

Leyhara finished her punctuation of the letters which were twenty feet high. The buffet of wind against her made her grin.

What did I do, love?

She chuckled and turned to face his scaly features. “You did not kiss me good morning and then lost yourself in reports when I needed to speak to you.”

He shifted to his normal form and walked up to her. “I am paying attention now, love.”

“So, five kids and then we are done. Right?”

He gave her a wary look. “We have four children. Did a rock fall on your head?”

She shook her head. “Do the math and think about it.”

He blinked and smiled at her. “Another?”

She nodded. “Another.”

He grinned happily and kissed her, taking flight and making a straight line for the balcony that led to their chamber.

* * * *

Leyrin left the house and flew a goodly distance away. Her parents could be vocal, and it wasn’t something she wanted to listen to that afternoon.

The huge letters still glowed on the mountainside, and she hoped her mother would remove them in the morning.

A new brother or sister was on the way and that meant that Leyrin would have a chance to not be the only girl in the family. She hoped with all her heart that the child was a girl.

Leyrin had a dream of a life in the stars.

So, things changed from how I imagined it. The book has to be done for me to guess at the outcome. Last month I guessed wrong.

We peeped into the future and saw a girl with dragon wings. Is that the only dragon aspect that she has? If I ever get into the Gaia Group again…we might just find out.

Thanks for reading,

Viola Grace

Viola Grace (aka Zenina Masters) is a Canadian sci-fi/paranormal romance writer with ambitions to keep writing for the rest of her life. She specializes in short stories because the thrill of discovery, of all those firsts, is what keeps her writing.

An artist who enjoys a story that catches you up, whirls you around and sets you down with a smile on your face is all she endeavours to be. She prefers to leave the drama to those who are better suited to it, she always goes for the cheap laugh.

Listening to readers has gotten her this far, and with her 300th short story looming before the end of 2014, she will continue to listen in the future.