“No argument from me there. Look, you can be mad at me all you want, but can you kiss me now? Please? I really would like it if you kissed me. And if you don’t want to, that’s okay. Well, it’s really not, and I’ll probably be emotionally devastated and have to write in my diary—I mean my Grimoire—about all my feelings with snippets of emo songs written in the corners that have lyrics like you broke my heart why did we even start to love, my loving love. I mean, I know you and Justin probably have His and His monogrammed bejeweled dildos that you fuck each other with at the dinner table and—”
And he was kissing me. Somehow, as if by magic, he’d moved across the room, taken my face in his hands, and was kissing me with all his might. His fingers dug into my skin, and his lips were hot and— He pulled away, frowning and panting and all around being rather devastating up close. “His and His monogrammed what?”
“No,” I mumbled, trying to put my face back on his face. “No, ignore that. Go back to the whole kissing thing. I really like the kissing thing. You were so good at that. Stop talking and put your mouth on my mouth.”
“I don’t know if I can after that.”
“Yes, you can. I believe in you.”
“And wouldn’t bejeweled dildos hurt? Like, those would just—”
I kissed him. He groaned against my mouth and held on to me just as tightly as I was to him. My magic sang, the green and gold bursting brightly within me. And I knew the moment he felt it because he gasped, mouth open, hot and wet, and there were tongues and teeth and a sense of such great familiarity. Of being back where I belonged. Because no matter what the Great White said, no matter what he wanted me to believe, Ryan Foxheart was my cornerstone. I’d proven to GW that I could stand on my own. I’d done what he’d asked of me. But he couldn’t understand that while I believed in myself, while I could stand on my own, I didn’t have to. I had people who would hold me up should I begin to stumble. I had Gary. And Tiggy. And Kevin. I had Justin and the King. I had my parents. I had Randall, wherever he was. I had the memories of Morgan, something that would never be taken from me.
And I had Ryan Foxheart.
My heart was lightning-struck, and he held it in his hands as if it were something miraculous. Something precious. Even after all this time, after everything I’d done.
The Great White didn’t understand that. And I didn’t think he ever would.
But it wasn’t my job to convince him otherwise.
I’d gone to the forest an apprentice.
And I’d found something unexpected.
Myself.
And now I’d returned as a wizard, and I was going to—
“Oh my gods,” I groaned as Ryan began to gnaw on my neck, sucking a mark. “I’m going to fucking destroy you. I really hope you don’t like walking straight, because by the time I’m done with you, people are gonna think one of your legs is shorter than the other. You’re gonna be walking in circles. In fact, I’m gonna fuck you cross-eyed too, you son of a bitch, so I hope you’re okay with just being an all-around mess.”
“I’m still mad at you,” he growled against my throat. “Really pissed off.”
“Totally fine, dude. Angry sex is awesome. Like, pressing up against the wall and wow, that is your dick right on my thigh. I’m going to be honest, it’s been a super long time, so this is probably going to last about another twenty-six seconds. I’m not even embarrassed right now.”
“I don’t care,” he muttered, grinding his hips against mine. “Fucking come in your trousers if you need to. I’ll just lick it up when you’re done.”
“That’s fucking dirty. I approve so much, you don’t even know—”
And then came a knock at the door.
“Ignore it,” I said, gripping Ryan’s dick through the wool and trying to jerk him off. The awkward angle pulled against my wrist, but I was pretty damn good at awkward, so I figured I could make it work. “It’s probably nothing important. A salesman or something.”
“I told you guys you had an hour!” a voice bellowed through the door.
“That’s probably nothing too,” I said as Ryan groaned while I stroked him, squeezing him tight. “I doubt that’s even really Justin. Sounds like an impersonator.”
“I command you as the Prince of Verania to not be having sex right now. Get your asses out here! Don’t make me come in there and see something I don’t want to see, especially if it’s Sam in any state of undress.”
“He loves me,” I told Ryan as his hips snapped against my hand. “Did you guys sit around a fire and tell stories about how much you missed me and how empty your lives were without me?”
Ryan’s eyes were glazed over as he pressed his forehead against mine. I gave a practiced twist of my wrist and Ryan came with a drawn-out moan, warmth spreading underneath my hand.
“No,” Justin said, sounding horrified. “I did not need to hear that. What the hell is wrong with the both of you! I live there. I’m going to get your parents, I swear to the gods!”
“Shit,” I muttered. “He probably means that. We have to hurry. I want to jerk off on your face. Get on your knees.”
He didn’t even hesitate. He dropped to the floor, face turned toward me. I unfastened my trousers, sighing at the relief in pressure. He looked up at me with a dazed expression, and I grunted, “Close your eyes” as I began to fuck my fist. He did just as I asked. It took only a few pulls before I came, striping his face. My hand was sticky and wet, and he looked so damn good doing what he was told, tongue flicking out, tasting me on his lips.
“Fuck,” I breathed as I slumped down in front of him, dick still hanging out. There was a wet spot on the front of his undergarments and his face was dripping with my spunk, but I leaned in and kissed him for all I was worth.
It was pretty gross, and possibly the best thing in the entire world.
I was well and truly home.
Chapter 6: A Meeting of the Minds
RYAN LOOKED rather smug seeing me dressed in his clothes as we left the house, like some primal part of him now saw me as marked. Given the fact that I’d just come all over his face in a house he lived in with Justin, I didn’t give him too much shit, even though I wanted to. We were still on uneven ground, but I thought it’d be something we could overcome.
But I wasn’t under any illusion that things were back to the way they were. We’d both become different people in the last year, both by choices we’d made and things beyond our control. I placed blame directly on Myrin for most of it, though I knew some of it fell on me. Because no matter what I wanted to believe, there was some truth to what Ryan had said. I’d run. Morgan had lain on a slab of stone, Ryan had been hovering between this life and the next, and Randall had disappeared. The King had turned to me to be his wizard, and I’d felt all of that on top of me, and I’d run. Sure, I’d told myself it was the right thing to do, that it was what the gods wanted, and maybe that was partially correct.
Ryan didn’t take my hand as we left the house, but he kept close to me as we walked through Camp HaveHeart, shoulders brushing. The people brightened at the sight of him, nodding at him or calling out in greeting. He responded to each and every one of them with a small smile.
They were warier of me. I didn’t blame them. While they acknowledged Ryan, the smiles on their faces fell a little when they saw me at his side, and they nervously averted their gazes as if they were intimidated. A year ago, I would have been weirdly thrilled.
I didn’t feel like that now.
Mostly.
It was after a small child ran screaming in the opposite direction as we neared, hands flailing above her head, that I said, “Okay, legit, what is going on? It’s like they think I’m going to make their nipples explode or something.”
Ryan frowned after the little girl, her wails fading into the distance. “That’s probably correct.”
“What? I’m not going to make their nipples explode. I would never do such a thing. Well, not to someone who didn’t deserve it.”
“No, not that you would—wait. You can do that now?”
I shrugged. “Maybe. I think I can pretty much do a lot of things with—and now you’ve got that Sam Is So Fine Because Magic look on your face again. I can’t believe that talking about me magically exploding nipples makes you horny.”
He scowled at me. “I’m not horny at the idea of you making nipples explode.”
“Yeah. Okay. Tell that to your penis.”
“I’m not going to tell anything to my penis.”
“Come on. Just tell it. Just tell your penis that—”
“Sam.”
“Right. So, why the weirdness?”