Page 86 of Riot of Autumn

“Looks like these assholes are ready, too.” I jerk my thumb toward the house.

Archer pushes open the door, pulling Lena behind him as he excitedly hurries to our side.

“I think someone might be more excited than we are.” Ruby chuckles.

Archer tips his head back, pressing his lips together and inhaling deeply. “I feel like a proud father, giving my baby away on their wedding day.”

“I’m not a piece of property to be given away.” Ruby rolls her eyes.

Archer pushes her out of the way, giving me a big hug. “I wasn’t talking about you. My little boy’s all grown up.”

Archer tries to cup my cheek and I laugh, letting him have this ridiculous moment. Tonight is going to be a fight, and I want to soak up any levity before things get worse.

“Let’s do this before we miss the window,” Davis barks as the others form a semi-circle around us.

Archer grins at me, then ruffles Ruby’s hair and steps into line with the others. Ruby runs her hand through her hair, finger combing it back into place, before turning to look at me. We’re facing each other, the sun almost completely tucked away for the night. It’s natural to pick up Ruby’s hands and hold them in mine. Knowing that has my heart pounding in my chest. Months ago, I couldn’t have imagined Ruby looking up at me with so much openness and trust.

Not that we didn’t trust each other before, but there was always an edge to it. An uncertainty about whether there would be a stinging barb attached to it. In our pain, jealousy, fear, we cloaked our true feelings in the fiction that we didn’t care. Because showing how much we did care was opening ourselves up to possible pain and rejection.

Now, with Ruby standing before me, there’s something sacred about the feeling. Even with our friends surrounding us, it’s intimate. Zara approaches, holding out a small knife. Ruby takes it, giving her sister a mischievous grin.

“You ready to be my willing sacrifice?” Ruby raises her brows at me.

“I am yours. Do whatever you please with me,” I speak quietly, my words only for Ruby.

She sucks in a deep breath, her cheeks growing flush. The sun is at her back, limning her body in a glowing halo.

Ruby turns over my hand, so my palm is facing up. Her movement is quick as she draws the knife over my skin, and I barely feel a prick of pain. Warm green eyes peer up at me as she holds out the knife for me to return the favor. I make quick work with my cut, giving Ruby a matching mark on her palm before I thread my fingers through hers and press our hands together.

Already the magic is sparking between us. Warmth tingles where our blood mixes and climbs up my arm and seeps into my body. The feeling is heady, like I’m taking Ruby’s essence into my soul. Or rather, like it’s coming home. Her magic feels like it belongs inside me, a part of my soul that’s been missing its other half for all my life. The rightness of it nearly makes me forget what else we need to do.

Lena found the ritual words for us to say in one of her books. She made Ruby and I practice until we could repeat them without stumbling.

My voice is strong, some of the animal inside me rising up to join in the bonding. “I am autumn born, forged in fang and spirit. My blood will bind. Body and soul, I tie myself to you.”

I gasp as a wash of power rushes over me. It’s almost as though Ruby and I are in our own world, and no one else exists, but I hear our friends’ reaction to the blast of magic. They must feel it too.

Ruby squeezes my fingers, her eyes shining with certainty as she repeats the words right back to me. “I am autumn born, forged in fang and spirit. My blood will bind. Body and soul, I tie myself to you.”

This time, it’s not a gentle wave of magic. It’s a blast of power that explodes from where we’re touching and expands out in a rolling flame. It circles Ruby and me, and then expands to encompass the others. I feel eight individual threads of magic spinning, weaving together in an unbreakable bond that fills my heart, my whole goddamn soul, up.

All of us grew up without much in the way of family, but this right here, this group of friends, has filled that missing piece in. Even before any magic or bonds, we were always there for each other. This bond just ties us together in a new way. Nothing has changed. They’re still my people, and now it’s magically binding.

“Whoa. Did everyone else feel that?” Miri gasps out when the flare of magic settles.

There’s a chorus of murmurs from our friends, but I can’t take my eyes off Ruby. Her cheeks are flushed a blushing pink that could be from the cold or from the magic. Her hands are still tangled with mine, and there’s a soft, almost dreamy look on her face that I’ve never seen before.

“I feel your magic in here.” She lifts our combined hands and knocks them against her chest. My knuckles brush against the swell of her breast and Ruby inhales sharply.

The energy pulsing around us is a heartbeat, pushing me to move closer. To touch her skin and capture her lips. The magic in my chest fights for release. The desire to shed my human form and become a beast is strong. But not as strong as the need to claim Ruby.

“You’re looking a little feral, Ezzie.” Ruby’s voice is breathy, and she bites her bottom lip.

“Need you. Fucking mine.” The words are a growl, and the hunger for her is all I know.

With a swift move, I throw her over my shoulder, making Ruby chuckle like she’s fucking delighted. I don’t have a clue what the rest of our friends are doing. If they weren’t so close, I’d throw Ruby down onto the ground and fuck her right here until the whole island heard her scream my name.

There’s some small scrap of man left to rule me, and I have enough sense to get us alone. I don’t go far, the need to be inside her riding me hard. I’ve scarcely rounded the corner of the house before I swing Ruby down. Her feet barely hit the ground before I’m pressing her up against the side of the house. The stone is cold and unforgiving, but Ruby doesn’t seem to care. Her arms wrap around my neck, and she pulls me down into a savage kiss that’s meant to claim, soothe, and torture all at the same time.

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