Page 53 of The Dragoneers of Longbourn and Pemberley
Did she dare hope they would be doing this, forever?
Papa had said she would inherit Lelantos, so she would have the dragon — as long as they both lived, at least. Valeraine would soon be getting an egg, and get to fulfill her potential by hatch-mothering it. It would be the sweetest of futures to share that all with Kesley. He would make an excellent master of Longbourn nest, already long familiar with it. He would make an excellent husband, never holding her back. It was exactly the kind of future she had always wanted: Longbourn strong, and someone to share it with.
She thought of Pemberley, who had the power to ruin it all. She needed to see him again, so she could deliver her ultimatum. It felt too secret to trust to a letter. This needed to be done in person. Perhaps she would visit his estate after the solstice. Would she be welcomed as a guest, or turned away as an enemy? She went there to attack him, to the home of the man who had ruined it all, and yet she was confident she would be welcomed into his home. He didn’t seem the type to turn someone away to the cold and lose the opportunity to lavish a guest with his superior hospitality.
She couldn’t imagine him not wanting to see her, after their heated moment at Rosings manor. He would at least want to hear what she had to say.
If Pemberley told the world she was the masked rider, would Kesley still want to be with her? Did Kesley even want that, now? He spent time with her, and they had joked of their future together, but he had never made a serious offer for her hand. It was probably out of respect to her feelings, or because he was waiting for Papa’s approval.
They were spending more and more time alone together. If this was widely known, it would be gossiped about. Because they were out of doors for their time together, it was barely acceptable under the rules of propriety. But all of these days, flying out toremote locations together, it had to mean something, didn’t it? It was a kind of courting, certainly.
Valeraine and Kesley climbed aboard Lelantos in sync, with her in the front saddle as always, as Lelantos would follow her directions more readily.
Kesley put his arms around her. “Where will we go now?” he whispered into her ear.
She turned her head so that a kiss was but a breath, a small lean away. “Wherever we want,” she whispered. Then, losing her nerve, she turned back to face the front. “I was considering to the east today. There’s some fine hills in that quarter, and we could use them as destinations for our time-trials.”
“A sensible idea, as always.”
Lelantos took to the air.
Valeraine felt she had missed an opportunity — that she was always missing opportunities with Kesley. If she pressed him, would he kiss her?
She thought she wanted him to. But she was cautious of making the first step. It wasn’t that Valeraine was afraid, but she knew this was an act that couldn’t be taken back. How would Kesley react? What if he didn’t want her and he would never consider a marriage between them? What if he did want to marry her, and they were engaged within the month? Either way, their relationship would be forever changed. And what would Kesley think of her, if she initiated a kiss? Would he think her craven, overeager? Would he think her foolish, jumping to naive conclusions about what these training sessions meant?
Lelantos reached a sparsely wooded hill, and she directed him to land. The north side had snow on it, but on the south side the snow had melted in the sun enough for a comfortable space to walk around on the dried grasses.
Valeraine dismounted, and grabbed the flying leathers out of her pack. She wanted to practice with them as much as shecould, to get used to the feel of the armor and the tethers, but didn’t want to wear them around Longbourn house and send the servants gossiping to Mamma.
Sliding on the leathers was routine by now, but her cold-numb fingers were struggling with the buckles.
“Allow me,” Kesley said. He tightened the harness just right, and helped her straighten the contraption.
Again, now they were so close. Body to body, closer than a respectable couple would be (except during a dance). Valeraine leaned in a little closer, resting her head on his shoulder. His arms came around her in a gentle embrace, warm and sturdy.
“What are we, to each other?” Valeraine whispered.
“I suppose we are whatever we make of it,” he said just as softly.
“What do you want to make of us?”
Kesley stepped back, half a step. Valeraine’s hopes plummeted in that moment, the rejection slamming into her. But then, Kesley brought his hand up to caress her cheek and cup her chin, and he leaned back in. He brought his lips to hers, slowly and temptingly. The kiss was slow, and lasted but a chaste second, and she would have called it soft if not for the curious sensation of his stubble prickling her cheek.
Valeraine’s soul sang at the contact. Kesley wanted her back. They would have a future together, and it would be happy and glorious.
Kesley leaned back that half step again, and his gaze was so open. He was worried about her reaction, questioning if that had been all right. His daring had taken him farther than he had ever gone before with Valeraine, and he was unsure of the ground before him.
“That’s what I want to make of us, too,” Valeraine said.
Kesley gave a relieved little laugh. He pulled her back into the hug. “Good.”
The hug was warm, but it couldn’t last forever. They had an impatient dragon on the hill next to them, after all. It was time to sprint.
Chapter thirty-eight
During their time trials around the hills that day, they grew twenty-three seconds faster. When Lelantos was tired and slowing, they landed on their starting hill, and laid out a picnic blanket Kesley had brought.
Valeraine took off the restrictive flying leathers so she could lounge. Kesley helped her undo the buckles, and it was easy between them, not as full of anxiety as the first time. They built a fire, warming their hands and food over it.
