Excerpt
"Open your
eyes, Tiana.
My eyes flutter open
and I sit up. A silhouette of a fully transformed fae male is sitting
cross-legged in front of me. He's the spitting image of Lucian with small
differences. He looks like he'd be taller and brawnier. Despite him merely
being an image made of magic and light, his eyes glow deep purple, the darker
cousins to Lucian's. His midnight hair is long and pulled back behind his head
in a braid running down his back. Rowan could be Lucian's older brother. Or a
more dangerous, feral, and powerful version of him.
"Why do you
look just like him? How are you doing this?"
My reply comes out
breathy and strange. He replies, and while his mouth moves, I can only hear him
in my head.
Using your
magical well, I can manifest like this for short periods of time. I look like
Lucian because I am his distant relative. Before I became the king of the fae,
I was a citizen of the spirit court within the royal family.
My hands move toward
his form by themselves before I snatch them back again, "Can I touch
you?"
He moves closer, one
blink he's a few feet away, and then his knees are nearly touching mine. It
doesn't startle me. If anything, I lean closer to him in wonder. His form is
made up entirely of magic, swirling colors moving quickly throughout.
You may touch me,
if you'd like to.
I reach out with
shaking fingers and lay one hand against his chest. It feels solid and real.
Like he's living and breathing right in front of me. When his fingers come up
to brush my cheek, my eyelids flutter closed. It almost feels like my own soul
is caressing me, comforting me, making me whole again. I hold his face in my
hands and run my thumbs over his smooth cheeks. When Rowan smiles at me it
takes my breath away. Magic is sparkling off him so vividly that I almost want
to shield my eyes.
While Lucian calls
to my spirit, Rowan calls to my very being. The darkest depths or recesses of
my soul. He knows everything about me, yet I can sense love and tenderness from
him that makes me feel safe and happy. We move to lie side by side together
with our hands clasped tightly.
We lie there like
that long after darkness had fallen and the stars came out. We spoke about our
fears, his life he led while being king, and what may come of us in the future.
It's a simple interaction that has no expectations, no tensions, and it's a
relief to have this time with him. Although, it may have had the opposite
effect of what Rowan was hoping for. While I feel closer to him, and my heart
aches for him, he still isn't real, right? He can't stay with me forever like
this. And do I only like him more now because he resembles Lucian, the man that
I'm almost certain is my fated mate? The confusion in my chest grows as I roll
onto my side to face him.
His form is dimmer
now as if he doesn't have much more time before he will disappear. It allows me
to better study his features. Rowan has a strong jawline, deep coal violet
eyes, and crow’s feet that speak of many hours spent laughing. I can see his
emotions plainly on his face as he watches me in return. Love, fear,
uncertainty.
Are they simply a
reflection of my own feelings, or is Rowan capable of feeling things? I'm still
not sure how this shared body thing works. The thought leads me back to the
main question I keep asking. As if sensing my inner monologue, he leans over
me, one hand on either side of my head. His eyes search my face, while his
looks vulnerable. The pure honesty we have between us gives me the courage to
ask him one of my many burning questions.
Are you real?
I am real, Tiana.
For you, I am real."
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