parents and meeting with the mage queens to discuss the needs of the Burkhard and Valerii mages.
Ravi needed to get his hands on his mage!
Buying himself some time off from duty, he placed three poor dragons in Alric’s path as his replacements, and he started lurking outside the mage workshops.
The moment Sora stepped outside by himself, Ravi grabbed his hand and made a run for it. Sora’s laughter echoed down the hall, but he didn’t question it. He ran with Ravi, their fingers laced together. It had to be a sign that Sora was eager for this stolen time together as well.
“And where are we going tonight, my handsome dragon?”
Ravi gave him a quick glance over his shoulder as they climbed the spiral staircase. Good thing Sora was in shape, actually. Having him arrive out of breath and panting wouldn’t be conducive to romance.
“To a secret place.”
“A secret place, is it? Alright.” Sora’s dark eyes were warm, and he kept in step with Ravi.
Ravi, on his end, was being very careful to maintain a pace slow enough so Sora could easily keep up. Sometimes, when he got really excited, he moved faster than everyone else and left them in his dust without meaning to. Tonight, he was very, very excited, making it hard not to sprint up the stairs.
Don’t sprint.
Don’t run.
For god’s sake, don’t speed up.
“Oh, I think it’s raining.” Sora’s head tilted as he listened.
Ravi focused so hard on his mantra that it took him longer than it should have to realize what Sora meant. Then, the full impact of those words hit, and Ravi’s mind did the math without any conscious prompting. Open window plus rain equals ruined things.
“SHIT!”
Ravi let go of Sora and raced up the stairs three at a time, his hands gripping at the stone walls in order to gain purchase as he practically flew upwards. He was at the top in record time.
It did not help him.
The picnic dinner he had so lovingly laid out was soaking wet. The bedding he’d stacked up was damp, only the bottom of the nest dry as it hadn’t been hit by the raindrops pouring in through the skylight. Ravi rescued the bedding first, dragging it out of the way, then went back to stare at his plates of food with mourning.
“Noooo, food. You were once so tasty, and now you’re gloopy.”
Sora managed to catch up at that moment, and his eyes swept the area. Being a smart man, he put it all together in a moment.
“Ah. A romantic candlelight dinner with some stargazing?”
“Rain wasn’t in the forecast,” Ravi whined.
“Don’t despair; it’s not all lost.” Sora pulled out his phone and started tapping.
“Unless you have some magical app that turns back time, Plan A is a total loss. And I have to be frank, I have no ready Plan B.”
Ravi stared at his efforts with a groan. He’d thought this plan pretty foolproof, actually. For one of his plans, it was actually tame, so he’d given it a higher success rate.
Music suddenly trickled out from Sora’s phone. The ballad twirled and soared around the small room, hauntingly seductive as it pulled Ravi to Sora’s side. The mage put the phone down on the floor next to the door before catching Ravi in his arms, smoothly spinning him into a dance as if he’d done it a million times before.
Ravi, always quick on his feet, went willingly enough. A slow grin took over his face. Sora did not look upset at the ruined date, but rather had a hint of mischief in his expression.
“Don’t tell me you plan on us dancing in the rain.”
“Okay, I won’t tell you that,” Sora agreed peaceably.
Then immediately twirled them both under the open skylight.
Ravi laughed outright, going along with it, enjoying the confident way Sora led. Ravi rarely danced like this, but it was easy to follow Sora’s lead. And he loved it, being held in this man’s arms as if he were precious.
The rain pelted them without mercy, slicking their hair and skin, making their clothes stick to them. Wet was a very good look on Sora. Ravi totally approved, ten out of ten, five stars. Naked and wet could only be an improvement.
And from the dark, hungry way Sora regarded him, it seemed he was having the same thoughts about Ravi.
Ravi leaned up to kiss him, and Sora met him halfway, both of them desperate for each other. The kiss wasn’t gentle—it took and demanded things, asking only a question. Yes?
Yes.
Ravi’s