quickly for the Dreki realm. There was something very different about Maya’s phoenix, and I think all of us had a fairly good understanding of what. I mean, you couldn’t imagine the beautiful burst of colors that the woman had turned into only the other night. It was something you had to see to believe.
My main concern? Not only questioning how that was possible but how it would impact her health. Sure, she had been okay the past day or so, but the random fevers and her not feeling well left me with a sense of dread.
The concept of not knowing something that could hurt my angel scared the absolute hell out of me, so while the plan had been rushed and I would rather have her back in our home outside of this damn realm, I needed to know what all of this meant. Croy had made his thoughts known, but what he suggested seemed… insane. And it also could create a cascade of problems that I wasn’t positive we were prepared to protect her from. I would fucking die before I let anything happen to Maya, but I also knew our flight up against an entire realm was a bit of a stretch. If Croy was correct, I had absolutely no doubt that it wouldn’t be just the council that was the problem.
No. Everyone that we came across already wanted a piece of Maya, and this would just result in them wanting all of her. Something I was not fucking okay with.
As if knowing the direction of my thoughts, Maya’s hand tightened around mine. Sai and Croy followed behind us, both of their energies filled with tension as Maya’s humming and easy sway of her hips seemed to fill the entire space with a crackle of soft energy. The tension was in part because of the doctor appointment and what we would learn, but it was larger than that. It was the energy that had surrounded Maya since she first shifted. There was an air to it that was even more vibrant than before, which wasn’t something I had thought possible. I mean, she appeared to be legitimately glowing. I looked down at the top of her head as she met my gaze with a soft and curious look that made my heart tighten.
Emotions that I hadn’t ever expected to feel crowded my chest as I nearly let out a shaky exhale. I knew one thing regarding Maya, one thing that I couldn’t deny or doubt.
I was absolutely in love with her.
I loved and respected the men in my flight, I easily admitted that. They were the only family I had, and I would always view them as brothers, especially Marco. But my love for Maya was something that existed within my soul. It was also something I very much needed to express to her, despite not being able to find the right words or time to do so.
How did I express to Maya that I loved her more than I had ever loved anyone in my entire life? That she was fundamental to my existence? That she was a glowing warmth, like a candle that seemed to light up and infiltrate all of the shadows that crowded the corners of my life and my past? She did it in ways that she wouldn’t even recognize. Things that shouldn’t have made a difference but instead added a depth to my life that I didn’t expect to ever feel.
It was even in the smallest things—like Bella.
Bella, who was currently sleeping off the shadow magic that I had used to protect her while traveling through the portal and then to the Fire Lands. Bella, who I had without a doubt started to consider my own dragon whelp, despite her being very much a kitten. Although I could blame my dragon for that one. He was convinced that Maya should be a mother by now anyway, so the fact that we were taking care of a small creature together only confirmed his thought process, and he had all but adopted Bella into his protection. I didn’t disagree with the action.
I had also avoided the fuck out of those thoughts as much as possible, but with my inability to stay relaxed around her, they were growing. I wanted her to believe I was as calm and collected as she assumed, but I was far from it. I had just accepted how much I wanted her, and I was trying to gauge how