Air Ryder (Harper's Mountains Book 3) (10 page)

Wes leapt off the ground and a giant raven burst from his body. As he circled above, Harper’s body rippled and cracked, and then an enormous green and gold dragon exploded from her body. Harper was so big she could curl around the entire Bloodrunner crew.

Lexi had never seen a dragon shift before, had never been this close to one, and she had to hold in a scream as Harper snaked her enormous head toward her. The bears disappeared down a steep trail on the edge of the cliff, and the Novak Raven dove over the ledge. And carefully, Harper stepped over Lexi and Ryder.

In a rush, Ryder grabbed Lexi’s hand and lifted it high until her fingertips brushed the golden underbelly scales of the Bloodrunner Dragon.

Amazed at the cold, smooth texture of the dragon scales, Lexi gasped. Harper spread her wings and dove off the cliff.

Lexi followed as close as she dared to the cliff ledge so she could watch the dragon in flight. Harper was grace in motion.

“Do you trust me?” Ryder asked.

Lexi looked at him over her shoulder. He’d stripped out of his clothes, and she was awed by his rippling muscles as he approached. Damn, her man was powerful.

“Of course.”

Ryder bunched his muscles. “Good. Don’t freak out,” he said the moment before the massive white owl ripped out of his skin.

In an instant, he clamped his long, curved talons around her upper arms, and with the beat of his wings, lifted Lexi off the ground and over the edge of the cliff.

Terror seized her as she watched the rocks below coming for her. Ryder had tucked his wings to his body and was dive-bombing them toward the earth. She couldn’t scream, couldn’t beg for him to stop, couldn’t even breathe.

With a resounding
floom
, he stretched his wings and caught the air, arching them away from the ground at such speed, the air was forced into her lungs.

“Ryder!” she gasped, struggling. His talons clutched her arms tighter, the points of his sharp claws digging into the tender undersides. She stopped struggling just to ease the pain. When he slowed and became graceful with his flying, she forced herself to catch her breath and then looked up.

He was staring down at her, his gold eyes round and his pupils so small it made them look even brighter. Even more striking. He was white as snow, but underneath his wings, there were dark specks on his long flight feathers. He was enormous, his wingspan stretching much longer than she’d imagined.

She couldn’t believe this was happening. She was flying!

Lexi looked down at the ground far below them. The river snaked through the mountains like a giant serpent, and waves of green painted a gorgeous landscape. Right below, Weston was flying with them, keeping pace.

She laughed breathlessly and held onto Ryder’s legs just to steady herself. Her heart in her throat, she arched her neck back and yelled, “Whooooo!”

“Caw!” the Novak Raven called below them.

Ryder belted a powerful screech, and down near the river, Harper roared along with the bears.

As long as Lexi lived, she would remember this moment—her first flight with Air Ryder.

“I didn’t realize how fragile your skin is,” Ryder said, his brows furrowed in concentration as he cleaned the small puncture wounds under her arm.

“Worth it,” she said breathlessly as she stared up at the sky again. She was just there! Flying!

“What if it gets infected?” Ryder murmured to Wes. “Maybe I should take her to the hospital.”

“Stop fussing,” she murmured. “I’m fine. They don’t even hurt.”

“I’m gonna have to make you some kind of arm guards if we do that again.”

“I can’t believe that just happened,” she said gleefully. “Ryder, that was the most incredible thing ever! I mean, it was terrifying at first because I didn’t expect it, but then it was exhilarating.”

Weston lifted her other arm and brushed a light touch under the cuts. “I think they’ll be okay.”

“She said she’s fine,” Alana said from where she was peeling shrimp on a plastic table on the sandy riverbank. “Stop coddling her, or you’ll chase her off.”

When Ryder immediately dropped her arm, Lexi snorted. Like she would ever leave him. This man had all of her locked down.

She scanned the beach and rolling river rapids, still in awe that a view like this existed down in this valley. There was a generator, and the three trees by the grill were wrapped in outdoor lights. Next to where she stood, there was a long picnic table with carvings of three bears, a dragon, a raven, and an owl. And when she looked closer, there was the beginnings of another carving, right next to the owl. It was human in shape with a few wavy lines of long hair. She frowned and opened her mouth to ask if that was her, but Wes pressed his finger over his lips and shook his head. Huh. A selfish part of her really hoped that was her next to Air Ryder.

Ryder brought her a fruity beer with a swirly straw in it, and then he gestured at the table. There were two simple, shallow wooden bowls full of yellow dandelion flowers. “Those are for you,” he said low, ducking his gaze as though he was embarrassed.

He looked so fucking cute right now, his red whiskers on his chiseled jaw two days grown, his eyes the color of the sky, that slight smile that seemed to always sit on his sensual lips. His defined chest and shoulders pressed against a blue T-shirt he’d dug out of a giant plastic container of extra outfits someone had stashed down here. He wore a navy baseball cap on backward, and medium wash jeans hugged his powerful legs. Suddenly desperate to feel his body against hers, Lexi leaned forward and hugged his waist as tight as she could with her puny human arms. “Did you do all this?” she whispered.

“The Bloodrunners helped. I wanted to do something special for you.”

“It’s so special, and I’m so happy that you give me moments like these, Ryder.”

“Can I ask you something big?” he murmured.

Heart pounding, she answered, “Of course. Ask me anything.”

Ryder pulled something from his back pocket and dropped to one knee.

Panicked, she asked, “What are you doing?”

He gave her a mushy smile, then popped open the ring box. And inside was a…

Tiny clay penis.

She snorted and reached for it, plucked it from the plush velvet and held it between her finger and her thumb. “Is this a replica of your dick?”

“I made it at the pottery shop in town, just for you.”

“It’s actual size,” Aaron called from by the grill.

“Fuck you, man,” Ryder said. He dragged his gaze back to Lexi and tried to keep a straight face when he told her, “Lexi, you’re the most beautiful, perfect, funny girl I’ve ever met. I like how one of your boobs is slightly bigger than the other, and I like the way you snort when you laugh really hard—”

“Ryder,” she warned. The crew didn’t need to hear all this about her.

“I like how when you brush your teeth, you get toothpaste everywhere and look rabid, but still sexy.”

Okay, he was joking now, and she was going to play along. “There is nothing more satisfying than a good minty froth. I like the way you sniff your armpits before we leave the house to make sure you put on deodorant.”

His eyes danced. “I gotta smell good for you, baby. I like that one side of your nose goes up higher when you smile.”

“Well, I like the way you sniff your food before you eat it.”

“Not your food though, Sexy Lexi. You cook good. And I like the way your hair looks like a lion’s mane after we make the boing-boing.”

Lexi covered her face and shook her head to cover her giggles. “Okay, this has to stop.”

“No, don’t stop now,” Wyatt called. “This is awesome. You’re like two weird, malformed peas in a pod. It’s like watching a slow-moving train wreck.”

“Lexi,” Ryder murmured, trying to twist his lips into a serious line again. “Will you do me the honor of accompanying me to Alana and Aaron’s wedding?”

Stalling for time so she wouldn’t lose it when she answered, Lexi looked at the others who were in different stages of laughter. Finally, she looked down at Ryder with the most serious face she could and said, “I will.”

Like a romance movie, he lifted her off her feet and spun her in slow motion until she was dizzy.

“Are we done with these shenanigans?” she asked him.

Ryder set her on her feet and steadied her shoulders when she stumbled. “Only if you keep my tiny ceramic penis in your pocket forever as a good luck charm.”

“Fine.” She studied it. Ryder had taken the time to paint little veins on it and everything. Geez. She shoved it deep in her jeans’ pocket.

“Do you like it?” he asked, and the hopefulness in his voice was so cute.

“I love it.”

Ryder swayed them from side to side, then spun her outward in a fancy dance move, and brought her back against his chest. Nonchalantly, he asked, “Do you like me?”

“You know I do.”

“Do you get a weird feeling in your chest around me?”

She jerked back. “Yeah. You?”

He grinned and dipped her, kissed her. “Maybe.”

“Do you like me?” she asked.

“I gave you my tiny penis,” he said, like it should’ve been obvious.

“I need compliments and declarations,” she said primly, sliding her hand in his as he lifted her upright again in the sand.

Ryder looked uncertain for a moment before he buried his face against her neck. And soft as a breath, he whispered, “I love you.”

“What?” she said rearing back to look him in the eyes.

“You heard me.”

“I want to hear you again when you aren’t hiding.”

“Why?”

“Because you tease all the dang time, Ryder. I want to know without a doubt that you are being serious. I want you to look me in the eye and tell me.”

“Will you say it back?”

“I don’t know. Try me.”

Ryder let off a little growl and looked around at his crew who all seemed to be suddenly very busy with cooking dinner. He dragged his gaze back to hers, and now his eyes were blue with gold centers, practically glowing in the evening sunlight. “Lexi, I love you.”

God, those words and what they did to her. Her body warmed from the inside out, and she let off a sigh of relief as a strange weight she hadn’t realized she was carrying lifted off her shoulders. He felt the same as she did. This thing between them really was as big as she had thought.

Her eyes burning with emotion, she dared to lock on his gaze so he could see the honesty in her eyes when she said the words her heart had been feeling for a while. “I love you, too, Air Ryder.”

“Aww!” Alana said, clutching her hands in front of her chest.

“Are you crying?” Ryder asked in a judgmental tone.

“I can’t help it,” Alana murmured, her eyes glistening. “I’ve seen you be offensive and obnoxious, but rarely sweet, Ryder.”

“Our man-child is growing up,” Harper joked from where she was dousing the bowl of shrimp with spicy seasoning.

“I was gonna give y’all some of these fruity beers, but now I’m gonna drink ’em all,” he threatened.

Ryder made his way over to the grill and commandeered the tongs away from Aaron, his grin bright as he popped off to his friend. And then the banter started all over again. It was a constant and happy thing in the Bloodrunners. As Lexi watched them laughing and joking as they prepared the big family dinner, she was struck by what she’d found here.

Not only had she found the love of a great man, but he’d given her friends, too.

As if he could hear her mushy thoughts, Ryder gave her a bright grin over his shoulder, then jerked his chin, asking her to join them.

Lexi grabbed a couple fruity beers from the cooler and popped the tops for Alana and Harper. She joined them at the prep table near the grill and helped season the asparagus alongside them.

Ryder gripped her waist and kissed the back of her neck, and she leaned back against him just to feel his warmth. Just to feel that pulsating heat in her chest that always showed up when he was near.

As if he could feel her need to be close, he wrapped his arms around her chest and let his lips linger on her cheek, and she could feel it. The happy smile on his lips that she breathed for.

She’d done her research and knew what was happening between them, and it was huge for both of them.

They weren’t using the word yet, but she had no doubt that someday they would.

She was the mate of Air Ryder.

Sprinkles growled as Sammy Scrotum passed by her princess bed in the corner. He didn’t seem to notice as he scampered across the floor with a miniature chocolate chip cookie in his mouth. He disappeared into the bathroom where Ryder talked low to him. “I wouldn’t fuck with Princess Sprinkles, Sammy. She’s tough.”

The tough pooch he was talking about was already asleep again and snoring slightly. She wasn’t the best watchdog, but that wasn’t why Lexi had fallen for her. Sprinkles had been hit by a car, and Lexi had volunteered to foster her through her rehab and physical therapy. And then she hadn’t been able to give her up when the time came.

Lexi was lying on her stomach on the bed in one of Ryder’s oversize T-shirts, her head propped on a pillow as she watched Ryder’s shadow dance across the floor near the bathroom door. “So if this isn’t your house, why are we staying the night here?”

“So when you’re screaming my name tonight, Weston doesn’t have to listen to it.” It was meant to be a joke, she knew, but Ryder’s tone was dark.

He strode out of the bathroom naked and crawled across the bed to her, pushed the hem of her sleep shirt up her back. She rolled her eyes closed and sighed as his lips touched her spine. The tickle of his facial scruff was so fucking sexy, a delicious shiver trembled up into her shoulders.

Ryder chuckled against her skin, then ran his tongue a few inches up her lower back. “I got you an anniversary present.”

Lexi looked over her shoulder to see if he was teasing, but nope, he was pulling a small, purple gift bag from the floor beside the bed.

Twisting on the bed, she asked, “What is it?”

“Something you’ve always wanted.”

“Awwww.” She turned to absolute mush as she tugged the tissue paper off the top to reveal a…thong. Lexi narrowed her eyes at his big dumb grin. “Something
I
always wanted or something
you
always wanted?”

“Try it on.”

“No!” She threw the tiny strip of fabric back in the bag. “They are super uncomfortable. It’s like walking around with a wedgie all day.”

“I paid ten bucks for that wedgie, miss ma’am, and I want to see your ass cheeks hanging out to greet me.”

“Well you paid ten bucks for a damn rubber band so me thinks you got ripped off. I’d rather go commando.”

“Deal, I like commando. You’re so fucking cute when you’re feisty. Makes me just want to bite you.”

“Bite me, and I’ll bite you back.”

“Promise?” Why were his eyes bright gold now? Ryder shoved her panties up her ass crack in a make-shift thong and said, “Good ‘nuff.”

With a groan, Lexi buried her face against the pillow and tried to hide her laughter.

He swatted her ass, and Lexi flinched. It was one of those quick, stinging ones that went straight from surprise-pain to making her hormones buzz around like a beehive.

“Ryder, if you’re gonna spank me like that, you better be prepared to take me hard.”

“God, you’re the perfect woman. I like you more than I like beer. Look at my handprint!”

Arching her back, Lexi stared over her shoulder at the perfect red outline of his palm. “Do the other side and make me look like a peacock.”

Ryder slapped her other cheek and stared at her ass with an expectant grin. Lexi stood on the bed in front of the mirror and cracked up at the handprints on her cheeks, then she strutted around the bed like a proud peacock with her elbows flapping around like wings.

“No, no, you look like a chicken,” Ryder punched out between laughs. “Be more majestic.”

Lexi jumped up and bounced on her butt against the mattress, then said, “Spill it, smexyboy. Why are we in ten-ten?”

The grin dipped from his face but didn’t disappear altogether. Knees on the ground, he leaned his elbows on the bed and gave her lap a significant look. “I need incentive.”

Lexi pulled the shirt over her head and dropped it slowly to the floor, then jiggled her bare boobies for him.

“Maybe just a little more incentive,” he murmured, poking a finger at her panties.

“Ryder,” she warned.

“I met Mason, my dad, on the steps of an old magic singlewide trailer in the Boarland Mobile Park. And I lived there for a while with him and my mom while they were getting established. Good things happened to me there. My life turned around in ten-ten.”

“So you want good things to happen to you here?”

His ruddy eyebrows lowered, and he rested his chin on his forearms. Slowly he shook his head. “I don’t care about me anymore, Lex. I want good things to happen to you. All of the mates in Damon’s Mountains lived in that old trailer at some point, and it was good luck. There was something special about it. And when we saw this old cabin had the same house number—ten-ten—it felt like a big deal. A sign maybe, I don’t know. Harper connected with this place, and so did Alana.” Ryder blew out an exhale and admitted in a whisper, “I want to keep you, Lexi.”

Heart drumming against her sternum, she murmured, “Ten-ten or no, you already have me.”

Intensity flashed through Ryder’s gold eyes as he crawled up the bed. When he locked his arms on either side of her face, the muscles in his shoulders bulged. He canted his head in a very animal-like way and raked his hungry gaze down her body, caressing her with a glance.

Gently, she ran the back of her hand down the red scruff on his face. “Next time you get me a present, I want something real. I want a piece of you.”

Ryder leaned his cheek against her palm, rolled his eyes closed as though her touch was everything, then pressed his thumb against the tripping pulse in her wrist. He brushed a kiss against her palm and said, “Name it. You can have whatever you want.”

“I want a feather,” she said softly.

His sexy lips stretched into a surprised smile, and now his pupils were small, just like his owl’s had been, the gold color blazing like fire. He was stunning. Without a word, he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers.

She was wrecked. Wrecked for every man who could possibly come after him. Ryder was everything. He was everywhere. He was the biggest, brightest part of her life now. How fitting that his eyes were the color of sunlight. He was her sun.

Ryder’s hand slipped around the back of her neck and squeezed as he lifted, arching her head back to better drink her up. And that man worked her lips until she was breathless and wanting. Until she was sliding her hands up his ribs, pulling him closer. Until she was spreading her knees wider in a silent plea to fill her. To be a part of her because she could never be close enough to him.

The heat in her chest was back, and that used to scare her, but now she thought maybe this was how it was supposed to be. She’d found her person. Despite all the hurt and betrayal of her past, she’d
found
him. Maybe she was supposed to be shattered by Blake so that Ryder would have the chance to put her back together. Maybe Ryder was always meant to be the one who helped her discover the best version of herself. The one who could make her laugh until she cried, who could make her love with everything she had.

Perhaps 1010 wasn’t the only magic, as he believed. Perhaps it was also Ryder.

Ryder had come in and awakened her dormant heart, and with every touch, he had opened her further, like a flower meeting the first rays of morning sunlight.

He ran his fingertips down her ribcage, over the swell of her hip, across her thigh, and then cupped her sex. She exhaled softly when he touched her clit. Rocking her hips, she reached down and pressed his hand against her harder, showing him how slow she wanted it.

Ryder pushed his tongue past her lips as he plunged two fingers inside of her. Lexi moaned into his mouth and lost herself completely to his affection. Her mind shut down to everything but his touch. His grip in her hair as he pushed his fingers into her. His warm lips on hers. His taste. His soft groan when she gripped his thick erection.

Slowly, she ran her hand down his long shaft, then pulled him closer to the cradle between her legs. The head of his cock brushed her inner thigh, and she could feel the drop of moisture at the tip as it smeared across her skin. God, she couldn’t wait for him to empty himself inside of her.

Gently, she rolled them over until he was underneath her straddled legs. Ryder’s grin turned wicked because he knew. He knew what she was doing. Big dominant shifter, and she was taking control.

And he let her. Ryder pulled his fingers out of her and gripped her waist, lowering her down over his shaft. He was so big, so thick, she had to go slowly as he stretched her. But damn, when he was buried deep and touched her clit, sparks of pleasure shot through her.

As Lexi rocked her hips forward, she clawed her fingers on his chest, scratching him. His grip on her hips tightened, his fingers digging into her skin, but she didn’t care. She hoped it bruised. He’d been marking her since they’d met. Hickey’s, claw marks under her arms, and now this. He was a rough man who stayed gentle enough to keep pain pleasurable for her, and she loved him even more for it.

Ryder huffed a sharp noise as she rocked against him, and now his teeth were clenched like she was driving him to the edge of his control. Good.

Leaning down, she drew his nipple into her mouth, grazed her teeth against it, sucked hard and Ryder bucked into her deep. He moved her long hair to the other side of her face, probably to watch her. “Faster,” he begged in a snarly voice.

Smiling, she bit his nipple and shook her head, then slowed her thrusting, arching her back gracefully with every stroke.

Ryder lifted his knees, curling his body around her, and gripped the back of her neck hard. He pulled her to him and clamped his teeth against her throat, showing her he was in charge. He sucked hard, and she moaned, leaning her head back to give him better access.

She slid almost all the way off, leaving only the head of his cock inside of her before she slid back down again.

“Fffuck,” he said shakily. His hand was so tight on the back of her neck, so tight on her waist.

To punish his roughness, she bit his bottom lip hard. Ryder let off a feral humming sound deep in his throat, and when Lexi eased back, his face looked wild. Stunning man, so fucking sexy.

He grabbed her waist and slammed her down on his dick. So deep. Almost too deep, and Lexi gasped at the shock of it. The pressure was building between her legs, tingling with how good this tease was, but Ryder wasn’t having her games anymore. “Woman, get me off or I’m going to lose it and take you up against that wall over there,” he growled out.

Well, that actually sounded fun, but she wouldn’t last that long. Lexi bucked against him, faster, smoother, unable to keep her cries of ecstasy in her throat any longer.

Ryder was slamming into her now, meeting her blow for blow, and she was done. She screamed his name as orgasm blasted through her body, clenching his dick in quick pulses. Ryder grunted, blazing eyes locked on hers as the first shot of warmth squirted into her. Over and over, he pulsed until his juices streamed out of her. Arms locked on his chest, hair wild and flipped over to the side, boobs bobbing, Lexi twitched over and over until both of their aftershocks were finished.

In no rush to disconnect, she relaxed against his chest and sighed as he petted long strokes down her back with his fingertips. And as the warm sensation in her chest drummed against his, Ryder whispered, “I’ve never let a woman have control before.”

“I’m not just a woman,” she murmured.

“No.” There was a smile in his voice. “You’re my woman.”

Lexi let off a soft laugh and cuddled her arms between their chests. Ryder wrapped his arms around her back and held her tight.

All tucked up and safe, Lexi fell asleep to the song of Ryder’s steady heartbeat.