The City of Crows
Page 22
The cup slammed back on the table, the back of Leo’s hand wiping against his mouth, his eyes watering from the scalding heat but not a single drop of liquid left in his cup. The woman whooped, her hand shooting up in the air before she rushed forward, arms once again holding him, her voice whispering softly in his ear. Whatever words she said lingering with him, his face awestruck as she pulled away.
“Are you going to tell me why you’re grinning so wide?” I asked as we exited the coffee shop, my hand in his, his fingers squeezing mine back for once. Rain poured outside, bouncing against the sidewalk once more. I regretted, as I always did, living in a city so near the coast. “I mean, not to complain, I want you to be happy today of all days but…”
“But?” He asked, his head rolling onto my shoulder, a shit-eating grin painted across his features as we approached the edge of the awning. There was more color to him then, and he had begun to walk straighter.
“But” I said, reaching into my coat pocket to withdraw a compact umbrella, “you know how it irritates me when you act so secretive, Leo.”
“Mhm,” he replied, reaffirming the fact but making no moves to rectify the situation. Instead, he continued to walk, not stopping to wait for my umbrella to go up. Surprisingly, his head supported itself. In fact, he almost walked as he normally did just two months before. Perhaps the potion had finally begun to set in.
“Hey!” I called, bounding after him, attempting to pop the umbrella over us. “Be careful, you said it yourself, that was your last drop of potion. You don’t want to go out in the rain, Leo, the effects will fade away!”
“Ah,” he said with a nod, “right.” His voice was dismissive, that same grin on his face, and yet he did not stop, if anything, he went faster. Pain, world ending pain was approaching him, and yet he was acting so childish.
But try as I might, I couldn’t fight the wind that somehow kept me under the awning, beating at my umbrella. God forbid the weather act normal in New Haven for once. One of his feet stepped out of the awning, rain pouring down on it, soaking his shoes.
And then, with one, wide step, he walked into the storm.
“Leo!” The umbrella slipped form my hands, disregarded as I charged forward, hands ready to wrap around his wrist and pull him back in.
And yet…
Rain beat against his face, soaking his eyelashes and hair, sinking into the fabric of his clothes. His skin glistened with moisture, the water cascading down it as he turned, his arms outspread, head tilted towards the sky. Not an ounce of pain was on his face, not a trace of regret. His body relaxed under the storm, soaking in the rain, seeming to call more and more water from the heavens to pummel him. He inhaled, a peaceful, happy sound, a look on his face that I had not seen in a while.
“Care to join me, Lyra?” He asked, his voice suggesting that it was in far more than just the rain. He looked radiant, alive.
All hesitation left me, all fear faded. My feet pounded against the pavement, arms wrapping around his neck as I finally realized. Feverishly, my lips pressed against his, the water on my face a mixture of rain and tears. Behind us, the tea shop all but vanished, the world becoming just us, standing together, waiting for forever, on a street corner in a bustling city called New Haven.
The crows calling our names.
About the Author
Bethany Anne Lovejoy is a longtime reader of romance novels and occasionally writes a few herself. She specializes in fantasy romance and has a great interest in magic users and men with crooked smiles.
When she is not writing romance novels, she is a devoted dog mother, amateur seamstress, and succulent collector. To keep up with her future releases and potentially receive photos of her dog or plants in the process, subscribe to her newsletter.
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