The path opened up, and the sound of falling water reached us, growing louder with each of Drakkar's steps. The sun hung low on the horizon now, its light turning the mist rising from the falls into gold and copper. It was still light outside andwhile the falls were popular with human visitors, I might have had a couple of warriors set up a small roadblock late in the afternoon to guarantee Jordan and would be alone.
"It's even more beautiful at sunset," Jordan breathed.
I guided Drakkar to a stop near the pool's edge and dismounted, then reached up to help Jordan down. My hands spanned her waist as I lifted her, and for a moment I held her suspended, her face level with mine, close enough that I could see the flecks of gold in her eyes.
"Jordan," I said, her name a promise on my lips.
She leaned forward, closing the small distance between us, and pressed her lips to mine. I lowered her slowly, her body sliding against mine until her feet touched the ground, but I didn't let go. Couldn't let go. My arms wrapped around her, pulling her close as I deepened the kiss.
Her hands moved to my face, fingers tracing the line of my jaw, threading through my hair. She tasted of honey and hope, and I lost myself in the softness of her mouth, the warmth of her body against mine. Time seemed to slow, the world narrowing to just us—her breath mingling with mine, her heartbeat racing against my chest.
When we finally broke apart, both breathing hard, Jordan's cheeks were flushed, her eyes bright. "I'll never get tired of that," she whispered.
"Good," I rumbled, pressing my forehead to hers for a moment longer before reluctantly releasing her. "Because I intend to kiss you often for the rest of our lives."
She laughed, the sound like music, and stepped back to let me retrieve the basket from Drakkar's saddle. I found a flat area near the pool, sheltered by an outcropping of rock that would catch the last rays of the setting sun, and pulled out the thick woolen blanket I'd brought. Jordan helped me spread it out, smoothing the corners.
I began unpacking the food Zuhra had selected, privy to the significance of the meal. Cold roasted venison, sliced thin. Fresh bread, still soft and warm despite the journey. A wedge of sharp cheese from the market. Berries and sliced apples that Ardin had helped me pick just this morning, laughing as he'd stolen bites when he thought I wasn't looking.
And finally, wrapped carefully in cloth, a bottle of wine from her friend Tori's winery.
Jordan's eyes widened as I set everything out. "Ruka, this is perfect."
"I wanted it to be perfect," I said simply, settling onto the blanket and gesturing for her to join me. "You deserve perfect."
She settled beside me, tucking herself against my side as naturally as breathing. I tore off a piece of bread and offered it to her, watching her eyes light up as she took it from my fingers. She did the same for me, her smaller hand holding a slice of apple to my lips, laughing when I caught her fingertips gently between my teeth.
We fed each other slowly, savoring each bite and the intimacy of the gesture. Jordan poured the wine, and we sipped it as the sun began its final descent toward the horizon. The light shifted, turning from light amber to deep gold, and the waterfall transformed before our eyes—no longer white foam and crystal spray, but molten silver pouring endlessly into the pool below.
Jordan leaned against my shoulder, her head fitting perfectly in the hollow there, and I wrapped my arm around her, holding her close. For a long moment, we simply watched the play of light on water, the world reduced to this perfect moment.
But my heart was pounding, and the small box in my pocket seemed to burn against my thigh.
Weeks of preparation had led to this moment. I'd pored over human texts by candlelight, their pages filled with bewildering customs and traditions. I'd cornered Jordan'sfriends with questions that made them grin knowingly as they explained important rituals. Sarsa had laughed outright at my fumbling nervousness, but she'd helped me understand. And working with Jurik, our forge master, to craft something worthy of her.
"Jordan." Her name left my lips, the most beautiful work in existence.
She hummed, content as a cat in sunshine, her cheek still pressed to my shoulder.
My hands trembled as I eased her upright. Her eyes fluttered open, curiosity sparking in their depths as I shifted onto my knees before her. The rocky ground bit hard through the blanket, my body protesting the unfamiliar posture—but every text had insisted. This was the human way.
"Ruka?" Uncertainty colored her voice now, her gaze searching mine.
"You are my mate." The words rose from somewhere primal, somewhere ancient. "My true mate, bound by the magic of my people. Do you know what that means?"
She nodded, slow and deliberate. "You've explained it. That it's extraordinary. That it's... eternal."
"Eternal," I echoed. "In the time before darkness claimed us, before we retreated beneath stone and earth, true mates were touched by the gods themselves. Their bond was sacred, written in starlight and shadow, unbreakable as the mountains." I captured both her hands, cradling them between my larger ones. "That magic has slumbered for generations, buried as deep as we were. But you, Jordan—loving you, knowing you—has stirred something long dormant. The magic wakes. You've returned light to my people in ways I never imagined possible."
Tears gathered at the corners of her eyes, catching the dying sun like liquid gold. "Ruka..."
"I love you." Still new, these words, no matter how many times I'd said them. Still strange on my tongue, as though my soul could barely grasp the fact that Jordan was truly mine. Yet nothing had ever rung truer. "You are mine, and I am yours. But your people have their own sacred bonds, their own ceremonies of commitment." My throat tightened. "I want to honor both traditions—yours and mine."
I released one hand to retrieve the small box from my pocket, the oak smooth and warm from resting against my body. Jordan's breath hitched audibly as I opened it.
The ring blazed in the sunset's final glory, the gold seeming to hold its own inner fire. I'd discovered the nugget myself, just weeks before breaching the surface. As though even back then the magic was leading me to a future I couldn't yet imagine. The emerald set within it came from the same ancient cavern, a stone of impossible green that had taken centuries to form in absolute darkness.
Jurik had guided my inexperienced hands, but every strike of the hammer had been mine, every careful refinement made while imagining this ring on Jordan's finger. It lacked the ornate complexity of human jewelry I'd seen, but it was honest. Real. Forged from the depths of my homeland and heart for the female who had become my home.