Cursed

I wash up on the forbidden shores of Ikaria, home to the winged men with amber skin and white crescent moons on their foreheads.

One man has deep scars between his shoulders where his feathers were torn out. Hatred burns in his mesmerizing golden eyes. “A human couldn’t possibly end our curse,” he scoffs, but he desperately needs me, and the intertwining of our fates only makes his rage burn hotter.

As he flies me up to the spires of his mist-shrouded home, I catch a glimpse of the distant temple and hear words that only I can hear.

“At last…”

Begin the epic, emotional fantasy romance that gives new life to the Icarus myth. Set in a magical ancient world where gods are real and contracts are sealed with the blood of future generations, this poignant love story is filled with breathtaking adventure and spicy hot nights! Get swept away in this complete story with a deeply satisfying happily-ever-after.

I fly down to her. “How in the world…?”
Ayanakalia squints at me. She reaches out a trembling hand and misses, falls forward into my arms, and I catch her hard.
Her rock ledge peels away from beneath her feet and disappears into clouds. An infinite time later, it clatters on the stone shore, the sharp noise echoing up the cliffs to us.
My heart thumps.
Truly, she is protected by the gods.
I fly her to the top of the cliff, over the manor, and land in the courtyard. Her feet touch the ground, and she sinks. I lower with her, catching her again, but she’s wriggling through my grasp on purpose to embrace the cracked tile, so I drop to my knees and pull her small body across my lap. She clings to me, shaking. I rest my back against my doorjamb. I have so many questions.
She’s soaked from the damp clouds, her hands are frozen into stiff claws, and her dark hair is plastered to her icy skin.
I enfold her with my wings and pull her slim form up against my chest, willing my warmth into her, and I make a hushing sound as I rock her. It’s the same instinctive noise I use to soothe Lifayis.
“You’re all right.” The heat of my breath is trapped by my wings, drying her. “You’re just fine.”
She whimpers through clenched teeth. “I didn’t move. I didn’t make a sound.”
“No.”
“I was there for hours.”
“I believe you.”
She makes a strangled sob and buries her face in my armpit. I rise, my wings retracting, and carry her inside. With her still nestled in my arms, I rekindle the fire and quickly warm a cup of water. The fish stew reheats. I pull off feather after feather, wrap her scraped hands and torn fingernails in fiery wishes. She sucks in a pained hiss as each white feather falls, but in the end, she stretches her hands out of the clawed shapes. My breath dries her hair, and her clothes steam beside the fire.
And then, finally, she releases me and inhales deeply, shuddering.
“Someone came,” I guess as I hand her the warmed water.
She nods, curls both hands around the mug without apparent pain, and sips.
“Did you see him?”
“No.”
I press a white feather into a long scratch across her cheek. She winces as it burns, but holds still as I carefully brush the scab away so her smooth skin won’t scar. “How did you get down there?”
“There were small footholds and handholds, but they broke off as I climbed down.”
“And then you couldn’t get back up.” Grimness overtakes me. This should have ended so differently. I see a vision of her broken on the shore, blood sprayed out, sightless eyes. I shake myself, banish the horrible vision. It’s not real. It’s not a prediction. “This person came early? Right when we left?”
“A bit after.”
“But before you could eat your meal.”
She looks at the pot of stew, then up at me. Her clear brown eyes are liquid, and the shimmer in them, for just this moment, reflects like stars. “Was that for me?”
A fist squeezes my heart. “Do we not feed you?”
“You do. Mostly Bafis does. I didn’t want to…I try to guess what you’re thinking because I don’t want to do something wrong, but it’s hard.” She swallows, looks away, into the fire, and her shoulders droop. “Everything I do displeases you.”
The fist squeezes tighter. “No.”
“Even now, you think I’m stupid and weak. I should’ve hidden somewhere else. The cliffs are fine for an icari, and I’m just a human.”
Our legs tangle. Her cheeks flush, and she skirts my eyes.
I have avoided this. I’ve avoided her.
But now her tendrils are seeking me, feminine and delicate, and I am only a man, after all.
My voice comes out low. “You are.”
“See? You’re so angry at me, and I don’t understand why.”
“I never asked for another creature to be totally dependent on me.”
“I’m doing you this favor.” She pulls her steaming cloak tighter. “It’s only for a little while.”
“I don’t want to care about another person.”
“Yes, well, you’re loud and clear that you hate me.”
“I don’t hate you.” I capture her chin with my thumb and forefinger. “I hate everything about you.”
She turns those liquid pools on me, depthless, beautiful. “It’s the same thing.”
“No.” My voice descends to a whisper. “Because you keep invading, like a choking vine, digging your roots into cracks and tangling around my bones. You’ll own my soul if I let you. The only way I can keep you at a distance is if I drive you away.”
Her breath hitches.
Soft pink lips part.
She’s like an abyss calling me, hypnotic. The curse that will end me. End all of us. A promise of light in dark. That’s her.
I lean forward and cover her mouth with mine.