“This is what I needed to get.” Griff picked up a tiny box from the coffee table. He went down on one knee, taking her hand. “Hayley Parker, will you-”
“Yes!”
Griff burst out laughing. “Will you at least let me finish the question?”
“Sorry.” Hayley tried to school her face into an appropriately serious expression, but couldn’t suppress her wide, foolish grin. “You’ve clearly worked hard on this. Go ahead.”
“Will you marry me?” Hayley opened her mouth, but Griff quickly held up his free hand, forestalling her. “And will you be my mate?”
“Yes! Yes! Of course!” Hayley could barely wait for Griff to slide the stunning diamond solitaire ring onto her finger before she threw her arms around his neck. “Oh, Griff!”
Still on his knees, he caught her, easily supporting her weight as their lips met. Hayley closed her eyes, feeling the familiar sweet fire lance through her. No matter how often they kissed, no matter how often they touched…it was always like the first time.
“Will I be able to hear your thoughts, after we’re mated?” she murmured against his lips. “Like Connie and Chase, or Virginia and Dai?”
“Aye.” His fingers twined tenderly through her hair. His eyes burned with a deep, contented fire. “We’ll be truly joined, mind and soul.”
She let out a sigh of longing. “I can barely wait.”
The heat in his gaze flared brighter. “Well…the wedding will take a little organizing. My clan is fairly extensive. But the mating…that just takes the two of us.”
The growl in his voice made her shiver in anticipation. “So we could do it now?”
He grinned at her, looking deliciously feral. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
“You mean, you knew I’d say that,” Hayley teased, as he swept her up in his arms. “Don’t think I’ve forgotten that John was planning on staying overnight.”
He laughed softly in her ear, holding her cradled against his chest. “I can’t help being observant.”
She’d been expecting him to carry her upstairs. But instead, he headed for the back garden, carrying her easily in one arm as he opened the door.
“I did promise to take you out,” he said, putting her back on her feet. “And I will. Or rather…up.”
Hayley’s breath caught. She hadn’t even seen Griff fly yet, though she knew he’d been practicing. His eagle sisters had quite literally taken him under their wings, with much delighted teasing at finally being able to get their own back on their big brother. But he’d refused to let her watch his lessons, claiming that his fledgling attempts were far too embarrassing for her to witness.
“You sure I won’t weigh you down too much?” she asked anxiously. “I’m pretty heavy, after all.”
His hand slid over her curvy hips and round to her backside, lingering in appreciation. “You are perfect. John is heavy. He helped me practice this. That’s why I waited so long to propose. I wanted to make absolutely certain my flying skills were up to the task.”
Hayley raised her eyebrows at him. “You do realize most men don’t feel the need to be able to fly before proposing, right?”
“Eagle men do. Flying is part of our mating ritual. And I am half-eagle.” He shrugged one shoulder. “Though that’s the other reason I had to make you wait a while. I needed time to puzzle out how to stitch eagle and lion rituals together.”
“So what do lions do?”
He captured her chin in his hand, tilting her head up. “You’ll find that out later.”
Hayley’s toes curled as he bent to kiss her again, slow and lingering…and utterly commanding. Her body instinctively molded itself to his, submitting to his irresistible dominance.
When he released her, she swayed, helplessly yearning for him as he stepped back. The January night raised goosebumps on her skin, but her core still burned with a fierce, hungry fire. She wrapped her arms around hers
elf, shivering with cold and desire as he moved back until he had room to shift.
He met her eyes, and smiled. Then, between one breath and the next, the man was gone. In his place stood the griffin, as fantastical as a statue brought to life.
That’s something else I’ll never get tired of. Seeing him like this.
She ran her hand down the deadly curve of his massive beak, still barely able to believe that this extraordinary, powerful creature was real. Not only that, he was hers.