Fallen Academy: Year Three (Fallen Academy #3)

by Leia Stone

Bursting forward, I flung myself into his arms. “Thank you! You have no idea what this means to me.” Tears leaked from the corners of my eyes. His arms came around me, holding me tightly. “You’re very welcome, Brielle. I sometimes envy the passionate yet reckless love that humans feel,” he admitted as I stepped away. Michael was grinning. “You should try it sometime. My wife has a nice lady friend I could introduce you to.” Raphael looked mortally offended, his cheeks turning pink. “All right, this meeting is over.” We all burst into laughter as Raphael pretended to arrange papers on his desk.

We found Noah in the parking lot, piling boxes into the back of his car. Shea let out a catcall whistle and he turned, giving us both a wink. “Hello, beautiful ladies. To what do I owe this pleasure?” She pointed to me. “We’re going to sneak into San Francisco, using some secret tunnels, and bust Lincoln out of there. Wanna come?” Noah dropped the box he’d been holding. “Woman, are you crazy!” he shrieked. Shea put a hand on her curvy hip and stared him down. “Fine. We’ll go alone.” Noah groaned. “Obviously I’m going with you, but… Jesus, you guys, do you know anything about San Francisco?” We both shrugged. “Grew up in Demon City. Can’t be that different,” Shea stated matter-of-factly. Noah chuckled. “That’s cute. Demon City is a freaking unicorn playground compared to San Fran.”

The next morning, when we walked into Raphael’s office, he and Michael were sharing a pot of coffee and looking at a map. When we entered, they both stared gob-smacked at our group. Gone were Shea’s wild brown curls, long silky black hair in their place. Noah also had dark hair, and mine had been turned candy red. For good measure, she gave me a light smattering of freckles across my nose.

“Well done on the disguises, Shea,” Raphael complimented. She smirked. “Thanks. It was easy.” We also showed them our forearms, where Shea had covered our Celestial tattoos, and replaced them with a Dark Mage death mark. Now it was Michael’s turn to look impressed. “Your talent is not being used to the fullest in the Fallen Army,” he declared. Raphael waved him off dismissively. “Save that for when they get back.”

The room was silent for a moment, until finally Michael cleared his throat. “So where did you get this map of the tunnels?” I blanched. I’d given Raph the map that Emberly made me to look over, but I didn’t think Michael would come. “From a friend,” I added coyly. He smirked. “Your friend’s handwriting looks familiar.”

Lincoln finally broke away from me, taking my face in his hands, and looking straight into my eyes. “Your absence made me realize how much your presence had made me a better person. I don’t ever want to be without you again. Ever.”

After declaring to my mom and Shea that Lincoln and I were getting married when we woke up, we’d fallen asleep. I peeled my eyes open to find Lincoln propped up on his side, staring at me with obvious adoration. He trailed his finger down my neck and across my collarbone. “I missed every part of you.”

I leaned in, giving her a hug. Chloe piped up then. “Highlight of my day was hearing Shea argue with Michael that he needed to get ordained online.”

“I’ve dreamed of this day for a long time. I can pinpoint the exact moment that I knew Brielle was my perfect match. It was the second day we met. She was taking too long to get ready, so I started to leave without her.” The crowd chuckled.

“She was having none of that,” Lincoln continued. “So she threw her hot cup of coffee at the back of my retreating car, then ripped the door wide open and chewed my head off.” I blushed with embarrassment. I liked to gloss over our early days whenever possible. “And I thought… wow. If this beautiful woman can get so angry so easily, I’d bet she loves just as fiercely.” He paused. “And she does.” Tears welled in my eyes.

“I’ve never met a more passionate and loyal soul than you, Brielle Atwater. The spark of fire within you that keeps your soul burning is what I love most. You would do anything for your family, and you have a heart of gold. But most of all, you make me see the world differently. I see it through your eyes. You don’t leave family behind, and you don’t take no for an answer, and that’s what I love most about you.” He stared into my eyes as tears streamed down my cheeks. “I can’t wait to watch you become more and more of the woman you were meant to be. I promise to love your family as if they were my own, and I look forward to starting our own ...