Page 192 of Sky’s Edge

Sadly, the only thing I felt like doing was not what we were going to do, since he got up, taking me with him, and put me on my feet.

“I must go,” he said.

“New rule,” I retorted, remembering to be in my normal bad morning mood. “No kissing me and getting me all bothered right before you ‘must go.’”

“How will I be certain you’ll be waiting with bated breath for me to come back?” he teased.

I stepped away from him (even if I didn’t want to) and said, “Okay. You can leave now,” (and I didn’t want that either).

He grinned at me.

No.

It was a smirk.

It might be the best of the lot.

I glared at him.

He took his life in his hands, bent for a quick peck, and when he moved away, he said, “I’ll text comm when we get there. And then again on our way back.”

“You better.”

He stopped at the door, did his adorable air kiss thing that was highly detrimental to me retaining my bad morning mood, and walked out.

I took in a very deep breath, held it ten seconds, then counted for ten seconds as I let it out.

I did it again.

Only then did I walk to the closet.

And coffee.

All five females were sitting in the queen’s breakfast room, eating breakfast (Mangold had gone with the men to Gehenn, or more to the point, Zyra had shooed him into the craft along with the men).

Gayle was chasing egged toast across her plate.

I wasn’t sure she’d taken even that first bite.

Aleece was eating like she was a pit ball player, carbing up for a match.

Laura was sipping coffee, casting guilty I’m sorry glances at Aleece and worried You’re freaking me out glances at Gayle.

Zyra was pretending all was fine, even while she kept shooting me looks that asked what in the hells is happening?

Also, weirdly, she kept simply shooting looks at Gayle. Looks I wasn’t sure about. They were maternal and concerned, as Zyra was wont to be.

They were also more in a way that made me feel squiffy.

I was further sipping coffee, remembering how sweet it was that Tanyn thought I had “magic,” but finding it had escaped me in this moment because I had no idea what to do.

But I had to do something because we were sitting down with the males that night to iron things out, and I didn’t need Aleece launching herself across the table to wring Bainon’s neck, and I didn’t need Gayle supplicating herself to Cormac, begging him to love her.

“Okay,” I announced grandly. “This is the deal.”

I wasn’t exactly sure of the deal, and was less sure when they looked at me: Laura, expectantly, Zyra, hopefully, Aleece, balefully and Gayle, glumly.

Before my brain could catch up, my mouth laid it out.