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His hands were on my ass when he finally pulled away, eyes gleaming wickedly.
His expression was usually so neutral, so unreadable, but I supposed I’d started learning to read its nuances.
Or maybe he’d just gotten more expressive when he realized I wasn’t rejecting him over and over.
“Ready to find your friends, Mariah?” he asked me.
“Mmhm.” I nodded… and then rested my forehead against his chest for a long moment.
His soft rumble only made me squeeze him tighter before I finally released his waist, took his hand, and then headed off.
Twelve
We foundPriel and Lian teaching a fighting class.
It definitely caught me by surprise.
Every one of the ex-human women other than me, Sunny, Dots, and Naomi were lined up.
They seemed to be going through some kind of drills—Priel would bark out positions, and all of the women would follow while Lian and a few other men walked around, correcting them. Some of the ladies moved faster and smoother than others, but I figured that was to be expected.
Outside of making the orders, Priel’s sole focus was on North. For once, I knew that wasn’t just because he was her mate, but because he was her trainer.
It was because she was the one who was going to have to fight Fovea. And Fovea hadcenturiesof experience under her belt.
Even if North wasn’t going into the fight with a plan to win, she needed to know how to survive.
Ervo’s grip on me tightened as we watched the women move through the motions a few times. My gaze lingered on January—who kept flashing glares at Lian every time he walked over and started to say something to her.
I’d spent enough time with my own fae male to know that he was probably trying to talk her into stopping.
And knew her well enough to know that her answer was probably along the lines of, “Not a fucking chance.”
It had been hard for the men when we were stolen away from them. I understood that, and didn’t blame them for their reaction.
But they probably didn’t realize it had been difficult for us, too.
And really damn eye-opening.
Even the tallest and heaviest of us ex-humans was smaller than any of the fae males and females by a long, long way. Most of us had only recently learned how to shift forms. The extent of our strength and speed wasn’t something we’d ever had a reason to test.
We’d spent years hiding from the fae, and it showed. But in the years we were hiding, they were fighting each other. Flying, and running. Learning, and living.
We were centuries behind them, at best.
I started stepping toward the group, but Ervo’s grip on me held tight.
“No,” he said simply.
I flashed him a warning look.
His fingers squeezed mine deathly tight. “I will protect you. You don’t need to fight.”
“Do you want me to be helpless?” I asked him.
His gaze held mine, but he remained silent.
“All of you know how to fight. How to survive in Vevol. And I’m helpless right now, Viervo. I don’t want that to be my life.”
