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“Will more of them join the seelie?” Blue asked the man, studying him thoughtfully.
“More are leaving every day,” he admitted.
“Enough distractions,” Priel growled at the group. “My female has to fight the damned harsh leader in a few weeks, so we don’t have time for this shit.”
North stepped up to him, grabbed him by the arm, and kissed him on the mouth.
I think all of us stared for a minute, before we peeled our gazes from them and focused on the forest and the men inside it.
My eyes landed on Ervo’s… and his gaze was soft.
“Pair up,” Priel finally barked.
The girls all grabbed the person next to them.
I had the feeling they’d determined their partners when they first started training, and without me, they had an even number.
“You train with me,” Ervo said, hooking a finger in the waistband of my shorts and tugging me closer. My side met his chest, and he lowered his lips to my head, leaving a kiss there.
“That’s not going to happen,” Ana said, flashing him a scowl. “It’s against the rules, and the rules keep the peace—and keep all of us safe. Mare can join our group.”
The look on the phoenix’s face told me that Ana was about to get her damn head cut off. If not literally, then some other way.
I quickly stepped in to keep the peace.
“The seelies live to break rules, and Ervo and I are basically engaged,” I said simply.
Her scowl deepened, but she jerked her head in a nod.
She had always been protective over the rest of us, and while it made things tense at times, it was appreciated.
I turned toward Ervo, and his eyes were practically gleaming. “You don’t need to fight for me, Mariah.”
“Why shouldn’t I? You’re constantly fighting for me.”
There was a long pause before he finally said, “I suppose I don’t know.”
A laugh escaped me, and I stepped closer to him. “If you get to protect me, then I get to protect you too.” I leaned in closer, and he dipped his ear toward me. “Even from tiny, angry human chicks you could easily squish with one of those giant hands.”
He snorted, grabbing my hips and dragging me closer. “You weren’t insulting my hands a few hours ago.”
My face warmed. “Go to hell.”
A booming laugh escaped him, and I swear, every man in the forest turned to look at Ervo, surprised that the phoenix was so openly happy.
He just grinned down at me.
And then he kissed me.
Afterward, he taught me how to throw a punch.
It may very well have been the best day of my life.
We practiced fightingfor the next few hours, getting more information from the other women during every break we took. The sun finished setting, but none of us was exhausted enough to call it a day until it had been dark for a long while.
I learned that the fae women had been locked in the new Stronghold until they vowed on Vevol not to try to stealthe human femalesfrom the men again. When they had stopped guarding the place, the female fae hadn’t emerged.
Loud, sometimes-angry discussions had been heard almost constantly from outside the walls since then, but no amount of spying could figure out what they were arguing about.
