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After he fastened his pants, he tugged me to his chest and scooped me up off the ground, hauling me toward the doorway out.
“You’re a tease,” I grumbled at him. “Getting all naked and then insisting on a surprise date should be illegal.”
“This is a unique opportunity. Any other time, and I would’ve dragged you back to bed in a heartbeat. Just trust me, baby.” His voice was playful, and damn, I was a sucker when he got like that.
I sighed dramatically anyway. “Fine, fine.”
He chuckled, the noise rumbling his chest as he shifted forms. My fingers gripped his fur as he streaked into the trees, and I held on tightly as he carried me past dozens of other fae. A lot of them seemed to be headed in the same direction we were going.
“What are we doing?”I asked him, curiously. It felt strange to speak through our bond after so many hours of silence, and I decided I needed to use it more often.
“You’ll see.”His response was filled with humor.
My curiosity only grew thicker when Teris joined a whole host of fae on what was basically a net of thick tree branches. There were at least a hundred males and a few dozen ex-human females seated on the crisscrossing branches, with their feet dangling down as their peered down at whatever was below them.
He found an empty seat and shifted back, sitting me down next to him and tucking me up against his side.“I heard that the female fae’s competitions were something of a spectacle, so someone built an observation area here.”
Ohh.
“They’re not just telling the men to go at it until one of them wins?”I asked, curiosity thickening as I looked down at the fae beneath us. There was a huge group of men running through some kind of maze-like obstacle-course, with a pond in the center that looked like it held something dangerous. Some female fae hid behind some of the obstacles.
“No. Apparently, different female fae are looking for males with different strengths. Some prefer the men who can strategize. Others want a male who doesn’t get angry when things don’t work out. A few are looking for the males who slide under the radar, with quiet strength.”
Understanding flooded me.
“They decided which characteristic mattered most to them, and that’s what they’re choosing a mate based on.”
“Seems like it.”
I cringed as one of the males got hit in the face with something huge and heavy—and saw one of the fae women grinning when he got back to his feet clumsily.
Persistence for the win.
Teris and I cheered along with the rest of the fae when the grinning fae woman sprinted through the maze, dodging obstacles smoothly before reaching the man. He halted when he saw her—and caught her when she launched herself into his arms.
Whoops filled the trees around us when their lips collided in the world’s most awkward first kiss. They relaxed into each other’s arms, and the whooping grew louder when they went from kissing to full-on making out.
PDA was totally cool in Vevol, I guess.
Teris dragged me closer, planting a kiss on my forehead. I flashed him a grin, and he kissed my mouth too.
More cheering erupted around us, and Teris deepened the kiss, cupping my face as our tongues warred. My cheeks were flushed and my breathing was fast when I finally pulled away, and he rested his forehead against mine, grinning at me while we caught our breath.
I loved it.
Maybe I even lovedhim.
I couldn’t say that aloud, though.
Or even think it. Not until I was sure. I refused to hurt him any more than I already had.
“Look around us, Nai,”he told me.
I let out a long breath, but finally pulled my head away from Teris’s. When I looked at the men and women surrounding us on the viewing net, I realized why he’d wanted me to look.
Because no one was glaring at us.
They were smiling.
