“We all want that, Jax. Why can’t we just be one big happy family?” I shrugged my shoulders. I think my family would love it. My mother treasured love and she adored my friends, I could see her loving Mika… ya it could work. We could do that down the road, make a family together and protect each other. More men to take care of all the kids and our woman. If we had to take a trip or a job for our guilds we could always make sure one of us was at the house with the family.
When Jax still looked confused, Zay spoke up, “Look, you don’t have to decide now but just know the facts. We all three want the same woman and we are not willing to let her go. Plus, we are all forgetting that this beautiful girl has a mind of her own and may want only one of us or none of us. It's really up to her, but as long as we are honest with each other we can still be the bloodless brothers we are now.” He smiled at us both as he meant every word.
Jax nodded, like that all made sense to him but I looked at Zay and winked. We were going to convince her that the best choice was all of us and then Jax would get on board. We had the whole Eliclisian festival to convince her. I saw her come back with four mugs and my heart for once was light, filled with a hope for our future together.
Zayden’s pissed off voice sounded, breaking the memory off as I looked over at him. Zayden was now up off the floor, facing off with Ajax, who looked about five seconds away from punching the pretty boy. Emerald rolled her eyes, putting on her leader’s face as she called out, “I think it’s time for bed. We have an early start in the morning and I have a feeling it’s going to be awhile until we have proper pillows and blankets again.”
She kept on her clothes and boots, the assassin in her always needing to be at the ready, and I smiled at this one consistency. She snagged one pillow and blanket from the stack we shoved to the side of the room after Zayden threw them all up in the air as he boasted about how amazing he was.
“Do you still think we need to take shifts?” Zayden asked, hoping that wasn’t the case.
She looked around the room, examining it before she shook her head. “I think we’re okay for the night without shifts. Plus, I’m a soft sleeper and these floorboards are creaky. I’ll know in advance if someone is coming.”
The three of us watched her move her back to the wall, facing the door as she settled on the floor and covered only the center of her body with the blanket.
It amused me when I heard Ajax bark out, “What do you think you’re doing?” I knew where he was going with this. I think all three of us did, but he really needed to learn how to talk to a woman.
Just like I knew she would, her face pulled tight, eyes darkening at Ajax as she growled back at him, “What Ajax? What could you possibly have a problem with now? Am I sleeping in your spot? Did I take the pillow and blanket that was to be yours?” She stood up and threw them at his face.
He caught them, but the bewildered look on his face for his attempt to be nice to her was laughable. So much that both Zayden and I laughed until she turned her hateful gaze on us and we quickly shut that down.
“I.. I didn’t…” Ajax stumbling over his words that made a deep dark part of me so incredibly happy. I wanted to watch him crash and burn, but Zayden had to ruin all the fun.
“My gem,” Her pissed off gaze swung to him and for the first time in a long time, I thought Zayden was being very brave. “I think what this oaf wastryingto do was to offer for you to sleep in the bed.”
She looked at Ajax for confirmation and he immediately looked away as he shrugged, like it was no big deal. Her gaze immediately softened. “Oh.” She now looked like the embarrassed one as she looked at the bed and then back at the floor, where she settled. “I’m more comfortable on the floor. Plus, it will help train me for the journey.” We all gave her exasperated sighs, everything with this woman was about training.
Her lips wiggle, fighting off a smile. “No, really. Being in my apartment in the city for so long has made me accustomed to my bed. Sleeping on the floor will help in the long run.” She motioned to the bed. “Really. You guys can have it.”
She turned back to her spot, apparently deciding against the pillow and blanket too in favor of “training”. The three of us looked at each other, the same look in our eyes that if she was going to be on the floor, then so were we. Zayden’s pained eyes looked at the bed as he snagged the blanket and pillow from Ajax, swiping another pillow & blanket on the floor. He moved to Emerald, dropping the blanket on top of her. When she got up to complain, he put the pillow where her head was, didn’t say a word as he pushed her back onto the pillow. Took his set and moved to her other side, their heads almost touching as he mimicked her with his back to the wall.
Ajax moved next, swiping the last blanket and pillow on the floor, putting his back to the other wall, his head near her feet. Her expression was confused, as everyone was deciding to rough it like her. I pulled the blanket and pillow off the bed and dragged it over, facing her with my back to the door, effectively closing the square that we made.
“Guys, you don’t-” she started, but I raised my hand to stop her.
“We are doing this together. That is final, Emerald.” My stern voice didn’t match my smile as the others grunted their agreement. She settled back down, her eyes bouncing to each of us in question before she let it go and closed her eyes.
“Nite, My Gem.” Zayden called.
“Goodnight.” I said, making mine a blanket response.
“Goodnight. I will wake you all when it’s time to leave.” Emerald responded. Always the practical one.
I dozed off when I heard a faint whisper to my left, “Nite.” I smiled, thinking there might be hope for him yet.
Emerald was true to her word and woke each of us up. It was so early that it was still dark, and Zayden complained that the sun wasn’t out yet. She ignored him and packed up her bag. That got the rest of us moving.
We left quickly after that, some of us yawning. When I mean some of us, it was everyone but Emerald. She was alert and focused while the rest of us were dragging our feet, even the dark assassin prince.
Once the sun broke through the trees, she set a rigorous pace, saying that we needed to not linger too much. That being on the border of the fae lands for too long wasn’t wise. Since I haven’t heard of any issues at the fae border for a long time, I thought it was just her being overly cautious.
The trek was long and hard, we didn’t even stop for lunch as she pulled out these homemade bars she made in advance. When I unwrapped the one she handed to me and I saw what it looked like, I asked her what it was made of. The brown discolored square in front of me, looking like a mishmash of different things which were so unappealing, but she said these were best for travel. They were high protein nutrient bars that would fuel our bodies in the best and most easily digestible way.
I repeated my question again, and she looked away, mumbling about various organs from various animals. Zayden almost threw up. When her back was turned, he whispered to me, “Is she trying to kill us?!”
Ajax settled up next to us. “Just eat it. She’s right that these are the best option for us to fuel our bodies on the road… but I will admit the taste… is not what I would choose.” When he saw Zayden gag again, he added, “Maybe we could tell her to add some berries or fruit for flavor?”
When she turned around, Zayden straightened right away, proclaiming that these were the best things he had had in a long time. Raving about her ingenious forethought. I figured he was laying it on a little too thick when she looked at his bar that had a few bites and then looked at my half-eaten bar. I shrugged, telling her I was saving the rest for later. Ajax scarfed down the last corner of his bar, saying they weren’t bad. Her lips quirked up as her eyes saw the proof of his honesty. Appreciation sparkled in her eyes before she pointed in the direction we needed to be heading.
