—I am. I am now—
I reach up to Ludo but the expression on his face shifts, at first towards something almost peaceful, then a frown creases his brow and his nostrils flare as he inhales deeply. Ludo’s fists clench and he closes his eyes.
—That scent—want—want—
Gods. My face heats up. “You can tell I had sex with Donovan, can’t you?”
His eyes open and I can see he is aiming to calm himself. Shit.
—Yes, I can—
“Are you angry? I love Donovan but...”
—Not angry, Nymph. Never angry with you—
Our conversation is interrupted as Cosmo lets out a shout. He’s back, fully clothed, in arsehole human form. “What thefuck happened to you, Donovan?” he yells. “Why do you look completely different?”
“Theo’s got the most magical pussy in the world,” Donovan calls back, completely oblivious to my embarrassment. I love him to bits, but come on.
Alexis ignores him and starts questioning Cosmo about his dragon power, while Ludo walks silently beside me.
—Nymph?—
“Yes, Lu?”
—You look tired. Need rest, Nymph?—
He’s not wrong, I am super sleepy now. I sink down onto the sand. “I think I’ll take five, maybe have a nap.”
Ludo joins me, and to my joy, pulls me into him so my head is resting on his lap.
As Alexis, Cosmo and Donovan are discussing the shadow-portal, I close my eyes and revel in the closeness of Ludo. There are so many emotions pumping around my body at the moment, that the stillness and peace he brings me is just perfect.
How have I managed to live nineteen years without Ludo in my life?
“Never leave me, Lu,” I murmur, closing my eyes.
—Never—
I think I only sleep for a few minutes, but it does restore my flagging energy. Snuggling back against my giant, his arm moves until it is cradling me.
“You good, pulu?” Alexis’s voice pulls my eyes open. I turn and focus on him. He’s lying on the ground as well, but propping his head up on one elbow, staring at me.
“Yep, I’m awake. Did you shift into anything magical while I was sleeping?”
“Nope, still boring old Alexis from Kormovia. Anyway, you were only out for a few minutes.”
He freezes.
I immediately understand why. “A few minutes here could be days back home, right?”
“I’m afraid so.”
“That’s why we need to keep fucking moving,” Cosmo snaps. He’s standing off to one side, looking into the distance. Shit, he’s completely right.
Donovan goes into peacekeeper mode and puts a hand on his shoulder, but Cosmo shakes it off. “No, Dono. I wanted to head out after Wes hours straight away, but we had to let Little Miss No Spark have her naptime.”
“Calm the fuck down.” Donovan looks at Cosmo with a mixture of exasperation and worry. “This place is draining, and the only thing that kept me sane was taking enough rest—and we don’t even know how much of her energy was taken up...” he gestures to his own body, “...fixing up my mess.”
