“But?” I ask, sensing the word hanging in the air.
“But—”
“NO! Absolutely not, Freckles!” Lukas bellows, making us all jump in surprise.
“He won’t be—”
Lukas slashes his hand angrily through the air. “This is not our fight.”
In an instant, Nesrin springs to her feet. Despite her small stature, there’s a menacing expression in her eyes.
“You’re being unreasonable,” she snaps.
“Me? I’m being unreasonable? You’re carrying our child. It’s not safe to go to Faerie.”
I furrow my brow. That’s what she was going to say?
“I’m going alone,” I state.
Nesrin and Lukas’s focus swings my way, and I continue.
“Thank you, but Lukas is right. This isn’t your fight, and you are carrying precious cargo. I would never ask it of you.”
“You didn’t ask. I was offering.”
“Well, I respectfully decline.”
Lukas steps up to his mate and wife, wrapping his arms around her and dragging her into his chest. “I know you want to help, but that is Nero’s job.”
Nesrin huffs, her gaze dropping. “Fine.”
Lukas looks at Penn. “What exactly did you send Ash into?”
“I have no need to disclose that information.”
Flames of anger ignite within me, and I shoot a piercing glare at the dragon shifter. Ash’s life is on the line here, and he’s still being an entitled prick.
As Gabe leans against the railing, a playful smirk dances on his lips. “He and his two brothers are looking for the last female dragon shifter.”
Penn stiffens, his skin rippling and forming a layer of scales that adds an eerie texture to his appearance.
“Don’t read my mind, mutt,” he snarls.
I step up to Penn before Lukas can intervene. “Calm the fuck down. We are here for Ash.” Then realization dawns. “Or are you only here because you still want her to retrieve your damn—”
“Does it matter?” he snaps, his eyes a fiery shade of green, glowing intensely like hot flames.
Disappointment washes over me as I shake my head. “I thought you actually cared for her.”
Penn remains silent, and just as the tension begins to escalate, relief arrives in the form of horse hooves pounding in the distance. All of us instinctively shift our attention toward the source, where a majestic black stallion emerges over the hill, making his way from the direction of the river.
The Puca seamlessly shifts from a horse to a man in the blink of an eye. A tall, dark-skinned man casually walks toward the house, his strides effortlessly covering the distance without any sense of urgency, but also in no time at all. His muscular physique is accentuated by the intricate tattoos that adorn his chest, arms, and look to continue over his back. This is the Puca?
He’s a commanding presence; his confident stride exudes an air of power and grace. I meet his piercing golden eyes, and a sense of heaviness weighs down on me. In the next instant, he stands directly in front of me. Despite the intensity, I refuse to back down, meeting his gaze head-on.
It’s Nesrin who breaks the standoff, stepping between us, her hands landing on both our chests and pushing us back a step. “Nero, this is Kai Cartwright. He’s here looking for Ashwiyaa.”
Nero blinks and drops his gaze to Nesrin, then pulls her in for a hug. “Good to see you, Daughter of Light.”
