“Oh.” Lori flushed. “I didn't see you there.”
“What have you got?” The demon gestured to the bag in her arms as he knelt to drop his kindling beside the fire.
Lori beamed. “My satchel. Raxx found it and gave it to Faye.”
“Oh, of course. I'd forgotten all about that. Is everything still there?”
“Seems to be.” She fought a smile as she dug through the contents. There were several pairs of knickers bundled at the bottom. Some of them were significantly skimpier than the pair Lephas had already admired. She couldn't wait to show them off.
“What are you smiling at?” he asked, narrowing his eyes with suspicion.
“Oh, nothing...” Lori hooked a pair, no more than a tiny scrap of red lace, from the bottom, and held it up nonchalantly. “I'm just happy to have my things back.”
She watched as his gaze darkened hungrily.
“Put those back in that bag, right now,” he growled at her under his breath.
Lori smiled and bit her lip, but obediently dropped the article of clothing back into her satchel. They held one another's gaze for a long moment. She felt a shiverdance up her spine.
“Where is that shadow demon?” Faye crawled from the tent and stood, gazing out into the forest, blissfully unaware of the chemistry that was bubbling back and forth beneath her nose.
Lephas begrudgingly turned his attention back to the fire but not before casting Lori a smouldering grin, full of promises.
Lori was delighted – her demon always kept his promises.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
As the daylight steadily faded, fine flakes of snow danced from the sky once again. Lori and Faye sat huddled together in the entrance to the tent, talking quietly between themselves.
They looked even more alike when they sat closely together like that, Lephas mused as he watched the girls curiously through the fire.
Though her sister was the sun sprite, Lori's face seemed to glow with happiness. It was wonderful to see a sparkle had returned to her eyes. He was relieved that she seemed to have recovered from whatever majick related exhaustion had plagued her.
He would ask Raxx about that later. The shadow demon had been gone for hours, though that wasn't anything to be concerned about. Something he had tried to convince Faye of several times in the man’s absence.
The princess seemed on edge without the shadow demon nearby. Her pale eyes were constantly searching for him, despite how engrossed in conversation she and Lori appeared. He supposed he had yet to earn the girl's trust, a feat Raxx had clearly managed.
“Where the hell has that demon got to?” Faye asked him, for what felt like the hundredth time. “Surely it can't take that long to hunt something? I thought you said he was good at it?”
“Apologies, but catching fish by hand is no easy task, Princess.” Raxx appeared from nowhere beside the tent.
Lephas was more than used to the man stepping out of the shadows like that, but clearly the faeries still hadn't adjusted. They both yelped as they startled.
“How many times have I told you?” Faye snapped at him, holding her palm to her chest. “Don't do that!”
Raxx didn't deign to respond but held up four large river fish, each hooked with a section of snare wire in their mouths. Their silver scales glinted in the firelight, almost like the glass of a mirror. Lephas had never seensuch a fish, but both princesses’ eyes sparkled.
“Are those mirror trout?” Lori gasped, sitting forwards on her knees.
“You really got them?” Faye smiled up at Raxx. “How?”
“It wasn't easy,” The shadow demon muttered, catching his commander's curious eye. “Faye was telling me a story about a species of fish that the faeries cook for banquets and special occasions. I was curious.”
“Where the hell did you get them from?” Lephas asked, raising a brow.
“There's a small lake, hidden in the mountains just south of Awrelwood. That's the only place they breed. You went all that way?” Faye gaped.
Raxx simply shrugged and sat himself down in the snow. “It's not that far. Not for me, anyway.”
