The dining section was the stern of the lower cabin, with the bow taken up by small cabins, a bathing area, and a galley with fire burners and liforina stores. The galley and each of the cabins had a round window, giving a glimpse of the deserts and sands beyond, but other than that, the only lighting in the lowest level came from desert lanterns, their heatless fires burning high.
Len, who had been our unofficial cook so far, was already at the table when the rest of us arrived. Dishes were laid across it, each with a similar array of food to what had been at the opening ceremony of the dynasty gathering. Mera was the first to sit, looking around expectantly. Her narrowed eyes urged the rest of us to get our shit together and sit so she could eat. I slipped in on her right, leaving the left for Shadow. Lucien was at the head, Len across from Mera, Galleli across from Shadow, and Alistair on my opposite side.
Reece took the other head of the table, which put him on my right, and as the blast of his power mingled with my own relatively cooler energy, I focused on the food. One hunger sated was better than none. "Your sands appear to be getting better at steering a ship," I said, hoping for normalcy.
"I’ve upgraded them to a full license," he said with a smile.
I blinked. "When you joke with me, it really messes with my head."
"Ours too," half the table chorused, and I caught Mera’s smirk, which reminded me that we were not supposed to make our new arrangement public knowledge.
Turning away from Reece to focus on the food, I chose some gry fruit, having really developed a taste for it. After giving Mera a ripe piece, I placed another two on my plate. Shadow added some more foods to Mera’s plate, taking care of his mate, and all too soon she had more nourishment in front of her than two goddesses could eat.
Shadow’s protective instincts were stronger than ever, and I had a sense that when this baby was born, daddy beast was going to be a right pain in the ass.
"Here," Reece said, distracting me. I looked down to find that he’d made me ayert, the Desert Land's equivalent of a sandwich, filled with fried vegetables that grew under their trees. "You're not eating enough."
I blinked at the food, having no idea how to react to this gesture. He was acting like Shadow, and even if my first instinct was to reject it, expecting an ulterior motive, I decided it was time for us to change the narrative. "Thank you."
His eyes widened, a flash of surprise slicing through them, but he didn't question my compliance. Instead, we ate together in a comfortable silence with only occasional small talk around the table. There was proper nourishment for all of us in the supplies, including even the plasma beverage Lucien needed to renew his energy and the algae-type greens that Alistair consumed. Shadow didn’t eat, but he still sipped on his favorite drink: a blend of Earth's finest whiskeys with some faerie spice to give it a kick.
It was a freaking picture-perfect family scene, and I knew that this was the calm before the storm. My senses were twitching, telling me that we were moving toward a disaster, and no matter how prepared I was, I couldn't keep this ship from crashing into the rocks and scattering all of us into the deep sands.
Lost forever.
34
By the time dinner was done, Mera had once again convinced Shadow that it was too late to journey back to the library and that they best discuss it again in the new-moon. Len and I exchanged an amused glance, even though he was dangerously close to losing this bet.
Reece let out a huff as he got to his feet and swept out his hand to clean away the remaining food and dishes, sending everything to the galley. Without looking my way, he left, his broad shoulders disappearing from the cabin.
Len sidled closer to me, just as I was rising from the table “Should we relieve him for the night?" he asked.
My knee jerked into the table in an uncharacteristic show of incompetence. "What?" I managed to say.
"Relieve him of steering duty," he said slowly. “It’s been a few moons, and I haven’t seen him use a cabin once.”
Oh, right."From what I know, he’s been leaving the sands in charge if he needs to rest, but I'll check in on him.” In my flustered state, my words were rushed. "You all get some sleep. We’ll wake you if there’s any issue."
No one argued since a sense of frustration and mild fatigue had started to filter through our energy after a few moons stuck on this ship. One by one they left the table, heading to the bedrooms, until only Mera and Shadow remained. "See you in the morning,” Mera said with a smirk, “after you check onrelievingReece, of course."
"Shut it!" I mouthed, and she just chuckled like the maniac she was.
Even Shadow looked amused, and it was clear that he knew as much as his mate. There were no secrets between them, which was exactly how it should be. Truth be told, as I bid them goodnight and made my way to the deck, I really hoped this night would include some relief. Our time in the deserts was coming to an end soon, and so far, our bargain was going sadly unfulfilled.
When I hit the higher deck, I felt the brush of Reece’s power, but everything else was calm. Such a vast difference to the previous moons. The breezes barely even ruffled the strands of my braid, and the light black shirt I wore tucked into my cargo pants was more than sufficient to protect me from the sands.
Crossing the deck, bathed in the blue rays of the dark-moon, I approached the bright spot that Reece appeared to occupy. He looked otherworldly, his energy giving him a glow so obvious he almost didn’t seem real. Even here in his dominion, he was noticeably… more.
My footsteps were light as I got closer, wondering at the reception I would receive. "Do you need us to tag in and keep watch—" was all I managed before he spun and scooped me up.
On instinct, my legs went around his waist as he hauled me close, and I was already lifting my head, ready for the slam of his lips on mine. Reece did not disappoint, his tongue sweeping across my lips and demanding entry. I complied because I felt like I would explode if I didn't taste him… if I didn’t feel that surge of his power colliding with mine.
Sand swept us up, and I wondered if we would once again be high and hidden from the world.
"The other ship is too close," Reece grumbled against my mouth before dragging out another long, delicious kiss, his left-hand tightening on my ass to almost painful levels. "We will seek privacy elsewhere."
I hadn't seen Darin's ship for days, but now that we were in the slower currents, it seemed that he’d caught up. There was no time to think about the journey though, for tonight was about Reece and me and the sparks of fire igniting between us.
