“None.” I let her go when she poked my side and quickly got to my feet to help her up.
“You read an entire book without any romance?” I couldn’t keep the disbelief from my tone.
She laughed. “The story was great. I added my own romance and happily ever after in my head.”
“Of course you did.”
“Do you think you can behave and stay out of trouble while you’re gone?” she asked, her brows quirked up.
“You underestimate my love for shenanigans.” I grinned. “It is eternal.”
She huffed out a laugh. “That’s what I’m afraid of. You’re going to a new realm. We don’t know, well, we don’t know anything about it. Nalari has been suspiciously quiet about it.”
So had Hoshiko, but I hadn’t really asked many questions either. I simply knew he and the other dragons from his realm needed our help.
“I’ll watch over Elias and Javi,” I promised, covering my chest with an open palm.
“I know you will. Look out for yourself too. Okay?” She tapped a single finger over the hand I still held over my chest. “Take care of your heart. Put yourself first.”
I stole a glance at Finley, who quickly looked away, but she’d been watching me. Had she been listening too?
“I’m like the Tin Man,” I said, my tone airy and light. “No heart.”
“More like the Scarecrow.” Elias came up from behind us and tapped my temple. “No brain.”
“Ah!” I grinned, pointing my finger up. “Except he was announced as the wisest in all of Oz. Call me Scarecrow all you want.”
“You two need to lay off all the movies you watch,” Teddy said with a quiet grumble.
When Zayne toddled toward us, I picked him up before Teddy could, shooting her a wry grin when she glared at me.
“You were the one who wanted to bring movie nights to Niev,” I argued.
“For a once-a-month movie night,” she retorted.
I soaked in Zayne’s giggles when I tickled his pudgy belly.
“Not a few nights every week.”
Grumble as she might, she loved our movie nights just as much as the younglings did. We still had the once-a-month tradition with the others, but the three of us, and the children, watched movies an unhealthy amount more frequently, usually with pizza, fizzy drinks, and too many snacks.
It was one of the reasons I was their favorite uncle, beating Alastor and even George. Okay, maybe not George, but I was close.
My heart pinched at the thought of missing my weekly movie night at the orphanage. I doubted we’d be back in three days’ time for me to make it.
“What movie were you planning on showing at the orphanage?” Teddy asked. “I’ll show it and take some pizzas for the kids.”
Although Teddy lost her mind-speak magic, she could still feel my emotions with our sibling bond intact, just as I could feel hers. It was both convenient and annoying. It made it so that I couldn’t hide my emotions from her after I’d spent a lifetime concealing them from everyone. At this point, she knew me better than anyone else.
There was comfort in that.
We continued speaking until Sama announced it was time to go. Then I clung to my nephews for a few extra beats before I passed them to Elias, who reluctantly let Teddy go. Teddy’s hug was familiar and welcoming, like a warm embrace that hummed in contentment.
“Promise me you’ll take care of yourself,” she whispered.
I nodded, wanting to mean it. “I’ll guard my heart.”
Four words that held little validity when I saw Elias guiding Finley to Nalari.
