He shrugged. “Two people doing something enjoyable together.”
I crossed my arms. “She finds training enjoyable?” Last I noticed, training was a means to an end for her. Now that she had her prince back, would she train as hard as she did before? Did she find it a relieving outlet like I did?
Seven Hells, what did I even know about her?
“She finds me enjoyable, and that’s all we need to have a good time.”
I should’ve known better than to ask the heartthrob hustler about dating. I loved Lex, but he was a womanizer, albeit an open and honest one. Maybe that was why his femalesdidn’t mind the extra bodies in his bed.
Rune’s humor bubbled down our connection. I pursed my lips, sending her a feeling of revenge. She bowed her head right as Alexei glanced over.
“Aww, it’s okay, my sweet girl. We’ll be there in a blink.” Alexei winked, scratching beneath her chin.
He even had his claws in Rune. Or it may be the other way around, as she faked her whatever this was—fear, sadness, pouting?
Rune wielded her cuteness as well as Alexei wielded his face. I couldn’t count how many times she’d had people eating out of her hand. And he’d had people—never mind. I didn’t want to go there.
“Little demon,” I muttered to her.
She rested her head on my lap, gazing up at me with innocent golden eyes. And damn. It got me.
We blinked and landed in the snowy clearing next to the glintingShard Field within seconds. Nausea slammed into my gut, and I shut my eyes, fisting my hands until it passed. This was the reason I never took a sleigh. Or any other mode of transportation besides flying and luscelering.
“I find it kind of ironic that the one person who could help with motion sickness is the only one who’s ever affected by it.”
“Fuck off, Alexei.”
“Sure will. Right over to your cordistella.”
I swung at him, not even caring if I hit his wings. He jumped out of the sleigh laughing.
“Feel better?” he asked.
“Barely.”
But we both knew that was a lie. It had helped enough that I didn’t feel like puking.
Wouldn’t that be something for Lucille to see? The big, bad general—as she’d called me—puking over the edge of a sleigh, taken out by motion sickness. I’d rather touch a Spinewalker and be absorbed into their tree-like body.
“Beautiful, did you start without us?” Alexei called out as we walked over.
It seemed like they did. Except I wasn’t quite sure what exactly they had started.
The pet sat on the snow-covered ground in a circle of MJ’s fire, his eyes closed and face pinched as if concentrating. The hellion stood near the fire, her fingers digging into her palms. I eased down the barrier between us, and her frustration hummed faintly beneath the boisterous noise of their guardian bond.
MJ shrank the fire ring an inch, and the invasive energy grew, pushing the hellion’s emotions away in favor of its own desires. She shook as she held herself still near the fire, staring at the pet with desperation.
I positioned myself next to MJ. “Care to explain?”
Alexei went to her other side. “Yeah, what fun are we missing out on?”
MJ kept her eyes on the pet and her fire circle. “We’re testing the guardian bond and Lucille’s restraint.”
“You sure you’re not pushing our beautiful girl too hard? She looks like a frayed bowstring ready to snap.”
MJ edged her fire closer to the pet, unconcerned. Snow hissed, and the fire popped, shooting out an ember that landed on the pet’s face. The hellion’s restraint broke. She luscelered, and I moved in front of MJ, anticipating their bond’s retaliation.
An icicle flew toward my neck and instantly melted upon contact, wetting my undershirt. I grabbed Lucille’s chin, forcing her to meet my gaze. The moment she did, the manipulative force fled, as if unable to contend with the cordistella bond.
