claim her. And she’d never been so happy to be taken by
surprise.
“The stormwatchers have predicted clear skies today, so
there’s a big market on in town,” Dev said. “We thought we might fly down and
have a look.”
“Oh, okay.” Tansy tried to hide her disappointment. She knew
her males weren’t required for duty today, and now that the air had cleared she’d
been looking forward to spending time with them. She was bored with her own
company and with being trapped on the top of the den. Going to the market
sounded wonderful, but the only way to get there was on dragonback. There was
no way she’d be able to get into the air, so she’d have to stay at the den and
be bored.
“How soon can you be ready to leave?”
Rye’s question froze her in mid-motion, a loaded fork
halfway to her mouth. “Ah, I’m not going.” She lowered her hand.
“Why not?” Dev reached out and stroked her arm. “Is because
of last night? Are you still upset with us?”
God no. She was so far from being upset with them that she
felt as though she should grovel at their feet in gratitude. “No. I was never
upset with you. I had a flashback, that’s all.” And that was all. The
flashback might have been a doozy, but she’d survived it—and she’d survive the
next one too. She’d fight her way through as many traumatic memories as she had
to in order to regain a normal life.
Dev smoothed his hand up her back and under her ponytail,
cupping the nape of her neck. His palm was rough and warm and her body
instinctively leaned closer to him.
“Are you sure? If we did something wrong, you have to tell
us so we know not to do it again.”
“The three of us are fine, truly.” Or at least the two males
were. She, on the other hand, could be the poster girl for Mental Health Week.
Rye leaned his elbows on the table. “So why won’t you come
into town with us?”
Flicking her eyes down to her plate, she took a long breath
and tried to unscramble her sluggish brain. She only had a few seconds to come
up with a plausible lie and she wasn’t sure if she was up to the challenge.
She won’t fly.
Tansy gasped in outrage. Bloody Zenbaylan and her big mouth.
Fisting her hands in her lap, Tansy sent a sharp, hopefully
private message to the nosy battle dragons. Keep out of this, both of you.
If I wanted Dev and Rye to know my secrets, I would have told them.
They can’t help you if they remain ignorant.
Tansy ground her teeth together. This is my problem,
Zenbaylan. I’ll fix it in my own time.
Rye reached over, scooping her out of her chair and hauling
her onto his lap. The movement broke her concentration and she fell out of the
link with Zenbaylan, thank goodness. Then Rye snuggled her tight, turning her
so she was facing Dev. His full lips were pressed tight and his eyes narrowed
as he stared at her across the table.
“It that true? Are you afraid to fly?”
“Yes.” Just one more freaky failure to add to her list. She
tried to wriggle off Rye’s lap, but he simply tightened his arm, squeezing her
until she stopped moving. Giving up with bad grace, she slumped against him and
tried to prepare herself for the fallout.
Dev leaned forward, propping his arms on the table. “I know
you were frightened the night we rescued you, but I thought that was because of
the ordeal you’d been through. If you’re scared to fly, how did you manage to
stay calm on the flight home?”
She shrugged. “My captivity was a living hell. I would have
strapped on a pair of wings and flapped myself out of Allsgate if I’d thought
it would work. Plus I was pretty sure I’d just killed a man. I was so
terrorized I was numb and I just didn’t have it in me to be scared once I got
into the air.”
And both Rye and Dev had held her tight. She’d been wrapped
in a blanket, then wrapped in their arms and held firm against their hard,
strong bodies. Relief at being safe and free had overtaken every other emotion.
Rye rubbed her back
surprise.
“The stormwatchers have predicted clear skies today, so
there’s a big market on in town,” Dev said. “We thought we might fly down and
have a look.”
“Oh, okay.” Tansy tried to hide her disappointment. She knew
her males weren’t required for duty today, and now that the air had cleared she’d
been looking forward to spending time with them. She was bored with her own
company and with being trapped on the top of the den. Going to the market
sounded wonderful, but the only way to get there was on dragonback. There was
no way she’d be able to get into the air, so she’d have to stay at the den and
be bored.
“How soon can you be ready to leave?”
Rye’s question froze her in mid-motion, a loaded fork
halfway to her mouth. “Ah, I’m not going.” She lowered her hand.
“Why not?” Dev reached out and stroked her arm. “Is because
of last night? Are you still upset with us?”
God no. She was so far from being upset with them that she
felt as though she should grovel at their feet in gratitude. “No. I was never
upset with you. I had a flashback, that’s all.” And that was all. The
flashback might have been a doozy, but she’d survived it—and she’d survive the
next one too. She’d fight her way through as many traumatic memories as she had
to in order to regain a normal life.
Dev smoothed his hand up her back and under her ponytail,
cupping the nape of her neck. His palm was rough and warm and her body
instinctively leaned closer to him.
“Are you sure? If we did something wrong, you have to tell
us so we know not to do it again.”
“The three of us are fine, truly.” Or at least the two males
were. She, on the other hand, could be the poster girl for Mental Health Week.
Rye leaned his elbows on the table. “So why won’t you come
into town with us?”
Flicking her eyes down to her plate, she took a long breath
and tried to unscramble her sluggish brain. She only had a few seconds to come
up with a plausible lie and she wasn’t sure if she was up to the challenge.
She won’t fly.
Tansy gasped in outrage. Bloody Zenbaylan and her big mouth.
Fisting her hands in her lap, Tansy sent a sharp, hopefully
private message to the nosy battle dragons. Keep out of this, both of you.
If I wanted Dev and Rye to know my secrets, I would have told them.
They can’t help you if they remain ignorant.
Tansy ground her teeth together. This is my problem,
Zenbaylan. I’ll fix it in my own time.
Rye reached over, scooping her out of her chair and hauling
her onto his lap. The movement broke her concentration and she fell out of the
link with Zenbaylan, thank goodness. Then Rye snuggled her tight, turning her
so she was facing Dev. His full lips were pressed tight and his eyes narrowed
as he stared at her across the table.
“It that true? Are you afraid to fly?”
“Yes.” Just one more freaky failure to add to her list. She
tried to wriggle off Rye’s lap, but he simply tightened his arm, squeezing her
until she stopped moving. Giving up with bad grace, she slumped against him and
tried to prepare herself for the fallout.
Dev leaned forward, propping his arms on the table. “I know
you were frightened the night we rescued you, but I thought that was because of
the ordeal you’d been through. If you’re scared to fly, how did you manage to
stay calm on the flight home?”
She shrugged. “My captivity was a living hell. I would have
strapped on a pair of wings and flapped myself out of Allsgate if I’d thought
it would work. Plus I was pretty sure I’d just killed a man. I was so
terrorized I was numb and I just didn’t have it in me to be scared once I got
into the air.”
And both Rye and Dev had held her tight. She’d been wrapped
in a blanket, then wrapped in their arms and held firm against their hard,
strong bodies. Relief at being safe and free had overtaken every other emotion.
Rye rubbed her back
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