Torrent of Tears (Scourge Survivor Series Book 3)(3)
“Big date?”
He tugged at a couple wayward ebony spikes falling in front of my eyes. After a Tham session, my hair was usually unsalvageable. “Sort of. Julian said the package you helped me order from Victoria’s Secrets arrived from the Modern Realm. I mentioned to some of the females that I would bring it to the village tonight.”
“Ooooh, and you’re hoping you get a chance to try some of it out?”
Tham waggled his brows and bent to kiss my cheek. I leaned forward to meet him, but winced when my back knotted. Tham eased me back against the pillows, his eyes narrowing. “Has Jade examined your back? It has been paining you for more than a week now.”
“I’m fine.”
He exhaled, a serious frown marring his hotness. “Mayhap a gentle rubdown with massage oil might ease your discomfort. I shall stay a while longer.”
“Nah, you go. I can’t deprive the Highborne females of their silk and satin experience. Besides, you haven’t seen any good Highborne consort action in ages.”
He chuckled, shrugged on his tunic and then scooped his knife sheath off the bedside table. After raising a bare foot onto the side of the bed, he tied the leather cord of his sheath around his thigh. “Do not worry on my account. The Haven action has been more than enlightening.”
“So, have you decided your type?” I asked.
“My type?” The blue of his eyes lit up the way it always did when he was intrigued.
“Your favorite type of women. After a century of exile, with only fair skinned blonds to choose from, do you prefer them or brunettes, redheads, or raven-haired beauties?”
“Verily, a thorough study of the subject is underway but a preference is yet to be determined.” Tham waggled his brow, capturing his long, blond waves and tying them back to reveal the pointed ears of his race. “Are you certain you are well, Lexi? I am pleased to stay if you need me.”
Yes. “No. I’m fine. Really.” I sat straighter and ignored the ache gripping my shoulder blades and gouging down my spine. “You go. Julian will be closing the Gatehouse soon and you want to be on the other side of the mirror when he does.”
Tham strode into the bathroom, rifled through my medicine chest and came back with two tablets and a glass of water. The heavy-duty muscle relaxants were the ones I saved for the times Savage knocked the crap out of me in training sessions. As I reached up to accept them, he pulled back and waited until I gave him my full attention. “Speak to Jade. Tell her you suffer, Lexi, or I shall be forced to break confidence for your own good.”
I waved him away as I popped the tablets into my mouth. Tham was such a great guy. With a thumbs up from me, he nodded and the door clicked shut behind him. The battle I was waging with my composure crumbled.
Stronger than before, white-hot claws dug at the inside of my skin like an alien trying to break free. What the hell was wrong with me?
CHAPTER TWO
The night had been brutal but rested or not there was no way I could ditch my classes two days in a row. Reign was busy with the latest Scourge uprising yet somehow, he always knew what happened within the castle. If I bagged my duties again, he’d be on me like a shark on tuna. It went without saying . . . it sucked to be the tuna in that scenario.
“Yo, Lexi.”
I scanned the ebbing sea of students behind me to see Nash’s purple Mohawk cutting the air as he made his way up the hall. I backed against the stone of the castle and let the current of traffic flow by until he caught up. “Hey Nash, what’s doin’?”
His winning smile crinkled the crescent, tribal tattoo encircling his eye. “I was at the Gatehouse this morning picking up some stuff for the Talon when a few of your deliveries came through. Going big for your b-day, eh?”
I nodded, and the two of us resumed the walk toward the weapons wing. “A leap-year baby only gets an actual birthday every four years. I like to celebrate.”
“Well, Julian wasn’t too thrilled about the boxes piling up in his space. He said if I saw you today, I should tell you to send some strong young students to pick them up.”
I snorted at Nash’s diplomacy. He was more than just an extraordinary graduate student and Talon squire. Since Mika got Samuel blown up and blinded six months ago, Nash had been promoted and was quickly becoming the best wizard the Talon had. “That’s what Julian meant, but it probably sounded more like, ‘My Gatehouse is not her personal warehouse. Tell my little sister to get her spoiled ass over here and get this party shit the fuck out of my way.”
Nash laughed. “That sounds remarkably familiar.”
“No problem, I’ll send someone.” We walked together, chatting about nothing in particular as we wound our way up the circular stairs to the third-floor landing. I drew a labored breath. The slow, steady ascension aggravated the muscles in my back.
“Lexi, you okay?”
Though I wasn’t one to gripe about the aches and pains of being a warrior, I confessed that the pain in my back was just about crippling me.
He hesitated for a moment, then leaned down and whispered close to my ear. “I’ve got Haze if you need it.”
A few of my fellow warriors smoked Golden Haze behind closed doors to take the edge off. Though it wasn’t illegal, Talon Enforcers were held to high standards. Reign would flip. He’d actually kicked a few warriors off rotation for dosing too often.