20. Alandra

Aerolus and I stood in the kitchen over the center island, sipping coffee and making plans as if the day was like any other in Seattle.

For a moment, I wished it were. How novel to imagine we were a simple human couple preparing for a day's work and chatting about mundane matters. Groceries, errands, who would cook dinner, what we would do that night.

The notion felt both odd and strangely delightful.

Aerolus watched me.

"What?" I hoped I hadn't been obvious in my daydreaming.

"Is it me, or is your glow completely gone? You look three inches taller too."

I'd toned down my skin's brilliance in hopes of fitting in with the inhabitants of this world. But the height stemmed from Aerolus' energy in bed. Now standing, I could stare at his throat instead of the middle of his chest, as if his magic made us a better fit.

"I'm taller." Whirling around on a pair of black leather boots, I posed for him. "Do you like them? They're really me, aren't they?"

"Where did they come from?" He looked puzzled. "I set out a pair of jeans, sneakers and a sweater for you on the bed."

I rolled my eyes. "Thanks for conjuring me some of the ugliest clothes a woman could possibly wear. I just did a little fiddling."

He scowled, surprising me. More and more, he lost his control around me, showing me what he felt instead of masking his feelings. I loved his temper especially.

Storm Lords were an intimidating lot, and Aerolus' gray eyes sizzled like lightning when he grew annoyed…like now.

"Change back."

"What?"

"I like the way you look. The real you. Now change back."

I grumbled to hide the smile that threatened to spill. Imagine that. Aerolus Storm liked the way I looked, short stature and all. With a shimmer, I reverted to myself, including those ugly clothes.

"Well, here I am, in all my off-the-rack glory."

He sighed but lost the scowl. After planting a quick kiss on top of my head, he stepped back and drained the rest of his coffee. "Purie, I forgot something. Wait right here and I'll be back."

With a silent stealth I admired, he flashed out of sight.

The Mir stone made a popping noise when we Aellei teleported. At the thought, I frowned, reminding myself to demand he return my charm. Without it, I couldn't skip worlds at all.

"Must be nice to have teleportation at the tips of your fingers. Control freak."

"I heard that," he whispered in my ear and nuzzled my cheek, half scaring me to death. "And no, you can't have your charm back until I'm sure."

"Sure?" I breathed, clutching my chest.

"Sure that you won't leave until we have a real talk," he said quietly. "About us."

An undercurrent of unease rumbled through me, a feeling not unlike that I'd experienced when the wraith had invaded. Thank the Shadow.

I didn't want to hear all the reasons why we'd never work as a couple. Talking about it would only depress me.

I shuddered, pulled by a feeling of doom. "Something's coming."

Without hesitation, he thrust me behind him and erected a shield of frothing wind.

"I can't see," I complained.

"Alandra," he growled. "Stop being a pain in the ass and stay back."

He totally turned me on when he acted mean. Especially because Aerolus was always so nice. "Pain in your ass? I bet you wouldn't say that to your affai, now would you?"

Silence met my taunt, and I wanted to kick myself for blurting what I'd been trying to avoid. Wasn't it enough that I'd been dwelling on his affai all night? So what that we didn't have a future? We had right now. Reminders Aerolus had an unknown bride waiting for him somewhere weren't conducive to hot, heavy sex.

He held up his hand. "Not another word."

Thankfully — how desperate am I to view a threatening intrusion as a thankful delay? — a dark void appeared on the far wall of the living room. Keeping the kitchen island and the wall of wind between us, Aerolus pressed me back until only the dishwasher stood between me and the wall.

"Aerolus, I can't breathe," I huffed, only slightly appeased when he gave me half an inch.

Peering to his side, I watched Arim step through the black hole in the wall, followed closely by two more Storm brothers. They looked hearty and healthy. And intimidating as all get-out.

I swallowed, nervous. Though the brothers looked fierce, Arim looked as if he'd fought the hounds of the Next and survived as the victor.

Tanselm's legendary sorcerer had blue marks of the Dark upon his cheeks, burn holes in his tattered clothing, and blood streaking his forehead. His hair was mussed, clumps of black strands stuck to the dried blood on his face. But his eyes.

Shadow's Bend. His eyes swirled with color, the way they had when he'd attacked me.

I clung like a burr to Aerolus' back. I knew Arim wouldn't harm his nephew, but my last interaction with the Killer of Shadow had been near deadly.

An additional worry filled me with fear. What if he'd somehow learned what I hadn't yet told Aerolus?

"I take it your brother hasn't returned?" Arim asked, his voice echoing throughout the room.

I felt Aerolus tense, but his shield remained strong. "No, he hasn't."

I peeked around him. Arim stared. Behind him, Darius and Marcus — I could tell them by their eye color — exchanged long, thoughtful looks.

Arim sounded tired when he said, "You can release your shield, Aerolus. I'm not going to hurt her."

"Not until you calm down." Aerolus spoke soothingly, using his wind magic to stir warmth throughout the room. Pressed against him and sharing his power, I could feel his magic touching the cold on Arim's face and healing the ravages of Dark violence.

"Good. Heal him," Darius growled. Always so hot-tempered, his red eyes burning like flame. "He wouldn't let us help him. So how's it going, Aerolus? I see you have a woman with you."

Marcus grinned. "It's a miracle, truly."

Darius nodded. "Gotta watch the quiet ones."

"Enough, you two," Arim snapped. "I'm calm."

"You don't sound calm," Darius muttered but said nothing more when Arim glared at him.

"Lower the shield." Arim did sound upset, though his eyes returned to their normal black.

Aerolus waved his hand, and the air in the room settled. "What happened, Uncle?"

"Uncle?" I stepped around Aerolus and stared in shock from him and his brothers to Arim, seeing for the first time what had always been there. "It's not just an affectation. He really is your uncle. Wow. It's obvious now that I see you all together. I can't believe I observed you for so long and never realized."

"Your attention to detail is lacking," Aerolus teased.

"Oh, really?" He couldn't have forgotten what we'd been up to earlier.

He flushed. Ah-dor-able. Maybe I would keep him after all. Affai or not, right now he belonged to me.

Darius elbowed Marcus, who promptly told him to grow up.

Arim rubbed the back of his neck. "I appear to be the only one concerned about Cadmus. Will you three shut up and listen?"

"Don't you mean four?" I added, trying to be helpful.

The brothers chuckled, and Aerolus placed an arm around my shoulders, hugging me tight. I wasn't sure how I felt about that. Arim stared with speculation. I wondered if he planned to share one of those "Don't buy the bee if you can get the honey for free" references with Aerolus.

Sava liked to tell me that to make me play hard to get with eager Der warriors at home. Apparently, more than a few had bugged him about marrying me. But Arim didn't need to worry. I had no intention of trying to lure a Storm Lord into marriage.

As soon as the thought surfaced, the intrigue and trickery required to make such a thing happen grabbed hold of my mind and refused to let go.

Darius glared at his uncle. "I keep telling him that if Cadmus were hurt, we'd know."

"But can you sense his thoughts?" Arim asked.

"No, and I never could." Darius' eyes blazed, and the coffee cups I and Aerolus had left on the counter suddenly steamed. "Aerolus, you tell him."

"I tried. The Djinn presence in Cadmus' aura is protective. And female. It's odd, but not in the least harmful. He's increased in strength. And if he wasn't so busy feeling sorry for himself, he might sense it."

I nodded absently, scheming at a dizzying rate to trap a royal Storm Lord in matrimony. It would be the coup of a lifetime. Not to mention unspeakably romantic to marry for love, my heart insisted.

"Alandra?" Aerolus asked.

Already giddy at the thought of landing a royal Storm Lord, I glanced up to see three other pairs of eyes on me. I forced a smile and tried to put us all at ease. "Ellie would no more hurt Cadmus than I would harm myself."

The sudden stillness in the room told me I'd said something wrong.

Arim's brows drew close. "We never said the Djinn's name."