Page 47 of The Monster at the End of This Courtship

"It hasn't even been a week!" I covered my mouth with both hands this time, more embarrassed by my verbal vomit than I had been about the actual stuff.

"Nobody knows the timing on this." Kolge, who was sitting beside me, patted my shoulder. "Like your schedule, we won't know the real impacts until we put it into action."

"The dragon said they know of a midwife in another village," Benz said. "Maybe they'll know more about sunlight's influence on kobold pregnancies."

"Ever since we learned about the other villages, I've wanted to see one," Kolge admitted, looking down at the table as though he was embarrassed to share with us.

I started to say Weld might leave for another village soon, but I didn't want to blab if he considered it a secret. I pulled out my phone while Kolge and Benz imagined differences between our village and the others.

"What if there are more females?" Benz wondered.

"My assistant is talking about visiting other villages. Can I share your news with him?"

"I don't have news yet,"Weld reminded me."I haven't bonded with a dragonet. Who is your assistant?"

"A beta named Kolge."

"I know him. I'll talk to him when I know I'm going."

I stopped short of telling him I didn't want him to go alone. He would have his dragonet companion, and maybe I was being presumptuous, but I had assumed Mac and Galen the dragon would go with him.

Instead, I texted him,"Have a good weekend."

Satisfied I'd done the best I could, I slipped my phone back into my pocket to find both betas staring at me.

"What did I miss?"

"Where is your hunky alpha mate?" Benz asked. "Herb's texting me to see if I know." Herb was Benz's roommate who worked construction with Axel.

"He's not at work?" I tried to call him, and his phone immediately went to voicemail. He never turned it off, so thatcould mean only one thing. He was out of range. "He's left Ignitas."

My heart fell into a pit in my stomach. Axel left without telling me. He went back to Earth, after all.

Chapter 20

Axel

"You'll need several of these." Lark piled throw pillows of all shapes and sizes into my cart, not caring if they matched. I thought Tuft would mind if we brought him a vanload of mismatched bedding, but Lark said he had a plan for that, too.

The next aisle over, he cheered when we reached the pillowcases, coverlets, and duvet covers. "What is Tuft's favorite color?" Lark asked.

"All of them." I grinned. "The more color the better, but it's got to have some kind of pattern, or he's going to think I'm the worst mate in the world."

"Nah. He was already mated to Weld." Lark met my gaze with a guilty look and let out a long sigh. "I'm sorry. He's growing on me, but we'll never be besties."

"I get it. I would still be mad if someone put an unnecessary notch in my ear, too."

Lark shook his head. "He got on my nerves for more than that, and then … Weld and Tuft knew they weren't mated. I don't understand why they tried."

"They didn't know what you and Punky knew, that the eggs would thrive in sunlight."

"We didn't know that, either," Lark admitted. "We took a chance. Punky did, I should say, and I went along with him because I would do anything for him."

"I would do anything for Tuft, too." I pointed at the shelf Lark was blocking from my view. "Do they have any rainbow designs?"

They had rainbows and unicorns, both an absolute must for my mate. I bought the store out, including a couch cover that would fit over my threadbare pullout and a cute Ottoman shaped like a giant pink ball of cotton candy.

"On to the hardware store," Lark said once I'd paid for everything and packed it into the back of the van for safekeeping. As Lark shut the doors, I noticed the bindings of the spell around Odessa. I hadn't noticed them when I'd ridden with Lark before, probably because I didn't have my own magic yet. Now, it was clear to see both the dire weasel and the cargo van, but I was missing a key component.

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