Page 43 of Moonlight and Mischief
He sighs, turning his head back and staring at the ceiling. “No, but it’s her choice. It’s a two way street. And to be realistic, she’d probably try to gut me given the chance.”
“That serious?” I ask, my brows furrowing.
“That’s just a Tuesday for Ember,” he says, fondness in his voice.
“How did you turn out so normal?” I joke.
He sits up, one eyebrow raised in challenge. “Maybe I’m not that normal, after all.”
“Normal is overrated,” I mutter, climbing to my feet. The dripping has mostly stopped, and I’m ready for a fresh set of clothes.
JASPER
The week slips by, a blur of planning and training drills. Slate takes his anxiety out on all of us during training, and Fisher is ecstatic to let us sweat.
Friday is the worst. Setting up tables and chairs on a remote corner of our territory is not a pleasant task. But the entire team pulls together and we get the job done. Once it’s finished, I’m covered in dirt and sweat. We hike back as humans. Everyone is getting hungry and hungry wolves are usually grumpy.
Brushing my hands together, I cross the clearing back toward home. If I hurry, I should have enough time to shower before dinner.
Marigold’s voice filters around the training building, and I can’t help but detour. Coming around the back of the building, my feet slow when I see her. Her glorious hair is pulled into a high ponytail and her hands grip a crossbow. She looks like a warrior goddess.
Cassia, Fern, and Hazel watch her, giving out tips and encouragement. Cassia and Fern are both accomplished fighters, and Hazel has taken to the training like she’s been here her entire life. I couldn’t have put together a better group for Marigold to train with.
With a vicious grin, Marigold levels the barrel of the crossbow at the plywood target. Narrowing her eyes, she fires. The arrow embeds dead center. Pride wells in my chest.
She resets and shoots again, another perfect shot. After the third time, I realize she’s more than proficient, she’s incredible with a crossbow. It’s wildly sexy and terrifying at the same time.
Cassia, Fern, and Hazel all whoop and cheer her on, covering up the sounds of my approach.
Marigold hops on the balls of her feet, looking pleased with herself. As she turns toward her friends, she catches sight of me. The last thing I want is to interrupt her training, so I simply raise an eyebrow and smirk.
As I’m turning away, Fern spots me. “Jasper, come see if you can challenge Marigold. None of the rest of us can best her.”
Marigold’s smile is apologetic. “He spent the whole day setting up for the counsel tomorrow. I’m sure he doesn’t want to.”
“Are you scared to go up against me?” I dare.
“You’re going to regret that,” Hazel says with a dark laugh.
Marigold loads the crossbow and hands it over. “Are you familiar with this style?”
“Yeah, it looks about the same,” I murmur, brushing her hand with mine before she steps back, looking expectant.
With a slow breath, I level the muzzle at the target, already a pincushion for her bolts. One more breath, focus on steadying my hands, and I shoot.
It hits the target on the outside edge. But at least it doesn’t fly off into the trees.
“That was really good,” Marigold says. If I didn’t know her so well, I wouldn’t catch the patronizing undertones.
“Thank you,” I say, stepping closer than necessary to hand the weapon back. She reloads and with practiced motions, shoots a bolt within a millimeter of mine.
“Show off,” I huff. She grins, warmth and sunshine flooding my blood, and the embarrassment is entirely worth it.
“Go relax. I’ll stop by before it’s time for dinner,” she says quietly. The sudden urge to kiss her, maybe on the forehead, pushes me a half-step forward before I catch myself.
She’s already passing the crossbow off to Hazel and giving her tips as I stiffly walk away.
After my shower, I come out of my bedroom in clean clothes with my hair still damp. Marigold sits on the sofa with her feet tucked up. It looks like she’s waiting for me.
