Page 58 of Ren: Warlord Brides
“My ego.” She placed a dramatic hand over her chest. “I was a badass with the plasma flare.”
“You were adorable.” He recalled how her hands had shaken when she pointed the plasma flare at him even as her voice remained steady.
“I was a badass! Admit I was a badass, Ivon Ren.” She playfully hit his arm, all maudlin sentiments now vanished.
Her hand moved again for another swat. He caught her wrist with ease, holding her in place. Their eyes met. Her pulse fluttered under his thumb. The moment stretched out between them.
She looked away. A gentle finger under the chin turned her gaze back to his.
“I intend to fix this,” he said.
Her eyes went wide. Brown with flecks of tawny gold in this light. Lovely. “Okay,” she said.
“Yes?”
“Yes.”
Chapter 13
Emry
So much for cuddling in the afterglow.
Still, actually talking like adults and resolving problems? Win. And tracking her sister? This was better than cuddling.
Emry followed Ren to a command terminal just outside the helm. He plugged the tablet in and Gemma’s last message played on a large screen.
“What about your mission? I mean, why were you investigating Pashaal? Can you just drop that?”
Ren shrugged.
Actually shrugged.
“Locating your Gemma is more important.”
Oh.
Oh.
She pressed a hand to her chest. What was that? Her knees felt weak and her head dizzy. This was a swoon. An honest-to-goodness swoon.
Strong arms held her upright. “Are you well?”
“Never better.”
“Incorrect. Your coloring is odd. Are you cold? You are cold. Havik insists that his mate is too warm, but the temperature is barely tolerable.”
“I’m not cold.”
He narrowed his eyes, disbelieving her.
“Honest. I was just, you know, moved that you said Gemma is important.” And now emotions bubbled up in her, threatening to be tears. “Sorry. It just hit me harder than I expected. Everyone’s told me no or that she wasn’t important enough to risk an investigation—”
“Pashaal told you this?”
“How did you… Never mind. Yes. I guess she knows she’s under scrutiny.” She rested a hand on his arm. Her smile felt easy and natural, not at all concerned about how the scarring pulled at her lips. Ren must have liked the look of it because he grinned back, tusks and all.
Ugh. This was getting too sappy.
