Page 8 of Ransomed to the World
From the center of the winning circle.
Just in time to lunge out of the way and barely avoid being plowed into by Xander, Mason, and Edgar as they battled for first place. Logan and Camden were only a second behind. Magic tugged at the air, white light shimmering around Logan, the scent of winter wrapping around her as he slowly took his human form.
Completely naked.
“You cheated!” He leaned over, panting.
Annora crossed her arms and hiked up her chin, bracing against the inevitable reprimand for using her abilities. “How can I cheat if you didn’t set any rules?”
Then she got distracted, her sole focus very much on Logan’s lack of clothing. She struggled to give him some privacy and keep her gaze above his waist, but she couldn’t stop gawking.
He had his nipples pierced.
“Like what you see?” He straightened and stretched, then wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.
Only to have Mason step in front of him, completely blocking the fox with his bulky shoulders. “Put some clothes on. No one wants to see that shit.”
I don’t mind.
Annora bit her tongue to keep from saying it out loud.
She must have done a piss-poor job of keeping her expression blank, because the guys just chuckled.
Chapter Three
“Since you reached the top first, you get to declare the winner.” Loulou all but bounced around Annora in her excitement. Though she looked a little wilted around the edges, her eyes still sparkled like this was some grand adventure. “Who are you going to choose?”
Annora didn’t have a fucking clue.
They had each laid claim to a piece of her heart.
But if they were going to make this relationship work, she needed to figure out a way to spend time alone with each of them. Prem rested along her neck, rubbing his face along her jaw to comfort her.
“I’ll let you know as soon as I figure it out.” Annora gave her friend a small smile and scratched Prem behind the ears.
Loulou rested a hand on her arm, her face serious for once. “There is no wrong choice. They love you. Any of them would be honored to be your date tonight.”
Her throat tightened, a rush of emotions making speaking impossible, so she just nodded to her friend.
About an hour before sunset, they headed toward a clearing near the top of one of the switchbacks, one of the few places large enough for all of them to fit. They had almost a whole day of hiking tomorrow to reach their destination, and unease skated down her spine.
Troll territory.
Mason had yet to tell her what she needed to do to claim him, and she suspected it wasn’t going to be as easy as he seemed to think.
They weren’t going to let him go without a fight.
As they came to a stop at their impromptu camp, Willa staggered to a halt next to her, looking like she’d been hauled through the brambles.
Backwards.
“Don’t say a fucking word,” she snarled. The witch yanked a few stubborn burrs out of her hair and shuddered. “I hate nature.” She stomped away, then paused to call over her shoulder. “Training begins in ten minutes.”
Annora wisely kept her mouth shut. As the guys began to set up camp, they shooed her away, leaving her no excuse to avoid her lessons with Willa.
Accepting her fate, she peeled Prem off her neck. The sleepy ferret grumbled as she set him on the ground, then gave a lazy stretch and ambled off to investigate the campground.
“Come, you can help me collect firewood.” Edgar nudged her in the opposite direction.
