leg.
“This looks interesting,” a familiar voice said. “We call dibs on playing the winners.”
I arched my neck to look up at Eras and the mermaids with him.
“Unusual company you’re keeping,” Fenris commented. “What happened to your muscle?”
“He got bigger muscle,” one of the girls said as she flashed a toothy grin.
Any fun I’d managed to have disappeared quickly. The next three spins proved too much for Willow, and she collapsed with a grunt.
“About time,” Eras said. “Janette and Miranda. You go first.”
Willow gave me an apologetic glance as she moved off the mat.
“Actually, I think I could use a break,” I said. “You’re welcome to the mat, Eras. Since you’re so enthusiastic about the game, I’m sure you and River wouldn’t mind facing off with Janette and Miranda.”
He smirked at me.
“If you want to back out, that’s fine. But, from the looks of things, your chew toy isn’t ready to stop playing.”
I glanced at Fenris then did a double-take. His easy-going smile was firmly in place, but there was something in his eyes I’d never seen before. An anger that had me backing away a step. Or at least, I tried to. His arm snaked around my waist and pulled me closer, and the glint I’d witnessed quickly disappeared.
“It’s up to Eliana,” Fenris said smoothly.
Eras’s gaze locked with mine. “Are you a runner or a fighter?”
I snorted. “A runner. I’ve been telling you that all along.”
“There you have it,” Fenris said. “Have fun playing Twister with the fish. Clean any water off the mat when you’re done.”
He turned me and walked us away. I could feel the other girls at our backs as we wandered the room and paused to watch the precarious end to the tower game. The blocks toppled to the ground with a resounding crash.
“Mind if we go next?” Willow asked.
We’d only managed a few rounds before someone walked past me, and something sharp scored the back of my arm. I hissed in pain and grabbed the spot that stung.
“What’s wrong?” Fenris sniffed then added, “Do I smell blood?”
I lifted my hand to look at my palm. Sure enough, I was bleeding.
“Something wrong, Eliana?” Eras asked from behind me.
My eyes went black, and I slowly turned toward Eras. Around us, the games continued.
“Oh, there will be. Who cut me? You or one of the fin-folk?” My gaze shifted briefly to the girls behind him.
“You’re cut? Oh no. Why would someone do something like that? Fenris, you have a good nose; why don’t you see who did it?”
I could feel his heat at my back as he set his hands on my shoulders.
“What game are you playing, Eras?” he asked.
Era’s smile widened.
“All of them. It’s Game Night, isn’t it?”
“Why would you want Janette to cut Eliana?”
My gaze shifted to the mermaid. She hissed at me while Miranda and River grinned.
“Tell Megan we say, ‘Hi.’ She knows where to find us,” Miranda said.
“You won’t stand a chance against her.”
“Funny thing about mindwiping,” Eras said. “It doesn’t always clean the slate. People talk. Pieces are put together. Some of us are even smart enough to keep diaries now with all the people forgetting things.” He stepped closer. “The druids won’t save you. Megan’s coming back, and when she does, I don’t think it’ll be the mermaids she goes for first. Do you?”
Fear and anger made a dangerous mix in a succubus.
“And do you really think that I’m going to go whining to Megan after you monologued your whole pathetic plan for revenge?”
“She’ll come back on her own when you stop answering her.”
“Have fun with that cut,” Janette said. “They’re always prettiest when they turn green.”
The group left as a wave of dizziness washed over me. The back of my arm throbbed like I’d been hit with an ax.
“How bad did she cut me?”
“It’s not deep,” Jenna said, “and it’s barely bleeding. A scratch, maybe three inches long. Sorry she wrecked your shirt.”
Mermaid scratches, no matter what the size, weren’t anything to mess around with. I reached into my pocket and sent a quick text to Mom.
Me: What will a mermaid scratch do to me?
Mom: Well-fed, nothing. Are you hurt?
Me: Yes. And annoyed.
Mom: The annoyance will get worse…I’m sending Adira to you.
I groaned and showed the message to the girls since Fenris had been reading over my shoulder.
“There goes Game Night,” Jenna said with a sigh.
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault,” Willow said. “There are always people out there who will wreck a good time for everyone else just because they need