stop it.” She wasn’t even going to go into how the feeling made the magic in her rise and the trouble that caused.
“How do you deal with Colm and Linc then? There are two of them and you can’t choose one or the other.” Zinnia’s head tilted and she straightened.
“They’ve been good about giving me time and space. Most of the time, they’re on one side of me or they keep a step or two away so that I don’t get panicked.” Cami really appreciated that and until this moment, she hadn’t thought about how much they made allowances for her fears and her needs.
Zinnia’s eyes widened. “They’re serious about you. More serious than I’d thought even from hearing they chased after you. I guess you’ve learned enough about Colm to realize that that’s a very significant thing.”
She knew they were serious, but she hadn’t thought much about what Colm’s reactions would be if he wasn’t. She’d been so focused on the fact that she knew he was reluctant to find and mate with his true mate. As to the significance of them making allowances for her issues with being crowded, she wasn’t so sure of that.
Colm might be brash, but he also had a protective streak. She thought it was part of the reason why he was Ardin. He’d be concerned and considerate of anyone who he considered weak or hurt. It irked, but she was almost certain that they did see her as at least fragile, if only emotionally. In the end, though, she couldn’t blame them for that. She did have some problems and was still trying to get her feet under her in ways.
“I know they’re focused, but I think that’s more of a character trait for them.” She shrugged.
“You think that our focus on you isn’t significant?” Colm’s voice came from the doorway.
Cami jumped and her heart raced. Her head snapped around to the bedroom doorway. Colm leaned against the frame of the door and Linc stood just in the hall. Her eyes narrowed and she fought not to grit her teeth or growl. That habit of theirs of popping up when she was talking about them made her want to scream.
“You two need a bell. I’m getting sick of you creeping up on me and startling me.” She put a hand on her hip even as she tried to keep the growl out of her voice. It wasn’t only them, but they happened to be the focus of her current aggravation.
“We wouldn’t hear so many interesting things. I think a bell tinkling would be annoying. I’d definitely have to take it off.” Linc smiled and hooked a thumb in his belt.
“Even if you are Ardin of this Thent, eavesdropping is still impolite.” She didn’t expect some kind of behavioral change from this argument. They were who they were, but she wanted them aware of how she felt about it.
Colm shrugged. “We were coming to get you. Listening to what you had to say just happened to be one of the good things that came out of doing that.”
“Came to get me for what? We don’t have anything planned.” She folded her arms across her chest.
“Well, we didn’t, but we’re going to talk.” Linc held out his hand. “Now.”
“I don’t want to talk now.” She threw the words out there and she knew it was a challenge in a way. She didn’t know what they’d do, but she was ready to find out. If she was lucky, they might not want to push her because they didn’t want her afraid of them.
“You are in a mood, aren’t you? You can walk beside us or one of us can pick you up and carry you. Do you want to find out now how you’ll handle being hauled through the fortress when you normally don’t like being confined at all?” Colm straightened.
“You two can’t even think about compromise. It’s no wonder that I detest men with power.” Her jaw ached and she wondered if she was going to grind her back teeth to nothing with those two around.
He’d do what he threatened. She knew it by the look in his eyes. She definitely didn’t want to be hauled through the halls. Not so much because she thought she’d panic if he held her, although she did wonder if she would. She knew that being in his arms would only make the attraction to him worse. She’d want to touch and put her arms around him. She needed